http://nobilliards.blogspot.co.uk/2012/05/beach-boys-20-golden-greats.html

another great piece of writing by Marcello

Honky – All the way from Southampton. A bunch of white blokes attempting funk. Fair to middling effort. Jim tells us it is a “definite” number one. Clunk-Click.

Barbra and Kris – Getting very tactile again. Lovely song, it has to be said. A US number one.

Jim asks a bloke in a suit to introduce the next act, which he does with a cheesy smile. It’s…

Blue – Neat piece of pop. They seem like clean-living boys.

Trinidad Oil Company – How can you possibly not love this, despite the fact that it is absolute rubbish on a Joy Sarney scale? Put your hand down, Marcello!

Savile dons a syrup and introduces himself as Jim’s twin brother Percy. WTF? He presents…

Piero Umiliani – The Gals! But what is this? The first shot is Mucky Sue dressed as a bee. The rest are decked out as flowers. Why didn’t they just tell Flick Colby to fuck off over this? Ridiculous.

10CC – Agree with Lazarus. The only thing of interest here was the girl in the yellow top.

Martin Ford Orchestra – What in the name of all that’s holy was this? Such a cheesy arrangement. James Last was never this grim. It might have been more acceptable had we not seen the performers and particularly MF, who reminded me of my assine geography teacher.

From the ridiculous to the sublime…

Marvin Gaye – “Got to Give it Up” and the Gals return. Simply magnificent. They are not only back in their element after the rubbish with the bee but they produce a routine as good as anything they’ve ever done, as they dance in perfect formation in mouth-watering two-piece blue outfits. GTGIU is (imho) one of the finest record of the entire decade. A phenomenal track, which I well remember buying back in the day. Another US number one and you could see the Gals were loving it. Inevitably, we are only given a taste of it before it is cut short. But this was just fabulous.

Billy Paul (in the studio) – I’m not so sure about this one. I always found this adapted version of Macca’s pleasant little knock-knock song a little too sanctimonious to ever really like it. And also, Mr Jones had still not caught up with Mr Paul for jumping his old lady. There could be crumbs!

Doctor Feelgood – Woooahh! Great stuff! Not so much Lights Out but Lights On for me. A lovely surprise.

“Percy” grabs the same grinning audience member to introduce the number one. I’d like to think that we are all loving both the song and the singer now. But what’s that hiding in the undergrowth? I’m not sure I want to talk about it.

Jim replaces Percy and says his adieu with his trademark “God Bless”. God Bless you too, Jim. Out to Joe Tex. Three night ago, he was in a disco.

I was sent to interview Snoop on the steps of an LA courthouse during the following series. He was apparently giving an audience only to The Word, because he was so grateful for the chronic that had been included in his rider when he’d been in the Teddington studios. Channel 4, if I recall, ditched the courthouse sequence in the end.

Martin Ford reminded me of a cross between Austin Powers and David Guetta, while the singer with the “Music” T-shirt was Derek Smalls of Spinal Tap only a bit hairier. Then again so was The Big Figure from Dr Feelgood – it was a popular look.

Dr Feelgood did have more than one hit but radio only ever plays the one because producers are parasitic and lazy.

And who doesn’t like to see a steel band on TOTP?
hi dere

First up Honky, one of two Honkys (Honkies?) to chart here, the other lot posting a few minor hits in the early 90s (and no doubt they’re one and the same on Chartstats); a rather unappealing exhortation to “come on up and join the party” from a load of blokes with perms and beards. A distant cousin of the Wild Cherry hit from the previous autumn, but nowhere near as good.

Babs: same fillum as the other week. Did she have a thing for hirsute chaps do we know, i.e. was there anything going on with Barry G?

Blue: I still like this, if only because it’s so seldom heard. A bit Gallagher and Lyle-ish really I suppose.

Trinidad Oil Company: I heard Steve ‘Wrighty’ Wright play this late last year, the first time I’d heard it since it was out (and for all his faults he does find oldies you haven’t heard in yonks, he did the same with ‘Mamy Blue’ by the Pop Tops). And who doesn’t like to see a steel band on TOTP? It’s not as if there’s one on every week.

Piero Umiliani: Legs and Co with big flowers on their heads – I was reminded inescapably of Peter Gabriel, and that bloke from Flowered Up.

10 cc: OK song but I think we’ve seen this enough now. Only bit worth seeing again was the girl in the yellow t-shirt, and she was only on for half a second.

Martyn Ford Orchestra: MF reminded me of Steve Coogan for some reason. Forgettable.

Marvin Gaye: a short burst of ‘Got to …’ with another stint from the Legs gals in pleasingly skimpy outfits.

Billy Paul: I really love the original, probably my favourite Wings song … I like what Billy does with the lyrics, and there’s no denying the man could sing, but perhaps too soon after? Nice hat anyway, possibly a fedora.

Dr Feelgood: not a hit, I know (they only had one, didn’t they?). I wouldn’t have liked it then (in ’77 I’d have been into Abba, Hot Chocolate and the Bee Gees) and it didn’t do a lot for me this time I’m afraid. Great live though, I’m sure.

Niecey: very nice, but a short stay at #1 – a zeitgeist-denying monster was lying in wait.

It would be interesting to hear a Cope remix of “Over The Border.” “Roky Erickson. Roky Erickson from the 13th Floor Elevators.”