80's UK & US Charts.

I just came online about half an hour or so ago - not been near a computer for days but I'm endeavoring to make up for that (mostly tomorrow, I should think..) and I've had a quick peek here, so things are looking good. Cheers!

 

It's odd that the most of the ones I actually do remember from here, are singles I didn't buy at the time because I didn't like them... Though there are quite a lot that I don't remember as well (like the FGTH one - 'Pleasuredome' is still a great album IMO but they couldn't gain back what that had.) There's a number of tracks I really hated then but like now and these would be some of the rockier ones (although not exactly heavy at all) e.g. the Quo and Bon Jovi ones.

I think the top 40 was far better, earlier in the year - I was buying lots of 45s then but didn't even like the Madness one much (!) I do now and the album Mad Not Mad is pretty good but not one of their best; it does have its moments.

I still love Land Of Confusion and played the heck out of the album it was lifted from (IT). Same goes for Don't Give Up (So). The Damned track is about as polished musically and as about miles away from their punk beginnings as you can be - it's another I played loads (the album of the same name) though I discovered it in the 90s.

I didn't buy any of these as singles - no doubt the album bug had well and truly bitten me by now. Good memories of Madonna's True Blue album from listening to it so much in the first job I had and this was on CD too - Xmas the same year I got my first player, along with the CD of World Machine by Level 42. So that was just weeks away.

 

I'd swap the top 5 for the above one from November '86 anyday!

And I rememeber a load of these so well - fantastic. I only wish(ed) I had my own cash then and I can't think of much else it would have gone on - but I still had a few years of schooling left. I can't say I like everything here but it's great that there is such a variety and so many of these have held up well, til today.

One more thing though (as Columbo would say...) if there is one song that did my nut in and I can't bear to hear anymore is the one at #29. My brother played that so much it drove me up the wall... each time I heard that intro from his room - arghhh!! I mean, he played it like he was obsessed with it and it's rare I say I hate something but this is the effect these things can have on just about anyone, I'd imagine. There's one good thing though - he never did buy the 12" single of it, although I couldn't understand that. Thank goodness for small mercies, eh?

 

Ah - this is about the time I was losing interest in the charts but there are still some that I've always liked here. Just a handful though. I'm afraid to say the appearance of Kylie and others from the PWL stable... once they began to dominate the charts, I was out and into Woolworth's buying albums from Pink Floyd etc.

 

Well, before that they only had one low charting top 40 single. Many big hits later. Founder Jim Peterik was the writer and singer for The Ides of March, of "Vehicle" fame. He also wrote for 38 Special, but was not a member.

 

But it's not as if they've got hair like Lemmy! Only Mike Rutherford smiles because he's the only one who saves money on a shave. There's some cracking charity shop staples here. Paul Young being about the most obvious.

Looking at the top 40 - I have 1, 2 (from a charity shop - what else?), 5, 6, 7, 8, 11, 18, 23, 24, 29 (nice to see Level 42 here - that has what I think was their first decent selling single... The Sun Goes Down (Living It Up) but the rest of the album is a lot deeper than that. They're still a big fave 80s band.) 35, 40 (which is IMO one of the very best albums released in the 80s.)

 

I'm getting very vivid memories now of getting those TDK D90s on a Saturday afternoon, in preparation to record the Sunday Top 40 Countdown on my Sharp 'ghettoblaster.' And then listening to it through the week on my cheapie Walkman (a Saisho, from Dixons..)

 

I bought the album twice - though many years later. And Notorious I had a copy of too. I admit I struggled to keep my concentration through to the end of them... But I still hang on virtually every note of Rio.

 

Post #50: I can only recall a few of the songs offhand, but I know I have several in my collection, (Fine Young Cannibals, Morrissey, Madonna). I don't mind Beds are Burning. I just listened to Baby I Don't Care by Transvision Vamp (which I probably also have), and it's not bad either ...

 

Post #54, I have a surprising number of those LPs:

Genesis
No Parlez
The Crossing
Construction Time Again
True
Too Low For Zero
Synchronicity
Rio
War
You and Me Both
Crises
Punch the Clock
The Present
Upstairs at Eric's
The Hurting
Alpha

... plus these two oldies:

Bat Out of Hell
Ziggy Stardust

... and I'm not sure about:

Kissing to be Clever
Power Corruption and Lies
Golden Section

 

Post #56: the best single here is

Lean On Me

... the "dogmatix" mix (see below) is the best one.

After that, there is:

My Heart Goes Bang Bang
The Power of Love
Into the Groove

... and the best of the rest:

Close to Me
If I Was
Drive
Tarzan Boy


Here's Red Box's wonderful Lean On Me, for the uninitiated:

 

Seventh Stranger from this LP is my favourite Duran Duran song, along with Skin Trade and American Science from Notorious. Their earlier works are less impressive to me, although not terrible or anything.

 

It was a vicious review. I have the Rio review somewhere. I don't think that was much better! I'll try to look it up.

 

If anyone would like a specific chart from a certain year, let me know and I'll see if I have it.

I have most UK singles charts from the 60's to the 90's.

 

All the best 80s records were in the charts June to October 1982!

 

Weren't Dollar doing quite well at that time...

 

Dollar, Natasha, Visage, The "Fizz", Tight Fit, Kid Creole, Diana Ross, Sharon Redd, Belle Stars, Raw Silk.

A pop music fans dream!

 

Have to admit that I lost interest in the charts during the second half of 1986.

 

Wasn't the doll by Michael Landau?

 

I'll have a look later - when we're talking specific, then it has to be something I have in mind and there are at least a couple of 'eras' from around late 81 to mid 83 that I think would be great to look at and discuss. So I'll have a rummage through a site or two and see what's there.

 

Here's one from this period for you!

 

I got #1 and #8 - probably #29 if you count the US 1974 45 edit of the original studio version.

 

I don't have the US chart for this week to hand, but I bet it's a lot different to the UK one.

 

Do the UK readers remember a radio countdown show called The Network Chart Show? The DJ was David Jensen. It counted down the UK Top 30. I knew I used to listen to a British countdown show in the 80s, but I couldn't recall the name of it. But today I found a few of my A4 exercise books (from 1990) in which I used to write down the weekly charts (what a nerd): American Top 40 (with Shadoe Stevens), Rick Dees' Weekly Top 40 and... the Network Chart show. Now that I remember the name of the show, I can recall David Jensen's voice perfectly (but I did have to look up his name). Was it a popular show in the UK?

 

There's always been an official UK 40 show. Though I think in the 70's it was just the top 30. Not sure if Jensen's was this one or a spin-off with different charts. Jensen was a popular DJ in the 70's when he was known as Kid Jensen.