611 Hello Jason Donovan - Notthing Can Divide Us

Chart  entered  : 10  September  1988

Chart  peak : 5

Number  of  hits  : 17

It's  hard  to  be  really  nasty  about  a  genuinely  nice  bloke  whose  own  musical  tastes  were   well  removed  from  the  records  he  made  but  he  went  along  for  the  ride. Nobody  put  a  gun   to  his  head.

Jason  Donovan  ( born  1968 )  is  the  son  of   the  reasonably  successful  Anglo-Australian  actor   Terence  Donovan. He  himself  started  acting  in  1980  in  a  series  called  Skyways  where  one  of  his  co-stars  was  the  equally  youthful  Kylie  Minogue. His  career  progressed  modestly  until  1986  when  he  replaced  another  actor  as  the  regular  character  Scott  Robinson  in  Neighbours.
This  required  him  to  romance  and  wed  Minogue's  character, one  of  the  TV  events  of  the  eighties. He  and  Minogue  had  an  off screen  relationship  at  the  time  although  how  serious  this  was  remains  a  matter  of  conjecture.

With  Minogue's  pop  career  taking  off  like  a  bomb,  Pete  Waterman's  thoughts  turned  towards  her  charismatic  co-star. When  he  indicated  a  willingness  to  give  it  a  go  Waterman  quickly  signed  him  up.

"Nothing  Can  Divide  Us"  was  his  first  single,  its  release  carefully  timed  to  coincide  with  the  screening  of  the  wedding  episode  in  the  UK  that  autumn.  By  now  the  terrible  trio's   tamed   down  Hi-NRG  backing  tracks  had  become  instantly  recognisable  and  the  only  trace  of  originality  here  is  the  little  guitar  solo  in  the  middle  eight  which  was  perhaps  a  concession  to  Jason's  rocker  aspirations . Otherwise  it's  a  midddling  aong  by  their  standards. Like  most  actors,  Jason  is  a  functional  singer ; you  don't  hear  his  voice  and  think  "ooh  that's  bad"  but  there's  nothing  in  it  that  would  sell  records  without  his  looks  and  TV  fame  and  that's  the  story  of  his  entire  career.  





 

610 Hello Inner City - Big Fun

Chart  entered :  3  September  1988

Chart  peak : 8

Number  of  hits  : 16

This  is  where  house  started  mutating  into  techno,   ushering  in  a  rash  of  acts  whose  music  just  leaves  me  cold  although,  ironically,  many of  them  were  inspired  by  the  early  eighties  synth  stuff  that  I  love.

Inner  City  were  the  brainchild  of  Detroit  ( although  a  New  Yorker  by  birth )   producer  Kevin  Saunderson  ( born  1964 ). At  Belleville  High  School  met  up  with  Derrick  May  and  Juan  Atkins ( of  the  group  Cybotron )   who  encouraged  him  to  make  his  own  music. Both  of  them  worked  on  his  debut  single  "Triangle  of  Love"   released  under  the  name   Kreem . Kevin  was  a  huge  fan  of  English  electronic  acts  like  Depeche  Mode  and  New  Order  and  the  track  is  heavily  influenced  by  Blue  Monday.  

Kevin  then  started  work  on  a  backing  track  in  1987  for  which  he  needed  a  female  singer  and  lyricist. Another  producer  friend  Terry  "Housemaster"  Baldwin  suggested  his  friend  Paris  Grey.  Paris  ( real  name  Shanna  Jackson ) was  from  Illinois  and  had  been  the  featured  vocalist  on  his  single  "Don't  Lead  Me"  a  fearsomely  tuneless  banger. Baldwin  then  wrote  and  produced  "Don't  Make  Me  Jack"  which  was  released  under  her  name  and  is  more  of  a  song  than  the  title  would  suggest  and  shows  her  cool  vocal  style  to  better  advantage. Their  third  collaboration  "Reach  For  Your  Dreams"  was  written  by  Paris  itself  but  is  little  more  than  a  repetitive  chant. All  these  records  were  released  in  1987  and  she  also  found  time  to  feature  on  a  single  "Don't  Want  It"  by  Kenny  "Jammin"  Jason   &  Fast  Eddie , an  anti-drugs  track  with  some  nifty  keyboard  work  that  is  actually  pretty  good.

Paris  accepted  Kevin's  invitation  and  flew  to  Detroit. She  came  up  with  some  lyrics  and  constructed  a  song  around  his  music. Kevin  then  sat  on  the  completed  track  for  a  few  months  until  Neil  Rushton  , a  veteran  of  the  Northern  Soul  scene  working  for  Virgin  , came  looking  for  some  music  to  put  on  a  compilation  of  Detroit  techno  music  for  the  UK  market. Kevin  handed  over  "Big  Fun"  and  was  soon  persuaded  to  release  it  as  a  single. Kevin  chose  the  name  Inner  City  for  his  collaboration  with  Paris.

Although  it  quickly  became  a  universal  party  anthem  "Big  Fun"  is  actually  about  sex, Paris  stringing  together  a   series  of  fairly  obvious  metaphors  for  the  act. Though  it  obviously  worked  its  magic  in  the  clubs,  I  find  it  repetitive  and  boring , an  unremarkable  juddering  bass  line  supporting  an  indifferent   song  with  no  real  chorus. The  middle  eight  with  its  synthetic  piano  solo  doesn't  hit  the  mark  for  me  either.  However  the  song  was  a  hit  all  over  Europe  and  the  one-off  collaboration  became  a  hitmaking  duo.

609 Hello Bobby Brown - Don't Be Cruel

Chart  entered  : 30  July  1988

Chart  peak : 42  ( 13  on  re-release  in  1989 )

Number  of  hits : 14

Bobby  was  born  in  Boston  in  1969.  He  formed  a  vocal  group  with  neighbourhood  friends  nine  years  later   which  became  New  Edition. After  competing  in  talent  shows  around  Boston  they  signed  a  deal  with  Maurice  Starr  who  co-wrote  and  produced  their  debut  album  "Candy  Girl"  with  Arthur  Baker  in  1983.

Initially,  they  were more  successful  in  the  UK  when  the  title  track, on  which  Bobby  did  some  of  the  lead  lines,  went  to  number  one   with  its  blend  of  Baker's  electro-funk, rap  ( it  has  a  fair  claim  to  be  the  UK's  first  rap  number  one  )  and  fairly  blatant  Jackson  Five  hooks. However  they  were  perceived  as  something  of  a  novelty  act  and,  like  their  British  counterparts,  Musical  Youth  quickly  faded  as  a  chart  force." Mr  Telephone  Man "  ( their  best  song )  was  their  only  other Top  20 hit  in  1985.

They  were  more  consistently  successful  in  America  but  in  1986  Bobby  was  ejected  from  the group  for  ill  discipline, a  majority  of  the  other  members  forcing  him  out.

Bobby  signed  with  MCA  as  a  solo  artist  and  released  his  first  single  "Girlfriend"  in  October  1986. A  soft  soul  number  with  an  attractive  pleading  vocal  and  soppy  lyrics  it  reached  number  57  in  the  US  but  didn't  chart  here. The  chord  sequence  is  filched  from  Me  and  Mrs  Jones.

Apart  from  a  lacklustre  ballad  "Spending  Time",  the  album  "|King  of  Stage " is   comprised  of   lukewarm   electrofunk  efforts  with  only  the  title  track  having  much  vim. The  album  peaked  at  number  88  in  the  U.S.  and  the  tepid  follow  up  single  "Girl  Next  Door"  didn't  chart.

Bobby  realised  he  needed  to  up  his  game  and  called  on  the  songwriting/ production  duo  of  Babyface  and  L.A. Reid  who  helmed  four  of  the  five  singles  from  his  next  album. "Don't  Be  Cruel"  was  the  first  of  these  and  also  the  album's  title  track.  It's  a  very  effective  example  of  the  style  they  were  developing  which  became  known  as  new  jack  swing  combining  hip  hop  rhythms  with  soulful  singing  ( Bobby  sounding  very  like  Shalamar's  Howard  Hewlett  in  the  bridge  to  the  chorus ). Bobby was  comfortable  doing  rap  as  well  and  switches  between  singing  and  rapping  throughout  the  song; the  rap  interludes  are  backed  by  melodic  keyboards  to  aid  crossover. The  lyrics  about  an  unappreciative  girlfriend  are  a  bit  corny  but  that's  what  you  might  expect  from  a  teenager  anyway. The  song  was  only  a  minor  hit  here  first  time  round  after  reaching  number  8  in  the  U.S.  but  came  back  bigger  the  following  year.

608 Goodbye Evelyn "Champagne " King - Hold On To What You've Got

Chart  entered :  23  July  1988

Chart  peak : 47

Since  her  prodigious  debut  with  "Shame"  in  1978, Evelyn  had  enjoyed   a  frustrating  career  on  both  sides  of  the  Atlantic,  alternating  between  minor  hits  and  misses, only  really   breaking  the  pattern  with  "Love  Come  Down"  a  number  7  hit  in  the  UK  in  1982. She  dropped  the  "Champagne"  tag  in  1980  but  restored  it  a  few  years  later.

"Hold  On  To  What  You've  Got"  was  the  second  of  three  singles  taken  from  her  album  "Flirt"  and  the  only  one  to  be  a  hit. It  was  co-written  ( with  Gene  Dozier )  and  produced  by  Shalamar  producer  Leon  F  Sylvers  III. It's  a  contemporary  house  track  and  Evelyn , still  in  her  twenties , appeared  in  the  video  with  big  hair  and  shoulder  pads. The  lyrical  conceit  is  interesting , a  secretary  to  a  rich  man  telling  him  she  can't  be  bought  and  Evelyn's  vocal  class  puts  this  ahead   of  the  likes  of  Janet  Jackson   but  it's  just  not  the  sort  of  thing  to  excite  me.

The  follow-up  "Kisses  Don't  Lie"  written  by  Ron  Kersey  and  Alex  Brown  is  a  sultry  electro-ballad  in  the  Jam  and  Lewis  mould  and  is  utterly  generic.

The  lead  single  for  her  next  album  "The  Girl  Next  Door"  was   "Day  To  Day"  in  1989   a  collaboration  with  house  outfit  Ten  City which  is  all  groove  and  no  hooks. Evelyn  now  sounds  uncannily  like  Gladys  Knight  but  that  wasn't  enough  to  sell  the  single. The  next  one  "Do  Right" , again  written  by  Sylvers, is  a  forgettable  Jam  &  Lewis  stle  R &  B  number.  With  no  hits,  the  album  didn't  sell  and  EMI - Manhattan  let  her  go.

Evelyn  was  now  in  the  unenviable  position  of  being  washed-up  before  she  was  thirty.  She  didn't  write  and  without  a  major  label  behind  her  had  no  access  to  the  top  producers. She  made  a  last  appearance  in  the  chart  in  1992  when  Altern-8  tackled  "Shame"  and  gave  her  a  "Vs"  credit. It  spent  a  week  at  number  74.

Evelyn  had  to  come  to  England  to  make  her  next  album  for  the  London-based  soul  label  Expansion  in  1995 . Unlike  any  of  her  previous  albums  Evelyn  had  a  hand  in  writing half  the  tracks  on  "I'll  Keep  A  Light  On".The  only   single was  "I  Think  About  You".  It's  tasteful  Brit-Soul  in  the  M  People  mould   with  Evelyn  in  good  form  vocally  but  there's  no  killer  hook  there.  The  album  is  a  competent  contemporary  soul  album  with  nothing  that  was  going  to  get  much  attention  at  the  height  of  Brit-pop  apart  from  the  suspicious  bleached  and  airbrushed  picture  of  Evelyn  on  the  sleeve.

Also  in  1995,  Evelyn  married  her  long  time partner , guitarist  and  producer  Freddie  Fox.

She  was  featured  vocalist  on  a  single  "One  More  Time" by  Al  Mack's  project   Divas  of  Color  in  1996  then  dropped  out  of  the  music  business  for  some  years. In  2006  she  nearly  died  from  a  fibroid  complaint  which  seems  to  have  prompted  her  comeback  in  2008  with  a  new  album  "Open  Book".  The   single  "The  Dance"  a  fast  electronic  number  with  not-so-sly  references  to  her  earlier  hits  is  a  little  too  arch  but  there's  one  or  two  better  tracks  on  the  album  like  the  slinky  opener  "Skillz"  and  the  autobiographical  ballad  "Open  Book". Alas   when  your  time's  gone   it's  hard  to  raise  much  interest  however  good  your  material  and  Evelyn's  comeback  went  largely  unnoticed.

Since  then  she's  appeared  on  a  single "Everybody" by  house  producer  Miguel  Migs  in  2011.
She  was  in  the  retro-flavoured  video  although  somewhat  larger  than  she  was  in  disco's  heyday. The  track  unfortunately  is  house-by-numbers  and  completely  uninteresting.

Evelyn  now  tours  for  a  living  and  has  just  finished  a  package  tour  of  the  UK  with  contemporaries  like  Melba  Moore  and  Rose  Royce .

607 Goodbye Dollar -It's Nature's Way

Chart  entered : 6  July  1988

Chart  peak : 58

The  ex-Guys  And  Dolls  duo  bravely  fought  the  flag  for  straight  pop  in  the  late  seventies  but  struggled  in  1980  after  their  poorly-received  cover  of  "I  Want  To  Hold  Your  Hand"  vacated  the  Top  10. After  a  string  of  flops  and  the  cessation  of  their  romantic  relationship ,  they  approached  Trevor  Horn  at  exactly  the  right  time   and  produced  a  quartet  of  singles in  1981-2  that  not  only  restored  them  to  the  charts  but  were  lauded  by  critics  as  examples   par   excellence  of  the  "New  Pop". However,  Horn  could  not  mend  their  personal  relationship  and  after  one  more  hit,  the  pair  went  their  separate  ways  at  the  beginning  of  1983. David  Van  Day  was  slightly  the  more  successful  as  a  solo  artist  managing  a  minor  hit  with  "Young  Americans  Talking"  while  Thereza  Bazar's  stuff  bombed  completely. The  logic  of  reuniting  was  inescapable  and  they  re-formed  in  1986. They  didn't  set  the  world  alight  with  their  next  two  singles  but  a  hookup  with  Pete Waterman  on  a  version  of  Erasure's  flop  single  "Oh L'Amour"  a  song  just  begging  to  be  covered  restored  them  to  the  Top  10  at  the  beginning  of  1988. It  then  took  them  six  months  to  decide  on  a  follow-up.

"It's  Nature's  Way"  produced  by  P.W.L.  associate  Ian  Curnow, is  the  best  record  the  Pet  Shop  Boys  never  made,  right  down  to  David's  deadpan  spoken  piece  and  Thereza's  French  ad  libs  a  la  I'm  Not  Scared , in  the  middle  eight . Despite  the  debt,  it's  a  decent  song  and  it  was  probably down  to  over-familiarity  with  that  Hi-NRG  sound   ( it's  notable  that  the  next  PSB  single   performed  relatively  poorly )  that  it  didn't  get  a  bit  higher  in  the  chart.  

By  the  end  of  the  year  the  duo  had  split  again. Theresa  emigrated  to  Australia  and  left  the  music  business  to  raise  a  family. David  managed  to  release  one  single "She  Said  She  Said"  in  1989  written  by  Nick  Straker  and  Mark  Proctor,  a  dark  Europop  ditty  which  is  OK  actually  but  a  bit  dated  for  1989.

When  that  failed  David  was  unable  to  secure  another  record  deal  and  spent  the  first  half  of  the  nineties  touring  as  Dollar  with  a  succession  of  female  singers. In  1995  he  took  a  call  from  Bobby  Gubby  and  thus  began  his  tempestuous  spell  in  Buck's  Fizz  which  we'll  cover   fully  in  their  Goodbye  post  ( not  too  long  off  ). He  put  out  cheap  CDs  of  re-recordings  with  both  groups . Towards  the  end  of  that  time  he  started  to  supplement  his  earnings  by  running  a  burger  van  in  Brighton .

In  2002  he  persuaded  Thereza  , who  had  been  working  as  a  vocal  coach  in  Sydney, to  reform  Dollar  to  take  part  in  a  Here  and  Now  package  tour  with  other  eighties  artists. This  led  to  an  invitation  to  take  part  in  the  reality  show  Reborn  In  The  USA  the  following  year. Although  they  were  the  first  evictees  after  a  performance  of  "Something  Stupid"  that  I  missed  through  having  my  appendix  out, perversely  David  did  the  best  out  of  all  the  artists  on  the  series. After  a  huge  bust-up  with  Sonia - the  editing  of  the  show  obscured  what  the  argument  was  actually  about - he  was  able  to  launch  a   whole  new  career  as  a  professional  irritant  on  reality  TV .

Thereza  continued  to  wok  with  him  periodically  until  2008  when  he  neglected  to  tell  her  he  was  going  on  I'm  A  Celebrity  Get  Me  Out  Of   Here. 

Dollar  haven't  operated  since  then . David  released  a  single  with  fellow  contestant  Timmy  Mallett  , the  execrable  "Biff  Baff  Boff  ",  just  after  the  show  but  thankfully  nobody  bought  it.  The  following  year  he  released  his  last  single  to  date  "A  Big  Ship  On  The  Mersey"  a   cheaply  recorded  boring  drone. In  2010  he  married  beauty  expert  Sue  Moxley  and  has  made  cabaret  appearances  as  a  duo  with  her. A  few  months  ago  he  had  heart  surgery  following  chest  pains.

606 Goodbye The Moody Blues - I Know You're Out There Somewhere

Chart  entered  : 25  June  1988

Chart  peak : 52

Now  it's  time  to  wave  goodbye  to  some  more  sixties  legends.

The  Moody  Blues  had  had  a  singular  career. The  original  incarnation  of  the  group  struggled  to  capitalise  on  the  success  of  "Go  Now"  and  after  three  more  modest  hits,  singer / guitarist  Denny  Laine  and  bassist  Clint  Warwick  quit  the  group  in  1966. They  were  replaced  by  Justin  Hayward  fresh  from  his  stint  in  the  Wilde  Three  ( covered  in  the  Goodbye  Marty  Wilde  post )  and  John  Lodge  who  had  played  with  flautist  Ray  Thomas  and  keyboard   player  Mike  Pinder  in   beat  group  El  Riot  and  the  Rebels. The  new  arrivals  led  the  band  away  from  R &  B  to  a  new  "pomp  rock"  sound  marked  by  portentous  lyrics, Mike's  haunting  choral  Mellotron   and  symphonic  interludes. It  was  -and  still  is - reviled  by  the  critics but  it  sold  shedloads  both  here  and  in  America. Like  contemporaries  Pink  Floyd  their  stature  is  not  adequately  reflected  in  the  singles  charts  with  some  of  their  number  one  albums  not  containing  a  UK  hit  single. They  had  a  break  in  the  mid-seventies  with  Justin  and  John  scoring  a  big  hit  as  a  duo  with  "Blue  Guitar"  in  1975  but  reconvened  in  1978  for  the  album  "Octave". Mike  left  the  group  during  the  sessions  and  was  replaced  by  Swiss  keyboard  wizard  Patrick  Moraz   who'd  already  scored  a  couple  of  hit  instrumental  albums  in  the  UK  and  redirected  the  group  to  a  more  streamlined  synth -pop  sound. After  1983's  "Blue  World"  they  were  consigned  to  Radio  Two  and  so  1986's  "Your  Wildest  Dreams" , a  massive  hit  in  the  US  didn't  register  here.

"I  Know  You're  Out  There  Somewhere"  is  very  much  in  the   same  vein  as  the  rest  of  their  eighties  material  with  Justin, an  ace  guitarist,  letting  the  synths  do  most  of  the  work. It's  a  straightforward  pop  tune from  the  perspective  of  a  middle  aged  man  looking  for  a  lost  love  with  an  attractive  melody  delivered  well by  Justin  in  his  usual  plaintive  style. It  is  a  little  on  the  bland  side, lacking  the  sense  of   purpose  in  their  previous  few  singles. It  owed  its  chart  position  to  an  appearance  on  Wogan.  It  reached  number  30  in  the  U.S.

The  single  was  a  trailer  for  their  thirteenth  album  "Sur  La  Mer"  which  Ray  effectively  sat  out  although  he   appeared   with  them  on  Wogan  and  in  the  videos  for  the  singles.. Frankly  I  think  it  would  be  better  dans  la  mer. Justin's  solo  compositions  seem  to  indicate  a  wish  to  be  a  middle  of  the  road  balladeer  challenging  Cliff  Richard , the  follow  up  single  "How  Many  Lies"  being  a  prime  example, while  John's  contributions  are  blustery  attempts  to  recapture  past  glories. The  last  two  tracks  are  so  vapid  and  boring  they  could  tranquilise  a  rhino. The  album  maintained  their  steadily  downward  trajectory  in  the  charts  since  1972  peaking  at  21  and  performed  relatively  poorly  in  the  U.S. too.

While  the  band  were  recording  their  next  album  in  1990  Patrick  gave  an  interview  to  Keyboard  Magazine  expressing  dissatisfaction  with  his  role  in  the  band. At  the  same  time  he  was  preparing  music  for  Switzerland's  700th  anniversary  celebrations. As  a  result  he  was  fired . He  later  took  the  band  to  court  and  won  his  case  in  televised  proceedings. Compilations issued   since  have  sought  to  minimise  his  role  even  to  the  extent  of  airbrushing  him  out  of  band   photos. The  band  elected  not  to  replace  him  with  a  permanent  keyboard  player.

The  band's  commercial  decline  gathered  apace  with  the  next  album  "Keys  To  The  Kingdom"  in  1991. Ray  had  a  bit  more  input  including  a  solo  composition  "Celtic  Sonant " ( an  absolutely  dire  attempt  to  re-write  The  Skye  Boat  Song )  but  drummer  Graeme  Edge  plays  on  just   three  tracks . Neither  played  on  the  lead  single  the  anthemic  "Say  It  With  Love"  which  only  charted  in  Canada. The  follow  up  "Bless  the  Wings", sounding  like  latter  day  ELO , did  no  business  anywhere. Despite  being  a  marginally  better  set  than  its  predecessor,  the  album  peaked  at  54   here  and  94  in  the  US.

The  following  year  the  band  played  a  well  received  concert  with  the  Chicago  Symphony  Orchestra   at  the  Red  Rocks  stadium  and  spent  most  of  the  nineties  refining  their  live  act  to  include  a  full  orchestra. In  1996  a  compilation  LP  reached  number  13.

The first  new  recording  for  the  best  part  of  a  decade  came  with  a  new  single  "English  Sunset"  in  1999  which  utilises  a  drum  and  bass  rhythm  of  all  things. It's  not  embarrassing  but  not  particularly  comfortable  either. It  proved  utterly  unrepresentative  of  the  new  album  "Strange  Times"  which  largely  ditched  the  synths  and  drum  machines  in  favour  of  string  arrangements  for  its  slow  melancholy  songs. "The  Swallow"  is  a  particularly  affecting  meditation  on  ageing given  extra  piquancy  by  the  new  vulnerability  in  Justin's  voice. Taken  as  a  whole  the  album  is   too  soporific  and  sold  poorly, peaking  in  the  nineties  on  both  sides  of  the  Atlantic.

In  2001  they  provided  some  new  music  for  an  IMAX  film  Journey  into  Amazing  Caves .

The  following  year  Ray,  whose  health  had  declined,  decided  to  retire,  leaving  Graeme  as  the  only  survivor  from  the  original  line  up.

In  2003  they  put  out  their  last  album  to  date, a  Christmas  album  featuring  some  new  material  called  "December". It's  OK  if  you're  in  the  mood for  that  sort  of  thing. It  was  their  first  album  since  their  Denny  Laine-era  debut  to include  covers  and  like  that  one  didn't  chart  anywhere.

Since  then  the  remaining  trio  have  continued  to  tour  regularly  with  Justin  taking  time  out  in  the  noughties   to  also  tour  with  Jeff  Wayne  in  the  live  presentation  of  War  of  the  Worlds .

Ray  is  currently  in  remission  from  prostate  cancer. He  announced  a  forthcoming  solo  album  in  2014  but  there's  been  no  sign  of  it.

Patrick  has  released  three  solo  albums  of  piano  music  since  his  departure  from  the  band  and  a  collaboration  with  drummer  Greg  Alban.

Mike  settled  down  to  family  life  in  California  and  worked  for  Atari  on  music  synthesis.  He  re-emerged  in  1994  with  a  space-themed   solo  album  "Among  The  Stars"   which  was  poorly  received. The  following  year  he  released  the  spoken  word  album  of  children's  stories  A  Planet  With  One  Mind  which  was  well  received  in  its  genre. Since  then  he's  been  unproductive  but  has  contributed  to  two  albums  by  his  sons  who  record  as  The  Pinder  Brothers.

We  covered  Denny's  subsequent  career  in  the  Wings  posts.

Clint  disliked  touring  and  gave  up  the  music  business  for  carpentry. In  1996  he  lost  his  son  Paul. In  2002  he  made  his  only  solo  recording  the  valedictory  "My  Life"  a  country-ish  ballad  which  goes  on  forever  and  amply  demonstrates  why  he  wasn't  the  lead  singer.



 





  

605 Hello Roachford - Cuddly Toy

Chart  entered  :  18  June  1988

Chart  peak : 61 ( 4  on  re-release  in  1989 )

Number  of  hits : 12

With  Prince  taking  up  the  baton  dropped  by  Hendrix ,  the  late  eighties  saw  a  number  of  black  performers  entering  the  world  of  rock.

Like  Alice  Cooper  and  Toyah, Roachford  were  actually  a  group, formed  around  singer-songwriter  Andrew  Roachford ( born  1965)  who  also  played  keyboards. The  line  up  was  completed  by  Hawi  Gondwe ( guitar ), Derrick  Taylor  ( bass )  and  Chris  Taylor ( drums ). The  following  year  they  secured  support  slots  with  Terence  Trent  D'Arby  and  The  Christians  and  were  signed  by  Columbia.

In  February  1988  they  released  their  first  single "Family  Man"  , an  over-produced  ( by  veteran  blues  man  Mike  Vernon )  stilted    rock  funk  number  with  awful  lyrics  - "Never  had  no  money  but  you  lived  like  the  rich, poncing  all  your  money  off  some  poor  bitch" - addressed  to  some   badass  guy  settling  down  to  family  life. There  are  no  hooks  and  the  song  runs  out  of  ideas  half  way  through  in  a  mess  of  squally  synth  noise  and  timewasting  ad  libs. It  didn't  chart  but  became  their  second  hit  on  re-release  reaching  number  25.

"Cuddly  Toy"  was  their  second  release. It's  a  bit  tidier  with  a  decent  bass  line  and  a  guitar  riff  that  sounds  like  Money  For  Nothing  but  in  truth  not  that  much  better. Andrew's  vocal  is  too  strident  to  make  the  self-pitying  lyric  ring  true  and  the  bludgeoning  chorus  is  ugly. Plus  there's  more  horrible  synth  sounds  to  endure. It's  their  only  Top  20  hit  here  and  their  only  hit  in  the  US  but  if  you  want  an   example  of  major  label  mediocrity  from  this  period  this  is  a  good  place  to  start.

604 Goodbye Paul Hardcastle - 40 Years

Chart  entered  :  6  June  1988

Chart  peak : 53

Paul  had  experienced  his  biggest  success  a  year  on  from  his  breakthrough  when  "19"   became  a  worldwide  hit,  reaching  number  one  here  and  almost  everywhere  else. He  scored  three  more  Top  20  hits  in  its  wake  but  the  twin  attack  of  hip  hop  and  house  left  his  electronic  take  on  jazz  funk  already  sounding  dated  and  his  previous  single  had  faltered  at  number  54.

"40  Years"  could  hardly  be  more  obvious  in  its  attempt  to  repeat  the  success  of  "19"  with  its  vocal  samples - this  time  concerning  the  Cold  War"  - and  electro-funk  groove  adhering  strictly  to  the  formula. But  there's  an  extra  element  here, Paul's  white  man  rap  amateurishly   delivering  his  own  unoriginal  thoughts  on  the  nuclear  stand-off  in  cringeworthy  rhyme - "way  back  in  45, when  the  first  atom  bomb  came  alive" It's  awful, embarrassingly  so. Chrysalis  dropped  him  after  this  and  you  can't  blame  them.

 In  1989  he  returned  with  the   single  "Are  You  Ready" , a  medley  of  disco  classics  set  to  a  house  rhythm  under  the  name  "Paul  Hardcastle  Sound  Syndicate  "which  bubbled  under  the  chart. It  was  included  on  the  following  year's  covers  album  "Sound  Syndicate"  on  K-Tel  Records. Also  in  1990  he  began  a  collaboration  with  Jaki  Graham  and  saxophonist  Gary  Barnacle  under  the  name  "Kiss  The  Sky". The  first  single  "Livin  For  You"  is  a  mellow  electronic  soul  track  quoting  Minnie  Ripperton's  Loving  You. The  second  was  a  robotic, interesting  for  one  play , cover  of   Hendrix's  Voodoo  Chile . These  were  released  on  Fast  Forward  Records  but  by  the  time  of  their  eponymous  debut  in  1992  they  were  signed  to  Motown. The  third  single  is  a  mellow  house  tune  that  goes  in  one  year  and  out  the  other.
Another  Kiss  The  Sky  album, "Millennium  Skyway" , came  and  went  in  1994.

None  of  these  records  made  any  impression  and  since  then   Paul  seems  to  have  largely  eschewed  singles and  concentrated  on  the  smooth  jazz  market  releasing  a  long  string  of   albums  under  various  guises.  His  collaborations  with  vocalist  Helen  Rogers  go  out  under  the  name  "The  Jazzateers", if  she's  not  involved  it's  "Hardcastle". In  the last  few  years  he's  also  recorded  as  "The  Chill  Lounge". I'm  not  pretending  to  have  explored  all  these  albums  in  depth  but  from  a  reasonable  sample  it's  not  all  bad, There's  nothing  you'd  call  cutting  edge  but  if  like  me, you  like  electronic  keyboard  music,  there  is  the  odd  nugget  amidst  the  blandness. 

603 Hello The Pasadenas - Tribute ( Right On )

Chart  entered  :  28  May  1988

Chart  peak  : 5

Number  of  hits : 10

I  wasn't  expecting  to  be  discussing  this  lot  but  there  you  go.

The  Pasadenas  were  originally  a  dance  troupe  called  Finnesse  who  specialised  in  appearing  in  music  videos  by  London-based  bands  such  as  Freeez and  Animal  Nightlife. They  also  appeared  in  Absolute  Beginners. They  decided  that  singing  would  extend  their  shelf  life . Three  of  the  band  were  related  , David  and  Michael  Milliner  who  were  born  in  Pasadena , and  their  half-brother  Jeff   Brown. Andrew Banfield, whose  sister  Susan  was  one  half  of  rap  duo  The  Cookie  Crew, and  the  mixed  race  Hamish  Seelochan  were  the  other  two  members.

They  got  a  deal  with  CBS  and   a  support  slot  on  Wet  Wet  Wet's  UK   tour  in  1988  which  helped  this  into  the  charts.

"Tribute  ( Right  On ) " , their  first  single,  was  written  by  the  band  in  collaboration  with  Pete  Wingfield    and  is  defiantly  retro  in  its  approach  , harking  back  to  seventies  soul  and  namechecking  all  the  usual  touchstones - Arethra, Smokey , Stevie  Wonder  et  al. That  sort  of  saluting  was  getting  a  bit  tiresome  by  1988  but  the  song  has   great  horns and   an  irresistible  funky  groove   and  the boys, who  swap  vocal  lines  throughout, acquit  themselves  well  both  on  the  record  and  in  the  video. It's  not  quite  their  biggest  hit  in  the  UK  but  certainly  their  best.  It's  also  their  only  hit  in  America.
 

602 Hello Soul II Soul* - Fairplay

(* ...featuring  Rose  Windross )

Chart  entered : 21  May  1988

Chart  peak : 63

Number  of  hits : 15

Soul  II  Soul  were  a  sound  system  collective  originating  in  London  in  1977   which  explains  their  fondness  for  the  "featuring"  credit  and  the  difficulty  of  determining  exactly  who  was  in  the  group  over  the  years. The  main  man  was  undoubtedly  Trevor  "Jazzie  B  "  Romeo  ( born  1963 ) a  DJ, producer, night  club  proprietor  and  clothes  seller. He  was   accompanied  by  Philip "Daddae"  Harvey  , a  multi-instrumentalist  from  London., DJ  Aitch  B, programmer  Jazzi  Q   and  vocalists  Doreen  Waddell,   Rose  Windross  and  Caron  Wheeler.   Caron  was  considerably  more  experienced  than  the  others*  having  been  making  records  since  the  late  seventies, first  with  female  reggae  trio  Brown  Sugar,  then  with  session  backing  vocalists  Afrodiziak. They  can  be  heard  on  major  hits  such  as  Beat  Surrender  and  Nelson  Mandela.

By  1988  Jazzie  had  decided  it  was  time  to  make  his  own  records  and  "Fairplay"  was  the  group's  first  release  on  10  Records. Rose  wrote  most  of  the  song  with some  help  from  Jazzie  who  produced  it  alongside  his  Bristol-based  rival  Nellee  Hooper .The  lyric  bewails  the  fate  of  an  abandoned  lover   before  switching  to  an  advert  for  the  group's  Sunday  shows  and  similarly  the  music  mixes  soulful  singing  with  hip  hop  beats, a  marriage  that  would  become  the  group's  lasting  legacy. Understated  keyboards  keep  the  song  accessible. Rose's  vocal  certainly  merits  the  featuring  credit, ranging  from  near-rap  to  Mnnie  Ripperton  swoops. Although  very  similar  in  sound  the  song  lacks  the  killer  hooks  of  their  big  hits  the  following  year.

* Rose's  wikipedia  entry  currently  says  she's  the  same  person  as  reggae  singer  Rosemarie  Walters  who  cut  an  album  in  1983  but  I  can't  find  any  confirmation  for  this  claim.  

601 Hello Hothouse Flowers - Don't Go

Chart  entered : 14  May  1988

Chart  peak : 11

Number  of  hits : 10

Sappy  Irish  balladeer  Johnny  Logan  doesn't  qualify  for  a  post  on  this  blog  but  he  certainly  gave  this  lot  a  leg  up  as  a  result  of  winning  the  Eurovision  Song  Contest  for  the  second  time  in  1987.

Hothouse  Flowers  were  formed  in  Dublin  in  1985  by  former  school friends  Liam  O' Manolai  and  Fiachna  O'  Braonain  as  a  busking  duo  originally  known  as  The  Incomparable  Benzini  Brothers.  Peter  O'  Toole   ( not  that  one  ) soon  joined  on  bass. They  became  a  more  conventional  band  with  the  addition  of  drummer  Jerry  Fehily  and  saxophonist  Leo  Barnes  though  these  latter  two  were  not  at  first  counted  as  full  members.  Liam  was  the  singer  and  keyboard  player  while  Fiachna  played  guitar  in  the  line  up.

In  1986  the  band  got  on  Irish  television  without  having  a  record  deal  and  came  to  Bono's  attention. He  signed  them  to  U2's   Mother  label. They  released  their  first  single  "Love  Don't  Work  This  Way", produced  by  Flood , in  1987. It's  a  slightly  downbeat  but  energetic  pop  soul  workout  pretty  close  to  Hue  and  Cry  with  a  stronger  vocalist. The  song  has  an  adult  lyric  about  the  draining  of  romance  from  a  relationship; Irish  singer  and  actress  Maria  Doyle  Kennedy  takes  a  verse  to  give  the  female  perspective. It  finishes  very  strangely  on  a  rhythm  guitar  break .It  was  a  big  hit  in  Ireland  reaching  number  7  but.  despite  some  night  time  radio  play,  it  didn't  register  here.

The  band  then  signed  with  London  Records.

"Don't  Go"  was  their  first  single  for  the  new  label  in  November  1987. I  actually  prefer  the  previous  single   as  "Don't  Go"  hangs  on  a  repetitive  piano  riff  that  gets  pretty  boring  by  the  end  of  the  song. The  lyric  is  a  string  of  summery  images  to  underline  the  central  message of  why  leave  when  everything's  rosy ? There's  absolutely  nothing  to  tie  it  to  the  theme  of  child  abandonment  suggested  by  the  emotive  picture  above  ( which  wasn't  the  sleeve  for  the  original  release ). Liam  delivers  it  in  a  tumble  of  words  with  no  regard  to  metre  which  instantly  suggests  Springsteen  to  me  but  I  mentioned  that  at  the  time  to  my  friend  Mark  and  he  - a  huge  Bruce  fan - couldn't  see  it  at  all. The  song  reached  number  2  in  Ireland  but  failed  to  chart  here. A  subsequent  single  "Feet  On  The  Ground  went  to  number  one  in  Ireland   but  again  stiffed  here.

Then  came  Eurovision, 1988 . Logan's  victory  the  previous  year  meant  that  the  Contest  was  staged  in  Dublin  and  Hothouse  Flowers  were  recruited  to  provide  a  musical  interlude  after  all  the  contestants  had  performed  to  give  the  judges  a  chance  to  tot  up  their  scores. They  chose  to  perform  "Don't  Go". As  a  result , the  song  was  a  much  bigger  hit  than  the  UK  entry  ( Scott  Fitzgerald's  "Go"  which  came  mighty  close  to  winning )  and  the   Swiss  winner  ( which  didn't  chart  at  all  but  we'll  certainly  be  meeting  its  performer  a  few  years  on  from  here ). It  remains  their  only  Top  20  hit,  both  here  and  in  the  U.S.

600 Hello Mica Paris - My One Temptation

First  charted :  7  May  1988

Chart peak  : 7

Number  of  hits  : 15

Mica   ( originally  Michelle  Warren from  Islington  )  seemed  to  come  out  of  nowhere  but  she'd  appeared  on record  as  a  member  of  The  Spirit  of  Watts  gospel  choir  in  1985  and  as  a  backing  vocalist for  one  hit  wonders,  Hollywood  Beyond  in  1986. Mica  was  then  signed  by  Fourth  and Broadway  as  a  solo  artist.

"My  One  Temptation"  was  her  first  single. The  song, about  the  dangers  of  falling  for  a  bad  guy, was  written  by  Mike  Leeson,  Miles  Walters  and  Peter  Vale. It's  not  my  cup  of  tea  but it's  a  clever  piece  of  pop  soul  with  a    strong  chorus  and  a  touch  of  class  added  by  the  French  horn  in  the  arrangement.  The  19-year  old  Mica  has  a  strong  R &  B  voice  and  that  pretty  much  exhausts  what  I  can  find  to  say  about  it. It  remains  her  only  Top  10  hit  here  and  her  only  ( very  minor )  hit  in  the  U.S.

  

599 Hello The Wonder Stuff - Give Give Give Me More More More

Chart  entered  : 30  April  1988

Chart  peak : 72

Number  of  hits : 16

I   must  confess  I  never  quite  got  my  head  round  this  lot.

Like  Pop  Will  Eat  Itself, The  Wonder  Stuff  sprang  from  the  band  From  Eden  which  featured  Malcolm  Treece  on  guitar  and  Miles  Hunt  on  drums. Miles's  uncle  was  Bill  Hunt  who'd  been  in  ELO  and  Wizzard. Miles  forsook  the  drum  kit  to  be  lead  singer  when  the  new  band  was  formed  in  1986. The  rhythm  section  were  Rob  Jones  who  called  himself  "The Bass  Thing"  and  drummer  Martin  Gilks   who'd  been  with  C86  also-rans  The  Mighty  Lemon  Drops  before  they  recorded  anything.

Within  a  few  months  The  Wonder  Stuff  had  released  a  self-financed  EP  "A  Wonderful  Day".  The  first  two  tracks  "It's  Not  True"  and  "Like  A  Merry-Go-Round"  are  muscular  Smiths -style  guitar  pop  with  a  decent  tune   topped  off  with  Miles's  feline  vocals. The  subsequent  tracks  "A  Wonderful  Day"  and  "Down  Here"  are  more  throwaway  but  it  was  a  more  than  decent  debut  record.

I  won't  discuss  their  second  single  in  May  1987, "Unbearable"  here  because  it  became  their  "Goodbye "  hit  on  reissue.

"Give  Give  Give  Me  More  More  More"  was  their  first  single  for  Polydor  after  signing  for  an  advance  of  £80,000. It's a  sarcastic  expression  of  yuppie  values  from  the  point  of  view  of  an  aspirant. It's  hardly  up  there  with  Rent  for  insight   but  I  suppose  their  hearts  were  in  the  right  place. The  jagged  rhythm  and  ragged  guitar  hark  back  to  Wire  and  slightly  forward  to  Blur   and  it  probably  deserved  to  climb  a  bit  higher.

598 Goodbye Saxon - I Can't Wait Anymore

Chart  entered :  30  April  1988

Chart  peak :  71

With  all  the   glamorous   new  metal  acts scoring  hits it  was  inevitable  that  some  of  the  old  guard  would  disappear. Saxon  were  particularly  vulnerable  , their  chisel-chinned frontman,  Biff  Byford , not  really  cutting  it  when  up  against  Jon  Bon  Jovi  and   Joey  Tempest. In  fact , Saxon  hadn't  made  the  Top 30  since  1981   but  a  loyal  fanbase  kept  giving  them  minor hits. EMI  had  taken  them  on  in  1985  but  hadn't  seen  much  of  a  return on  their  investment. There  had  been  one   or  two  line  up  changes.  In  1981  drummer  Pete  Gill  injured  his  hand  and  had  to  be  replaced  by  Nigel  Glockler, formerly  with  Toyah.  In  1986  bassist  Steve  Dawson  was  fired  and  replaced  by  Paul  Johnson, formerly  with  Heritage. In  1987  Nigel  left  - temporarily  as  it  turned  out - and  was  replaced  by  Nigel  Durham.

"I  Can't  Wait  Anymore "  was  the  second  single  from  their  number  49 album  "Destiny"  , the  first , a   cover  of  the  Christopher  Cross  number  "Ride Like The  Wind" , having  done  slightly  better  than  their  other  singles  for  EMI. It's  a  far  cry  from  their  early  singles  . Biff's  voice  is  still  recognisable  but  otherwise  the  sound  has  been  smoothed  out  for  the  American  market with  a  similar  metallic  drum  sound  to  contemporaries  Def  Leppard  and  shiny  keyboards  laid  over  the  guitars  apart  from  a  rather  dull  solo. The  lyrics  are  just  a  string  of  girl-done-me-wrong  cliches. The  chorus  is  passable   but  all  in  all  it's  pretty  forgettable. It  spent  a  single  week  at   71  here  and  America  remained  impervious  to  their  charms.

EMI  realised  their  mistake  and  dropped  them.  Nigel  G  reclaimed  the  drum  seat  and  Paul    was  replaced  by  a  guy  called  Nibbs  Carter.  They  were  still  popular  in  Germany  and  went  over  to  Hamburg  to  record  their  next  LP  "Solid  Ball  of  Rock".  The  AOR  trappings  were  dropped  and  it  was   back  to  metal. The  production  is  still  shiny  and  modern  but  the  music   is  ponderous  and  one  track  sounds  much  like  another. Virgin  released  it  in  the  UK  and  put  out   "We  Will  Remember"  a  tribute  to  dead  rockers  as  a  single  but  neither  charted.

Saxon  released  another  four  LPs  in  the  nineties  which  only  charted  in  Germany  ( and  once  in  Switzerland ).  Halfway  through  that  run  guitarist  Graham  Oliver   was  sacked  after  a  business  dispute.  He  got  together  with  Steve  and  Pete ( who'd  had  a  spell  in  Motorhead  in  the  meantime ) as  Son  of  a  Bitch  ( Saxon's  original  name ) . In  1999  Nigel  D  replaced  Pete  and   they   registered  the  name   Saxon  as  a  trademark  for  themselves  . Biff  took  them  to  court  and  eventually  forced  them  to  operate  as  Oliver/ Dawson  Saxon.

The  main  band  trundled  on , kept  afloat  by  European  support. Graham  was  replaced  by  Doug  Scarratt. Nigel  had  to  take  an  injury  break   between  1999  and  2005  but  returned  once  more.

Nothing  much  changed  in  Saxon's  world  until  2007  when  they  featured  as  the  subjects  of   the  first  episode  of  the  TV  show  Harvey  Goldsmith's  Get  Your  Act  Together  in  which  the  rock  promoter  advised  faded  acts  on  how  to  improve  their  fortunes.  Goldsmith  set  out  to  raise  their  profile  in  the  UK  and  had  to  battle  against  their  innate  conservatism. However  they  did  try  out  his  ideas  for  good - the  gig in  front  of  duped  Cure  fans where  the  band  were  clearly  moved  at  playing  in  the  UK  again  - and  bad  - an  air  guitar  stunt  at  half  time  in  a  Sheffield  Wednesday  match  where  the  fans  took  their  displeasure  at  being  2-0  down  out  on  the  hapless  rockers. The  climactic  gig  at  Sheffield  City  Hall  was  a  success  and  the  band  were  probably  more  grateful  for  his  efforts  than  they admitted.

Although  the  series  itself  was  a  notable  failure , it  does  seem  to  have  had   some   lasting  effect  on  the  band's  fortunes  as  the  five  albums  released  since  the  programme  have  all  charted  in  the  UK  ( unlike  the  previous  seven )  and  they  now  tour  here  regularly  in  addition  to  their  European  commitments. The  band  currently  include  Biff, loyal  lieutenant  Paul  Quinn  and  Nigel  G  from  the  hitmaking  line  ups

Owen'Dawson  Saxon  remain  a  going  concern  although  Nigel  D  quit  in  2010. They  have  put  out  some  new  material  but  pretty  much  rely  on  Saxon  songs  in  their  live  sets.

Pete  is  said  to  be  in  poor  health  and  not  able  to  play  anymore

Paul  became  a driving  instructor  and  played  in  a  metal  tribute  band  called  Guns n  Oatcakes  for  a  time.

Nigel  D has  been  with  a  hard  rock  outfit  called  Morpheus Rising  since 2013.

597 Goodbye Alan Price - Changes

Chart  entered : 30  April  1988

Chart  peak : 54

Another  sixties  survivor  exits  here.

Alan  left  The  Animals  in  1965  after  much  internal  feuding,  particularly  over  his  arranger's  credit  on  House  of  the  Rising  Sun. He  formed  the  Alan  Price  Set  and  enjoyed  a  number  of  hits  in  the  second  half  of  the  sixties. As  we've  seen,  he  had  a  brief  partnership  with  Georgie  Fame  in  the  early  seventies . In  the  seventies  he  found  his  songwriting  mojo  and  released  his  acclaimed  "Between  Yesterday  and  Today"  solo  album  which  yielded  his  last  big  hit, "Jarrow  Song" , in  1974. His  subsequent  albums  raised  little  interest  and  the  hits  became  small  and  sporadic, the  last  one, "Baby  of  Mine"  reaching  number  32  in  1979.

"Changes"  was   recorded  in  1973  as  part  of  his  soundtrack  to  Lindsay  Anderson's  1973 film  O  Lucky  Man  in  which  Alan  appeared  as  a  sort  of  Geordie  Chorus.  The  melody  was  appropriated  from  the  gospel  tune  What  A  Friend  We  Have  In  Jesus. Alan's   simple  lyrics  express  the  acceptance  that  nothing  stays  the  same  and  chime  with  the  stoical  Everyman  persona  he's  cultivated  in  his  solo  work. Alan  delivers  the  song  in  his  distinctive  throaty  voice, not  quite  Eric  Burdon  but  more  than  serviceable, and  his  organ  chords  emphasise  the  song's  roots  in  church. As  the  sleeve  gives  away, the  song's  resurrection  was  due  to  its  use  in  an  advert  for  VW  Golfs   featuring  It  Girl  Paula  Hamilton. I'm  sure  the  diehard  Trot  Anderson  appreciated  the  irony  of  the  song  now  soundtracking  the  adventures  of  a  yuppie  icon.  

Alan  included  the  song  on  his  album  "Liberty"  released  the  following  year. There  were  two  singles,  the  title  track  a  florid  piano  ballad  and  "Fool's  In  Love" a  jazzy  music  hall  romp  that  could  have  from Madness. Both  are  interesting; neither  did  anything. They  were  the  best  choices  available. Elsewhere  it's  a  well-meaning  but  rather  bland  collection  of  songs  that  doesn't  contain  anything  you  need  to  hear  a  second  time.  Like  most  of  its  predecessors  it  didn't chart.

Alan  remarried  in  1990 . He  came  up  with  the  theme  tune  to  the  1991 school  drama  Chalkface   and   made  an  autobiographical  film Is  That  All  There  Is  for  the  BBC  in  1992 .  Thereafter  his  public  profile  diminished.  In  the  mid-nineties  he  got  together  with  Zoot Money  and  Bobby Tench  in  the Electric  Blues  Company  and  released  a  couple  of  albums  of  blues  covers.

Alan  released  his  last  solo  album  to  date  in  2002  with  "Based  on  a  True  Story". It's  a   low  -key  effort  with  the  lightly  jazzy  songs   allowed  plenty  of  room  to  breathe. Alan's  voice  is  clearly  ageing  but  it's  not  a young  man's  album  anyway. There  are  one  or  two  nice  keyboard  solos  and  "Do  It  Now"  is  quite  affecting   but  there's  nothing  else  that  really  grabs  the  attention.

Alan  continues  to  tour  with  some  of  his  sixties   contemporaries  such  as  The  Manfreds  and  has  a  monthly  residency  at  the  Bull's  Head  in  Barnes, London.  

596 Hello Transvision Vamp - Tell That Girl To Shut Up

Chart  entered  : 16  April  1988

Chart  peak :  45

Number  of  hits : 10

I  spoke  too  soon  when  I  suggested  Bros  were  the  last  act  to  have  the  majority  of  thei  hits  in  the eighties. I'd  forgotten  all  about  this  lot

Transvision  Vamp  were  formed  in  1986  by  singer  Wendy  James  and  her  boyfriend  ,guitarist  Nick  Christian  Sayer  who  had  met in  Brighton  and  started  working  on  a  kitsch  sci-fi  screenplay. According  to  Nick, Universal  Pictures  showed  some  interest   then  stalled , so  the  duo  decided  to  get  the  music  out  first. They  moved  to  London  and  recruited  a  couple  of  veterans  from  the  punk  scene  to  fill  out  the  band. Anthony  Doughty ( aka  Tex  Axile )  had  been   in  The  Moors  Murderers  with  Steve  Strange  and  Chrissie  Hynde   and  joined as  keyboard  player. Bassist  Dave  Parsons  was  in   the  last  line  up  of  The Partisans, a  Welsh  punk  band  active  from  1978  to  1984.  He  played  on  their  last  single, the  EP  "Blind  Ambition"  which  sounds  like  The  Adverts, not  a  very  commercial  proposition  in  October  1983. The  sleeve  says  it  was  recorded  and  mixed  in  Alaska  which  I  suppose  is  a  joke  although  you  could  well  believe  it  from  listening  to  the  record. The  album  "The  Time  Is  Right"  in  1984  offered  more  of  the  same. Drummer  Pol  Burton  completed  the  line  up.

It  wasn't  long  before  they  were  snapped  up  by  MCA. With  Wendy  playing  up  the  sex  kitten  image  the  band   offered  a  mixture  of  punk  and  glam  rock  with  sci-fi  references. They  released  their  first  single  "Revolution  Baby"  in  August  1987. Like  all  their  material  it  was  written  by  Nick   and  offers  a  reasonably  attractive  melange  of  Bolan  references  ( it's  surely  not  a  coincidence  that  its  release  coincided  with  the  tenth  anniversary  of  Marc's death )  Sigue  Sigue  Sputnik  twitchy  synths  and  a  half-decent  chorus. It  does  outstay  its  welcome  with  a  long  rant  at  the  end  encompassing drug  taking, housing  allocation and  the  Bomb  which  really  aggravates.  If  you're  going  to  celebrate  trash  and  yet  be  political  in  the  same  song  it  sounds  like  you're  just  taking  the  piss. It's  also  obvious  from  the  first  verse  that  Wendy  didn't  have  a   singing  voice  that  could  match  up  to  her  bravado  and  her  limited  vocal  range  was  always  going  to  limit  what  the  band  could  achieve.

Record  Mirror  received  it  favourably  and  put  Wendy  on  its  front  cover  but  elsewhere  the  reception  was  pretty  hostile  both  to  the  music  and  Wendy's  provocative  persona. The  single  just  missed  out  on  the  charts  first  time  round  but  got  to  number  30  on  reissue  the  following  year.

"Tell  That  Girl  To  Shut  Up"  was  the  follow  up  single, a  cover  of  Holly  and  the  Italians' garage  rock  near-hit  from  1980  ( it  probably  sold   enough  to  go  Top  10  in  1988  terms ).  It  was  a  smart  choice, a  song  with  proven  appeal  but  not  too  familiar  and  a  title  that  chimed  in  with  the critical  response  to  Wendy. The  Vamp  don't  do  anything  particularly  interesting  with  the  song, speed  it  up  a  bit, add  a  few  power  chords  and  subject  it  to  an  eighties  production  from  Zeus  B  Held  to  disguise  the  fact  it's  being  delivered  by  an  inferior  vocalist. The  Brill  Building  melody  and  teen  jealousy  lyric  survive  so  it's  never  less  than  listenable.        

595 Hello Cappella - Push The Beat / Bauhas

Chart  entered : 9  April  1988

Chart  peak : 60

Number  of  hits : 12

Like  Shalamar  a  decade  earlier, Cappella  were  originally  a  studio  project  that  later  evolved  into  a   real  group.

The  man  behind  Cappella  was  Italian  producer  Gianfranco  Bortolotti   who  also  had  UK  hits  under  the  names  49ers   and  Fits  of  Gloom. Whilst  a  student  in  Italy,  he  helped  distribute  records  for  Chicago  house  pioneer  DJ  Pierre  and  invested  his  earnings  in  a  studio  and  record  company. Media  Records  so  that  he  could  make  records  himself.

"Push  The  Beat / Bauhas"  (sic )  was  the  first  release  on  the  Fast  Globe  label. It  isn't  a  double  A-side ;  the  flip  is  actually an  instrumental  mix  of  the  same  track. The  "/Bauhas"  suffix  to  the  title  is  on  the  label  but  not  on  the  sleeve. It  was  written  by Gianfranco  with  help  from  other  Italian  producers  lurking  behind  the  pseudonyms  M.L. and  Bontempi.  It's  hung  on  a  house  rhythm  that  to  me  sounds  pretty  indistinguishable  from  Pump  Up  The  Volume  and  liberally   decorated  with  samples  ( I  picked  out  Was ( Not )  Was, Chic,  Pig  Bag  and  Sly  and  Robbie ). At  the  time  the  public  face  of  the  "group"  was  a  female  singer  Ettore  Foresti  but  it's  doubtful she's  actually  on  the  track.  To  me  it  sounds  like  just  another  club  record. Why  this  got  to  number  60  and  say,  Beat  Dis  got  to  number  2  will, I  suspect, always  elude  me.