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Post by Dirty Epic on Jan 27, 2020 10:38:42 GMT
BBC4 did a documentary a couple of years ago about the "Record" or "Single" as it was. It was one of those 'talking heads' shows - but featured quite a few of the older DJs (those who haven't been either locked up or are under some cloud of suspicion).
But it showed you just how corrupt the Charts were - and how easily they could be rigged by the various Record Company "pluggers". The "Pluggers" knew, if they got their record played on Radio 1 - it could be heard by a very large audience, and once it reached the charts - could then be legible to be shown on Top of the Pops - and even wider audience.
The "Pluggers" would each door step DJs as they arrived or left the R1 studios - offering them bribes in literally anything from cash to women (or men, if they were that way inclined) to get a particular record played on their show.
On the other hand the Record shops - had to return their record sales figures to "Gallup" each week, who of course produced the charts. The "Pluggers" saw this as an easy target as most shop assistants were on sod all an hour, so they would offer them a half reasonable amount of cash to 'adjust' the Record returns here and there - and most would (and did) jump at the offer.
IIRC there was a Cook Report expose on all this within the Music Industry a few years back. Considering this I'm fairly certain a fair few of the so-called leading lights (celebrities let's say...) in the industry have extensively engaged in this tactic to push acts into the charts etc. This was to ensure their latest dross hit big in the Top 40 at the expense of many a decent record I liked that miraculously teneded to hit #41 or whatever and you never really could explain why , unless of course...
As you say Sparky they had plenty of scams for this. For instance your indie anthem or banging dance track could've had a barcode sticker over the original barcode on the record and when you bought this it registered on the chart as a sale for something else. Then there was the 'buying-in teams' which would hit your HMV, Our Price, Virgin etc. in random locations and buy copies of the single for the plugger/manager/record company etc. and obviously this wouldn't be things at the obscure, cutting edge or underground side of things let's say. They usually weren't thick enough to buy multiple copies of a record at the same time but in desperation they sometimes... As you say DJ's got everything from promo's, financial and other inducements too to ensure certain records got played both on radio and in the pre-Rave club scene too. I appreciate not many on this forum like the dance music scene from 88 onwards but for a decade or so it at least shook the music industry up and did have a significant impact on blunting this activity from the mainstream/major labels when 12" singles played in underground clubs of a weekend got bought in the week.
Even the BPI has rigged charts sometimes against particular artists and singles with stupid rules like the artwork used, number of format's released and length of tracks etc. and sometimes some pretty good stuff has been banned from the chart over the years because of this.
Interestingly there's a plugger who used to/maybe still does work with London Records who's been on the recent 'Story of' Top of the Pop's episodes. Not saying he's part of this activity - perhaps he's on the good side? , however I'm sure the role of people like this in the music industry was to ensure their latest act became hot property and had hit's in the Top 40 by literally any means necessary!
These days I'm very cynical about the influence of downloads on the chart and don't really bother with them being honest. Who's to say Ed Sheeran etc. really have had 10 million streams for their songs which have occupied multiple positions in the chart and in this social media/Instagram era are they really pushing musical boundaries with what they're doing right now compared to say an artist doing it themselves or with an indie and releasing say 1,000 copies on vinyl that those who know fully appreciate? I'm with the latter camp and I do think downloads have legitimately allowed record companies to re-take control of the music agenda and rig the chart let's say.
Even record companies I've liked probably engaged in these tactics but I'd have more respect for an artist - regardless of the genre, who has never really hit the Top 40 but makes music they like to make and stuff which is progressive rather than the million selling Boy/Girl Band or Artist that had always been there but has mushroomed since X-Factor in the last 20 or so years.
Shame I can't find that Cook Report episode would be an interesting watch, if perhaps telling you nothing new.
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Post by Dirty Epic on Jan 27, 2020 11:48:27 GMT
Good post 3L. Used to hear the chart a fair bit as a kid, but started to become more interested in it from the tail end of the Tommy Vance era who was a good presenter for Radio 1's chart IMO. We then got Bruno Brookes, alright enough if perhaps a bit of a blandie. The plus point from then on was they used to pretty much play the records in full so you’d start taping them which I did on/off from ’86 to ’87. From early ’88 onwards when the House/dance thing started hitting the charts I started to record the chart every week and it was a good way of getting hold of tracks (as a kid) you’d not be able to afford to buy or just generally have a compilation of tracks on a cassette. Foolishly I used to use TDK D-120 tapes as you could get +30 tracks on the tapes but the downside was the tape was thin and could (and did) snap or get damaged. To be fair the later TDK tapes got better but I suppose I’d have been better using higher quality 90 minute tapes than these.
I stuck with Radio 1’s chart throughout the Bruno Brookes (twice) Mark Goodier (twice) and Scott Mills periods taping them pretty much weekly until around the early 2000’s when this started to become less regular and I had less of an interest in it. Also your music tastes change and what maybe seemed great in 1988 may not be so for you in/by 2003?! Although there are some thing’s you don’t always leave behind and I did tape just as much crap stuff as good stuff which... :wnk: I pretty much gave up on by 2004 (probably a few years before being honest!) when Radio 1 had changed the style of the chart and songs weren’t played in full, also I was pretty much getting hold of the stuff I wanted by then anyway so not really anything to continue with IMO. They messed it up further in 2005 where the 40 rundown became less important and had so much filler it was just a waste of time so time to call it a day. Not listened to Radio 1’s chart properly since, sad in a way as it was a big part of my youth but nothing really interests me to give it a listen being honest. Also are chart's really that relevant these days? Way back a hitting the Top 30/40 was a big thing for a band but now it all feels devalued or is it really that important for a musician to be chart fodder these days? Did anyone used to tune into the commercial radio Network Chart at all? Not a patch on the Radio 1 one and some ‘hit’s’ had radio play factored into their positions but I used to have another cassette player ready in case anything was in the lower positions of that chart which wasn’t in the Radio 1 one. Was a lot better when David Jensen presented it but couldn’t stand the Dr Fox version which then gradually became more X-Factor’y and then I soon stuck with the Radio 1 one until it messed itself up around 2003 onwards.
As Paul Simon put it 'Every Generation Has A Hero For Their Pop Charts!'
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Lord Emsworth
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Post by Lord Emsworth on Jan 27, 2020 12:53:32 GMT
Tony Blackburn for me
I seem to recall it was done on Tuesday lunchtime and then repeated on Wednesday mornings
I used to write it all down and then discuss it at school - this would be early 70s when I was about 10.
Then there was all the Sunday evening rundowns, recording the hits I liked on a truly basic cassette recorder with microphone leaning against the radio speaker
Simpler times
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Sparky
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Post by Sparky on Jan 27, 2020 13:44:26 GMT
yone used to tune into the commercial radio Network Chart at all? Not a patch on the Radio 1 one and some ‘hit’s’ had radio play factored into their positions but I used to have another cassette player ready in case anything was in the lower positions of that chart which wasn’t in the Radio 1 one. Was a lot better when David Jensen presented it but couldn’t stand the Dr Fox version which then gradually became more X-Factor’y and then I soon stuck with the Radio 1 one until it messed itself up around 2003 onwards.
As Paul Simon put it 'Every Generation Has A Hero For Their Pop Charts!' I used to listen to eh Radio 1 charts during the Mark Goodier era, and at the same time used to tune into the Network Chart too.
Then it became something like "Pepsi Network Chart" around the time I stopped listening.
Also - did anyone watch the ITV Chart Show on a Saturday lunchtime? They used to include an Album and an Indie chart too.
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Post by Dirty Epic on Jan 27, 2020 13:53:02 GMT
They used to include an Album and an Indie chart too.
Used to tape the vids of The Chart Show almost weekly until around 95-ish when we got Cable and MTV, now some of the stuff on there back then (Party Zone, Chill Out, Alternative Nation etc.) was brilliant. Even had a aerial to pick up HTV when they showed the late night repeat earlier than Granada too if I missed the Saturday showing. Chart Show was great with the right mix of Dance, Rock and Indie stuff and a few obscure vids thrown in which maybe helped the Dance, Madchester, indie and loads other scenes kick on in the late 80's much more than TOTP did back then IMO. Again they messed with it's format around 95-96 and wasn't the same and as for Bloody cd:uk with Ant n Dec... FFS As for the Radio 1 chart it's probably down to the era which DJ you like, for me Mark Goodier was the better presnter and (back then) more in tune with what was going on at the time but prefered the shows by Bruno Brookes if perhaps due to the songs pretty much being played in full then... ideal for home taping!
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