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: 30 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)
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
(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)
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!
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SECOND HOUR
Needle In A Haystack (The Velvelettes)
(1964)... classic Northern soul floor filler, never a hit in the UK. The Velvelettes also recorded the original version of (He Was) Really Sayin' Something, successfully covered in the '80s by Bananarama with Fun Boy Three
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
Take Good Care Of Yourself (The Three Degrees)
... teaser track for our next featured year from the trio at the forefront of the Philadelphia sound
Absolutely Lyricless ~ instrumental break
... from bluegrass country to bossa nova
Orange Blossom Special (The Spotnicks)
(1962) ... Swedish group apparently renowned for their ground-breaking electronic guitar sound... and the space suit costumes they wore on stage
Soul Bossa Nova (Quincy Jones)
(1962) ... instantly familiar, which is hardly surprising having been 'borrowed' as theme music or backing music by numerous TV and radio shows over the years. It was sampled / re-worked by Canadian hip hop band Dream Warriors for their 1990 hit My Definition Of A Boombastic Jazz Style
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See Those Eyes (Altered Images)
(1982) ... single which completed a hat-trick of hits but just missed out on the Top 10
I'm A Boy (The Who)
(1966)... matching the success of My Generation the previous year to become their joint highest placed chart hit, peaking at # 2. Amazingly, for one of the biggest bands of the '60s, they never had a #1
Newsround Tameside: 47 years ago ~ 1975
If You Think You Know How To Love Me (Smokie)
... beginning their run of hits through the second half of the '70s with a Top 3 song penned by the prolific Nicky Chinn and Mike Chapman, successful writers for The Sweet, Mud, Suzi Quatro and others
Hold On To Love (Peter Skellern)
... he had a distinctive style which attracted a loyal following Hold On To Love provided a second taste of chart success, three years after his debut with You're A Lady
Funky Moped (Jasper Carrott)
... Jasper - real name Bob Davis - started out as a folk club compere and singer in and around Birmingham, eventually switching to stand-up comedy. Funky Moped was a novelty song which gained plenty of airplay and went on to reach the dizzy heights of # 5 on the singles chart... although millions bought the single for the other side - a strictly for adults only send-up of the children's TV series The Magic Roundabout -
L'L'Lucy (Mud)
... having achieved huge success over the previous couple of years, Mud moved to a new record label, working with new writers and producers. L'L'Lucy, their first single after signing with Private Stock, continued their run of Top 10-ers
Harmour Love (Syreeta)
... 'harm(our)nising nicely in the background is none other than Stevie Wonder, Syreeta's long-time friend, music mentor, and previously her 'other half'
There Goes My First Love (The Drifters)
... peaking at # 3, one of the biggest hits of their mega-successful UK revival, more than a decade after their initial success
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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
If you missed any of the show, you can catch up online after 15:00 on Sunday 06/11/2022:
