Big Audio Dynamite-E=MC2
Former "The Clash" guitarist and singer Mick Jones made a strong start with his new band "Bad Audio Dynamite", with this bouncy hit from the mid-80s, which apart from the obvious synth chorus, has dated quite well, especially from the period it's taken from. The mid-80s was not only the centre of the decade "That taste forgot", but it was in music terms the softest, mushiest and cheesiest part of the decade. The grittiness of Punk music and ska was fading fast, as the economy grew on both sides of the Atlantic, and there was a hell of a lot to be angry about. Also, it was shortly before the likes of rap and house came to the mainstream. You had light pop music called Euro-disco, coming from the likes of Stock, Aitken and Waterman acts like Dead or Alive and Bananarama. Rock music even at this point, appeared cartoonish and over-blown like faux rock chick "Cyndi Lauper", "Heart" and "Bon Jovi". However, "Bad Audio Dynamite" or "BAD", did not fit into this mid-80s mould.
Mick Jones was fired from "The Clash" after much in-fighting and tension between himself and lead singer Joe Strummer. He never returned. However Jones did collaberate with Strummer on the second BAD album in 1986's "No. 10, Upping St.". However, one of their best songs seen here, "E=MC2" is from their 1985 debut album "This Is Big Audio Dynamite". The original group members, also seen in the video, consisted of Mick Jones, Don Letts(sound effects & vocals), Dan Donovan (keyboards), Leo Williams (bass & vocals), Greg Roberts (drums & vocals).
The song is known as the first example of "highly defined sampling technologies". The song uses talking samples from a a film known as 1970's "Performance" directed by English film director Nicholas Roeg. The music video also contain film clips from various other Roeg movies. The song reached a peak high of No.11 on the UK Singles chart. However the album didn't do as well, peaking at No.27. in the UK album charts. Their second aforementioned album performed better, at No.11. By 1990, Mick Jones reformed his band with a completely new set-up, with only himself the original member. So BAD II, got off to an even better start, with a No.1 hit single in the US charts "Rush", well, only the modern Rock US charts. The feel of the band was more like "The Clash", consisting of Nick Hawkins (guitar and background vocals), Gary Stonadge (bass and background vocals) and Chris Kavanagh (drums and background vocals).
The band slightly changed it's name to "Big Audio" for a short while, but hasn't achieved any real amount of success. In 1998, their record label Radioactive Records, refused to release their "Entering a New Ride" album after disagreements. The band released it for free from their website. Pretty much years before Radiohead or Prince released an album for free.
Showing posts with label Top of the Pops. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Top of the Pops. Show all posts
Monday, 8 March 2010
Friday, 19 February 2010
Pet Shop Boys? Boring? Never!
Pet Shop Boys-Being boring
"Being Boring" is a great little song from the musical duo of the Pet Shop Boys, with this hit at the turn of the decade, after their peak in the mid-late 80s with big hits like "West End Girls" in 1985, Opportunities (Let's Make Lots of Money) in 1986 and an Elvis Presley cover song "Always On My Mind" in 1987.
From their 1990 album "Behaviour", this song witnessed a calm down from the cheery 80s synth, and was a more subdued effort from singer/speaker Neil Tennant and keyboardist Chris Lowe, however it's also a very personal and emotional account of friends and colleagues who are no longer with us, in their case, friends and colleagues who had died of AIDS, which was a sexually transmitted disease that came to the UK's shores in the 1980s. The song conveys an almost chronological history of a life beginning from the 1920s to the 1970s and the 1990s.
In this November 1990 act on TOTP, singer Neil Tennant hosts an inquisitive and detective looking long, leather coat, glasses and a small hat, passing the era when large round hats were in fashion in the late-80s (think Pete Waterman's babes "Mel and Kim").
"Being Boring" is a great little song from the musical duo of the Pet Shop Boys, with this hit at the turn of the decade, after their peak in the mid-late 80s with big hits like "West End Girls" in 1985, Opportunities (Let's Make Lots of Money) in 1986 and an Elvis Presley cover song "Always On My Mind" in 1987.
From their 1990 album "Behaviour", this song witnessed a calm down from the cheery 80s synth, and was a more subdued effort from singer/speaker Neil Tennant and keyboardist Chris Lowe, however it's also a very personal and emotional account of friends and colleagues who are no longer with us, in their case, friends and colleagues who had died of AIDS, which was a sexually transmitted disease that came to the UK's shores in the 1980s. The song conveys an almost chronological history of a life beginning from the 1920s to the 1970s and the 1990s.
In this November 1990 act on TOTP, singer Neil Tennant hosts an inquisitive and detective looking long, leather coat, glasses and a small hat, passing the era when large round hats were in fashion in the late-80s (think Pete Waterman's babes "Mel and Kim").
Monday, 1 February 2010
Kissy Wissy's for the UK from Jacko...
Michael Jackson Christmas Message TOTP 1995
A special message from the late, and of course great "King of Pop" Michael Jackson. This was at the time he was on the recovering side, from the child sex abuse allegation that were made in 1993. Icelandic singer Bjork and English comedian Jack Dee introduce a recorded message from MJ. The music video that features for a few seconds at the end, is the 1995 hit "You Are Not Alone", that features -not shown- Jackson posing almost in the buff, along with similarly unclothed, real-life wife at the time Lisa Marie Presley, daughter of another great and late, Elvis Presley, in a relationship that was mostly criticised for being "all for show" and headline grabbing. The relationship didn't last and they divorced 2 years later.
Jackson at this point, was past his peak in his musical influence, and the recent scandal had much reduced his popularity within the murky proceedings, and this is when he began being regarded as "Wacko Jacko". Although he was still regarded as an icon and legend, it felt at the time, no longer fashionable to quote you're love for Michael Jackson. It's changed very much since then, but maybe it was always meant to be after the death of such a showman. Anyway, in this period, as shown in the clip, Jackson has unusually short, but wavy hair, much like short at the bottom, wavy from the top, rather than the flowing locks of before, or the frizzy perms and afros, he had in the 70's and 80's. Despite what Jackson was portrayed as, since the child abuse scandals, right up to his death, the song "You Are Not Alone" was a No.1 hit in both the US and UK. It actually became one of his best-selling singles, and his album "History" was no dud either, with some other big hit songs. It was to be Jackson's last No.1 in the US, however he hit the top of the UK singles chart again in the same year, with "The Earth Song".
A special message from the late, and of course great "King of Pop" Michael Jackson. This was at the time he was on the recovering side, from the child sex abuse allegation that were made in 1993. Icelandic singer Bjork and English comedian Jack Dee introduce a recorded message from MJ. The music video that features for a few seconds at the end, is the 1995 hit "You Are Not Alone", that features -not shown- Jackson posing almost in the buff, along with similarly unclothed, real-life wife at the time Lisa Marie Presley, daughter of another great and late, Elvis Presley, in a relationship that was mostly criticised for being "all for show" and headline grabbing. The relationship didn't last and they divorced 2 years later.
Jackson at this point, was past his peak in his musical influence, and the recent scandal had much reduced his popularity within the murky proceedings, and this is when he began being regarded as "Wacko Jacko". Although he was still regarded as an icon and legend, it felt at the time, no longer fashionable to quote you're love for Michael Jackson. It's changed very much since then, but maybe it was always meant to be after the death of such a showman. Anyway, in this period, as shown in the clip, Jackson has unusually short, but wavy hair, much like short at the bottom, wavy from the top, rather than the flowing locks of before, or the frizzy perms and afros, he had in the 70's and 80's. Despite what Jackson was portrayed as, since the child abuse scandals, right up to his death, the song "You Are Not Alone" was a No.1 hit in both the US and UK. It actually became one of his best-selling singles, and his album "History" was no dud either, with some other big hit songs. It was to be Jackson's last No.1 in the US, however he hit the top of the UK singles chart again in the same year, with "The Earth Song".
Wednesday, 27 January 2010
Dreamy, Early 90's House Music of Which Such Beauty Hoisted by Non-Conforming Female Head Gear
Opus III - Its A Fine Day [totp2]
This is one of the more memorable 90's acts on TOTP. The unique looking act was headed by vocalist Kirsty Hawkshaw, along with Kevin 'The Fly' Dodds, Ian Munro and Nigel 'Spider' Walton providing the tune. A highlight of the house/techno movement in the late-80's and early 90's, was their huge hit "It's A Fine Day", a No.1 in the U.S. Hot Dance Club Play chart (in other words, some secondary-tier US chart), and a peak of No.5 in the UK Singles Chart. The song has a liberal and loving feel to it. That's because the members of the group themselves felt strongly about the environment. This was a time when the environment, really did become a big issue. The song came from the debut album of "Mind Fruit". The song is a cover of the 1983 song of the same name, by Jane & Barton.
One complaint of the British music industry in the early 90's was, it was dominated by faceless dance/house acts, with only good/great music but no individual star potential. Oh, not Opus III. Here we see an almost naked Kirsty Hawkshaw....at the top bearing a mohawk, with some truly weird beads/seashells/robot worms resting on her fringe and forehead respectively, and is squeezed into a tight black catsuit, with some jazzy hands.
This wasn't the only Opus III performance of the same song, but it's not on youtube. In this clip, there are a couple of spinning metallic balls in the group of small monitor screen at the the back of the set. Well, in the other performance, she is singing the song as well as spinning metallic balls (2 or 3) in her hand at the same time. Some talent that. Seriously, I thought it was one of the most weirdest but compelling music acts I have ever seen. The success of the Opus III was short-lived, and they broke up after their second album. Kirsty Hawkshaw, now has hair, looooong hair, plus she looks better like that anyway. Hawkshaw did a new remake of the song in 2002, and is still singing to this day.
This is one of the more memorable 90's acts on TOTP. The unique looking act was headed by vocalist Kirsty Hawkshaw, along with Kevin 'The Fly' Dodds, Ian Munro and Nigel 'Spider' Walton providing the tune. A highlight of the house/techno movement in the late-80's and early 90's, was their huge hit "It's A Fine Day", a No.1 in the U.S. Hot Dance Club Play chart (in other words, some secondary-tier US chart), and a peak of No.5 in the UK Singles Chart. The song has a liberal and loving feel to it. That's because the members of the group themselves felt strongly about the environment. This was a time when the environment, really did become a big issue. The song came from the debut album of "Mind Fruit". The song is a cover of the 1983 song of the same name, by Jane & Barton.
One complaint of the British music industry in the early 90's was, it was dominated by faceless dance/house acts, with only good/great music but no individual star potential. Oh, not Opus III. Here we see an almost naked Kirsty Hawkshaw....at the top bearing a mohawk, with some truly weird beads/seashells/robot worms resting on her fringe and forehead respectively, and is squeezed into a tight black catsuit, with some jazzy hands.
This wasn't the only Opus III performance of the same song, but it's not on youtube. In this clip, there are a couple of spinning metallic balls in the group of small monitor screen at the the back of the set. Well, in the other performance, she is singing the song as well as spinning metallic balls (2 or 3) in her hand at the same time. Some talent that. Seriously, I thought it was one of the most weirdest but compelling music acts I have ever seen. The success of the Opus III was short-lived, and they broke up after their second album. Kirsty Hawkshaw, now has hair, looooong hair, plus she looks better like that anyway. Hawkshaw did a new remake of the song in 2002, and is still singing to this day.
Thursday, 7 January 2010
Pans People Say Goodbye..Am I Seeing What I am Seeing?
Pans People last dance TOTP 1976
Pans People go out in a blaze of glory, as they present their artistic musical interpretation of the song for the very last time. Are they wearing next to nothing with star glitter on their cajones, or is that craftily skin-coloured gear? This last group consists of Mary Corpe, Cherry Gillespie, Sue Menhenick,Ruth Pearson (the only remaining original member of Pan's People)
and Lee Ward. The group were still in demand despite being dumped by TOTP.
Pans People go out in a blaze of glory, as they present their artistic musical interpretation of the song for the very last time. Are they wearing next to nothing with star glitter on their cajones, or is that craftily skin-coloured gear? This last group consists of Mary Corpe, Cherry Gillespie, Sue Menhenick,Ruth Pearson (the only remaining original member of Pan's People)
and Lee Ward. The group were still in demand despite being dumped by TOTP.
Monday, 14 December 2009
Youtube Music Sweepstake
The Tube - Depeche Mode - 'See You' 1982
This was Depeche Mode's first single release after the departure of Vince Clarke in November 1981. Clarke was a highly significant member of the group, having wrote their last 3 hit songs including "Just Can't Get Enough". The departure was to problems over the direction of the band. Well, with this single they did better than ever, and probably their most critically revered era was still to come...
Jimi Hendrix - Top of the Pops 1967 - Purple Haze
Short clip of Hendrix from TOTP, but still classic. Watch out for the smoozy American narrator as he libs sexually suggestive remarks about his action on the guitar.
Old Grey Whistle Test - the Pogues - Streams of Whiskey
Ah, the Old Grey Whistle Test, and this song is a right "knee-slapper". From 1986, near the end of show's shelf life, starring one of the most famous Irish tradional music bands, "The Pogues". The band formed in 1982 under the leadership of singer Shane MacGowan. MacGowan brought great vocal punk energy and vigour to the act. The song is from their 1984 album "Red Roses for Me". The Pogues peaked in 1989, not only for the 1989 album "Peace and Love", but his solo duet (make sense?) with the late Kirsty MacColl for the very timeless and popular "Fairytale of New York". MacGowan split from the group in 1991, then the group broke up in 1996, then they reunited in 2001, but with little success so far.
This was Depeche Mode's first single release after the departure of Vince Clarke in November 1981. Clarke was a highly significant member of the group, having wrote their last 3 hit songs including "Just Can't Get Enough". The departure was to problems over the direction of the band. Well, with this single they did better than ever, and probably their most critically revered era was still to come...
Jimi Hendrix - Top of the Pops 1967 - Purple Haze
Short clip of Hendrix from TOTP, but still classic. Watch out for the smoozy American narrator as he libs sexually suggestive remarks about his action on the guitar.
Old Grey Whistle Test - the Pogues - Streams of Whiskey
Ah, the Old Grey Whistle Test, and this song is a right "knee-slapper". From 1986, near the end of show's shelf life, starring one of the most famous Irish tradional music bands, "The Pogues". The band formed in 1982 under the leadership of singer Shane MacGowan. MacGowan brought great vocal punk energy and vigour to the act. The song is from their 1984 album "Red Roses for Me". The Pogues peaked in 1989, not only for the 1989 album "Peace and Love", but his solo duet (make sense?) with the late Kirsty MacColl for the very timeless and popular "Fairytale of New York". MacGowan split from the group in 1991, then the group broke up in 1996, then they reunited in 2001, but with little success so far.
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