hi- does anybody have any views on thefrowned on the idea but with various Musicians Union type rules in play during th Rats miming on tv appearances?. I think some of the more pure punk bands e seventies there was no alternative but to refuse to play so bands were caught in a bind. Geldof's famous playing of the candleabra maybe refutes the suggestion that he was not a musician for the doubters! It must be pretty boring to be in a band and have to go through the charade of miming- Gary Roberts always looked bored but who could blame him and I heard once the TOTP was always filmed fairly early in the mornings when all musicians would normally be in bed. Anyway I think I'm rambling again

noelindublin · Loudmouth

Too much miming or no other choice?

BTR · Tonight

It was reported that The Clash refused to do ToTP but if I remember rightly the truth was that they hadn't actually been asked on the show.

Ironically, The Clash had their first No.1 record because the song was featured in a Levis advert - and by then the band had split up.

-- Edited by BTR on Tuesday 14th of September 2010 02:04:11 AM

noelindublin · Loudmouth

APOLOGIES- the item I posted is all jumbled because I was cuting and pasting and messing with formats so it reads like a drunken teenagers text. Sorry about this. I was trying to post about the late seventies thing about bands miming rather than playing live on various tv shows so the Rats did a lot of miming which possibly made them seem a bit lightweight. The latter part of the post is more readable for those with patience.

noelindublin · Loudmouth

You can read what the Clash had for breakfast every morning from 1977 to 1982 if you subscribe to Uncut or MOJO the seem to get so much attention and fetishisation- yeah I suppose the were ok and I love Janie Jones who was a bit of a Madam Cyn I hear.

BTR · Tonight

Most TV shows had bands miming because it was cheaper for the TV company to produce.

ArrGee · Back To Boomtown

BTR wrote:
It was reported that The Clash refused to do ToTP but if I remember rightly the truth was that they hadn't actually been asked on the show.

Ironically, The Clash had their first No.1 record because the song was featured in a Levis advert - and by then the band had split up.

They were asked but it was quite deep into their career. They had been often reported as saying they wouldn't appear. So they refused to go on TOTP when asked.

However, not to be undermined the producers had Pans People perform a routine to Bank Robber in their absence.

In many ways, it was far worse than appearing.

Sadly this list misses Geldof ripping the picture of Travolta, and Dexy's with Jocky Wilson, but there are some good uns http://www.nme.com/news/art-brut/23784