Tag: BBC

My Top 5 Hits RETRO – 1987

Post author By Chris M. Day
Post date January 28, 2022

Every Friday I post the Top 5 of one of my classic hit music charts based on personal preference and influenced by radio airplay from either 15, 25, 30, or 35 years ago this weekend (rotating each week).

It’s the 4TH Friday of the month, so I go back 35 years ago. Here it is – for the week ending Sunday February 01ST 1987:

“Someday'” – Glass Tiger
“C’est La Vie” – Robbie Nevil
“Walking Down Your Street” – The Bangles
“Trampolene” – Julian Cope
“I Love My Radio” – Taffy

Julian Cope was one of my favorite singers on the radio in late-1986 and early-1987. His “Saint Julian” album was actually released after his two hit singles from the album – “World Shut Your Mouth” (which actually became a mainstream rock hit stateside) – and “Trampolene”. I liked both songs equally. They were quite hard rock for British Top 40 radio at the time (not known for much rock). I guess both songs could best be described as “psychedelic pop punk”.

Here’s the music video for “Trampolene”:

January / February 1987 was a great time for pop music in my life as a 19½-year-old living in Gloucestershire England. My 2-year U.S. military tour of the region was more than half-done and on the downhill, so I knew that I had to maximize my limited time remaining by exploring the area and enjoying the arts and entertainment when not working at my job.

I attended 2 LIVE concerts in January 1987 – The Human League at the Hammersmith Odeon in London, and Frankie Goes To Hollywood (opened by Berlin led by Terri Nunn) in Birmingham.

Next #RetroFriday I’ll go back 15 years ago to February 2007.

It’s halftime my friends. I’ll be back on Sunday and Monday with 2 more blog posts for this weekend. Enjoy your Saturday. Thanks for going retro with me !

Tags 1987, BBC, British, England, Music, Radio

1980s Blogging Holidays Music Radio Travel

My Top 5 Hits RETRO – 1986

Post author By Chris M. Day
Post date December 31, 2021

It’s the 5TH Friday of the month, so it’s a special. But since #RetroFriday wasn’t presented last week (due to Christmas Eve) – I’ll go back 35 years ago for this edition. Here it is – for the week ending Sunday December 28TH 1986:

“Dreamin'” – Status Quo
“The Boy In The Bubble” – Paul Simon
“Reet Petite” – Jackie Wilson
“C’est La Vie” – Robbie Nevil
“Open Your Heart” – Madonna

What a memorable last weekend of 1986. I actually flew home from London England to Washington D.C. a few days before that Christmas to spend some quality time with my family after missing the previous Christmas (and two Thanksgivings) with them.

Paul Simon’s “The Boy In The Bubble” was a great song off a great album – “Graceland” – which I owned in cassette form. Like “You Can Call Me Al” before it – I memorized the lyrics of “The Boy In The Bubble” after hearing it numerous times on the radio – British radio. Both singles were far more popular across the European continent (and Australia and New Zealand) than they were stateside. “The Boy In The Bubble” was a # 16 hit in the Netherlands and a # 26 hit in the United Kingdom. On my own personal chart it became a # 1 smash in January 1987.

Here’s the official music video, and I still know its lyrics to this day:

Next Friday on RETRO I’ll go back 15 years ago to January 2007.

It’s halftime my friends. I’ll be back on Sunday and Monday with 2 more blog posts for this weekend. Enjoy your Saturday. Thanks for going RETRO with me !

Tags 1986, BBC, British, England, Music, Radio

1980s Blogging Music Radio

My Top 5 Hits RETRO – 1986

Post author By Chris M. Day
Post date November 26, 2021

It’s the 4TH Friday of the month, so I go back 35 years ago. Here it is – for the week ending Sunday November 30TH 1986:

“Waiting For The Ghost Train” – Madness
“French Kissin’ In The U.S.A.” – Debbie Harry
“Sometimes” – Erasure
“Everybody Have Fun Tonight” – Wang Chung
“Hip To Be Square” – Huey Lewis And The News

What great music. What fond memories of that wonderful time of my life – enjoying the company of my friends and the fun times that we shared together in the south of England. This was the 2ND (U.S.) Thanksgiving of my life away from my family back home stateside. (The 1ST was the year before in 1985. I had just arrived in England 2½ weeks earlier.)

Berlin’s “Take My Breath Away” was the # 1 smash all across the United Kingdom, and back home stateside Bon Jovi scored their very first # 1 smash with the hard-rockin’ “You Give Love A Bad Name” from their multi-platinum album “Slippery When Wet”.

Next Friday on RETRO I’ll go back 15 years ago to December 2006. Thanks for going RETRO with me !

This is the end of an abbreviated blog weekend, as #SundayScripture and #Top10Monday are on hiatus for the rest of this month of November. They will both return during the 1ST weekend of December. In fact a full weekend of blogging returns next weekend – with 5 new entries on Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, Sunday, and Monday. I don’t blog on Saturdays. That’s my day of rest.

Tags 1986, BBC, British, England, Music, Radio

1980s Blogging Music Radio Television

My Top 5 Hits RETRO – 1986

Post author By Chris M. Day
Post date October 22, 2021

It’s the 4TH Friday of the month, so I go back 35 years ago. Here it is – for the week ending Sunday October 26TH 1986:

“Heartache All Over The World” – Elton John
“Whole New World” – It Bites
“Take My Breath Away” – Berlin
“You’re Everything To Me” – Boris Gardiner
“Girls Ain’t Nothing But Trouble” – DJ Jazzy Jeff & The Fresh Prince

Elton John may not like that song. In fact he may hate it – as well as the album that it came from (“Leather Jackets”). But I loved it back then, and I still love it today. It’s actually one of my favorite Elton John songs ever. It was the perfect HI-NRG pop sound for the Autumn of 1986.

35 years ago this week I had so much spare time on my hands living and working in the U.K. that I was able to compile and publish (on notebook paper) a personal Top 50 chart – twice per week. On that inaugural Top 50 chart (expanded from a Top 40) I had 25 hits moving up, 14 hits moving down, 5 non-movers, and 6 new entries from The Mission, Icicle Works, Jackson Browne, Boston, Kenny Loggins, and The Cutting Crew.

Nick Berry was at # 1 on the BBC-Gallup Top 40 with “Every Loser Wins”. He was one of the stars of the # 1 TV programme at the time – “EastEnders” – and he performed that song (in character as “Wicksy”) many times on the show back then.

It’s halftime my friends. I’ll be back on Sunday and Monday with 2 more blog posts for this weekend. Enjoy your Saturday. Thanks for going RETRO with me !