FIRST HOUR
Best Years Of Our Lives (Modern Romance)
(1982) ... . hearing this frothy, poppy party favourite, it's difficult to imagine Modern Romance in their previous life as a 'punk parody' band ~
The Leyton Buzzards who had just the one minor hit, Saturday Night (Beneath the Plastic Palm Trees) (1979, # 53). Regrouping as Modern
Romance, a decent run of Top 10 / Top 20 hits followed in the first half of the '80s. Best Years gave them their highest chart placing, # 4
It's Been So Long (George McCrae)
(1975)... really hitting those high notes, one of the most memorable in a run of disco-tastic Top 40 singles which followed on from the one for which he will forever be remembered, Rock Your Baby (1974, # 1)
Be My Baby (Vanessa Paradis)
...after Joe Le Taxi, she had a few years to wait for a second Top 10-er. Be My Baby eventually proved the one to hit the target, in the first of today's featured years
'60s songs with double barreled girl's name titles
Hello Mary Lou (Ricky Nelson)
(1961) ... his highest ever UK chart placing (# 2) and the last time 'Ricky' Nelson was the name on the record label.. Subsequent releases were credited to the more mature sounding 'Rick'
Barbara Ann (The Beach Boys)
(1966) ... very catchy song with an instantly memorable hook-line, and the group's trademark harmonies ~ not surprisingly, becoming one of the group's most successful UK singles
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Family Affair (Sly & The Family Stone)
(1972) ... US chart-topper for the psychedelic funk-soul band, a distinct shift in style from Dance To The Music and their other previous hits. Recording consultant engineer Richard Tilles muted most of Sly Stone's guitar parts while emphasising the electric piano played by Billy Preston and - in the words of rock critic David Hepworth "edit[ing] the rhythm box to sound like a heartbeat." Sly Stone and his sister Rose sang lead and Bobby Womack played rhythm guitar. The lyrics reflect the good and bad of being family, with Sly opting for a low funk-styled tone instead of his earlier gospel-based shout, sounding off rhythm and off key, his screams emulating a child crying... (W)
Newsround Tameside: 29 years ago ~ 1992
Hello (Turn Your Radio On) (Shakespears Sister)
... one of the high points of a successful few months for Siobhan Fahey and Marcella Detroit. Hello... was the final track on their album Hormonally Yours, and the fourth single taken from it, following Stay ( # 1 for eight weeks), I Don't Care (# 7) and Goodbye Cruel World (# 32)
Sleeping Satellite (Tasmin Archer)
... classy, timeless song which stood head and shoulders above most of the other hits on the chart at the time Against the run of play, Tasmin took the top spot in an era dominated by dance tracks and re-mixes
Iron Lion Zion (Bob Marley & The Wailers)
... posthumous release of a previously unheard Marley song recorded in 1973-74. Billboard magazine's review of the Songs of Freedom CD box set mentions that the original track was enhanced by contemporary musicians including the jazz saxophonist Courtney Pine and female vocal trio I Trees, featuring Marley's widow Rita. Music Week's Alan Jones hailed a "Marley masterpiece... a hugely commercial, lightly dubbed and joyous reminder of his talent". (W)
Oh No Not My Baby (Cher)
... Goffin-King song from the '60s, previously a hit for Manfred Mann (1965, # 11) and Rod Stewart (1973, # 6)
A Little Respect (Bjorn Again)
... highly acclaimed Abba tribute band with a perfect tongue-in-cheek response to Erasure's recent chart-topping EP, Abba-esque. Under the collective title 'Erasure-ish' their single featured two of the duo's best known songs, A Little Respect and (the B side) Stop!
(Take A Little) Piece of My Heart (Erma Franklin)
... US hit in '67 for Aretha Franklin's older sister which finally made it on to our chart a quarter of a century later, after featuring in the latest Levi's TV ad. Several other artists have recorded the song, including Janis Joplin in 1968, Faith Hill and Shaggy (both in the '90s), through to Beverley Knight (2006)
My Destiny (Lionel Richie)
... upbeat second single from the album Back To Front ~ his first UK Top 10-er since Dancing On The Ceiling six years previously
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SECOND HOUR
Don't Stop (Fleetwood Mac)
(1977)... written by vocalist and keyboard player Christine McVie, one of the band's most enduring hits, reaching # 3 in America but a surprisingly lowly # 32 in the UK
The Day Will Come Between Sunday and Monday (Kiki Dee)
(1970).... Kiki was famously the first British singer to be signed by Tamla Motown but sadly she would have to wait another three years to achieve her first hit - with a move to Elton John's Rocket label. The Day Will Come..., as with other singles in her back catalogue proved popular on the Northern Soul scene but failed to break through on to the chart
The Boat That I Row (Lulu)
... teaser track for our second featured year, written by a up-and-coming young songwriter, Neil Diamond, no less. It was a milestone year in his career, with two of his songs becoming big hits for The Monkees ~ I'm A Believer and A Little Bit Me, A Little Bit You
Absolutely Lyricless ~ the instrumental break
Mexican Shuffle (Herb Alpert & The Tijuana Brass)
(1964) ... renowned for their 'sunshine' sound, of which this is a fairly typical example. While sounding instantly familiar, it was never a hit in the UK
The Liquidator (Harry J All Stars)
(1969-70) ... from a golden era of reggae and ska crossing over into the mainstream
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Just Got Lucky (Jo Boxers)
(1983) .... hot on the heels of their first and biggest hit Boxer Beat, their Top 10 follow up was far less frantic, a steady toe tapper rather than one to stomp your feet to
She Moves In Her Own Way (The Kooks)
(2006) ... Top 10 single from their debut album Inside In / Inside Out. The Kooks will be touring early next year - including two nights at Manchester's 02 Victoria Warehouse (10th-11th Feb 2022)
Newsround pre-Tameside: 54 years ago ~ 1967
Third Finger Left Hand (Martha Reeves & The Vandellas)
... unbelievably, tucked away on the 'B' side of Jimmy Mack which I had always imagined to have been a sizeable Motown smash ~ # 21 was its highest chart position in '67 and again as a reissue three years later
Autumn Almanac (The Kinks)
... one of the biggest and best of their mid '60s golden era with its sing-a-long-a music hall melody and Ray Davies' brilliantly creative, whimsical word play, from a 'crawly caterpillar' to 'buttered currant buns' and a 'breeze blowing leaves of a musty coloured yellow'
Being For The Benefit of Mr Kite (The Beatles)
... last track on side one of Sgt Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band. The lyrics had more or less written themselves, being from an old poster which John Lennon came across completely by chance, advertising a travelling fair visiting Rochdale in 1843. Genius production by George Martin ~ at his most creative, featuring the authentic sound of a Victorian fairground organ
Hole In My Shoe (Traffic)
... middle one in a hat-trick of Top 10-ers for the band within a few months of each other. Fast forward to '84, Hole In My Shoe was the perfect summer novelty hit for The Young Ones' Neil the hippy, who managed to match the success of the original with a # 2 highest chart position
Come And Buy My Toys (David Bowie) ... accompanied only by a folky acoustic guitar, the stripped back simplicity of this lovely little song is one of the many delights on Davids debut album. Positive reviews for a artist who was still an unknown at this point sadly failed to translate into sales . Bowie took time out to reflect... and dramatically changed direction. The rest is history...
The Happening (Diana Ross & The Supremes)
... the film of the same name didn't exactly break any box office records, but it gave The Supremes their 10th # 1 in America and another Top 10-er to add to their long list of successes here
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[W]: Source: Wikipedia
SHOW THEME:
Rhapsody In Blue (Rick Wakeman)
written by George Gershwin, arranged by Tony Visconti
from the album Rhapsodies (A&M Records, 1979
Please bear in mind: it's a live show and so, occasionally I might need to change the running order, leave a song out, or
play an unplanned extra song which will not be shown in this weekly music blog.
- MW
