Full chart here.
Introduced by Steve Wright. A lot of 'repeats' from last week (in the year 2015), but a few interesting new ones too.
Rodney Franklin - The Groove
Straight in at no. 27 (from 70) so this since forgotten number deserved a spin. Apart from one big new entry in the Top Ten the charts aren't terribly exciting this week. Notwithstanding the dullness (and Steve Wright) it's not a bad show.
Smokie - Take Care of My Baby
Oh dear. What are this lot doing here? This the eighties! Very much in the David Essex category of making some kind of 'comeback' after a run of success mid-70s-ish,although this was just about the end, my friends.
Paul McCartney - Coming Up
And here is that exciting new song of the week, featuring a goofy Macca 'n' Linda (last seen in a Christmas mood) in state-of-the-art video montage with all the special effects, which is what you'd expect from a multi-millionaire who still feels it fit to churn out pop songs now and then. This was the first of two singles off upcoming album McCartney II, in which Macca had discovered the synthesiser. Maybe he'd got The Human League in to advise..him. Nice homage to Buddy Holly and Ron Mael too.
The Cure - A Forest
For those interested, "Goth" starts here. This was one of those singles which was milling around in the lower reaches of the cahrts, gets a leg-up on TOTP, doesn't do much and becomes legendary. Robert Smith still with short hair, but looking suitably alienated and angstful, something which hundreds, nay thousands, of groups/singers would imitate. The thing is with A forest is that it never had a decent follow up either although John peel would continue to champion them (see also Siouxsie & the Banshees) til they made it big time.
Elvis Costello - Hi Fidelity
More post-punk/new wave fayre although in a somewhat lighter mood and Mr Costello of course being no alienated and angstful stranger to the the pop charts. Bizarre video (much in the vein of the last one) although oddly though this didn't get any further than this week's no. 30 spot.
Sky - Toccata
New performance from these musos who are obviously still having a good time despite the poor lighting. Now up to no. 11 but could do better... Not sure about Steve Wright's jerky hand movement between this and the next one, but there you go.
Sad Café - My Oh My
Super special effects to introduce this one, which still remains dull and is inexplicably up to no. 14 already.
Cockney Rejects - Cockney Rip-Off
With poor faux-Cockney accent intro, of course. A bit of a mad thrash but at least they liven the place up a a bit. But what's with the scarf tied to the guitar neck Bay City Roller style mate? A bit anarchic but so it should be. i wonder if they met Sky for a drink after?
Bobby Thurston - Check Out the Groove
..or even went out clubbing with the Legs? the mind boggles, as indeed ido the eyes as the girls doing a bit of what was effectively even then old school disco-style 'strutting' in their knickers! Plenty of low lying camera shots too. Phew! Calm down a bit...
Bad Manners - Ne Ne Na Na Nu Nu
But no! Don't sit down just yet folks as it's time for this lot! Actually since the panting and heaving Legs gathered round Wright for the introduction they might as well have stayed on and joined in. Sadly this is not the case and we get the big fat sweaty bloke and his pals instead. This was their first hit, so I imagine that, as with The Cure, this was their TOTP debut.
David Essex - Silver Dream Machine
Second time for Essex and his new song/new movie plug. Doing well in the Top 10, although that was perhaps not the case for said film at the box offices.
The Undertones - My Perfect Cousin
Is it me or does this show seem to be going on for like forever? Anyway here's another repeat of the la's from 'Derry (or somewhere like that). Just noticed that the drums sound a bit like the ones on A Forest. Is there any link? Answers on a postcard...
Johnnie Logan - What's Another Year
Oh God. What's this? Eurovision winner? Rubbish! It's not even in the charts! But Logan did indeed win the contest in The Hague on the 20th of the month with a massive 143 points so obviously he's got some kind of automatic qualification for the Pops. This show was long enough already but the "wait" for Blondie is made even more agonizing!
Blondie - Call Me
And here they are! No they aren't! Wright very unceremoniously announces the new number one and indeed Blondie's second in a matter of weeks. In fact it's obviously all been a bit too quick for them too as they haven't even got a proper video together. So what we get is even more of a movie-plug than David Essex's thing, and indeed more of Richard Gere than Debbie Harry. The film was of course American Gigolo and effectively launched Gere as a Hollywood superstar (probably because he bared his arse to the camera). Back to the song, it was written by Harry and the legendary Giorgio Moroder, although Wright doesn't mention any of this and just plugs his radio show instead.
Dexy's Midnight Runners - Geno
This had rocketed up to no. 2 from no. 12, so Blondie 'n' Moroder beware!
Be back in two weeks. T'ra.
