An October 45 that didn't chart, from a band who would become hugely influential re the post-punk landscape.
The Police - MESSAGE IN A BOTTLE Keep these classics coming. A great single from a great singles band. 5/5
Favs... Week Ending 29 September 1979 1 - NEW - 07 - Blondie - DREAMING 1 - NEW - 45 - The Skids - CHARADE 1 - NEW - 58 - Siouxsie And The Banshees - MITTAGEISEN (METAL POSTCARD) 1 - NEW - 59 - Stiff Little Fingers - STRAW DOGS Week Ending 06 October 1979 1 - NEW - 53 - Fleetwood Mac - TUSK 1 - NEW - 70 - New Musik - STRAIGHT LINES Week Ending 13 October 1979 1 - NEW - 51 - Chic - MY FORBIDDEN LOVER 1 - NEW - 64 - The Selecter - ON MY RADIO
Message in a bottle - I like the unusual verse melody. What's it influenced by, some kind of tribal or religious music maybe?
In the UK we finally said goodbye to Decca Records as an independent record company. It was huge in the 60s with the Rolling Stones, Tom Jones and Engelbert Humperdinck on their roster, but the Stones left and Jones and Humperdinck both declined in popularity in the 70s. They had Lulu, Dave Berry, Alan Price, The Zombies and others. They had The Moody Blues, but their star faded as the 70s progressed. In the early 70s they then had Gilbert O'Sullivan licensed through MAM, plus Marmalade, but their stars faded as well. John Miles came and went across a period of two years. They had Jonathan King with his UK Records label, but this lost 10CC to Mercury in the mid-70s and JK's novelty pop records faded away. They also had a fabulous classical back catalogue, but that wasn't really a big profit-making enterprise for them Decca had its own Selecta pressing plant, which produced high quality pressings, possibly the best in the UK. In the 60s, Decca had loads of pressing and distribution deals, including RCA and Atlantic, plus it had the London American label through which we got hits from Monument, Philles and others, but RCA and Monument went to CBS, Atlantic went to Polydor, and WB (!!) went to Pye. Decca also pioneered in the arena of recorded sound and vinyl playback. By the end of the 1970s, however, Decca was a loss-making shadow of its former self with no big artists on its roster, and as soon as its creator and owner Ted Lewis died, it was sold to Polygram. We also saw the changes with UA and ABC and we saw the slowly fading Motown finally leave EMI for a licensing, pressing and distribution deal with RCA. Also, EMI merged with Thorn Electrical Industries to form Thorn EMI. In the UK, however, there was also a burgeoning "indie" movement and soon we saw labels such as Stiff Records, Rough Trade, Factory and Mute making their mark. There were also two big indie distribution companies, Spartan and Pinnacle. Pinnacle had been around for a while but saw increased sales. So some the same and some different, but by the end of 1979 times were hard all over. I was made redundant twice from the same job at a music trade paper in late 1979 but survived this and moved to a different music trade paper straight away. We were all, however, unknowingly sitting on the threshold of big change, not only musically but also politically and technologically. The UK voted in a conservative government led by the iconic but not universally liked Margaret Thatcher, the New Romantics were just around the corner, rap was a-borning, synthesisers were taking hold and digital recording was starting to get established, with digital playback waiting in the wings. So, for this thread the 1970s aren't quite finished, but there is definitely change in the air.
The PolyGram takeover of UK Decca, which also encompassed its US arm London, I.I.N.M., happened in 1980, but yeah, it was all but spent. Its once-bustling US offices at 539 West 25th Street in the Chelsea section of Manhattan had become practically a shell of its former self. I read somewhere that in 1976-77 they closed at least one of their distribution branches (either on the West Coast or Midwest) to save money, thus crippling the label even further. I passed by there in the mid-1980's after that place was long abandoned by the company, and the 'LONDON RECORDS' storefront was still there and posters of various acts were inside. Interesting that London in its last years as an indie concern had a label design . . . . . . reminiscent in a way of United Artists Records starting in late 1977/early 1978 before it too ceased to exist: . . . though with UA it unwittingly signified the label in its sunset years. If they used a different colour scheme for London than they did, it too would have been ironic in that sense. But the bright colours there belied what was going on.
The Police - Message In A Bottle Bought this only to find some slime green vinyl in the sleeve: It got played a few times before being upgraded to a more traditional black LP of The Police - Reggatta De Blanc
Week Ending 15 September 1979 06 - 04 - 06 - Roxy Music - ANGEL EYES Give me the non-discofied original album version any day 08 - 06 - 11 - The Special A.K.A. - GANGSTERS Oh to have been old enough to have seen them live at this time 05 - 14 - 14 - The Stranglers - DUCHESS Love it; one of those tracks that sounds like you've known it all your life even on first listen 09 - 08 - 16 - The Boomtown Rats - I DON'T LIKE MONDAYS I always thought the urgency in Geldof's voice went majestically hand-in-hand with the soon dying embers of one of the most interesting decades in music 06 - 24 - 17 - Sister Sledge - LOST IN MUSIC From their 'big 3' of the period, the best in my book 07 - 22 - 34 - Sham 69 - HERSHAM BOYS Doing for Hersham what East 17 did for Walthamstow; one of the Sham's slightly more non-descript hits 03 - 52 - 37 - Madness - THE PRINCE A cover yes but a damn good one and the beginning of something uniquely brilliant 14 - 39 - 53 - The Dooleys - WANTED I like this; there's no shame in it 16 - 48 - 72 - Police - CAN'T STAND LOSING YOU Never been more than a passing Police fan but I'll give them this, they made a bunch of fantastic singles
Blondie - Just missed out on the top spot, but Dreaming is still Poptastic: https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=TU3-lS_Gryk Siouxsie And The Banshees - Mittageisen Love Mittageisen, Siouxsie perfecting her desafinado! Sex Pistols And Ten Pole Tudor - The Great Rock N' Roll Swindle sums it up very well...
#14 of 1979 (#444 in total) - "Video Killed The Radio Star" by The Buggles (#1 for 1 week - 20 October 1979) The UK single: The US single: Wikipedia entry - also NME #483 and Melody Maker #423 (both 2 weeks - 20 October-27 October 1979); in U.S., this in-a-way prophetic number could only reach #40 in both Billboard and Cash Box, and #59 in Record World. It had the distinction of being the first video ever shown on the U.S. Music Television (MTV) channel, on 01 August 1981 at 12:01 A.M. (0001 hours).
Week Ending 20 October 1979 05 - 02 - 01 - The Buggles - VIDEO KILLED THE RADIO STAR 05 - 01 - 02 - The Police - MESSAGE IN A BOTTLE 06 - 04 - 03 - Michael Jackson - DON'T STOP 'TIL YOU GET ENOUGH 04 - 03 - 04 - Blondie - DREAMING 04 - 09 - 05 - Lena Martell - ONE DAY AT A TIME 05 - 11 - 06 - Sad Café - EVERY DAY HURTS 06 - 06 - 07 - Rainbow - SINCE YOU'VE BEEN GONE 05 - 05 - 08 - Status Quo - WHATEVER YOU WANT 05 - 26 - 09 - Dr. Hook - WHEN YOU'RE IN LOVE WITH A BEAUTIFUL WOMAN 05 - 16 - 10 - The Dooleys - THE CHOSEN FEW 05 - 18 - 11 - Dave Edmunds - QUEEN OF HEARTS 05 - 23 - 12 - Errol Dunkley - O.K. FRED 06 - 10 - 13 - Kate Bush - KATE BUSH ON STAGE (EP) 08 - 07 - 14 - Gary Numan - CARS 06 - 15 - 15 - Al Hudson And The Partners - YOU CAN DO IT 11 - 08 - 16 - Bellamy Brothers - IF I SAID YOU HAD A BEAUTIFUL BODY WOULD YOU HOLD IT AGAINST ME 07 - 28 - 17 - The Jags - BACK OF MY HAND 03 - 30 - 18 - Fleetwood Mac - TUSK 09 - 14 - 19 - Nick Lowe - CRUEL TO BE KIND 05 - 27 - 20 - The Charlie Daniels Band - THE DEVIL WENT DOWN TO GEORGIA 02 - 36 - 21 - Sex Pistols And Ten Pole Tudor - THE GREAT ROCK N' ROLL SWINDLE / ROCK AROUND THE CLOCK 08 - 19 - 22 - Madness - THE PRINCE 02 - 51 - 23 - Chic - MY FORBIDDEN LOVER 08 - 21 - 24 - Secret Affair - TIME FOR ACTION 03 - 34 - 25 - Earth, Wind And Fire - STAR 10 - 12 - 26 - Dollar - LOVE'S GOTTA HOLD ON ME 03 - 47 - 27 - Viola Wills - GONNA GET ALONG WITHOUT YOU NOW 05 - 37 - 28 - XTC - MAKING PLANS FOR NIGEL 03 - 54 - 29 - Cats U.K. - LUTON AIRPORT 1 - NEW - 30 - ABBA - GIMME, GIMME, GIMME (A MAN AFTER MIDNIGHT) 04 - 42 - 31 - The Skids - CHARADE 07 - 25 - 32 - Squeeze - SLAP AND TICKLE 1 - NEW - 33 - Queen - CRAZY LITTLE THING CALLED LOVE 11 - 17 - 34 - Frantique - STRUT YOUR FUNKY STUFF 03 - 40 - 35 - Nolan Sisters - SPIRIT, BODY AND SOUL 08 - 20 - 36 - Electric Light Orchestra - DON'T BRING ME DOWN 03 - 41 - 37 - Gloria Gaynor - LET ME KNOW (I HAVE A RIGHT) 09 - 13 - 38 - Commodores - SAIL ON 04 - 39 - 39 - The O'Jays - SING A HAPPY SONG 1 - NEW - 40 - The Stranglers - NUCLEAR DEVICE (THE WIZARD OF AUS) 08 - 29 - 41 - Donna Summer - DIM ALL THE LIGHTS 05 - 33 - 42 - John Du Cann - DON'T BE A DUMMY 1 - NEW - 43 - The Damned - SMASH IT UP 02 - 63 - 44 - Dynasty - I DON'T WANT TO BE A FREAK (BUT I CAN'T HELP MYSELF) 05 - 52 - 45 - Headboys - THE SHAPE OF THINGS TO COME 1 - NEW - 46 - Suzi Quatro - SHE'S IN LOVE WITH YOU 02 - 64 - 47 - The Selecter - ON MY RADIO 04 - 35 - 48 - Matumbi - POINT OF VIEW (SQUEEZE A LITTLE LOVIN') 10 - 24 - 49 - Crusaders - STREET LIFE 02 - 58 - 50 - Eagles - HEARTACHE TONIGHT 02 - 73 - 51 - The Ramblers (From The Abbey Hey Junior School) - THE SPARROW 02 - 66 - 52 - Herb Alpert - RISE 07 - 32 - 53 - The Tourists - THE LONELIEST MAN IN THE WORLD 10 - 31 - 54 - Bill Lovelady - REGGAE FOR IT NOW 04 - 48 - 55 - The Three Degrees - JUMP THE GUN 04 - 45 - 56 - The Beach Boys - SUMAHAMA 04 - 44 - 57 - Stiff Little Fingers - STRAW DOGS 1 - NEW - 58 - Thin Lizzy - SARAH 14 - 22 - 59 - Cliff Richard - WE DON'T TALK ANYMORE 1 - NEW - 60 - Public Image Ltd - MEMORIES 03 - 67 - 61 - New Musik - STRAIGHT LINES 1 - NEW - 62 - Bob Marley And The Wailers - SO MUCH TROUBLE IN THE WORLD 02 - 60 - 63 - The Slits - TYPICAL GIRLS / I HEARD IT THROUGH THE GRAPEVINE 1 - NEW - 64 - The Undertones - YOU'VE GOT MY NUMBER (WHY DON'T YOU USE IT!) 11 - 38 - 65 - Boney M - GOTTA GO HOME / EL LUTE 02 - 72 - 66 - The Knack - GOOD GIRLS DON'T 1 - NEW - 67 - Lene Lovich - BIRD SONG 03 - 57 - 68 - Addrisi Brothers - GHOST DANCER 1 - NEW - 69 - Dusty Springfield - BABY BLUE 1 - NEW - 70 - Steve Harley - FREEDOM'S PRISONER 1 - NEW - 71 - Darts - CAN'T GET ENOUGH OF YOUR LOVE 03 - 59 - 72 - Diana Ross - NO ONE GETS THE PRIZE 1 - NEW - 73 - Van Morrison - BRIGHT SIDE OF THE ROAD 1 - NEW - 74 - Robert John - SAD EYES 11 - 50 - 75 - Roxy Music - ANGEL EYES
And now for the 45's that'd be part of my vast collection . . . The first "official" (read: Billboard) U.S. Number One for Freddie, Brian, John and Roger, spending 4 weeks (23 February-15 March 1980) atop Billboard's Hot 100 (#483), 3 weeks (23 February-08 March 1980) at the summit of Cash Box' Top 100, 2 weeks (16 February-23 February 1980) on Record World's Singles Chart, and 3 weeks (15 February-29 February 1980) at #1 on Radio & Records' National Airplay / 30. The sole U.S. Number One for this veteran of some two decades in the music business, topping Billboard (Hot 100 #471) for 1 week (06 October 1979), Cash Box for 2 weeks (29 September-06 October 1979) and Record World for 5 weeks (15 September-13 October 1979; on all charts, this replaced The Knack's megasuccessful "My Sharona" as the #1 song of the land), but had to settle for #2 in Radio & Records. A real "slow burner," having been originally released in the States in April. While I've enjoyed it, and the 45 edit is the way to go, I'm sure @Alf. would judge this either "wooden spoon" caliber or "zzzzzzzzzz." Whichever way you slice it, this type of music (along with the kind of music as epitomised by The Charlie Daniels Band's number) will also be predominant on the US pop charts for up to the next 3 years.
And now the rest of the 'newies': Absolutely, positively failed to chart in the States, although at one point in '80 this was deemed "Chart Bound" in US Billboard's Hot 100. As if. Managed peaks of #41 in US Billboard, #51 in Cash Box, and #54 in Record World.
We now bring up some U.S. hits, major or minor, of this period that failed to make any chart presence in Britain. We start with a Brit, Ian Gomm, former member of Brinsley Schwarz and co-writer of Nick Lowe's big hit "Cruel To Be Kind." Round this time, he had his best-known solo hit in the States with "Hold On": Hearing this, I had some vague memory especially of the chorus but little else. Even so, this peaked in the States at #18 in Billboard, #25 in Cash Box, #26 in Record World, and #16 in Radio & Records.
Now for another record from Kenny Rogers, where it seemed every other UK United Artists single of his charted, and the other half didn't. Here's one of the latter, "You Decorated My Life": Here, Mr. Rogers got to #7 in both Billboard and Cash Box, #5 in Record World, and #3 in Radio & Records. He would be ubiquitous on the US pop charts for the next couple years.
The first major Top 40 U.S. hit for this band who would become one of the biggest names in the 1980's, Journey, with "Lovin', Touchin', Squeezin' ": Notice when you go from one chart to the next, the higher the position from the other: #16 in Billboard, #15 in Cash Box, #12 in Record World, #6 in Radio & Records.
And finally (for now), this French-Canadian singer, then a teenager, France Joli, with this dance-orientated number that absolutely failed to chart in the UK, "Come To Me": Reached #15 in both Billboard and Cash Box, and #38 in Record World. 'Tis the white label on the very top I have. Ironic that the UK ish was distributed by Pye - the abandonment of which American branch back in late '76 led to the creation of the US Prelude label which released this in the States. (It would have been even more ironic if Pye itself had put this out in Britain.)
1979 was such a great year for pop that even Cliff could come up with a great single beyond any expectations of him at that time! Classic single!
The Buggles - VIDEO KILLED THE RADIO STAR I was indifferent to this back in'79 but can appreciate its charms better these days. Clever, interesting single. 4/5
Favs... Week Ending 20 October 1979 1 - NEW - 30 - ABBA - GIMME, GIMME, GIMME (A MAN AFTER MIDNIGHT) 1 - NEW - 33 - Queen - CRAZY LITTLE THING CALLED LOVE 1 - NEW - 43 - The Damned - SMASH IT UP 1 - NEW - 46 - Suzi Quatro - SHE'S IN LOVE WITH YOU 1 - NEW - 58 - Thin Lizzy - SARAH 1 - NEW - 64 - The Undertones - YOU'VE GOT MY NUMBER (WHY DON'T YOU USE IT!)
Video killed the radio star - might not be the most exciting composition, but a most interesting execution with all the little studio tricks and details.
A great slice of futuristic mock-pop. Fab. The Damned were always cartoonesque, and Smash It Up sounds like The Bash Street Kids having fun with ink wells and mortar boards. Great. If Rotten resembled an anarchic Steptoe, then Lydon was more apocalyptic soothsayer. Memories flails & wails like the onset of Armageddon. Nuclear Device takes its cue from Wire’s spiky electro dabblings. Interesting. Permanent curmudgeon, Van The Man, opts for a surprisingly jaunty soul-meets-folk ‘tribute’ to James Carr’s Dark End Of The Street. It’s rather good. As is Lene Lovich's Bird Song. She tones down the Betty Boop voice, and plugs into Siouxsie for some gothic mystique. Abba and The Undertones turn out a couple of good 45s. Disco suits The Swedes.
Has anyone noticed that pic of ABBA on the picture sleeve shown is 'flipped' (i.e. reversed)? Mr. Andersson never parted his hair to his left.