— Sian Pattenden
One of the things I have learned from doing this blog over the past five years is that narratives have the power to take on a life of their own, even if contradicted by hard evidence. It's something I do in this space all the time so it's no wonder I have become good at spotting it when done by others.
Take "Deeply Dippy" (it is, after-all, the topic of this post). In the comments in Tom Ewing's review, there are suggestions that it's a "consolation" number one for Right Said Fred. Their first big hit, "I'm Too Sexy", had the stuff to give them a chart topper — it would eventually hit the top in the US, Australia and New Zealand — but it was held off by the immovable "(Everything I Do) I Do It for You)" by Bryan Adams. Spending six weeks at number two is a feat in itself but if you're good enough to be runner up then you're good enough to be disappointed by it. Six months' later, however, the public was given the chance to right a wrong by taking "Deeply Dippy" to number one. Hardly anyone remembers it now which only reinforces how it got as far as it did based on the goodwill from an earlier hit.
This notion of having a number one following a lower charting signature hit isn't an uncommon talking point for fans and critics. Madness had eleven Top 20 singles before finally topping the charts with "House of Fun", a feat they'd fail to replicate on any of their subsequent singles. Billy Joel's lone UK number one was with the decent but unremarkable "Uptown Girl". Erasure wouldn't get to the top of the singles charts until they put out an E.P. of sadly lifeless ABBA covers. In each of these cases (among others) there's this idea that they were all due since they'd come up short so many times before.
It makes nice fodder for pub/social networking discussion but there isn't sufficient evidence to prove that number ones like "House of Love", "Uptown Girl", ABBA-esque and "Deeply Dippy" got to the top based on it being their "time". It doesn't work that way. There's the matter of competition (or lack thereof) with the Fred only having to see off the likes of Iron Maiden and Vanessa Williams during their three week stint at the chart's pole position. Timing plays a significant role as well. And then there's the record buying public knowingly giving a boost to a lesser product just to give 'em that chart topper they supposedly deserve: if there are indeed a lot of people who purchase records in this fashion then I've never met any of them. What it really comes down to is three singles on the bounce that many people seemed to really like but only one of them had the good fortune to get to number one.
Yes, there had been a hit in between "I'm Too Sexy" and "Deeply Dippy". Right Said Fred followed the hook-filled ode to supermodel glamour (not only is the group dated but so too is the concept of supermodels themselves; go into any airport duty free shop and try to spot the image of someone shilling perfume or luxury timepieces who isn't best known as an actor or star athlete: the glory days of a Naomi Campbell or a Helena Christensen are long gone; sorry to belabour the point in parentheses but in my day models went into acting; nowadays, actors go into modeling) with the not-dissimilar novelty pop of "Don't Talk Just Kiss", their attempt at nabbing the 1991 Christmas Number One which ended up falling just short at number three. It was just like "I'm Too Sexy" only way less memorable and nowhere close to as catchy. Two records in and they were already a one trick pony.
"Deeply Dippy" is not without its own flaws, chief among them Richard Fairbrass' poor sandpaper singing. "I'm Too Sexy" is aided by is lousy voice since it only affirms that this is a very unsexy individual and that's what makes it so amusing (I guess). On what is a more earnest love song, his gravelly vocals are a lot harder to take. There's also the lack of originality. "Daydream" by The Lovin' Spoonful comes immediately to mind before the pace picks up and it becomes a poor cousin of a classic Bachrach and David number. That said, Right Said Fred never seemed like especially talented individuals so expecting something fresh is probably asking too much.
Sian Pattenden isn't overly thrilled by most of what was there for her to review this fortnight. She gives middling to reviews to Erasure (good but "Breath of Life" smacks of a deep cut), James ("Ring the Bells" is yet another banger, what else is new?), Annie Lennox (see below), Salt-N-Pepa (with a reissue/remix of "Expression" which has already been covered here) and an ancient tune by Dinah Washington used in a Levi's commercial (surprised I don't like it more; Pattenden's three star rating is about right). The rest she's quite happy to trash. Alongside all that company, describing a song as "ruddy pleasant" goes from faint praise to seemingly overwhelmingly positive. I'd be more than happy never to have to hear "I'm Too Sexy" again but I feel almost well-disposed towards this one by comparison. No doubt it helps that it hasn't been overplayed but I'm just impressed that an okay song done by a bunch of idiots still sounds all right. People like Ewing describe it as "end of the pier" and that seems about right, even if I'm not sure quite what that means. (I'm picturing being on the end of Southend pier, the air damp and with the smell of greasy chips and diesel oil in my nostrils and the hazy view of Kent on the other side of the Thames: I can imagine "Deeply Dippy" being well suited to this type of setting)
There is a fine line between being a national treasure and being the sort of figure who no one wants to have anything to do with. The Fred were clearly tapping into that same English music hall variety show culture that helped both Slade and Madness first become successful and then find a place in the hearts of the populace. The Fairbrasses and the other one did okay for themselves in this role but it was never destined to be longterm. "Deeply Dippy" suggests that they were on course for the cabaret circuit but doing a crappy Comic Relief single the year after and putting out an even worse number about Sonic the Hedgehog put them right back in the novelty pop game. And say what you will about embarrassing variety shows and playing on cruise ships but at least there's an audience for that shit.
~~~~~
Also Reviewed This Fortnight
Annie Lennox: "Why"
My mum always said she liked Annie Lennox. Fair enough too, mums from the eighties were supposed to dig her — and they were the cool mums. Following the dissolution of Eurythmics she then went solo and teenagers began joining their mums in appreciating all things Annie. Not this particular teenager, mind you. Liking Lennox's music was supposed to mean that you had good taste. I was in my high school drama club and the Diva album was played a lot during breaks. (Even the mostly bad Medusa had its fans among my circle: and to think we were convinced we were cooler than everyone else) It's depressing to think of teens digging a whole crapton of Annie but what about now when I'm middle-aged? I think I've managed to grow into "Why" a lot more than I would've expected. It certainly helps that Lennox doesn't overdo the vocals. She's always had a great voice yet she's often derided for being unappealing to listen to but I've give her a pass just this once.
No comments:
Post a Comment