FIRST HOUR
Get Ready (The Temptations)
(1969).... from the mid '60s heyday of the Motown sound through to the mid '80s, The 'Temps' had several chart entries, but only three UK Top 10-ers ~ this was one of them
High Time (Paul Jones)
(1966) ... flying solo for the first time after leaving Manfred Mann and would go on to be recognised as a man of many talents - singer, actor and broadcaster. In recent years he has continued to play live dates with The Blues Band and with The Manfreds
Why Do Fools Fall In Love (Diana Ross)
... from the first of today's featured years ~ giving a fresh lease of life to a famous '50s hit by Frankie Lymon & The Teenagers
Canine companions
The Puppy Song (David Cassidy)
(1973)...one side of a double A which gave him his second UK # 1, coupled with Daydreamer . The Puppy Song was written by Harry Nilssson, or Nilsson as he was usually credited on his own albums and singles. The hook line 'Dreams are nothing more than wishes' was adopted as the title of the teen heart-throb's third solo album released soon after the single
Love Me Love My Dog (Peter Shelley)
(1975) ... writer/ producer who launched the career * of Alvin Stardust, with a second - and final - Top 5 hit in his own right following the previous year's Gee Baby * Peter Shelley... originated the persona.... writing, singing and producing the first single released under that name, My Coo Ca Choo. When the single took off, the singer formerly known as Shane Fenton agreed to become Alvin Stardust, Shelley continued to write and produce hit songs for him, including the # 1 Jealous Mind [* W]
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The 'In' Crowd (Dobie Gray)
(1965)... . chart hit which became a Northern Soul classic and was later successfully covered by Bryan Ferry (1974, # 13)
Newsround Tameside: 40 years ago ~ 1981
Don't You Want Me (Human League)
... from Dare, one of the biggest albums of the year, Don't You Want Me out-performed three previous singles to claim the coveted Christmas No.1
I Go To Sleep (The Pretenders)
... written by Ray Davies and first released by The Applejacks. I Go To Sleep was never recorded by The Kinks, but Davies's demo can be found among reissue bonus tracks of their second studio album Kinda Kinks. It was the second time The Pretenders had covered one of his songs ~ their debut hit was Stop Your Sobbing (1979, # 34 ) Chrissie Hynde, the Pretenders' singer was reportedly in a relationship with Davies at the time [W]
Wedding Bells (Godley and Creme)
...... Kevin and Lol, having left 10cc in the mid '70s to work on their own projects, returned to the chart with two in a row in the autumn of '81 ~ Wedding Bells following on from Under Your Thumb
Stray Cat Strut (The Stray Cats)
... rockabilly band who scored a hat-trick of hits - best remembered, though, for lead singer Brian Setzer's fabulous, 'quiff-tastic' '50s hairstyle,
One Of Us (Abba)
... last in an unbroken run of Top 10 singles stretching back to 1975 for the group who had started to go their separate ways professionally and personally
Favourite Shirts (Boy Meets Girl) (Haircut 100)
... writing in the October '81 issue of Smash Hits, critic Fred Dellar described the band's debut single as "doing for jazz-funk what Dexy's once did for R&B". Although not overly impressed by the song, he praised their musicianship as "both impeccable and exciting." [W]
Cambodia (Kim Wilde)
... one of the year's breakthrough acts on the chart ~ this one made it four in a row for Kim
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SECOND HOUR
I Was Made To Love Her (Stevie Wonder)
(1967)... third and biggest hit to date in the UK for a promising young singer-songwriter who had only recently celebrated his 17th birthday.
Whole Again (Atomic Kitten)
(2001)... chart topping single with an OMD connection ~ Andy McCluskey had a hand in writing the song and also played keyboards
Minuetto Allegretto (The Wombles)
... teaser track for this hour's featured year ~ combining the music of 'Mr Minueting Mozart' and the creative thinking and wordplay genius of Womble-meister Mike Batt, who avoided churning out sound-alike hit after hit, seeking instead different styles of music to work with, including this one, as unlikely as it may seem, a classical, orchestral waltz
Absolutely Lyricless ~ the instrumental break
... timeless tunes from different music traditions,
Elizabethan Reggae (Boris Gardiner)
(1970) .,..re-working a familiar light classical tune, Elizabethan Serenade. * The composer Ronald Binge chose the title to reflect the post-war optimism of a 'new Elizabethan Age' that began with the accession of Queen Elizabeth II in February 1952. * And yes, it's THE Boris Gardiner, who later re-emerged, as a singer rather than an instrumentalist, with a # 1 in 1986, I Want To Wake Up With You [* W]
Greensleeved (Jethro Tull)
(2003) ... folky prog rock in a laid-back lounge jazz style is how I'd describe many of the tracks on the highly recommended Jethro Tull Christmas Album ~ this centuries-old melody is no exception
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Arienne (Tasmin Archer) [06/10/19]
(1993)... from Great Expectations, the debut album which also featured the previous year's chart topping single, Sleeping Satellite
Please Mr Postman (The Marvelettes)
(1961) ... Motown's first American chart-topper ~ up-and-coming Liverpool band The Beatles liked what they heard and made it a mainstay of their regular live set. Later on, they would record a version for their second album, With The Beatles. Fast forward to the mid '70s, Mr Postman finally delivered a UK hit single, courtesy of The Carpenters
Newsround Tameside: 47 years ago ~ 1974
Killer Queen (Queen)
... one of the all-time finest from Freddie and co ~ their second hit, very different in style and feel from the hard rock of their first release, Seven Seas of Rhye ~ almost a statement of intent that we could expect much more from Queen in the years to come
Costafine Town (Splinter)
... ... duo from South Shields discovered by George Harrison who signed them to his newly launched Dark Horse record label. George could see their potential as writers and performers, but sadly, and surprisingly, after such a 'fine' song, they never managed another hit
Everything I Own (Ken Boothe)
.. .gently uplifting reggae version of the David Gates (Bread) song, which went all the way to the top ~ two weeks as the nation's # 1 ~ a much better showing than the original which had peaked at # 32 two years previously
All I Want Is You (Roxy Music)
... as Bryan Ferry's solo Smoke Gets In Your Eyes dropped down the chart, Roxy's latest was heading to a highest place of # 12
I Want To See The Bright Lights Tonight (Richard & Linda Thompson)
(1974) ... folk duo accompanied by a brass band with a potential crossover hit, which picked up plenty of airplay but failed to break through on to the chart. Four years later Julie Covington did a much more mainstream, rockier version ...which also missed out
Tell Him (Hello)
... '60s song (The Exciters, Billie Davis) given a stomping glam rock makeover. Hello returned to the Top 10 the following year with New York Groove
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SHOW THEME:
Rhapsody In Blue (Rick Wakeman)
written by George Gershwin, arranged by Tony Visconti
from the album Rhapsodies (A&M Records, 1979)
[W]: Source: Wikipedia
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.
If you missed any of the show, you can catch up online after 15:00 on Sunday 21/11/2021:
