pop – Hello Curns

A book on the pavement

A discarded book on the pavement sent me back to the days when pop trivia was harder to find.

A worn paperback copy of the "Guinness British Hit Singles" 12th edition, propped at an angle against a weathered stone gatepost, lying on damp ground scattered with fallen leaves. — A discarded copy of the Guinness Hit Singles book

A few weeks ago, in one of my weeknotes, I wrote that I had, for the first time, heard Sam Fender and Olivia Dean’s Rein Me In. At that point, it had spent 18 weeks at No. 1, equalling the all-time UK record set by Frankie Laine’s I Believe in 1953. Sorry, but it hasn’t stuck in my head so I can’t hum it for you.

James Masterton, of chart commentary fame, says that I Believe subsequently returned to Number 1 in a version by Robson & Jerome for another four weeks in 1995. So, the song accumulated 22 weeks as the UK’s Number 1.

This week is the 23rd non-consecutive week at the top for Rein Me In, beating any other combination of Frankie Laine and Robson & Jerome. While looking up these facts, I learned that Rein Me In has now triggered something called the Accelerated Chart Ratio, which seems to be a fancy term for some rule that requires a song’s streams to work harder before they count toward a chart position. There is a trigger when a song starts to move down the charts after 10 weeks, and another trigger if something has been at number one for 20 weeks. So, Sam and Olivia have triggered it, although they might wish they hadn’t. Or, they may have gone all Wet Wet Wet, who famously stopped pressing any more copies of the single version of their long-running number one, Love Is All Around, after 15 weeks at the top. There are so many facts that date that last sentence! Much harder to stop pressing a stream. All these rules seem incredibly complicated, but I guess they stop some 80s classic from ruining the charts for kids these days.

Back in the 80s, of course, I could not have looked up the official Chart Company website or the chart commentary. We learned these facts only from Bruno Brooks, who hosted the Top 40 show on Radio 1 on Sunday nights, or, for a bit of pop trivia, from the Guinness Book of British Hit Singles. I think any serious music lover in the 80s had a copy. There were 19 editions of that book published under the name Guinness Book of British Hit Singles, and then a couple under the name Virgin Book of British Hit Singles. I don’t think it’s around anymore.

The 12th edition of the Guinness Book of British Hit Singles was released in 1999, and somehow, on my walk to the supermarket this evening, a copy appeared dumped on the pavement. I did not bend down to pick it up or examine it. I don’t know why it was there, but it intrigued me and reminded me of the days when you had to look up music facts. Rein Me In might not appear in that copy, but I bet it is full of useless, quiz-winning pop trivia. Maybe I should have picked it up.

Every day is like survival

The post marking 20 years is a lovely example of blogging 15 years ago. Short and to the point, with nothing superfluous. Let’s examine it:

I’m riding a wave of nostalgia at the moment, aren’t I? My last piece was about something written sixteen years ago. Today, I sail in a much more modern boat and I’m looking back at a newer post from just fifteen years ago. The only trouble is, that post itself referenced an event 20 years earlier. Wow, it was 35 years ago, Culture Club was number one with Karma Chameleon.

I’m sure lots of people write about that feeling of time speeding up. You know, the whole “it only feels like yesterday” view. It’s true, but if you weren’t there then you won’t care. Trust me kids, it may seem important to you now, but nobody born this morning will much care about the British rappers Dave ft. Fredo’s Funky Friday except as a footnote telling them it was number one the day they were born. What do you mean, you don’t care either. Kids of today, huh.

But I digress. The post marking 20 years is a lovely example of blogging 15 years ago. Short and to the point, with nothing superfluous. Let’s examine it:

It’s twenty years since Culture Club’s Karma Chameleon was the UK’s number one selling single (full list).

We’ve already hit a problem. The ‘full list’ link I originally used is no longer accessible. Thankfully, it’s on the wayback machine so I’ve updated it in the original. The list in the version I linked to stops in 2003 when Blu Cantrell feat. Sean Paul reigned with ‘Breathe’. The current version of this page from the Official Charts site is surrounded by a monstrous noise of cookie alerts and advertising. But, it is up to date with the aforementioned Funky Friday as the latest UK chart topper.

I really remember the video set in Mississippi (but I don’t imagine it was actually filmed there).

Back in 2003 could I have looked up that the video was filmed at Desborough Island in Weybridge? Wikipedia tells me that – so maybe I could have done. Anyway, it’s not that far away from where I live. One day I should plan a visit but I promise not to reenact the video for you. I can’t believe anybody fell for it being Mississippi. However, it was the 80s and music videos were all new. And I was 13 and would have believed anything.

I suspect it would be very dated now …

Well, in the intervening years, a little thing called YouTube arrived which means I can now watch the original video and confirm it’s datedness or not. And I can embed it in the post itself for you to make up your mind. The pace of change, huh? You get to see how much like a cloudy day in England it appears to be. That’s the British weather for you.

all together now, “Every day is like survival, You’re my lover, not my rival …”

Back when Karma Chameleon was top of the charts, did anybody know the ‘You’re my lover’ was a reference to Jon Moss? I know a 13 year old that certainly didn’t. I wonder if I would have reacted differently had I known?

Birthday Boy

Stephen, it’s your birthday and all of us – by which I mean me – at Hello Curns (the blog for Britain – I’m thinking it might be a good slogan) would like to wish you all the best for the coming year. I’m sure it’s been a fun year – that Child Catcher costume alone must have made you laugh each day and, perhaps, put memories of that Technicolour Dreamcoat behind you. But when, dear boy (and I say that as a term of endearment rather than as some comment on your person), will you be back in the studio recording some pop tunes for us? I was most disheartened that there was no further material after the last album. Truthfully, I was one of those who thought it was great. So, I don’t think you need any brother of some bygone pop star to be your new frontman. No, stick with the solo material. Oh, and don’t drink too much tonight. Happy Birthday.

Stephen Gately was Man of the Moment at some point in the past when we did that stuff

And in case that’s not enough, Stephen is 29, and today is Thursday, March 17, the 76th day of 2005. There are 289 days left in the year. This is St. Patrick’s Day.

Erasure: The Nightbird Tour

From the moment Andy Bell appears on stage with angel wings you know they are back on form.

I’ve seen Erasure a couple of times in concert. The last time was the Other People’s Songs tour. While I enjoyed the album, I wasn’t so sure about the concert: they seemed to be going through the motions a little more than in previous times. So, it was with some interest that I got tickets to The Nightbird Tour at Hammersmith Odeon (erasuregig.com).

From the moment Andy Bell appears on stage with angel wings you know they are back on form. The Nightbird material fits very well into the overall set; the feeling of a ‘show’ is back and the audience was – most definitely – behind Vince and Andy. The first number ‘No Doubt’ leads into ‘Hideaway’ which I don’t recall seeing performed for a very long time and is one of my favourites. But we also got ‘A Little Respect’, ‘Who Needs Love Like That’ and ‘Blue Savannah’ plus a Vince performing ‘Rapture’.

The concerts are recorded so that you can get a copy of the show you went to see. I shall be having one of those, for I had a superb time.

Madonna

I went to see Madonna at Earls Court.

Madonna, Earl’s Court, 2004

So I went to see Madonna at Earls Court.

That statement does not make me a huge Madonna fan – although I am partial to many of her hits and, unlike some of my friends, I think American Life is a great album (then again, I also like some of Blue’s material so who am I to judge musical tastes?) and she is most certainly a performer.

So, when commenting on a Madonna concert, what should you say? Earls Court is a huge venue. For those of you who haven’t been, you should be aware that it’s very stadium-like. We sat in the back left corner, so it was like she was at the opposite goalpost. And it’s in that context that you will understand why I didn’t think it was that good.

Madonna can put on a show. She is the undisputed queen of showmanship. And therein lies the problem. She performs a West End show of the variety you need to see. And she performs them at West End prices but to stadium-sized audiences. The audio is show-like, and you doubt that she’s singing live the whole time – although I suspect a lot of it is live. It’s just very well produced and sounds like her CDs and, for me, that isn’t the point of going to see live music: somehow you need to believe that they are performing live. Add to that the fact that you can’t see the spectacular, and you have a fun but ultimately disappointing evening.

Hi We’re Your Weather Girls

Humidity is rising – Barometer’s getting low, According to all sources, the street’s the place to go.

The Weather Girls, — The Weather Girls said “It’s Raining Men”

I have been recovering from my trip to the USA by spending a great deal of today asleep and generally caching up on the mail, the christmas cards, the washing and all the other things you need to do when you’ve been away for a week. It’s almost Saturday night and I am going supermarket shopping (you see, dear reader, I have a very exciting life).

While I managed to listen to the radio and some CDs I did, eventually, resort to music television so that there were some pictures to provide an alternative visual while I drank my tea (real tea, not a USA-style tea, is one of the greater comforters in my life).

The Hits is showing some so-called classics this afternoon. The video for It’s Raining Men (The Weather Girls) looked so dated that it made me wonder what those brought-up entirely on the sophistication of the modern day music video would make of these dated images.

Interestingly, it occurred to me to that it’s the video that looks a lot older than the music sounds. Allowing for the fact that It’s Raining Men is part of the soundtrack to my youth, I still think it’s the video technology that has made the noticeable leaps in the last 20 years.

And it’s 20 years next March since It’s Raining Men was a hit for The Weather Girls. Originally charting in the UK in August 1983 it eventually made number 2 in March 1984. It’s one of those songs that I would have sworn topped the charts but, apparently, not. I would imagine that a combination of Nena’s ‘99 Red Ballons‘, Lionel Richie’s ‘Hello‘ and Duran Duran’s ‘The Reflex‘ kept it from the number 1 slot.

It Was 20 Years Ago

What was number one in October 1983?

It’s been twenty years since Culture Club’s Karma Chameleon was the UK’s number one-selling single (full list). I really remember the video set in Mississippi (but I don’t imagine it was actually filmed there). I suspect it would be very dated now … altogether now: “Every day is like survival, You’re my lover, not my rival …”