Chart History

Strap in, we're going back half a century to the Top 20 UK singles chart on 20th January 1974.

Most of the songs had been released at the tail end of 1973, there was still a bit of a Christmas hangover with lingering hits from Slade, Wizzard and Steeleye Span but a couple of crowd pleasers had smashed their way into the top 10 the previous week, securing the top 2 on this day.

Trawling my collection, I found I conveniently had 10 of the 20 songs so here, in countdown style, is my selection in descending order to the #1 hit on 20th January 1974. Some real corkers, right from the opening bars of Mott The Hoople's Roll Away The Stone to the final pair of glam rock stompers at the end.

Most of these will have appeared in my parents' modest collection of K-Tel and Ronco compilations, played constantly (by me) when I was a kid, so a lot of them bring back very happy memories. I'd forgotten how leftfield David Essex singles could be! And nice to be reminded of time when I only knew Leo Sayer as performer of a few great pop songs rather than the monumental twit that he revealed himself to be in later years. And no, I don't consider The New Seekers to be a blip in this selection!

The above comics are from my collection. Though snapped many years ago and unread for even longer, they are still there boxed safely at home. I'd like to say I got them as a discerning 3-year old, but who got 16p pocket money a week back then? 

 

I got both of these (and pretty much the whole run of Dracula Lives and Planet Of The Apes in one go) from a comic mart in Bath in the late 1980s, when I was a Marvel-obsessed teen. But a Marvel-obsessed teen with a job, so I had disposable income to fritter away. Very little value was placed on Marvel UK comics as they were essentially reprints of the original US issues so I managed to amass a collection with bulk purchases, mostly at or less than the original cover price.

 

Much as I enjoyed Spider-Man, The Hulk and The Fantastic Four, Dracula Lives and Planet Of The Apes were just completely bonkers in respect of content, story and art and I enjoyed reading and re-reading them for many years. 

 

However, I'm at an age where I'm chilled at the thought of a possible house move and having to shift dozens of boxes of comics again. There's no "inheritance" - Lady K enjoys manga but little interest in super-heroes and why should she? - so maybe time for one last flick through before selling them on....?

Blimey, that brought the mood down! Let's stick the music on and lift those spirits again...!

 

1) Roll Away The Stone: Mott The Hoople (#18)

2) Lamplight: David Essex (#15)

3) Pool Hall Richard: Faces (#11)

4) Radar Love (Album Version): Golden Earring (#7)

5) My Coo-Ca-Choo: Alvin Stardust (#6)

6) You Won't Find Another Fool Like Me: The New Seekers (#5)

7) Dance With The Devil: Cozy Powell (#4)

8) The Show Must Go On: Leo Sayer (#3)

9) Teenage Rampage (Single Version): The Sweet (#2)

10) Tiger Feet: Mud (#1)

 

Chart History (36:07) (KF) (Mega)

The Sights, The Sounds...The Smells

First of all, Rob Reiner is not dead yet. 

 

A few days ago, #RIPRob was trending on Twitter and there was a hubbub indicating that the American actor and filmaker had karked it. Turns out it was all a hoax, although I guess there are some who will have wished it was true, either because of his anti-Trump comments or his intention to helm a sequel to his directorial debut, the truly brilliant This Is Spinal Tap.

I was sufficiently suckered/tired/brainwashed (delete as applicable) to assume news of Reiner's demise was true and start on a Dubhed selection as a tribute. I'd nearly completed it when I went back online and realised that #RIPRob was all a load of bollocks and, worse, This Is Spinal Tap 2 is still in pre-production.

Rather than park the selection until Rob's eventual and inevitable passing, I've finished it off and present here for your listening pleasure. I've picked out music used in Reiner's films from his 1984 debut through to 1992's A Few Good Men, after which I'll admit I've only had a sporadic interest. Apart from The Sure Thing (1985), which I don't recall ever seeing and despite starring John Cusack, not one I'll rush to find, the rest are bonafide classics. Yes, even the one with Tom Cruise in it.

This Is Spinal Tap inevitably features heavily throughout this selection, a few songs and lots of dialogue ripped from the movie itself. There's some proper soundtrack stuff, with full-on orchestras, a small helping of Mark Knopfler, a couple of contemporary (1984) rock and pop songs and tons of classics from Messrs. Sinatra, Holly, Ellington, King and, er, not-so-classic from Rod The Mod. 

 

The soundtrack for When Harry Met Sally... features Harry Connick Jr.'s covers of American standards, including It Had To Be You. Thankfully, ol' Blue Eyes' version also pops up in the film and therefore appears here. Frank Sinatra had been performing the song since the early 1940s but interestingly, he didn't actually get around to releasing a studio version of the song until 1980.

 

I think the selection generally turned out a lot better than I expected but as ever, you will be the judge of that.

Turn this one up to 11, of course.

 

1) Marti Di Bergi Introduction: Spinal Tap (1984)

2) Morning Ride: Mark Knopfler (1987)

3) Dance Hall Days (Remix By Chris Hughes & Ross Cullum): Wang Chung (1983)

4) "Squatney Memories": Spinal Tap (1984)

5) The Fireswamp: Mark Knopfler (1987)

6) "Saucy Jack": Spinal Tap (1984)

7) Guantanamo Bay: Marc Shaiman (1992)

8) "Lick My Love Pump": Spinal Tap (1984)

9) It Had To Be You (Cover of The Ambassadors): Frank Sinatra (1980)

10) "Yes I Can!": Spinal Tap (1984)

11) Let The Good Times Roll: Shirley & Lee (1956)

12) Heavy Duty: Spinal Tap (1984)

13) You Might Think: The Cars (1984)

14) Shotgun: Junior Walker & The All Stars (1965)

15) Stonehenge: Spinal Tap (1984)

16) Go To Your Room: Marc Shaiman (1990)

17) Stand By Me: Ben E. King (1961)

18) Everyday: Buddy Holly (1957)

19) Gimme Some Money (Soundcheck Version) / "None More Black": Spinal Tap (1984) 

20) Don’t Get Around Much Anymore: Duke Ellington (1940)

21) Infatuation (Full Length Version By  Michael Omartian): Rod Stewart (1984)

22) Stars And Stripes Forever: Marc Shaiman (1992)

23) End Interviews: Spinal Tap (1984)

 

1984: This Is Spinal Tap: 1, 4, 6, 8, 10, 12, 15, 19, 23

1985: The Sure Thing: 3, 13, 21

1986: Stand By Me: 11, 17, 18

1987: The Princess Bride: 2, 5

1989: When Harry Met Sally...: 9, 20

1990: Misery: 14, 16

1992: A Few Good Men: 7, 22

 

The Sights, The Sounds...The Smells (59:35) (KF) (Mega)