Originally Posted by: lee
I doubt very much that them 2 totp performances would attract any casual fans...they're both woeful
You're possibly correct that the two performances may not attract casual fans.
However, I do disagree about the two performances being 'woeful'.
OK - they probably aren't what most people would be expecting from 1980s TOTP performances, where bands would be 'hamming it up' for audience, alongside a perfect studio version of the song.
Blue Monday doesn't sound that great, but it's 'passable', especially when you consider how difficult (at the time) it was to create the song in a live studio environment. It's not the car crash that some people think it is (or at least, not IMHO).
Thieves Like Us, however, sounds pretty damn good to me though.
Bernard's vocals are good and it's a pretty clear performance. My only slight criticism is that Hooky's bass is slightly too high in the mix, although that kind of makes it even better (sounding like someone revving up a motorbike).
I also think that the band look effortlessly cool in this performance. Imperious even.
In addition to the above, what we do have is a band 'flicking two fingers' at the establishment and doing what they want, rather than playing BBC puppets.
And that's to be applauded.
Performances like this are exactly why I fucking love this band.