Top of the Pops BBC4

idratherjack · Mar 13, 2017

Tommy Johnson said:
I have that 2 CD set. It's good but misses too many off. Sweet Dreams being one of them!

And Dame Samantha Janus!

Tommy Johnson · Mar 13, 2017

letuinmybackdoor said:
Yeah, at first I was 'Oh my God!' but yeah, it was a crappy follow up, and they never came back from it.

I remember Smash Hits slagging off a Bananarama single and saying they'd have to do better if they wanted to compete with the Belle Stars...

Didn't quite work out that way, did it?!

Eric Generic · Mar 13, 2017

Early 1983 is ridiculously full of all-time classics. Most weeks' line-ups so far have read like a who's who of classic 80s music.

Eric Generic · Mar 13, 2017

idratherjack said:
And Dame Samantha Janus!

Are you tempting me into posting that gorgeous single sleeve again?

Tommy Johnson · Mar 13, 2017

Eric Generic said:
This is where I lament the lack of most UK eurovision entries being on CD anywhere, and wonder why someone doesn't compile something...and not from crackly old vinyl either. I'd love to have the Sweet Dreams single in HQ, even if it's probably a bit naff now. I loved the Fizz, my favourite band of the early 80s once Adams & The Ants split in '81, so even a blatant copycat band were up my street back then.

The Prima Donna song on that comp is clearly a vinyl rip..

idratherjack · Mar 13, 2017

Eric Generic said:
Are you tempting me into posting that gorgeous single sleeve again?

Why not? It was thanks to you I have that masterpiece in my iTunes, much appreciated!

Eric Generic · Mar 13, 2017

*Sigh*.....

idratherjack · Mar 13, 2017

Eric Generic said:
*Sigh*.....

I love it!

I also love that she has disowned it. Don't know why, it's great in a "I can't believe it's not Belinda Carlisle" kind of way!

idratherjack · Mar 13, 2017

I dearly hope this isn't on one of the banned episodes

I would squeal with excitement!

Eric Generic · Mar 13, 2017

One of the biggest surprises for me in 1983 so far has been that Fleetwood Mac - FLEETWOOD MAC!! - actually performed/appeared live in the TOTP studio for Oh Diane. I wasn't a regular viewer of the show until mid-1983, it usually clashed with something I did after school (football, scouts, I forget which) and this was before VCRs were the norm for home recording.

Tommy Johnson · Mar 13, 2017

idratherjack said:
I dearly hope this isn't on one of the banned episodes

I would squeal with excitement!

There is a website that lists all the shows and the songs on them. Even the banned ones. Sometimes it posts links to the latter so you can watch them.

I'm on the iPad now so I don't have the link, but I'll look for it tomorrow.

Tommy Johnson · Mar 13, 2017

Eric Generic said:
One of the biggest surprises for me in 1983 so far has been that Fleetwood Mac - FLEETWOOD MAC!! - actually performed/appeared live in the TOTP studio for Oh Diane. I wasn't a regular viewer of the show until mid-1983, it usually clashed with something I did after school (football, scouts, I forget which) and this was before VCRs were the norm for home recording.

Do you remember the Mac playing Oh Diane on Noel Edmonds Late Late Breakfast show and Lindsey swearing when the sound went out?

Eric Generic · Mar 13, 2017

Tommy Johnson said:
Do you remember the Mac playing Oh Diane on Noel Edmonds Late Late Breakfast show and Lindsey swearing when the sound went out?

No! I rarely watched that due to the timeslot it was shown. I tended to catch Children's TV appearances or the Saturday Superstore-type things but little else.

Vasilios · Mar 13, 2017

idratherjack said:
Thought we should have a place to discuss TOTP!

I am greatly enjoying the 1983 repeats (what we get to see of them anyway...)

But pop got good after 1985?
kii

idratherjack · Mar 13, 2017

Vasilios said:
But pop got good after 1985?
kii

That's what I thought till I began watching these!

nnnumb · Mar 14, 2017

I've been watching the re-runs from the beginning and my God they evolution is quite frightening. It was all so polite in 1975! All sensible girls in nylon frocks cooing their way through completely forgettable songs until they decided to let some of the Punk artists perform.

1981 was the year for me. And I like to think that I'm possible the only person on the planet that shrieked when I saw Sunshine Patterson from Eddie and Sunshine accompanying John Foxx during one of his performances.

The Friday show this week was a little odd. Didn't they send whoever it was they sent out East to review the singles chart only to discover that there was no such thing. Oh dear!

Tommy Johnson · Mar 14, 2017

idratherjack said:
That's what I thought till I began watching these!

This this the link to that website that discusses TOTP each week.

http://angelogravity.blogspot.co.uk/

A lot of the time they post links to the banned shows on BBC4, so you can watch them.

idratherjack · Mar 14, 2017

Tommy Johnson said:
This this the link to that website that discusses TOTP each week.

http://angelogravity.blogspot.co.uk/

A lot of the time they post links to the banned shows on BBC4, so you can watch them.

Thanks, this will sure come in handy.

It will be even more frustrating when we get past those who cannot be named presenting and onto Mike Smith in the late 80s as I thought we would have had an unbroken run of episodes by then. I still think when the BBC committed to repeating Top of the Pops, knowing the problems they would run into, it would have made so much more sense just to cut the DJ link out and go straight into the performance. Surely that is more sensible and preferable than skipping every second episode? It was really annoying how it went from 999th episode to 1001st last week!

Tommy Johnson · Mar 14, 2017

idratherjack said:
Thanks, this will sure come in handy.

It will be even more frustrating when we get past those who cannot be named presenting and onto Mike Smith in the late 80s as I thought we would have had an unbroken run of episodes by then. I still think when the BBC committed to repeating Top of the Pops, knowing the problems they would run into, it would have made so much more sense just to cut the DJ link out and go straight into the performance. Surely that is more sensible and preferable than skipping every second episode? It was really annoying how it went from 999th episode to 1001st last week!

I think the Savile story broke a few months after the 1976 episodes started. Then Dave Lee Travis got caught too!

Someone on another forum who claims to be in the know says the reason the shows aren't edited is because BBC4 don't have the money to do so. This may be true, but if they're going to carry on screening them you'd think they'd sort something out... A lot of people love these shows and it's particularly frustrating when your favourite records are totally skipped because they fall in a period the likes of Savile and Dave Lee Travis were hosting...

idratherjack · Mar 14, 2017

Tommy Johnson said:
I think the Savile story broke a few months after the 1976 episodes started. Then Dave Lee Travis got caught too!

Someone on another forum who claims to be in the know says the reason the shows aren't edited is because BBC4 don't have the money to do so. This may be true, but if they're going to carry on screening them you'd think they'd sort something out... A lot of people love these shows and it's particularly frustrating when your favourite records are totally skipped because they fall in a period the likes of Savile and Dave Lee Travis were hosting...

Surely cutting a link out wouldn't cost a lot to do? A new voiceover, TOTP2 style, would have been ideal but may have cost them too much.