...and I think it was the first single to sell 2 million copies in the UK.
It was the biggest selling single of all time in the UK at the time and remained that way for a further 7 years. My own parents bought it, and it still resides with all the other vinyl. I wonder why it is not heard more of nowadays?
It was the biggest selling single of all time in the UK at the time and remained that way for a further 7 years. My own parents bought it, and it still resides with all the other vinyl. I wonder why it is not heard more of nowadays?
I think it's one of those songs that is viewed as being "naff". That's probably why it never gets played these days.
For all I insult the song I did actually own it! The B side 'Girls School' is the better side... it was the side that made the Billboard Hot 100 singles chart in the US.
I was never a fan of punk/new wave, but the Eddie And The Hot Rods song was a classic, I remembered it from 1977. Mind you it has got a great tune which helps. Good to see Thin Lizzy, didn`t the guy from Supertramp play the sax on that song? Phil was a real rock character.Used to hang out with another Irish legend, George Best. I do not like Bob Geldof and one of the reasons is he done the dirt on Thin Lizzy at Live Aid.
It was the biggest selling single of all time in the UK at the time and remained that way for a further 7 years. My own parents bought it, and it still resides with all the other vinyl. I wonder why it is not heard more of nowadays?
You usually see it around Christmas on the satellite music channels. As well as the Pipes of Peace and Wonderful Cristmas Time. Mull of Kintyre is a great song but I think it has a chorus too many!
TOTP 77 has been the televisual 'find' of the year for me so I thought I'd post some of my own personal 'awards' having watched the programme since the start of the year. Here goes...
Best No. 1 : I feel love
Best D.J : Kid Jensen
Best Legs & Co : Disco Inferno
Worst Legs & Co : Roadrunner
Worst Vocal performance : Simon May
Worst performance of a great song : Lido Shuffle /The Crunch
Best song that passed me by in 1977 : Do what you wanna do - T-Connection ( how did this happen !!!?)
Worst No 1 : When I need you ( though next week that will change )
Best performance : Show you the way to go ( when at No.1)
Best punk song : Pretty Vacant
Best ballad : We're all alone
'Why did I buy that' award ? : Rockbottom
I've just heard one of their old hits for the first time ever in my life and played it 5 consecutive times in the past hour. I heard it when listening to a Top 20 I'd downloaded from Azanorak from Sunday,9th March,1975. It was the track that broke their long run of top ten hits, and I cannot believe how good it is and how it made a lowly No15.
I'm talking about How Does It Feel. I'm loving this track. How I've never heard it is a mystery.
If you've never seen Slade In Flame - which opens with How Does It Feel - I'd strongly recommend it. While its story isn't that surprising or original in itself, it's quite well told, and the group put in some decent performances. However, it's tonally a million miles away from the 'good time' glam image the group acquired and - as far as Dave Hill goes - was responsible for the group's fading fortunes ... so interesting to look back at it now. It's on DVD ...
I was never a fan of punk/new wave, but the Eddie And The Hot Rods song was a classic, I remembered it from 1977. Mind you it has got a great tune which helps. Good to see Thin Lizzy, didn`t the guy from Supertramp play the sax on that song? Phil was a real rock character.Used to hang out with another Irish legend, George Best. I do not like Bob Geldof and one of the reasons is he done the dirt on Thin Lizzy at Live Aid.
Could you explain what you mean by "done the dirt"? I do know that Phil Lynott had infact just had his highest charting hit of his career with Gary Moore a couple of months prior to Live Aid, with Out In The Fields, so was very much in the public consciousness at the time, and they were still using his music as the TOTP theme, but just six months after Live Aid he was himself dead.
If you've never seen Slade In Flame - which opens with How Does It Feel - I'd strongly recommend it. While its story isn't that surprising or original in itself, it's quite well told, and the group put in some decent performances. However, it's tonally a million miles away from the 'good time' glam image the group acquired and - as far as Dave Hill goes - was responsible for the group's fading fortunes ... so interesting to look back at it now. It's on DVD ...
For a group that mastered the technique of getting the debut week No1 hit on three occasions, and many other instant top five entries, in an era when songs simply never much entered the charts high up, it is rather curious to me how all of a sudden in early 1975 all that just ended abruptly, despite the quality of a song like How Does It Feel which should have maintained the run. I'd love to know what the reason was. It's not as if it is a bad record, it's a great record. So what so suddenly changed for them? Only 5 months earlier they had debuted into the top three yet again with the less impressive Far Far Away. This must have come as an almighty shock to them at the time, and when they got to 1977 and couldn't even break the Top 40 anymore that would have finished most groups off for good.
For a group that mastered the technique of getting the debut week No1 hit on three occasions, and many other instant top five entries, in an era when songs simply never much entered the charts high up, it is rather curious to me how all of a sudden in early 1975 all that just ended abruptly, despite the quality of a song like How Does It Feel which should have maintained the run. I'd love to know what the reason was. It's not as if it is a bad record, it's a great record. So what so suddenly changed for them? Only 5 months earlier they had debuted into the top three yet again with the less impressive Far Far Away. This must have come as an almighty shock to them at the time, and when they got to 1977 and couldn't even break the Top 40 anymore that would have finished most groups off for good.
Hi Rich.
It was a shame when this happened to Slade in this period. Not sure of the reasons. Could be that when an act has so much chart success in a relatively short period of time the fall can occur just as quickly.
I remember Abba's astonishingly speedy demise (chart wise) in 1982. Of course, they'd been having hits for 8 years at that point.
Were people tiring of Slade by 1975? "In For A Penny" was another great single from that period which just missed the Top 10.
I know that Slade spent the best part of a year touring the States (I think in 1976). When they returned in 1977 with their comeback material, they were coming back to a chart which had significantly moved on from glam rock.
"Gypsy Road Hog" was quickly banned by the BBC which didn't really help their cause. (Of course, we were fortunate enough to have the TOTP's appearance in '77 before the Beeb noticed the drug referenced lyrics! )
The album "Whatever Happened To Slade" did nothing whatsoever chart wise. I recently bought it and it's a fantastic Slade album. A million miles away from their glammy sound of the earlier 70's and into more serious rock.
Well, I haven't really answered the question regarding Slade's chart demise in '75! But, like I mentioned in another post, "How Does It Feel?" is one of my fave Slade tracks. I remember Noel Gallagher giving it a lot of praise a while back.
Comparing Abba and Slade is quite a good one Ian. They hadn't missed the top ten in years, had the Christmas No3 with One Of Us in 1981, not to mention the Christmas No1 album with The Visitors, yet in the new year released the great Head Over Heels which stalled badly and later in the year, a record that was recently voted their 3rd best single on ITV came to miss the entire top thirty, The Day Before You Came, a surefire enormous hit if ever there should have been. There seems no clear cut reason for it. But of course Slade managed a successful return to almost the top in the 80's, and Abba, although not with singles, have had massive No1 success with albums as recently as August 2008.
Comparing Abba and Slade is quite a good one Ian. They hadn't missed the top ten in years, had the Christmas No3 with One Of Us in 1981, not to mention the Christmas No1 album with The Visitors, yet in the new year released the great Head Over Heels which stalled badly and later in the year, a record that was recently voted their 3rd best single on ITV came to miss the entire top thirty, The Day Before You Came, a surefire enormous hit if ever there should have been. There seems no clear cut reason for it. But of course Slade managed a successful return to almost the top in the 80's, and Abba, although not with singles, have had massive No1 success with albums as recently as August 2008.
I remember being shocked at how quickly Abba's chart success dropped. I loved "Head Over Heels" and "Day Before You Came" was excellent. "Under Attack" was also good and a sad song to go out on.
I was reading the sleeve notes on the CD of "The Visitors" and it was talking about how the energy and motivation was running low in the band in 1982 with Benny and Bjorn keen to move on to work on musicals.
It interestingly suggests that Benny and Bjorn looked to the UK chart to gauge how well the band were doing. I wonder if this was a reason why Abba almost disappeared overnight.
Did they see the sudden low chart placings and decide to call it quits while ahead?
That's me off here for now.
Goodnight (and as the Kid would say..."and Good Love").
Very true what you say about Abba, even the previously unreleased Thank You For The Music couldnt make the Top 30 in 1983.
I guess the same could be said of The Police, after only the 2nd single from Synchronicity, they never dented the top 10 again. And amazingly Sting has only made the top 10 just once as a solo artist, excluding collaborations.
Very true what you say about Abba, even the previously unreleased Thank You For The Music couldnt make the Top 30 in 1983.
I guess the same could be said of The Police, after only the 2nd single from Synchronicity, they never dented the top 10 again. And amazingly Sting has only made the top 10 just once as a solo artist, excluding collaborations.
Am I the only person who thinks that much of what The Police did was great stuff, yet almost everything that Sting has done as a solo artist is absolute cr*p!
Comments
'Mull of Kintyre' was AP-PAUL-LING
(Sorry - I couldn't resist
Don't give up the day job faversham!!
Really, you should have.
It's a secret pleasure of mine too
I like the dance version of it too;)
...and I think it was the first single to sell 2 million copies in the UK.
It was the biggest selling single of all time in the UK at the time and remained that way for a further 7 years. My own parents bought it, and it still resides with all the other vinyl. I wonder why it is not heard more of nowadays?
For all I insult the song I did actually own it! The B side 'Girls School' is the better side... it was the side that made the Billboard Hot 100 singles chart in the US.
I suspect the late Richard Whiteley would have been proud of that pun
You usually see it around Christmas on the satellite music channels. As well as the Pipes of Peace and Wonderful Cristmas Time. Mull of Kintyre is a great song but I think it has a chorus too many!
Best No. 1 : I feel love
Best D.J : Kid Jensen
Best Legs & Co : Disco Inferno
Worst Legs & Co : Roadrunner
Worst Vocal performance : Simon May
Worst performance of a great song : Lido Shuffle /The Crunch
Best song that passed me by in 1977 : Do what you wanna do - T-Connection ( how did this happen !!!?)
Worst No 1 : When I need you ( though next week that will change )
Best performance : Show you the way to go ( when at No.1)
Best punk song : Pretty Vacant
Best ballad : We're all alone
'Why did I buy that' award ? : Rockbottom
Fnaar.
Ah yes, a stern warning of the dangers of vegetarianism.
If you've never seen Slade In Flame - which opens with How Does It Feel - I'd strongly recommend it. While its story isn't that surprising or original in itself, it's quite well told, and the group put in some decent performances. However, it's tonally a million miles away from the 'good time' glam image the group acquired and - as far as Dave Hill goes - was responsible for the group's fading fortunes ... so interesting to look back at it now. It's on DVD ...
Could you explain what you mean by "done the dirt"? I do know that Phil Lynott had infact just had his highest charting hit of his career with Gary Moore a couple of months prior to Live Aid, with Out In The Fields, so was very much in the public consciousness at the time, and they were still using his music as the TOTP theme, but just six months after Live Aid he was himself dead.
The McCartneys weren`t vegetarians in 1977.
For a group that mastered the technique of getting the debut week No1 hit on three occasions, and many other instant top five entries, in an era when songs simply never much entered the charts high up, it is rather curious to me how all of a sudden in early 1975 all that just ended abruptly, despite the quality of a song like How Does It Feel which should have maintained the run. I'd love to know what the reason was. It's not as if it is a bad record, it's a great record. So what so suddenly changed for them? Only 5 months earlier they had debuted into the top three yet again with the less impressive Far Far Away. This must have come as an almighty shock to them at the time, and when they got to 1977 and couldn't even break the Top 40 anymore that would have finished most groups off for good.
Hi Rich.
It was a shame when this happened to Slade in this period. Not sure of the reasons. Could be that when an act has so much chart success in a relatively short period of time the fall can occur just as quickly.
I remember Abba's astonishingly speedy demise (chart wise) in 1982. Of course, they'd been having hits for 8 years at that point.
Were people tiring of Slade by 1975? "In For A Penny" was another great single from that period which just missed the Top 10.
I know that Slade spent the best part of a year touring the States (I think in 1976). When they returned in 1977 with their comeback material, they were coming back to a chart which had significantly moved on from glam rock.
"Gypsy Road Hog" was quickly banned by the BBC which didn't really help their cause. (Of course, we were fortunate enough to have the TOTP's appearance in '77 before the Beeb noticed the drug referenced lyrics!
The album "Whatever Happened To Slade" did nothing whatsoever chart wise. I recently bought it and it's a fantastic Slade album. A million miles away from their glammy sound of the earlier 70's and into more serious rock.
Well, I haven't really answered the question regarding Slade's chart demise in '75! But, like I mentioned in another post, "How Does It Feel?" is one of my fave Slade tracks. I remember Noel Gallagher giving it a lot of praise a while back.
Comparing Abba and Slade is quite a good one Ian. They hadn't missed the top ten in years, had the Christmas No3 with One Of Us in 1981, not to mention the Christmas No1 album with The Visitors, yet in the new year released the great Head Over Heels which stalled badly and later in the year, a record that was recently voted their 3rd best single on ITV came to miss the entire top thirty, The Day Before You Came, a surefire enormous hit if ever there should have been. There seems no clear cut reason for it. But of course Slade managed a successful return to almost the top in the 80's, and Abba, although not with singles, have had massive No1 success with albums as recently as August 2008.
I remember being shocked at how quickly Abba's chart success dropped. I loved "Head Over Heels" and "Day Before You Came" was excellent. "Under Attack" was also good and a sad song to go out on.
I was reading the sleeve notes on the CD of "The Visitors" and it was talking about how the energy and motivation was running low in the band in 1982 with Benny and Bjorn keen to move on to work on musicals.
It interestingly suggests that Benny and Bjorn looked to the UK chart to gauge how well the band were doing. I wonder if this was a reason why Abba almost disappeared overnight.
Did they see the sudden low chart placings and decide to call it quits while ahead?
That's me off here for now.
Goodnight (and as the Kid would say..."and Good Love").
I guess the same could be said of The Police, after only the 2nd single from Synchronicity, they never dented the top 10 again. And amazingly Sting has only made the top 10 just once as a solo artist, excluding collaborations.
Am I the only person who thinks that much of what The Police did was great stuff, yet almost everything that Sting has done as a solo artist is absolute cr*p!