TOTP 80.42 18/12/80

First shown 18th December 1980*
Repeated on BBCFour from 10/12/2015
Presented by Simon Bates
Full chart here

*wee note: I've chosen the exact original date in 2015 to publish this post.

Bates is back and will do us the honours for this, the last 2015-repeated TOTP80. Over to you Symes...

Wow! Quite a party going on here, funny hats and Stray Cats in the background...


The Beat - Too Nice to Talk To
It's been a great year for The Beat, now having had four hit singles (five if we include tears of a Clown from late last year) and a cracking album which remained top 30 for five months. Alas it seems as if the magic was over with this last one as they are swept away with the new-new wave in '81. Perhaps the Soviet soldier-chic was a bad move?

St. Winifred's School Choir - There's No-One Quite Like Grandma
Stuck at no. 2 having been somewhat cheated out of the top spot by the cruel hand of fate. All is not lost however, not for the wee clones at least. Symes must have a niece or nephew or something at St. Winifred's as he clings on to the fact that it might still get to no. 1 for Christmas and yah boo sucks to John Lennon.

The Barron Knights - Never Mind the Presents
Funny hat back on Symes and since this is Great Britain so we couldn't have a Christmas without having a 'novelty' 'Christmas record, could we. I remember this lot being quite popular at the time although being more of Monty Python / Not the Nine O'Clock News man myself, I duly poo-pooed their populist humour. In hindsight however their Pink Floyd "we don't need no educayshun" piss-take is actually quite funny.

More japes now with special guests Little and Large....steps back in amazement...

The Specials - Do Nothing
Such was The Specials' hardcore following that they seemed to get hit after hit with almost no effort, and little radio play, involved. Third single from their 'lounge' influenced More Specials album, which was surprisingly short-lived Top 30-wise. Nice Christmas jumpers, and more dress sense than The Beat and Little & Large put together. The 'second vocalist' who jumps around doing nothing, not even singing much would later be adopted by

Symes plugs some BBC records, then gets so excited about the next artist he gets the song title wrong and also misguidedly tells us it's 'live'.

Gary Numan - This Wreckage
Talking of hardcore followings, here's another artist who had already become a bit of a cult within the space of just over a year, with mega-selling albums, a handful of top 10 singles, sell-out tours etc. Hard to believe we're only just a year after Cars though as this synth-durge with lyrics about God being dead, and "I leave you" in Japanese and all that is hardly TOTP or even hit-radio material. As you're retiring Gaz, might as well get back to the drawing board. Nice festive 'snowman'-chic jumpsuit though.

Robert Palmer - Looking For Clues
Perhaps it was Numan himself who managed to pull a few strings and get his mate Robert Palmer back on the Pops. Palmer recorded a version of Numan's I Dream of Wires for his Clues album: "you scratch my back mate and I'll call someone at the BBC...". Symes reminds us that PAlmer's last single wasn't "a massive hit" and thereby puts the jinx on this one too: stuck at no. 33, the third of five weeks in that hallowed chart position.

Symes reminds us that Christmas Day is coming up next Thursday (who knew??) and that the Pops will be on at 2 pm and not in the usual slot, so that makes a change.

Chart rundown 30-18.


Chas & Dave - Rabbit
The first appearance of the cheeky Cockney duo since '79's hit Gertcha (Cockney rhyming slang for 'gertcha') and now they're back with this song about some lady friend and her 'rabbiting' ie. the art of catching rabbits, which may seem like a strange thing at this time of year. Should've been 'turkeying' perhaps? Unlike Gary Numan, Chas 'n' Dave sing live.

Charts 17-11. Bates is keen to show us what's going up this week. Erm, only Quo & Queen, actually Symes.

The Nolans - Who's Gonna Rock You
In a desperate effort to get some female artists onto the show (despite Chas n Dave's sexist ranting) The Nolans sisters are grabbed by the skin of their teeth at no. 39 and dragged on to brighten the place up a bit and keep the Dads, and indeed The Parents, happy.  Complete with backing band, this is/was a rather feeble attempt at 'disco' and not their best but it'll keep the Nolan ball rolling. And 'rock' isn't meant to be a euphemism for something else, by the way.

Top Ten Time.

Jona Lewie - Stop the Cavalry
Like Symes said, now at no. 3 with his Moog-tuba brass backing band, and of course sleigh bells and the "wish I was at home for Christmas" (clang!) festive bits thrown in. Repeated studio performance.


John Lennon - Just Like Starting Over
"..number one, of course.." cit. Symes. Legs & Co. were absent last week because they were apparently busy rehearsing for the Christmas & New Year's specials. But it looks as though they had to quickly put together a Christmas-themed routine for the deceased Beatle's single...of course. One can always speculate on how the new Lennon/Ono material would have fared had it not been for The Tragic Incident: sceptics may say they would have re-faded into oblivion and faded rockstar sadness, while  others may say that it was a return to form with Lennon's retro-style fitting in with the new 50s/60s nostalgia (although way outclassing the likes of Stray Cats, Matchbox et al), while Ono's more avant-garde pop has already been absorbed into the new wave mainstream. I'd go for the latter theory. Whatever you think, Lennon was brutally murdered and his assassination by an obsessed "fan" was a cruel, illogical consequence of pop-stardom in the modern world.

Hate to have to finish TOTP80 on such a sad note - the omission of the Christmas show in BBCFour repeats here in the year 2015 also another sad consequence of how just a small number of leading figures in 'show business' and public broadcasting spoiled the party for everyone. Hopefully, hoever, said Christmas special will be made available by someone, somewhere and we can bring you the line-up and the usual commentary just for completion's sake.

Until then, it's good night from me.

TOTP 80.41 11/12/80

First broadcast: 11th December 1980
Repeated on BBCFour from: 03/12/2015
Presented by: Richard Skinner
Full chart here

It's Richard Skinner's first presentation spot proper and for the occasion he's turned up looking like a Maths teacher who's mis-calculated the right amount of shampoo and conditioner in direct geometrical proportion to his hair. Apparently "we're celebrating Christmas a little early" tonight although there's not a sprig of tinsel in sight. But that's a cunning Radio 1 DJ style reference to the opening background song though, so full marks there Mr. Skinner.

Quick preview and a very masculine orientated Pops on the face of it - like the tinsel, there's not a female artist in sight!

Adam & the Ants - Antmusic
Adam and his jolly companions nearly did a 'Sheena Easton' last week by having two songs in the charts (ie. Top 30) at the same time. However that accolade still remains with our Sheene as this one was at no. 31 while Dog Eat Dog was on its way down. We believe the 80s - with the 'Ant Invasion' have well and truly started now however with this stomper stomping up to no. 16.

Showaddywaddy - Blue Moon
Ah yes, Skinner really must be a Maths teacher as he tells us that if you double 16 you get 32... But oh dear. The Pops still insist on hanging onto the past and subtracting 10 years from the 80s with a 70s band doing a 50s song, and very badly too. This one was outside the Top 30 when it was last on two weeks ago and unsurprisingly it's still outside the Top 30, and inexplicably on again. Definitely a case of having friends in high places (or perhaps someone made a wrong prediction thinking it would shoot up the charts for some reason?). Hopefully this is definitely the very last we will see of them.

Surprise! Here's a guest from The Other Side of the Atlantic! Waoah! It's Jermaine Jackson! And it's his birthday! Surprise! Cake! Applause! And a surprise! Jermaine's not a Madness fan!

Madness - Embarassment
Stable this week at 4 and they're in the studio. And very smart and well behaved they are too this time. Perhaps somebody had 'had a word'? Full marks to Suggs for starting the mimed vocals on cue.

Skinner then gives first tragic announcement of the show: no Legs & Co!!!!! So we're "legless". Geddit?

Status Quo - Lies
Anyway this lot don't give a toss and they're quite happy to tell us how much they're drinking an' smoking in this next catchy number. Sales of Quo's latest album Just Supposin' were lagging a bit so they decided to put out a double A side single with two tracks from said long player. Unbeknownst to most Lies/Don't Drive My Car  has been creeping up the charts for the past six weeks or so although the Quo obviously hadn't been able to make it to the studio but have finally made a promo film instead.

First mention of The Death of John Lennon, but hey who cares?! It's Christmas and Dire Straits and Jon Anderson are on tour! And another surprise: it's Gary Numan! He ain't bovvered about touring no more though cos he wants to learn to fly. Skinner's "interview" is a rushed affair though and sadly we don't get to hear what Gary thinks about Matchbox.

Matchbox - Somewhere Over the Rainbow
Also eager for a decent follow-up to their previous hits, latter-day rockabillies Matchbox hit the nostalgia button once more with this pointless cover version of the famed Judy Garland song. A subtle stab at the Christmas market perhaps (given that there would no doubt have been a repeat of said movie over the Xmas hols), but this is by and large pretty embarrassing. Interesting to see 'lighters' (and not proper matches - geddit?) swaying among the audience as I thought that was a much more recent phenomenon. Or did The Pops invent it?

The Police - De Do Do Do, De Da Da Da 
Talking of follow-ups, The Police follow up their no. 1 single about teenage lust for teacher with a song about...well, nothing. Their eloquence has obviously escaped them so they're happy just to arse about in the snow in a kind of millionaire-holiday mix between The Beatles and Madness. The Police go nutty-boys, and Sting's big thing keeps getting in the way. It's all very weird here in 1980-land folks..

And if Skinner says "Talking of..." to link two things together again I'll scream. It's highly contagious.
And talking of the charts... Here's 30-20.

Queen - Flash
And talking of no. 20, here's Queen. They've gone and done a bit of film-score for this new retro-scifi movie based on the classic "Flash Gordon" series. Very exciting it is too! "We only have 14 hours to save the earth!" Classic!

Talking of the charts .. 19-10.

The Stray Cats - Runaway Boys
Now up to no. 10, and as we've said before the Stray Cats may well have been another nostalgic rockabilly band but (talking of Flash Gordon), there's literally light years between these guys and, say, Matchbox and that other lot. Good luck to 'em.

"And talking of numbers.." 9-1......( he actually said that) STOP IT!! It's St Winifred's School Clone-Choir coming up dangerously at no. 2, but..

Abba - Super Trouper
They're still where you think they always have been for the past six years or so, and indeed sad to think this is for the last time ever at the top of the singles charts at least. Oh well at least we get to see some lovely laydees .. Oh and surprise surprise again...it's the closing titles over the no. 1! Since when??!?!?

Oh it's probably because of this.....

John Lennon - Imagine (live) [Lennon obit.]
Skinner actually manages to get through this without saying 'talking of..' which is just as well as the moment really is terribly sombre and quite rightly, and tastefully, placed just outside the usual Pops schedule. As an obit we're shown a very modern looking Lennon in red jump suit with acoustic guitar bashing out a version of Imagine, a song which to this day only he can sing properly. Not quite how we collectively remember Lennon perhaps, and the Beeb apparently had to apologise for showing this particular clip as his assassin Mark Chapman was actually in the audience of that occasion, but we'll have plenty of chances to see other video clips in the weeks to come. All very sad, and even sadder that to this very day his anthem is still being pulled out and chanted in these troubled times of mindless violence. Sorry John, the world still ain't living as one...

It may have been fitting to finish 1980 just here, but we've still one more repeated TOTP80 to go, but sadly no Christmas edition. Good night.

TOTP 80.37 13/11/80

First broadcast 13/11/80
Repeated on BBCFour from 05/11/2015
Presented by Simon Bates
Full chart here.

Preview then:

Iron Maiden  - Women in Uniform
"..they're playing live tonight.." and indeed at least from the vocal it seems as if they really are playing live. Or perhaps it is only the (lead) vocal. Since when did that happen? Anyway, like the man said: new entry at no. 35. Catch them in Uxbridge and Redcar.

David Bowie - Fashion (video)
"..a beautiful thing from the Top Ten.." Thing? Does he mean the video or Bowie or what? Anyway indeed  it is the "film" - at last - for The Dame's newest hit. Not as weird as the Ashes to Ashes one, but in true Bowie you've never seen anything quite like this before.

After calling a young girl in spectacles "four eyes" (look who's talking) Simes presents those two other smarmy creeps from Doctor Hook to hype their new album called 'Razzy' or something. It did rubbishly so Capitol had to rush out a Greatest Hits album to compensate.

Gladys Knight & the Pips - Bourgie Bourgie

Speaking of rubbish American MOR here's a final blast from the 70s for this lot. Another low entry (like iron Maiden) so we do seem to be scraping the barrel a bit this week, n'est-ce pas? This gotone place higher before disappearing into oblivion.

Simes has a handful of new albums ready for Christmas, including the Abba one in case he didn't mention it. But wait here's Bolton's finest comedian who could crush grapes like no other.

Chart rundown 30-20, then

John Lennon - (Just Like ) Starting Over (Legs & Co.)

Still can't comment on thsi one without getting a bit weepy, but suffice to say here's a pretty amazing dance routine from ver Legs, which starts off very minimalist-Japanese, presumably as a homage to Yoko Ono, and then suddenly each pair of Legs is in a differen get-up doing a bit of a jig each on a separate stage. One can't help feeling they were all 'improvising'. Just a little.

Chart rundown 19-11

Liquid Gold - The Night, The Wine and The Roses

Another one form the 30-40 bracket. Pretty rubbish UK-disco as usual although I can't help feeling they would've done better had they emerged circa 1985. Although perhaps they were just as influential on 80s music as, say, David Bowie? Discuss.

Spandau Ballet - To Cut a Long Story Short

"Have a listen to this!" The sound of a new, young Britain no less in the form of Spandau Ballet's TOTP debut. Hot on the heels of Adam & the Ants' debut a few weeks back, here is another new band with funny clothes, perhaps just a touch of make-up and a brand new sound for the nations' dancefloors. Way down at no. 43 but this would shock the record-buying public into getting them up to no. 19 next week, positively p*ssing over all the rest. Plus they have decent haircuts. "I've a feeling we're going to be hearing a lot from these bright young things in the years to come" (he said in a Simes voice).

Abba - Super Trouper

I'd love to know how many had tuned in to see this 'film' for the first time but actually preferred watching Spandau Ballet instead, but no matter as Abba were already at their peak and the record-buying public had been hotly anticipating this new one, and the ensuing album. It is indeed the highest 'jumper' up to no. 13 from nowhere. Feelin' like a (Christmas) no. 1? Possibly.

Top Ten countdown .. 

Blondie - The Tide is High

"A new number one and a great lady" - so what do you know Simes? And just what is it about putting the words "Number One" in your song lyrics these days? Is that in the hope of actually getting to number one? Well it might well be cos this is where Blondie are this week, and a million miles from, say, 'Rip Her to Shreds'. The video is a complete shambles and one wonders what they were 'on' when they made it. Better than Barbara Streisand though.

"Special" guests all reunited on the stage for the party in funny hats outro, the pervily titled:

Young & Company – I Like (What You’re Doing To Me)

See you next week! (sort of..)

TOTP 80.36 06/11/80

First broadcast 06/11/80
Not repeated on BBCFour in 2015
Presented by Jimmy Saville
Full chart here.

Well the TOTP Time Machine is racing ahead on BBCFour (save for omitted shows) so we'd better get cracking with a catch-up.. Thanks to PopScene episode guide for the list of artists in this show.


Kool and the Gang - Celebrate
Debut for what would become a bit of a classic of its genre, perhaps because it doesn't really belong to any particular genre. Disco/funk/pop crossover\good-times-are-here song which would get them Top 10. Ya-ho!

Status Quo - What You're Proposing
Keeping the party atmosphere going with this repeat performance. Now incredibly up to no. 2.

Dennis Waterman &  Band - I Could Be So Good For You
He was on a few weeks ago threatening that he was about to release a record, and here it is. A very British kind of record, but one which you wish had never been made. Again a bit of a 'cross-over' as it was the theme tune for Minder which had just been launched on ITV.

Stephanie Mills - I Never Knew Love Like This Before
Quite a fast pace this week with another jaunty number now at no. 18 and, like Kool  and Waterman, was destined to go even higher. Ms. Mills only Top 10/20 song which also won Best RnB song at the 1981 Grammys.

Neil Diamond - Love on the Rocks
Bit of an odd inclusion this as this new single wasn't even near the Top 75 yet. Probably some mooovie mogul paid a lot of money to the BBC to promote the mooovie The Jazz Singer from whence this song comes. I'd rather listen to Status Quo again to be honest.

Roxy Music - Same Old Scene (Legs & Co.)
Third single, and hit, from the Flesh+Blood album, and I won't hide it's my fave one too. I am also rather cross I didn't get to see Legs doing their thang to it, too. Hrrmph.

UB40 - The Earth Dies Screaming
Was this really on TOTP? An anti-nuclear protest song? Wonder what Jimmy Savile, and indeed the British public made of that. It'll reach no. 10 so hope it's on again....

Motorhead - Ace of Spades
This is turning out to be a cracker of a show: here's the 'Head with another raucous heavy-metal stonker which just stinks of pachuli oil and dirty leather. Love it. Again, hope we get a repeat.

Top 10 rundown as follows:
(10) Ottawan – D.I.S.C.O. (down)
(9) Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark – Enola Gay (down)
(8) David Bowie – Fashion  (up)
(7) Odyssey – If You’re Looking For A Way Out (down)
(6) Matchbox – When You Ask About Love (down)
(5) Blondie – The Tide Is High (NEW!)
(4) Adam & the Ants – Dog Eat Dog (up)
(3) Bad Manners – Special Brew (up)
(2)   Status Quo - What You’re Proposing (non mover)

Then,...

Barbara Streisand - Woman in Love (Number 1)
"Life is a moment in space.." etc. etc..



Got a bit of a lump in my throat when I read what the playout track was....Now only if I really did have a time machine...

John Lennon - (Just Like) Starting Over.......