Yes it is a fantastic song that's often left off the big Christmas compilations and doesn't receive the airplay every Christmas that it deserves.

Laurel & Hardy in your best ever top three? Another fabulous festive tune shared the top end with Greg Lake who was No2 in 1975, and a tune not played very much at all for some reason despite being excellent, that's Dana at No4. I bought it on this date last year infact. Rarely seems to appear on any Christmas compilations.

The 1975 Christmas top four.

1. (1) Queen - Bohemian Rhapsody
2. (3) Greg Lake - I Believe In Father Christmas
3. (2) Laurel And Hardy - The Trail Of The Lonesome Pine
4. (18) Dana - It's Gonna Be A Cold Cold Christmas

it was interesting the mike oldfield song in dulce jubilo had a massive jump in early January maybe the reason was it was a double a side....... although "on horseback was as bad as good as in dulce jubilo was

Dana's song is one of my faves and I bought it on 45 in 1975, GTO label. Never appears on compilations or gets any airplay.

Today is our day on Pick Of The Pops with Paul Gambaccini to hear the hits from this date back in 1969 and 1981.

We'll come together into the melting pot and pour some sugar sugar as we listen to the songs of yester-me, yester-you, yesterday and go back to the wonderful world of beautiful people in a winter world of love that was the final days of the sixties. Move a dozen years forward and we're steppin' out and getting a bit physical as we flashback to '81 with some rock 'n' roll, so let's groove today.

December 1981 is one of my favourite pop music months of all time and the weather was also some of the favourite of my lifetime too. This weekend in 1981 the temperature across Central England fell to seriously low levels of lower than -20c widely, including -25c at one location and widespread deep lying snow.

http://www.metoffice.gov.uk/binaries.../k/dec1981.pdf - A brilliant and memorable month all round.

Actually a slight change to the format on New Years Eve,

1-3pm Paul will compare U.K. & USA charts from 1975, so one year two charts.
Should be a format that suits Paul better, getting those American hits into the show.

Nice freestylin' from the purveyor of beverage accompaniment, who really should do some DS postal 'housekeeping' now & again, especially at this time of Year!

Paul talked over the best part of "Oh Well", I was recording it too!

Hour 1- http://umdmusic.com/default.asp?Lang...hBand=&ChSong=
TOTP -
11-12-69: Presenter: Jimmy Savile (Wiped)

(1) THE ARCHIES – Sugar Sugar (and charts)
(NEW) THE KINKS – Victoria
(5) BLUE MINK – Melting Pot ®
(20) CREEDENCE CLEARWATER REVIVAL – Green River (video)
(NEW) MARMALADE – Reflections Of My Life
(3) ROLF HARRIS – Two Little Boys
(2) KENNY ROGERS & THE FIRST EDITION – Ruby, Don’t Take Your Love To Town (video)
(NEW) TOMMY ROE – Jam Up And Jelly Tight
(1) THE ARCHIES – Sugar Sugar (video)

dont care much for 1969 so far, guess they will miss two little boys out. my dad used to love it, so do it. 1981 will be better

Wouldn't appear in my Top 3 of all time but still a great song and perfect for Christmas. Agree with you about Dana.

FFS, I am getting heartily sick of Gambo now!

A Beatles single going down and he plays both sides!

Play some lesser known hits you idiot.

I will address this for you later today Andy. A full inbox, such popularity eh!


Very naughty that I thought. You do not play Oh Well and then wreck the great latter stage of the track like that. We might have accepted that Tony did that kind of thing but not Paul. Time issues is no excuse either.

I don't get how he reckons it was a 'Double A-side'? I can't remember 'Come Together' ever being played on the radio at that time.

What a tease!

I thought for one moment he was going to play it!

It sounded like he really wanted to didn't it, and he probably really did want to too.

This is a modern day airbrushing of historical fact that would not have happened 20 or 30 years ago. If Rolf was in jail back then he'd likely have been played. Sensitivities are becoming far too extreme.

Me neither. At the time it was always "Something" that was played, can't even remember "Come Together" being mentioned let alone played! It would be like he was doing the charts of 1977 and played "Girls School".

Hour 2 - http://umdmusic.com/default.asp?Lang...hBand=&ChSong=
TOTP -
10/12/81 (Jimmy Savile) (rpt UK Gold)
Showaddywaddy – “Footsteps” (35)
Madness – “It Must Be Love” (7) (video)
Dollar – “Mirror Mirror (Mon Amour)” (26) WATCH
Ken Dodd – “Hold My Hand” (not in chart)
Adam & The Ants – “Ant Rap” (9) (video)
Bucks Fizz – “The Land Of Make Believe” (24) WATCH
The Police – “Spirits In The Material World” (28) WATCH
Abba – “One Of Us” (11) (video)
The Human League – “Don’t You Want Me” (1) (video)
Philip Lynott – “Yellow Pearl” (not in chart) (audience dancing/credits)

I know he (nearly) always plays the whole Top 3, but on the other hand he doesn't play a lot of climbers so no particular airbrushing of historical fact. He still referred to it in the Top 20 countdown.

Great '81 chart so far. One of Kim Wilde's best now followed by one of ABBA's. Loving it!

This December 1981 chart beats even last weeks 1979 one for me.

What a truly magnificent song One Of Us by Abba is. I really liked the way Paul introduced it.

Yes, quite. The first time I ever heard "Come Together" was when I bought the "Abbey Road" album and that oddly enough was so I could listen to "Something"!

bet adam ants fans got a horrible shock after having this record on order, its really horrible, lost him a lot of fans...mind you every record sounded completely different in the charts back then, songs with different subjects

so many class tunes though...

never tire of hearing these songs, has their ever been a better female singer than agnetha, i dont think so, she could rock, sing ballads,

At the close of today's programme Paul stated that next week is 1966 and 1982, not 1973 as David stated previously.

But if you look at the BBC radio page for POTP they state both 1973 and 1982 in large with 1966 in the small print!

http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b0857w4n

"In December it's not all Wizzard and Slade, but they do both feature! 1966 & 1982. Also on the line up are The Supremes, The Human League and Dionne Warwick".

The 5 acts above cannot possible all be played. Cock up alert.