TOTP81.6 12/2/81

First shown Thursday 12 February 1981
Presented by Richard Skinner
Full chart here

For some reason BBC Four is racing ahead with the Pops repeats, and they're already one month ahead. But who cares? We're taking our time here on TOTP81 and posting our reviews week by week, as they happened sort of. Richie Skinner's turn this week and he's done very well up to now but will have his work cut out with this mostly hit-less line-up.

Pretenders - Message of Love
First time we've seen this lot since the follow up (Talk of the Town) to their no. 1 (Brass in Pocket), and they're already doing well straight in at no. 28. Success was short lived for this particular single however and sadly we won't be seeing/hearing Chrissie Hynde going "I love ya I love yaI love ya I love yaI love ya I love yaI love ya I love ya..." again.

Ultravox - Vienna
It seems to be the trend to have a really successful single early on in the schedule so let's go straight to no. 1 and see the 'Vox with their new video for Vienna now up to no. 2. Pretty seminal stuff it is too with lots of real (?) fog, horses, decadent palatial building, smart clothes and thin 'tashes - all in grainy black and white-ish. Ah Viennnuuuuh!

Barbara Jones - Just When I Needed You Most
...and whooosh back down the charts again to no. 31 where we find, er, Barbara Jones and another one of those soft reggae songs I have no recollection of whatsoever. Probably because it got nowhere. Sad to report that Babs passed away in 2014. Awww. Next!

Coast to Coast - Do the Hucklebuck
Oh dear. No sooner than having got Matchbox out the back door, then this lot come storming in without so much as a ring on the door knocker. yes, it's another one of those "zany" faux-1950s rockabilly choons which we written especially for embarassing school/college/wedding parties for years to come. In at no. 39 and I fear the damage is going to be even worse.

Gillan - Mutually Assured Destruction
Blimey! Talk about contrasts ...after the poofy rockabillies, better get the greasers in! And quite an odd bunch they are too, and with a very odd song indeed. Has the edge slightly over last year's Trouble although, like Ms. Jones' effort, this didn't get any higher than this week's no. 32 spot.

George Benson - What's On Your Mind? (Legs & Co.)
We do seem to be scraping the barrel a bit this week and now we've got right down to no. 50 where we find Benson's rather poor follow up to last year's hits, accompanied by a duly lacklustre performance from the leggy Legs. Oh dear.

Chart countdown 30-21, with six out of ten records going down and one stable. New entry That's Enetrtainment by The Jam blatantly ignored.

Freeez - Southern Freeez
And something a bit interesting at last. Together with the 'new romantic' and nascent synth-pop scenes, mostly around the London area, Brit-funk was also taking a bit of a hold and here's a prime example right here on the Pops stage t'night! Not to be confused with Spandau Ballet's The Freeze, this one is a pleasant enough funk-fest fronted with the icy (geddit?) Ms. Ingrid Allmann who manages to sing throughout without even pretending to use a microphone (but thereby hangs a tale...). Up at no. 34 but will do deservedly better.

Slade - We'll Bring the House Down
Oh God. For those who thought Slade were just a 'glam' '70s' band, think again. Total rubbish of course, but surprisingly not the worst thing there is around.

Charts 20 - 11: Visage, Straits, Cliff, Spandau, The Look all going down.

Beggar & Co. - Somebody Help Me Out
And back to the Brit-funk thing with this ramshackle bunch who, in true Legs & Co. tradition, have dressed according to the 'theme' of the song - ie. tramps begging for help. They're a lively bunch and on stage seem like a cross between the Specials, Madness, Earth Wind and Fire. We're in the deep and darkest nether regions of the charts again (no. 53) but we've caught a big 'un this time and it's a cracking start for these nutty boys of brass! And a darn better "dance" performance than Legs & Co.

Kelly Marie - Hot Love
Wee Kels did great last year with her no. 1 Feels Like I'm In Love (doo-dooh, doo-dooh), although the follow-up not so great. Now she's back with those dancers. This one too will fail to set the charts alight  although it will hang around for like ages.

Top 10 countdown

John Lennon - Woman
Well Skinner's done really well this time, considering he's had a show with only one top ten hit apart from this, and only one other Top 20 song (Slade fer Chrissakes). Anyway here's Lennon again and that video again played over the credits again.

We'll see you next week, hoping there will be a few more Top 20 tunes to be heard. Byeee!

TOTP81.5 5/2/81

Fist shown 5 February 1981
Presented by Simon Bates.
Repeated on BBCFour from
Full chart here

It's February already, and 1981 starts to get into some kind of swing although don't get too excited this is still a pretty poor show with lots of repeats and some rubbish. And Simon Bates is wearing a bloody awful jacket.

Stray Cats - Rock This Town
You may remember The Cats' debut last year with Top 10-er Runaway Boys. Now they're back with their new one which would do equally as well. Album coming soon. . .and there's some pretty wild-cat dancing going on the studio I'm pleased to say.

Blondie - Rapture
Blondie were stuck at no. 5 with this one and with all the jostling for the top going on, it never got any higher. Album Autoamerican had a slight recovery though in its eleventh week on the chart. Amazingly also this week the Yanks still had The Tide Is High at no. 1 although Rapture would also get to the top of the Billboard 100, making it the first single to feature "rapping" to achieve such a feat.

Spandau Ballet - The Freeze
A repeat of the performance from three weeks back. "Difficult second single" The Freeze was flailing a bit at no. 17 and indeed wouldn't get any higher - rather a disappointment after To Cut a Long Story Short. But they also had an album coming out pretty soon, and a cunning plan for their next single.

Fred Wedlock - The Oldest Swinger in Town
But of course this being Great Britain we can easily pass from the 'futurist' avant-garde (a clue) pop of Spandau Ballet to the ridiculous folk-pop songery of Fred Wedlock (real name Peter Frederick Wedlock). Bristol born Fred had been doing the rounds as a folk singer for ages before becoming Britain's latest pop sensation (cough), with this his one and only hit. One wonders about what the term 'swinger' actually refers too (oo-er), and in fact this one was edited out of the early evening repeat. It's all Noel Edmonds' fault of course. RIP Fred who passed away in 2010.

Rainbow - I Surrender
A healthy slice of Anglo-American c*ck-rock from Rainbow, who had recruited some new guys for the new album Difficult To Cure, including singer Joe Lynn Turner (real name Joe Lynn Turner). Already stonking its way up to no. 12 and would go on to do even better. Heavy metal for the 80s.

Dire Straits - Romeo and Juliet
Another repeat from a couple of weeks back and now Knopfler and pals were up to no. 11. Fun fact: the song itself, written by Knopfler, was inspired by his failed romance with Holly Vincent, lead singer of the short-lived band Holly and The Italians. Thank you wikipedia for that.

XTC - Sgt. Rock (Is Going to Help Me)
Much like Spandau, XTC also were struggling a bit although au contraire this repeat would  give them a good boost up the cahrts - or was it the special 7" fold out sleeve that helped them along a bit? Who cares...it remains a great track!

Cliff Richard - A Little in Love
A belated release form last year's I'm No Hero album which had already spawned Top 10 single Dreamin' last summer. Somebody obviously wanted to go with the success of Suddenly with ONJ and rush released this one. For me, nowhere near as good as anything and it peaks here at no. 15.

The Passions - I'm in Love With a German Film Star
Something really really great at last. Absolutely loved this since I first heard it and always remember this epic TOTP performance too, not least due to the fact that I fell in love with singer Barbara Gogan on the spot. It's a lovely song full of adolescent ennui which was right on my wavelength at the time. It's a shoe-gazing song even before the term 'shoe gazing' had been invented. I've read that there have been plenty of cover versions made of this song over the years but I really don't want to hear any of them. This is already perfection.

Joe Dolce - Shadappa Your Face
Oh dear. Never has the term 'from the sublime to the ridiculous' been more appropriate. This is irritating, racist and downright crap. Needless to say the next time we hear it it will be at no. 1.

John Lennon - Woman
Imagine gets knocked off the top spot only to be replaced by Lennon's new single Woman which had been biding its time for a couple of weeks. Phil Collins and indeed Ultravox left very disappointed, although the latter will certainly have to get used to it.

The no. 1 video plays out over the credits - was this a TOTP first? Answers on a postcard and I'll see you next week...

TOTP 81.4 29/1/81

First shown 29 January 1981
Presented by Tommy Vance
Full chart here

Despite his 'rock' tendencies I've decided Tommy Vance is quite a good presenter and certainly one of the best of a bad bunch (up their with Powell and a still absent Jensen), so good to see him back again.

NB: actually says "ROCK on.."

Slade - We'll Bring the House Down
Having said that, I hope he wasn't the one responsible for getting this on the show. True, Slade were already somewhat of a British institution but they have no place in the 1980s and this is crap. Still, it's still technically panto season so I'll let them get on with it.

John Lennon - Woman
It would be interesting to know how this would have fared had Lennon not been assassinated in December although I would like to think it would have done as well if not better than Just Like Starting Over. I must say Yoko was pretty quick to have it released as a single and even botched together this video clip showing herself both with her man, filmed in Central Park in November, and at the same (now snowy) location as a widow, cut with various pics of them together. Chilling. Already at no. 2.

Stranglers - Thrown Away
Very much a 'seventies post-punk' band here's their attempt at being 80s friendly with a catchy little number complete with keyboard riff. But Enola Gay it ain't and this one went from 44 to, er, 42 and was never heard of again. They'll have to get their act together if they want to survive in the eighties (They will do next year. For a bit.)

Madness - The Return of the Los Palmas 7
This lot never seem to be away and here they are in a suitably nutty promo vid which depicts the band members japing about in various locations/guises indispersed with various aspects of modern of pop culture, including a pic of Ronald Reagan, who had just been elected US President, dressed as a cowboy. Poignant. Nice tune.

Sheila Hylton - Bed's Too Big Without You
Much as I liked and still do like the original on The Police's Regatta de Blanc album, I have no recollection of this version which takes the song back into it's black reggae roots making Sting & pals' rendition seem like a cover version. Pleasant enough but smacks a little too much of the 70s. Destined for oblivion.

Ultravox - Vienna
Good to see that this studio performance gets a repeat as we missed its first airing last time (in 2016). Now at no. 6, the track was already several months old having been released on their debut album last summer, but happily it was rescued as a single and rightfully became an eighties "anthem". Their all electronic line-up seemed out of place with last year's Sleepwalk but this time they've got their fingers right on the button. Well, "drummer" Warren Cann has anyway:

The Gap Band - Burn Rubber On Me

And from the sublime to the ridiculous (again). The Oops Upside Your Head criminals are no. 26 with this.

Diana Ross - It's My Turn (Legs & Co.)

So it is Diana, although Legs & Co. have raided the BBC wardrobe dept. just to give us their 'representation' of your latest hit m'dear. Is it just me or is it that Legs are a bit rubbish this year?

Chart countdown 30-21

Phil Collins - In The Air Tonight

Another one which first aired two weeks ago and got swallowed up in the time vortex, but luckily we get to see it again.  And a bit of a classic it is too. Odd to think that if Lennon hadn't been killed this would've made number 1. As you can see he's borrowed Warren Cann's rhythm thingy to put his paint pot on.

Charts 20-11

Susan Fassbender - Twilight Café

Another one which was on two weeks ago and gets another chance despite not doing particularly well. I think I may well have 'missed' it in 1981 too as I have absolutely no recollection of it whatsoever. Susan would seem to be a kind of bouncy music teacher type who after the drudgery of teaching unwilling secondary school kids about the clasics, used to get her Moog out at weekends and do a few 'pub' gigs with some like-minded mates (some of which may also have been teachers). I'm sorry your song meant nothing to me, Miss, and that after reaching 21 for two weeks, fell into total oblivion. I can't even find a decent copy of this on the trillion 80s compilations there are out there or even on Spotify. I was also sorry to learn that Ms. Fassbender (née Susan Whincup) committed suicide in 1991. There's a 'demo' compilation album out there if anyone's interested.

Top Ten countdown...with moving number!

John Lennon - Imagine

Last week at no. 1 although Woman was of course hot on its heels. Popularity of Woman obviously also helped the Double Fantasy album which would soon topple Adam & the Ants off the top spot. Unsurprisingly Lennon had all of two albums in the Top 10, But then again so did Barry Manilow.  

Heatwave - Gangsters Of The Groove (playout)

That's all. See you next week-ish!

TOTP 80.3 22/1/81

First broadcast: 22nd January 1981
Repeated on BBCFour from: 15/01/2016
Presented by: Peter Powell
Full chart here

Not a bad show by the looks of things - quite a few lousy repeats but a few classic stonkers to make up for it so let's boogie on down, shall we Pete?

The Look – I Am The Beat
In 2016, they've only just been on although in the actual two weeks between this and the previous appearance they'd gone up to no. 6. Found myself humming this even after the show. Annoying.

Blondie - Rapture (promo)
Well after taking on punk rock, disco, futuristic rock and all kinds of stuff HArry and friends now approach rap which was fast taking a hold Stateside. Thankfully they make a good job of it, although with that voice leading the proceedings they could get away with just about everything. Nice, modern Sesame Street-ish sort of video too.

Spandau Ballet - The Freeze
Back in the studio and those slick London "new romantic" types are back with their daft clothes and floppy hair. Hurrah! Second single and lookin' good at no. 45. Can't wait for the album.

Racey – Runaround Sue
Let's not get too radical though. Repeat from two weeks ago and still unbearable, especially after Spandau Ballet. Up to no. 13

XTC - Sgt Rock Is Going to Help Me
I used to really like XTC and this one in particular. Good quality new wave kind of rock with a touch of English humour added in. They'd done well with Making Plans For Nigel back in '79, although last year's Generals and Majors had failed less well. Similarly themed 'Sgt. Rock would however become one of their greatest and best loved singles.  Quite right, Pete - this was taken from last year's Black Sea album, and rescued just in time from sinking without a trace, me hearties. (cf. Vienna by Ultravox).

Visage - Fade to Grey
Classic eighties track time and quite rightly accompanied by a very (early) eighties video, featuring band "leader" and "singer" Steve Strange, and directed by Godley & Creme, formerly half of 10cc. As their name would suggest, with Visage the 'visuals' were the thing although if you've got a good futuristic sounding backing track with enigmatic lyrics, a French girlie spoken vocal and a breathy uhhhh-uhhhhh catchline, it's got to be a winner. Famously written by half of the new Ultravox (Ure, Currie) and Gary Numan's keyboard and violin player (Chris Payne). They couldn't really go wrong.

Yarbrough and Peoples - Don't Stop the Music (Legs and Co.)
At last we get some disco music which sounds very eighties, as opposedto the rubbish we had last year which didn't. As I have confessed in the past I know very little about the genre, but I do know that this one sounds sort of similar to that SOS Band Just be Good To Me which would be very much in vogue a few years hence. Anyway to mark this momentous sonic occasion showing the way forward in dance music, Legs and Co get their Scottish kilts and all the tartans trimming out to perform a provocative highland routine. I really would like to know why oh why they chose to wear that stuff, och aye.


Adam & the Ants - Antmusic
There have been quite a few famous 'number twos' in chart history (another of which we'll see during the coming months) and this must surely be one of them. Poor old Adam and his Ants in his pants were indirect victims of the Lennon assassination and the record sales that ensued. This week they're wedged in between Lennon's first posthumous single release Woman at no. 3 and this week's no. 1 (again). But anyway they can't complain as they're also at no. 11 with resuscitated early single Young Parisians.

Honey Bane - Turn Me On, Turn Me Off
Here's an interesting one at last - Ms. Bane with her debut solo single now in the nether reaches of the charts. Honey (née Donna Tracy Boylan) had been doing quite a bit of mucking about in the punk years with bands like Fatal Microbes and Crass, plus a short spell with St. Charles Youth Treatment Centre in Essex, before being "rescued" by Jimmy Pursey - he of Sham 69 - who was looking for some new "talent". As pleasing as her tune may be, it didn't get very far, perhaps smacking a little too much of a wannabe Hazel O'Connor. And that was sooooo 1980. (Toyah! Where are you?)

Ok..this week's "best selling" Top 20..well, up to no. 11 anyway.

Bad Manners - Lorraine
Tie for one more and sadly it had to be this. Repeat from two weeks ago.

Top Ten Time..and Queen just won't budge from that all-important no. 10 spot, and Phil Collins has whooshed up a massive 32 places to no. 4 after (not) appearing on the last show.

John Lennon - Imagine
Well this music certainly hadn't lost its flavour  - third out of four weeks at no. 1 and now four singles in the top 10 for Lennon (but not a Beatles record in sight).

The Gap Band - ...(?) (playout)
...er, erm...


It's going to be quite strenuous keeping up with the Pops this year, what with the twice-weekly helping and loads of skipped Yewtree espisodes, but please bear with us and keep on tuning in!

G'night.

TOTP 80.2 15/1/81

What with BBC Four repeating two different shows per week (on consecutive nights to boot) and Yewtree giving the axe to so many shows, it might be a tough job for TOTP81 to keep up, so please bear with me if I get too far behind.

Here's the rundown of the first 'not repeated' show proper of '81, which is a pity as we missed three of four classic songs/performances, the likes of which we may never see again.

Presented by: DLT
Full chart here.

Susan Fassbender - Twilight Café
I have no recollection of this track whatsoever, and with good reason, I believe, having since checked it out on Spot-i-fy over here in the 21st century. No Pops footage available of it on youtube, sadly. This was a 'newie' at no. 63 but would do better. Maybe we'll see her again.

Gary Numan - This Wreckage
Repeat of the studio performance from before Christmas. This rather dour single had dragged itself up to no. 20 in the meantime. Time for Gary to get back to the studio with something more exciting, methinks.

Light of the World - I Shot the Sheriff
Another one from the nether reaches of the charts, and being at no. 68, probably meant it had sold about 156 copies to get on this week's show. Made it to no. 40 the following week, but that will be all thank you

Dire Straits - Romeo and Juliet (promo)
The eternally out of fashion Dire Straits get their first chart success since '79's Sultans of Swing. Not a bad song and the soft focus video certainly brought them neatly into the eighties.

Stevie Wonder - I Ain't Gonna Stand For It (Legs & Co.)
Wonder doing well at no. 17 although what Legs actually did with this we shall never know.
2020 edit: we have footage!

Phil Collins - In The Air Tonight
Gross injustice that this wasn't shown again (was it on the 1981 Big Hits show?) as it really is/was one of those jaw-dropping Top of the Pops moments, at least as far as I'm concerned, and certainly a milestone in Collins' career. One man in a tank top, with a keyboard, a drum machine and a paint-pot. I'd really liked the 1980 Genesis Duke album and so this was a sort of logical progression from that. Should be repeated in a couple of weeks (in 1981), or maybe even next week (in the year 2016).

UFO - Lonely Heart
Someone must have thought this would be the week to give a leg-up to those in the lower reaches of the charts as this is the the third track 60-70 bracket to be featured. Rubbish, naturally, although the red vinyl 7" would be a key 1981 artefact.

Mac Davis - It's Hard to be Humble
Another one I have no recollection of. Probably more rubbish.

Ultravox - Vienna
Classic TOTP appearance no. 2 of the night, and again it's very sad we didn't get to see this studio performance of another "eighties" classic, but anyway it should be on again unless they've made the video in the meantime. This single had been taken from their eponymous 1980 album which was already quite a few months old and had already spawned two not so successful singles (although readers may recall their classic performance of Sleepwalk on TOTP in the summer of 1980 - I certainly do). But what with the New Romantic/Blitz Kids scene now fast going mainstream, this one had a new lease of life and become an unlikely hit. Anyway you can see this particular performance here, as featured in the wonderful BBC Synth Britannia docu/special of a few years ago.

Queen - Flash (promo)
This feels like this has been around forever already. Stuck at no. 10 but the 'soundtrack in the making' promo film gets an airing.

John Lennon - Imagine
Second of four weeks at the top, as a nation continues to mourn.

Yarbrough & Peoples - Don't Stop the Music (playout)
More about this and them next time.

TOTP 80.1 8/1/81

First broadcast: 8th January 1981
Repeated on BBCFour from: 14/01/2016
Presented by: Richard Skinner
Full chart here

It's eight-one-eighty-one, and welcome to 'the home of the hits' as an unashamedly buoyant Richard Skinner tries to convince us. So on with the first show proper of 1981...and no 'preview' thing, that's soooo 1980.

Racey – “Runaround Sue”
And racey they are indeed, at least by 1978 standards which is probably where this belong, plus they're doing a cover of a 'retro' rock n roll thing which makes them all the more odious. This is really bad but they had 70s music 'guru' Mickie Most as producer who may possibly have given them a, er helping hand to get in the charts.

Adam & The Ants – “Antmusic”
Now at no. 4 although they were probably still too hung over from the festive festivities to make it to the studio again, so here's a repeat. Either that or they were doing panto - dressed as themselves. Oh no they weren't!

The Look – I Am The Beat
"Finally" in the Top 30 Skinner informs us becuase it's been kicking around nowhere much since last October. Mote jaunty late 70s/throwback pop-blues pub band who struck lucky with this their only hit. Fairly deep metaphysical subject matter, an all singing all musical manifestation of a, er, beat. "..in heaven and hell they know me too..". Wow. Annoyingly catchy.

Barry Manilow – Lonely Together
And they're back although looking rather world-weary and sorry for themselves doing this slow number in their petticoats. Cheer up girls, and make the most of it while you can. There are worst thngs to life than having to 'dance' to an abysmal record which had been hanging round the top 30 for seven weeks and was now at the giddy heights of no. 21. After this, it bombed.

Chart rundown 30-20

The Beat – Too Nice To Talk To 
Oh here's the real Beat, not that rubbishy heaven and hell stuff. This is a repeat of the performance they did afore Xmas and now doing just slightly better than Barry Manilow at no. 20. Unlike Baz, this one would rocket into the Top 10 after this week's show. Hurrah!

Sad Café – I’m In Love Again
Oh no. Not this lot again! After Top 20 success with My Oh My early last year they've since had two flop singles (including one called Nothing Left Toulouse - cringe) although someone has obviously thought it fit to give them another chance even though they're at number 58. And the singer bloke really fancies himself as a kind of Mick Jagger innit.

Matchbox – Over The Rainbow/You Belong To Me
More of last year's left-overs and this tastes very much of one of those mince pies you just found in the pantry, having initially opened the box on Christmas Day. Stale. No. 18 this week, no. 15 next week, and pretty much the end of the road for Matchbox.

Countdown 19-11, where we find....

Chas & Dave – Rabbit
This must have gone down a bomb at Christmas office parties, knees-ups and general "merry" get togethers over the past couple of weeks. As such it's continued to go up a few places although this is the last we'll see of it in Popsland. Don't forget it's 'back to work' week.

The Specials – Do Nothing
Enough of the left-overs already, but this unruly crowd are at no. 15  and somehow will manage to shoot up to no. 4, its highest position, after this repeat performance. Good track.

The Nolans – Who’s Gonna Rock You?
Another repeat from pre-Christmas with the nation's fave siblings struggling a bit with this one at no. 24. That said, much like the Specials, tonight's showing gave them a kick up the collective backside (sorry girls) and got them up to no. 12.

Bad Manners – Lorraine
And speaking of panto, Bad Manners are back in their full fancy-dress gear and featuring a, er, blow up doll front stage. For soem reason the lead singer Buster something has dressed up as Henry VIII although not a bad choice given his stature. Much hilarity and horn-blowing ensues. To be honest I have no recollection whatsoever of this song. Probably still too busy listening to Gary Numan.

Top 10 countdown: Queen, Madness, Abba, Police, Winifred's, John Lennon, Ants, Jona Lewie, Lennon/Yoko, and..


John Lennon – Imagine
..and without further ado here's Lennon again at the top spot with his most iconic song Imagine, in the charts for the second, but not the last, time. Seems amazing that the song hadn't even been released as a single in the UK when it first appeared on the eponymous album in 1971, whereas in other countries it had. 7" buyers had had to wait until 1975 to get a copy of it (when released in conjunction with the Shaved Fish retrospective LP) getting it all the way to no. 6 in November. Like Lennon himself, it disappeared again in early '76. But its message of peace and harmony and all that rang only too deeply after the star's brutal and senseless assassination and so it hit the nation's, and indeed the world's, heart once more in 1981. Lennon himself once described it as Working Class Hero with sugar on it, unknowing that it would somehow become his own epitaph. So here it is: iconic promo film, iconic white living room, iconic white piano.

Anyway ver kidz ain't bovvered about all that world peace stuff, all they want to do is to get on the telly!

Queen – “Flash”
...to fade....

See you next time.