The Rolling "Top of the Pops" BBC4 Revival thread.

It's all very safe and sanitised. There's nothing here that makes me say "what the FUCK is this?!" as my eyes bug out, the way new music should make a 40 year old (as I was at the time) react

Now this is more like it - Carter USM performing 'Rubbish'.

"Blue Pearl are going to melt your boots" - was that actually a phrase people said? I don't recall ever hearing.

Oh look it's Britain's top MAneskin tribute band Queen. In all seriousness, RIP Freddie, the main reason I gave a shit about this band. According to Mick Rock, "Freddie remained a gentleman to the end". BoRhap sums up my feelings about Queen - when they energy, enthusiasm, intelligence, and humour into their music, they were amazing. Without those ingredients, the same band produced songs that were empty scaffolding.

Best episode for ages! Surprisingly early and extremely Bjorky Bjork appearance, Carter being much better than I registered at the time, a glimpse of propa hardcore Prodigy, and a couple of decent dance tunes I have no recollection of. The Blue Pearl thing's pretty naff, but in a fun way.

Senseless Things - not my fave, but early 90s Indy was sooo much better than what it became a few years later.

The hosts remain complete fucking joy vacuums.

Nice to see the current live vocal policy embraced by notorious acoustic folk purists 2 Unlimited.

Shakespeare's Sister to Curtis Steiger - I'm sure that there have been more boner killing transitions in history, but also sure that they can be counted on one (ahem) hand.

When I had long hair it looked like Curtis Steiger's (not by design)

they seem to have gone back to studio vocals though, and they are lower on the mix than usual, or something, harder to make out.

and that must be a re-release of Bohemian Rhapsody, off the back of something? there was something else from Bill and Ted as well

Charity re-issue after Freddie’s death. Also a hit in the US (bigger than in ‘75) later in ‘92 off the back of Wayne’s World.

Solid first episode this week, second not so much. Seem to recall Curtis Stigers LP being released same day as In Ribbons and Everything’s Alright Forever; MM scribe teasing Pale Saints and Boo Radleys in feature about adding CS to their co-headline tour to bring in the punters.

probably a bigger draw than papa sprain

(who, if I remember correctly, were a no-show at the Astoria gig)

boner killing transitions

retro 90s new laddism for the '92 episodes?

Thought these were the most interesting episodes for quite a while. Perhaps the '90s run will be better than I thought.

I went to the Pale Saints & Boo Radleys gig at The Astoria, fwiw. A glum affair - the venue felt half empty (or at least that's how I remember it) and both groups seemed to be on the way out, plus it was the evening after John Major's Tories had unexpectedly won the election so everyone was miserable. And then we left the gig to find the IRA had blown up The City and there were no trains home.

retro 90s new laddism for the '92 episodes?

Yeah sorry, nostalgia and whiskey is a potent combination.

Tonight’s episode is peak ponytail & bomber jacket rave PA era. Love the MSP going all out with the explosions as well.

Best episode for ages! Surprisingly early and extremely Bjorky Bjork appearance

I say ouch! This really hurts

That Manics appearance seemed to mark a negative turning point in home grown guitar music, a self-regarding consciousness of their relationship to the canon or whatever as opposed to playful embracing new trends and sounds, as Carter and Senseless Things were doing mere episodes earlier.

Ride were far and away my favourite group back then, so it was nice to finally see the (extremely abbreviated) performance of Leave Them All Behind (featuring Andy Bell not even vaguely pretending to play his guitar). I'm pretty sure I didn't see it at the time as I was at university without a TV, but I have a vague memory of seeing The Wedding Present (Blue Eyes) and The Beautiful South (Old Red Eyes Is Back) on TOTP in someone else's room around this time. I've just been googling this to see if it was true, and it was one of the ones they aren't showing (16th January). They also didn't show this one with Bobby Gillespie's one-legged dance routine: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=olvh7x3PtsA

Why not? Surely all the paedos went by then? I've been waiting for The Hit Parade year damnit.

one of the presenters has opted out, was mentioned upthread.

The Rolling "Top of the Pops" BBC4 Revival thread.

Right. Thanks. That's disappointing.

Some of those will be on Youtube I imagine? Has anyone made a playlist of them?

I actually like Crowded House's 'Weather With You', but coming straight after KLF's 'What Time Is Love?' it's complete mood whiplash.

opus 3 twice. twice too often.

Xpost "it's grim down south!" though!

curious, vaguely, about the bananarama split that led to Shakespeare's sister. musical differences? because there's a dichotomy in ss itself by the sound, it's very much a song of two halves

(can't remember a single other ss track tbh)

You’re History was the earlier hit? But post-Stay, I can’t remember anything.

four lps and 5 (five) compilation lps

(lots of remixes)

Underworld remix of Black Sky is an all-time banger

One of the last things that Billy Mackenzie did was a song with Shakespeare's Sister, can't remember what it's called though

Nirvana can do with a wash, says the presenter.

weddoes doing 3, this was about the time i have up on the weddoes, when the next three years releases were these singles and two compilation lps containing these singles

gave up on

Same here. I remember seeing Blue Eyes on TOTP (in one of the episodes they're not showing), liking it and deciding to buy it, then discovering to my horror that everywhere had already sold out of it because of the whole 'limited to 10,000 copies' thing that they did. So I made sure I bought Go Go Dancer as soon as it came out, but was a bit underwhelmed by it and ignored all the singles after that. I don't know any of the others.

oh ffs it's the Smashie and Nicey episode

Can't be much worse than Tony Dortie and Mark Franklin

I unintentionally skipped the Smashie and Nicey one due to my erratic TOTP viewing habits, but in the next episode it seems that Smashie and Nicey having been on is all the presenters can go on about (that and who's going to win the election - SPOILER IT WAS THE FUCKING TORIES).

Watching the ponytailed Belgian keyboard stabber replicating the Injected With a Poison sample live using his mouth was a treat, though.

I think he did pretty well, given how bad some of the rave/dance vocalists have been singing live.

I made an EMF / Unbelievable joke at work this week and no-one got it.

Good: En Vogue. Bad: Richard Fairbrass's outfit.

My overarching feeling from the current period of reruns is how much better 90 percent of the performances would be if they were mimed.

I feel sorry for the guy who has to yell "Utah Saints U-U-U-Utah Saints".

oh dear, they open the second programme tonight as well. His voice sounds shot to shit. At least the BBC didn't make him impersonate Kate Bush.

https://web.archive.org/web/20190228065833/https://sabotagetimes.com/music/the-orb-playing-chess-on-top-of-the-pops-changed-my-life