The Nation’s Favourite 70’s Number One* (*according to ITV)

Back in March, ITV presented The Nation’s Favourite 70’s Number One.

Let’s be clear – I LOVE retro music shows – but I really didn’t want to watch it, and I’ll tell you for why.

It’s mainly because I think it’s a misnomer of a title. It’s a huge presumption to say it’s ‘The Nation’s Favourite’, when only a teeny tiny percentage (single figure millions at best) actually voted in the first place.

I’ve been saying it for years in that there is only one way to ascertain where the popular vote lies: There needs to be a whole section in the next National Census that asks each household occupant something along the lines of the following questions:

• What are your three favourite songs?
• Who is your favourite singer?
• Who is your favourite band (or duo/trio etc)?
• What is your favourite album?

Only then can we get a definitive and dagnammit TRUE reflection in terms of popularity.

Arguably, you might say that ‘popularity’ and/or ‘best’ are defined by sales volumes, but it’s not always the case. Fan bases will often buy music of their favourite artist for collection purposes, or maybe because it’s what they feel they need to show how much of a fan they are. I should know – I’ve bought every Madonna album, and no-one is ever going to convince me that they are all up to the same standard as True Blue for example!

That said, the biggest SELLING single of the 70’s by a mile – Mull of Kintyre by Wings– didn’t even make the televised top twenty. How warped is that?

Despite this rant though, I did end up watching the show from about halfway onwards – mainly because the wife had snaffled the remote control when I was making the tea.

It was fairly obvious that you’d have to have been anti monarchy to not have guessed that Queen’s Bohemian Rhapsody was going to win. And I’m not saying that I dislike the song (though having been born in the year of its first release, I feel it’s been played to death in my lifetime) I just genuinely wonder if it would retain it’s crown if the other 59 million people in the nation had gained the opportunity to vote too? Maybe… but I think I’m always going to be dismissive of these lists all the while that the minority vote is being lauded as the voice of the nation. It’s comparative to saying that most football fans are hooligans.

So for completeness, here is ITV’s ‘Nation’s Favourite 70’s Number One’ top twenty:

1. Bohemian Rhapsody – Queen
2. Dancing Queen – Abba
3. Bridge Over Troubled Water – Simon and Garfunkel
4. Heart Of Glass – Blondie
5. Wuthering Heights – Kate Bush
6. I Will Survive – Gloria Gaynor
7. Night Fever – Bee Gees
8. Without You – Nilsson
9. I’m Not In Love – 10cc
10. YMCA – Village People
11. Hot Love – T.Rex
12. December 1963 (Oh What A Night) – Four Seasons
13. I Feel Love – Donna Summer
14. Sailing – Rod Stewart
15. Cum On Feel The Noize – Slade
16. Band Of Gold – Freda Payne
17. Don’t Go Breaking My Heart – Elton John & Kiki Dee
18. Hit Me With Your Rhythm Stick – Ian Dury and the Blockheads
19. Blockbuster – Sweet
20. Rock Your Baby – George McCrae

And please note, I’m not moaning at the quality of this line up (Blondie being my fave)...

It's true that most of these songs are tip-top, but just to put a spanner in the works, here are ten more belting 70’s Number 1’s that were somehow ignored:

• Maggie May – Rod Stewart
• You’re The First, My Last, My Everything – Barry White
• Gonna Make You A Star – David Essex
• Bye Bye Baby – Bay City Rollers
• Space Oddity – David Bowie
• Knowing Me, Knowing You – Abba
• Mull Of Kintyre – Wings
• You’re The One That I Want – John Travolta & Olivia Newton-John
• I Don’t Like Mondays – Boomtown Rats
• We Don’t Talk Anymore – Cliff Richard

And I’m sure another ten that missed out could easily be compiled too, even without including some of the Christmas standards that the 70’s produced (Boney M., Johnny Mathis, Slade etc.)

Fair play to ITV though as they did pull a rabbit out of the hat by releasing a triple CD the day after the broadcast: TheNation's Favourite 70's Number Ones

So fill your boots if you like, I’m not on commission.

You still won’t find ‘Mull of Kintyre’ on it though, and bizarrely they include The Pretenders number one hit ‘Brass in Pocket’ ... which hit the top spot in 1980!

Somebody, somewhere in the ITV research department isn’t very good at their job…

Christmas Playlist

Updated and revised for Christmas 2018!

Oh come on, it’s not too early now!

I rewrite this every year, but I at least give it until December before unleashing a bit of Christmas on Twitterland.

I love loads of Christmas songs – there, I’ve said it! So much so that limiting myself to just 15 entries on this blog was pretty tricky, and hard though I tried I just couldn’t place them in order of preference. Each year one song seems to grab me in particular as a ‘favourite’, but more often than not a different one will topple it the following year.

So here are 15 of my faves – with a few hyperlinks if you want to get festive.

You’ll notice there’s not a trace of Cliff, Jive Bunny or Mariah Carey – I’m not saying I dislike them though. In fact, think yourselves lucky that I didn’t include the songs that merely remind me of Christmas, on the basis they were released in December etc. (Blur, Oasis, Michael Jackson, Björk etc.)

Sometimes you just run out of space and time…

Wonderful Christmastime – Paul McCartney

This was my favourite one as a child – maybe because there’s lots of ding-dong-ding-donging, and at school the most exciting instrument I ever got to use was a chime bar (musical note C of course).

Sir Macca doing what he does better than most – simple, catchy and melodic. And for good measure for my local readers, the accompanying music video was filmed in good old Sussex at The Fountain Inn, Ashurst

The Christmas Song – Nat 'King' Cole

Got to have a bit of tradition. Nat actually recorded several different versions of this, but the differences are so negligible, only a finely tuned ear might notice. Reminds me of my childhood and a roaring fireplace – which is odd as I didn’t have one (fireplace that is!)

Man that guy had a voice sweeter than honey.

 

Stop the Cavalry – Jona Lewie

Every year I can’t help but change the dub-a-dub-a-dum-dum bit into an advert jingle in my head for Deb-a-deb-en-hams. I even suggested it to a Debenhams CEO. “Thanks, but no thanks Bez!” was their short reply.

The song itself has barely anything to do with Christmas, but a few sleigh bells make a huge difference #whoismarybradley?

Step into Christmas – Elton John

This sticks in my mind due to it playing throughout a trip to the Santa’s Grotto at the legendary Brighton department store Hanningtons (RIP) in the early 1980’s. Oddly enough it didn’t fly too high in the charts when first released (there was good competition in the charts in 1973), but the royalties that Sir Elton has recouped since then has probably eased his pain somewhat!

Sleigh Ride – The Ronettes

Back when Phil Spector was merely a superb producer of pop and wall of sound mono, he gave us his ‘Christmas Gift’ album.

It is without doubt the best Christmas album ever created, and any number of songs from it would grace many a Christmas playlist, but Sleigh Ride is brilliant brilliant brilliant… and even better in stereo if you can get it. Sung with all the panache and charm the amazing Ronnie Bennett/Spector could muster. Did I say it was brilliant? It’s super brilliant.

And someone somewhere needs to remaster these Spector babies into crisp stereo please.

River – Robert Downey Jr

What’s that then? Well from the intro, you might think it’s a serious version of Jingle Bells, but that does it a huge disservice. RDJ (with help from the fab Vonda Shepard) covered this Joni Mitchell classic during his stint on the much missed TV show Ally McBeal, and he absolutely nailed it. If you only click on one of the hyperlinks on this blog, click on this one. Beautiful song: River

Merry Christmas Everyone – Shakin' Stevens

The most Christmassy promo video since NORAD Tracks Santa went viral on YouTube. Shakey’s career peaked with this nearly-Christmas-number-one (depends on which chart you look at) but he’d had a good run, and holds the crown of being the most successful UK Singles chart act of the 1980’s. Not bad when you consider who he was up against (Madonna, Michael Jackson, Queen etc)

Last Christmas – Wham!
Probably my favourite all time Christmas song, but really the only version you should listen to is the 6 minutes+  Pudding Mix
It probably carries more poignancy with the tragic passing of GM on Christmas Day 2016 - but Last Christmas has always been revered.
In my teens I used to repeatedly listen to this through headphones and immerse myself in its sad sob story. In the dark. #shelteredteenyearsActually I still listen to music in the dark, so not much has changed!

I Wish It Could Be Christmas Everyday – Wizzard
Dead unlucky to have been released the same year (1973) as Slade’s Merry Xmas Everybody – in any other year it might have performed better in the charts than it eventually did. Let’s not mention the mash up version that The Wombles did with Roy Wood though… we’ll forgive the legendary Roy, on the basis that he also formed the original Electric Light Orchestra don’t you know!? And was the first artist ever to be heard on BBC Radio One.

I Believe In Father Christmas – Greg Lake

Performed by yet another musician who has sadly passed away.

I really wasn’t keen on this one growing up, as I didn’t think the video was Christmassy enough. I clearly missed the point! A song perhaps initially intended to be about the over commercialisation of Christmas, but with a push from Prokofiev’sTroika it still manages to drill home the essence of Christmas: Belief.Love.Spirit

Christmas Wrapping – The Waitresses

Very cutesy song from this post punk band. Covered in a very poppy way by the Spice Girls, but maybe they didn’t quite capture it quite so well (and they omitted a verse for some reason!?)

Lead singer Patty Donahue died well before her time, but her song will ensure she won’t be forgotten.

Fairytale of New York – The Pogues featuring Kirsty MacColl

Another one that slipped under my radar when first released (1987) – possibly because it might have received a radio ban due to some industrial language lyrics? Consistently voted as a Christmas favourite in polls, so it appears to have earned its’ place at the top table, though I can’t escape the idea that it has become a bit of a bandwagon song i.e. it’s become a fashionable song just BECAUSE it’s trendy to like it. It wouldn’t be on this list if I didn’t like it, but the way it has gained its momentum of popularity has always struck me as a bit odd.

Happy Xmas (War Is Over) – John & Yoko

After a family bereavement in November one year, I listened to this song incessantly. I don’t know if I was in denial, or if it simply cheered me up, but maybe it just gave me some hope and comfort.

In a similar vein to his former song-writing partner mentioned earlier, it’s brilliantly simple and melodic. You’ll never miss it, as it gets re-released every year.
Not keen on the various cover versions though – some songs should just be left alone!

Driving Home For Christmas – Chris Rea

Traditionally it’s the song I play in the car on my way home from my last working day before Christmas #OCD

Possibly the most loved underachieving Christmas song ever. Everyone seems to like it, but incredulously it only peaked at number 53 (UK charts) when first released and even on re-release the best it’s ever achieved is number 26. Given another worthy lease of life in recent years due to the terrific SHELTER charity video below:

Driving Home For Christmas (Shelter Video)

And finally…December Song (I Dreamed of Christmas) by George Michael.

This has been hovering around this playlist for years, and has now earned its place. The ever generous George Michael (revealed as a HUGE philanthropist after his sad death) actually gave this song away as a freebie download from his website when first issued on Christmas Day 2008.

Quite a few people missed out on that event, so it was released as a physical single a year or so later – and even then it still couldn’t catch up with demand until it was made available for regular downloading.

Originally written with the Spice Girls in mind to record it, I’m not sure they would have done it the justice that GM has. A truly lovely sentimental song.

Merry Christmas one and all!

Belief.Love.Spirit XxX