Our group declare to be trueSpiritualized? On #TOTP? Shome mishtake shurely!
[sticks my head back in the kitchen to finish the washing up]
Ah, The Backstreet Boys give Westlife ideas. Grief, those chairs really looks far too close together.
Er, evening all.
Setting the time machine into reverse for the first Mystery Year.
Cameron Mackintosh offered £2 million to Oxford University so that he could endow a professorship in drama. The ancient university has no drama department, for fear that the students would monopolise theatre in the city.
It's 28 degrees C out there, so only the brave will wear a dark polo shirt.
"London nights" - London Boys
If Aqua were the Dance Dance Revolution of 1998, surely the London Boys were the DDR of this year.
Gymnastics, backflips, traditional homoerotic dance moves, a little striptease.
Love the shots down from the gantry, lots of people enjoying themselves.
"Cha cha heels" - Eartha Kitt and Bronski Beat
A growly, grizzly vocal performance from Eartha Kitt, set to a generic gay disco beat. The video is more camp gay disco, set in a nightclub with Eartha wearing a feather boa.
There is merit in this song - which will be the last hit for both Kitt and Beat - but it's clear why this is number 39 and the London Boys number 2.
"Grandpa's party" - Monie Love
Monie had been recording in New York, although she's as Londonish as the Tube and marmalade sandwiches.
The song is a rap of the time, with a soulful break to sing the title, and some good call-and-response sections.
It was a grower of a song, took a long time to click for me, and she'll do better in the coming years.
"Swing the mood" - Jive Bunny and the Mastermixers
It's like a K-Tel album compressed to a single; we have to give a quick nod to the technique of beat-matching so many different and disparate tracks and making them flow so well.
The flip side is a Glenn Miller medley by the John Anderson Big Band. The sort of thing my grandpa loved.
Glenn Miller Medley
"That record's going to go to number one," threatens Lord Gary Davies.
Hate when our heroes are right.
"Choice" - The Blow Monkeys and Sylvia Teller
This song is a critique of public choice theory as proposed by James Buchanan, refined by Friedrich Hayek, and implemented by Norman Tebbit and Margaret Thatcher.
The idea claims that politicians and decision-makers are motivated by selfish desires rather than a genuine ambition to serve the public, and hence that the best decisions are those arrived at through market competition...
... Dr. Robert and Sylvia Teller (in a very neon lime green dress) can sing how "It's your choice, it's no choice at all."
A groove with the message lyrics buried a little too deeply. But it's a) accurate b) danceable to get in the right ears and c) popular amongst the record-buying public, many of whom will not have heard of Arrow's paradox...
... We don't see the Blow Monkeys or Sylvia Teller again, sadly.
We do get to hear a lot more about public choice theory, not least from Adam Curtis's various documentary series.
Public choice theory itself, being from economics, does not describe the real world at all accurately, but nobody ever tells the political economists that they are the intellectual equivalent of a Jive Bunny record.
CAUTION:
Video after the charts contains footage of an orange-skinned fraudster and sex pest.
"On our own" - Bobby Brown
Bobby was in the studio for this week's recording session, but didn't perform on the show.
According to spokesmen for the singer, Brown walked off after "getting bored of waiting around."
The #TOTP spokey said: "He behaved in an obstructive way so we decided we wouldn't use him. We are putting on a professional show, and he was not behaving professionally."
Bobby was one of many pop stars to succumb to megamixymatosis, putting out the "The freestyle megamix" in a year's time.
"Let it roll" - Doug Lazy
Record Mirror's dance correspondent James Hamilton noted,
"the year's most eagerly awaited import is here... already snapped up by all of the knowledgeable DJs and dancers, so a high Gallup entry is not necessarily a foregone conclusion. In fact, the record will need to be worked hard to find a new audience."
It wasn't worked hard, didn't find an audience, and is now almost entirely forgotten.
"Ain't nobody" - Rufus and Chaka Khan
Classic. No notes.
That guy from Bill and Ted's Excellent Adventure looks a bit different today.
"You'll never stop me from loving you" - Sonia
She's only gone and done it!
The victory lap passed through the #TOTP studio, and the effervescent young lady has a sparkly bolero jacket.
Just one backing dancer this time, he towers over Sonia and provides someone for her to look at while she's singing - much more effective than the double-suitor performance two weeks back.
Sonia's debut with "You'll Never Stop Me Loving You" on TOTP, 06-Jul-1989
"Edie (ciao baby)" - The Cult
A bit Guns n' Roses, a bit of the more pompous side of prog, and rather interesting.
A tribute to Edie Sedgewick, of course, the video features a model who seems to have forgotten to put a shirt on - how careless.
Stanley Appel produced this show, with Paul Ciani on holiday.
Our first Mystery Year was 1989. A better episode follows.
Please rise, if you can, and go "Peeyow!" for the #TOTP national anthem.
And then be sure to find a pair of mittens for Peter Powell.
"It started with a kiss" - Hot Chocolate
Errol Brown fixes the camera with his steely gaze, and viewers everywhere go all wibbly at the knees.
Every classic was new once, fresh and fragrant. An unorthodox but effective opener.
"Take me away" - HRH Sir Lord Paul Fab Macca Whacky Thumbs Aloft!!! McCartney of Kintyre
The boundary between McCartney's solo work and Wings was porous, the vid features Linda but not Denny; it does show Eric Stewart of 10CC, Steve Gadd the legendary session drummer, and producer George Martin.
"The only way out" - St Clifford of Richard
Cliff had a phase where he'd try and meld "gospel" and "rock" music, which he called "rockspell".
From this distance, it's a meld of Christian faith and dad dancing, which is the sort of thing that causes toes to go all a-curly.
All the stars are here tonight.
"Don't go" - Yazoo
Vince Clark and Alison "Alf" Moyet are buried beneath the balloons.
Alf has a marvellous hat, and a lacy scarf that's surely for decoration. Vince's undercut and floppy fringe is striking, maybe he wants to join the Belle Stars.
Quite why the set is dressed in cobwebs and dry ice like Hallowe'en is anyone's guess.
"Me and my girl (night-clubbing)" - David Essex
An unorthodox staccatto jazz beat. Perhaps David's dancing isn't his strongest point, but the sharp suit and stage presence make for an unmissable few minutes.
More of this on "David Essex' Showcase", primetime Saturday entertainment from that entertainment hotspot Harrogate.
"I second that emotion" - Japan
David and the band lounge about with some plants and room dividers.
"Come on Eileen" - Dexy's Midnight Runners and the Emerald Express
Not my cup of tea at all.
"Heart (stop beating in time)" - Leo Sayer
Recorded three weeks ago, in the middle of a very cold and wet spell. Leo Sayer wears a seasonal thick yellow jumper.
The jumper is the most interesting thing about the performance.
The bad weather continued: 40mm of rain yesterday afternoon brought Spaghetti Junction to a halt.
Messages from the cast of "Fame", then
"Fame" - Irene Cara
The video with Irene dancing on the streets of New York, and not the classic one where she's joined by kids in legwarmers.
There's another episode of "Fame" on BBC1 in just a few minutes, "To Soar and Never Falter".
"Videotheque" - Dollar
This was a spectacularly strong episode, sometimes #TOTP just gets it right.
Our second Mystery Year was 1982.
Shania Twain night is next.
"The Commitments" on BBC2 tomorrow; you might also be interested in the cast and crew talking on "The Reunion".
https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m0029q9b
Next week: 1998 at 7pm, Mystery Years after the Prom at 9.40.
Whatever you're doing this weekend, have a fine one!
Amateur Human@daweaver oh fuck no
Thanks for forewarning
@daweaver for sho
Brass section for starters
Brass section for starters
beemoh