Chart Music #75: August 15th 1974 – Could YOU Be Donny’s Bride?

Chart Music #75: August 15th 1974 – Could YOU Be Donny’s Bride?

Author: Chart Music December 14, 2024 Duration: 6:21:20

The latest episode of the podcast which asks; The Osmonds – who’s the Sex King?


We’re BACK, Pop-Crazed Youngsters, and to commemorate this we’ve only gone and picked out one of the maddest episodes of Top Of The Pops ever. It’s the late Summer of 1974, Robin Nash has just bedded in, and he’s got big plans for our Thursday evening fizzy Pop treat. Sadly, one of them – a massive splurge on David Cassidy’s farewell tour – has been shagged up by a BBC technician’s strike. But this week, the BBC has taken full ownership of the First Family of Utah and have given over a six-day block of early evening real estate to Ken, Ken, Ken, Ken and Donny.


Consequently, this episode is a complete twisting of our Pop-Crazed melons. Out goes the studio in Television Centre, and in comes the BBC Television theatre, the natural domain of Crackerjack, That’s Life! and the Basil Brush Show. Out goes the usual melange of sullen youths chatting about lads and shoes and what they bought at Chelsea Girl last Saturday, and in comes 3,000 girls with their pants all of a piss at the sight of an Osmond. Yes, there is a presenter – Noel Edmonds, wearing possibly the most Different Times shirt ever – but he’s only there to stop the endless SCREAMING that might was well not be there. 


Musicwise, well: Obviously the Osmonds get to plug their next single, but it’s a mixed bag of fag-end Glam, Black American sophistication, future advert jingles, and Brit-rubbish. The Glitter Band  show off their Cyberman bukkake hairdos. Marie Osmond continues her reign as the World’s Oldest 14 Year-Old. Cozy Powell and his band of Egg and Chippers thud away. Pans People airlift a vital supply of Dadisfaction. Steve Harley and his pickup band look at each other in amused disbelief. The dark secret of Sara Leone is revealed. OH MY GOD IT’S THE BAY CITY ROLLERS. Sylvia pops up for a bit of Spanish Schlager – Schangria, if you will. The Osmonds get a massive plug for their next single, and the grown-ups enter the room with this week’s Number One.


Sarah Bee and Taylor Parkes join Al Needham for a good scream – at everything – in this episode, veering off on such tangents as Sovereign Citizens, the Osmonds’ Barbershop Raga, Mike Read’s Shakin’ Jackanory, a horrifying tale from the Wank Factory involving a tin of anchovies and the Eastenders Omnibus, Tam Paton’s Star Bar obsession, and the most Plastic item of clothing ever. Swearing a-plenty. BE CALM.


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Chart Music: the Top Of The Pops Podcast is a deep, often hilarious dive into the archives of the iconic BBC television show. Each episode focuses on a single, random broadcast of Top of the Pops, subjecting it to a forensic and affectionate analysis that only a panel of former Melody Maker critics could provide. Hosted by Al Needham alongside creators Sarah Bee, Neil Kulkarni, Taylor Parkes, Simon Price, and David Stubbs, this podcast dissects the performances, fashion, and cultural moment of each show with a unique blend of expertise and nostalgia. Listeners will hear detailed commentary that treats pop history with both seriousness and irreverence, uncovering the stories behind the hits and the oddities that defined Thursday night viewing for generations. It’s more than a recap; it’s a critical reappraisal of a pop institution, exploring how music, television, and memory intertwine. The conversation is insightful, witty, and packed with the kind of context only insiders can offer, making each episode a time capsule opened with care and a sharp eye. For anyone fascinated by the evolution of pop culture and the specific alchemy of a weekly chart show, this podcast provides an endlessly engaging listen.
Author: Language: English Episodes: 100

Chart Music: the Top Of The Pops Podcast
Podcast Episodes
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#65 (Pt 1): 8.7.82 – Dancey Reagan [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

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Neil Kulkarni, Simon Price and Al Needham bring this episode of Top Of The Pops to a close by blanching at the sight of Julio Iglesias practically caressing Willie Nelson’s beer gut, scratch their heads at Echo and the B…
#64 (Pt 3): 26.4.84 – Metal Mickey Dropping His Guts [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:33:10
Simon Price, Neil Kulkarni and Al Needham continue to gingerly pick through the rubble of April ’84. After gasping at the outright Lijkenpikkerij of Belle and the Devotions, they tackle Lilt Advert Bob Marley, before get…
#64 (Pt 2): 26.4.84 – Metal Mickey Dropping His Guts [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:26:40
Neil Kulkarni, Simon Price and Al Needham commence their plunge into this episode of Top Of The Pops, stopping to pay respects to Our Janice and giving Simon Bates’s new jacket a thorough examination. There’s a rare oppo…
#64 (Pt 1): 26.4.84 – Metal Mickey Dropping His Guts [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:30:47
Simon Price, Neil Kulkarni and Al Needham gird their loins in anticipation for an episode of The Pops located slap bang in the middle of the Aydeez, taking the time to discuss the decline of New Pop, leaf through that we…
63 (Pt 4): 28.12.1972 – Thank God For Belgian World In Action [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 2:02:10
Neil Kulkarni, Taylor Parkes and Al Needham gleefully rip into the final part of their exhumation of the last TOTP episode of 1972, and it’s banger after banger after banger. The Osmonds begin their journey on the Highwa…
#63 (Pt 3): 28.12.1972 – Thank God For Belgian World In Action [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 2:15:55
Taylor Parkes, Neil Kulkarni and Al Needham ramp up their excitement at this astonishing episode of The Pops as the hits keep on coming. We get the twin piano attack of Hilda Woodward and Roberta Flack, followed by the W…