TOTP 80.17 24/04/80

BBCFour repeat here.
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.

TOTP 80.9 28/02/1980

Shown on BBCFour as from 19.03.2015

Full chart here

Well with all that Winter Olympics nonsense over, we're back on a Thursday night after Tomorrow's World, with the full 40 mins. worth of fun. Take it away Kid...

Jefferson Starship - Jane
Didn't we have this a couple of weeks ago as chart rundown music? (checks database) ..yes indeed! Three weeks ago when it was at no. 30, and now it's gone all the way up to no. 21. It's going to be a long night.

Elvis Costello & The Attractions - I Can't Stand Up For Falling Down
First 'live' act tonight and it's a bouncy new-wave one which you may recall stormed into the charts at no. 17 a couple of weeks ago and was now at no. 5. Costello is doing his best to look 'cool' by appearing indifferent and un-bouncy but ends up looking like he doesn't give a monkey's. Which may well have been the case.

Marti Webb - Take That Look Off Your Face
Another one from two weeks ago and indeed a repeat of her glacial debut performance with the TOTP orchestra. Gary Numan and John Foxx stand aside - Marti was a chilling female automaton no mistake. "..you didn't sleep good last night.." still grates on me after all these years: one sleeps well, Marti, one doesn't sleep good.

The Vapors - Turning Japanese
It's the bouncy new-wave newcomers slot and this one quite rightly became quite a classic of its genre. Mimed studio performance interlaced with random 'Japanese' images which of course have nothing at all to do with masturbating in prison, which is what the song is actually about. Not that they never told us that at the time. Did Mike Read know?

Michael Jackson - Rock With You
..which is apparently all he wants to do according to 'Kid'. The camera pans right to give a faux-live in the studio effect, but we're not fooled. The BBC could never afford all those laser beams. Here's Jacko kicking off a rather bizarre disco-themed triptych. The single had indeed gone Top 10 although wouldn't go any higher than this.

Liquid Gold - Dance Yourself Dizzy
And from the sublime to the ridiculous. Kid takes into the tacky world of Brit-disco with a glass of ..something, and lead singer duly shows she's partial to a tipple pre-performance, if only for the sake of being to appear to be having a good time. Her co-members are equally as annoying, especially the bare chested (and almost bare everything else-ed) "drummer". This will of course be a huge hit.

Gibson Brothers - Cuba
Staying in the disco-dance theme here are the brothers Gibson (not be confused with the Brothers Gibb) who have chosen a missile crisis as the subject of this cheery number. Legs & Co. have also decided they'd like to celebrate US sanctions by joining along with the band on stage - a TOTP first?
According to Official Charts the song is having its second chance at chart success, after failing to set the nation alight last year. Lucky us.

Peter Gabriel - Games Without Frontiers
oooh! Art-rock! Weird visuals! and (at last) the real sound of the eighties? Gabriel had already gone Top 20 with this which did in fact get his post-Genesis solo career rolling, after the false start with Solisbury Hill a few years back. Could be huge. Mike Reid possibly not playing it though cos it mentions the word 'willy'.

Stiff Little Fingers - At the Edge
Punk-rock time and da Fingers seem angrier than ever. One wonders if Liquid Gold hadn't been the more anarchic of the two though.

Dave Edmunds - I Never Felt More Like Singing the Blues
Better calm down a bit..and we never felt more like going and put the kettle on before time.

The Police - So Lonely
An odd choice for Legs & Co. who had already had a turn with the Gibson Bros. The Police were obviously already at superstar status such that they didn't need to come on TOTP especially considering this was a single which had been dug up from their back catalogue and re-released on the back of previous success Walking on the Moon. Another song about masturbation? Who can say...

Rainbow - All Night Long
Well after Dave Edmunds and all that prancing about we'd better have some proper rahck music... and all credit to this lot, they really do look and sound like a rock band should I suppose. Surprisingly enjoyable, unlike.....

The Shadows - Ghost Riders in the Sky
I think this must be the third time this had been featured for Chrissakes and they haven't got any better. In fact it gets a whole lot worse with the drummer and his so-not-plugged-in syndrums placed at the front of stage. Sooo nineteen-seventies dah-ling, Please Lord let them climb no higher in the charts! (prayer answered)

Blondie - Atomic
This rather lacklustre show is saved by Blondie being at number one, albeit featured via the promo-video shown last week too. Mind you in those days TOTP was probably the only occasion you'd get to see such a thing so hurrah!

David Bowie - Alabama Song
More weirdo art-rock! Not exactly the first thing you think of when discussing David Bowie in 1980 with friends and colleagues, but amazingly this track did really well, evidence that anything new Bowie-related was already selling like hotcakes. Apparently this release was merely "to hasten the end of Bowie’s contract with RCA" cit. Wiki, and had already been going around for a bit (full story here). An interesting quirk in (Bowie) chart history nonetheless, even though even better things were just around the corner.

....so show us the way to the next TOTP! What's that? Presented by DLT?  Who's he?

TOTP 80.7 15/02/1980

Repeated on BBCFour as from 05.03.2015
Full chart here

For those reading in 2015 welcome back to TOTP '80 after a week's break, and if you're reading in 1980 then you'll have realised that the Pops wasn't in the usual Thursday slot this week but moved forward a day 'cos of the Winter Olympics, which have just opened.
So anyway, put your skis and padded anoraks away for the moment, and enjoy this week's show, presented by Simon Bates. There's something for everyone tonight, including no less than five cover versions - can you spot them all?

Kool & the Gang  - Too Hot (chart rundown)
Promoted from the "OK, get the kettle on" run-out credits spot a couple of weeks ago, they're now promoted to the "come in, sit down, shurrup, it's on" chart rundown spot. Good work.
Chart notes: The Rats have jumped up to number 4, the Nolans are stable at No. 3, despite all their dancing and romancing in the TOTP studio of late, and there's a new No. 1, more's the pity. TOTP going all out on the 'special' effects with double image for each position. Oooh! Clever!

Matchbox - Buzz Buzz a Diddle It
Well let's get the party started albeit with a blood curdling banshee-like cry from a Matchbox wannabe cowboy. Slow progress for our nutty rockabillies, so someone thought they needed a bit of a boost by placing them in the prime first act on slot. They slipped down again after this no. 22 peak, but they'll be back.

Keith Mitchell - Captain Beaky
And here's the little kids' favourite nice and early so they can go to bed before any lunatic punk rockers come on to traumatise them. This novelty record had already reached no. 5. So much for the punk revolution. Nul points Simon Bates for the 'feathered-friend' co-presenter but top marks for Mitchell for the live vocals and that jacket.

Flying Lizards - T.V.
Oooh! Hang about a bit longer kids, it's the novelty punk/new-wave band slot! Hopes were high after the bizarre yet catchy version of Money last year, and Simes shows us he's really 'with it' by having this as his record of the week. This original composition was nowhere near as good as Money though and didn't even make it into the Top 40, making the Lizards effective one-hit wonders. Nice try, and probably one of the bizzarest TOTP performances ever. Very, very, very ...Dada.

Elvis Costello - I Can't Stand Up For Falling Down
Seasoned new-waver Elvis Costello and his Attractions were straight in at no. 15 this week with htis stomper. It had been almost a year since their smash hit Oliver's Army but this tune was certainly up to that high standard and an excellent taster for his new album Get Happy!! which was also just out. Nice early promo too, possibly filmed on a wet day in South of France. This how to be bizarre and successful - Flying Lizards take note.

Michael Jackson - Rock With You (Legs & Co.)
It's Jacko! No, actually it's only Legs & Co. "as you've never seen them before!". Up from 35 to no. 12, just one place ahead of Cliff Richard whose Carrie possibly gave him inspiration for the future hit Billie Jean - we can but speculate. But back to now, and God knows what Flick Colby had been on this week to have dreamt this one up.

Dave Edmunds - Singing the Blues
Bit of an odd one this bluesy boyo, who had a number 1 hit - I Hear You Knocking - back in 1970, and seems to have lived off the success of that ever since. He did quite well with Girls Talk and Queen of Hearts in 1979 (I challenge you to whistle either of 'em) and this new one would also give him the same medium-sized/mediocre success. As Simes quite rightly points out Nick 'Breaking Glass' Lowe also features on gee-tarr, as does another bloke who looks like Keith Chegwin.

Jon & Vangelis - I Hear You Now
Back to the 'sound of the eighties', or almost. This seems to have been around for ages already. Video features a bloke in a leotard jumping out of a synthesiser. Don't ask. Moving swiftly along..

The Shadows - Riders in the Sky
'Simes' has to remind us that this next group are really famous and successful by showing us a big record in a frame. Again, it was slow progress for Cliff's former mates but amazingly they did get even higher than this week's no. 22 spot. The band are all modern now because they've got four (count 'em) syndrums and even a Moog hidden in the background. It was, alas (snigger), their last top 20, nay 40, hit. I'm not even going to mention what they did next.

Marti Webb - Take That Look Off Your Face
Andrew Lloyd Webber and co were obviously trying to follow up the success of Don't Cry for Me Argentina from Evita, although he would do better with Cats a year or so into the future. A nice enough song though and a good one for wives and girlfriends to shout into the faces of cheating partners. Webb is even more chilling and motionless than John 'Underpass' Foxx a couple of weeks back. Does she even blink? Scarey! Features TOTP orchestra and...tubular bells!

Stiff Little Fingers - At the Edge
It's punk rock time, and this week it's Stiff Little Fingers all the way from Belfast. They were only just bubbling under the Top 40 although someone obviously thought it was time they had their prime time break (at a suitable distance from Capt. Beaky) after being championed by the likes of John Peel. I had this down as being suitably shambolic yet it wasn't really, although compared to Marti Webb even The Wombles would have seemed energetic.

Kenny Rogers - Coward of the County
It's No. 1 but Rogers hasn't even bothered to come to l'il ol' England to go on Top of the Pops and it's that awful live promo film instead. Interestingly that makes it the second no. 1 in a row featured only via a live promo film. As far as I can make out this one isn't about teenage preganancy and contraception though. Not that I've ever listened to it properly.

Ramones - Baby I Love You (credits)
Well at least we're left with a slightly sweeter taste from another kind of American act. It's all been a bit rushed tonight becuase of the Friday slot and you won't be able to discuss it with your mates tomorrow morning either. Tough.

Did you spot all five cover versions? Answers next week!