Thursday, 4 December 2014

That's Entertainment : Bananarama


I heard a rumour.  

And yes, I can tell you it is true.  

I stand accused of love in the first degree...as a fan of Bananarama.

And what's wrong with that?  Seriously.  It's summer time, leading in to the Xmas Party Season, and every corporate Xmas Party should have ONE Bananarama track spun.  And if it's hoity-toity corporate Xmas Party somewhere on the harbour, no credible disc jockey would be worth his or her salt if he/she didn't give…at minimum…Venus a spin.  

As a Bananarama fan, I got on the bandwagon quite late.  How late?  Well WOW! was out and Siobhan Fahey was leaving the trio and Love In The First Degree was topping charts.  Next thing, they've airbrushed in Jacquie O'Sullivan with the remaining pair of Sara Dallin and Keren Woodward, released a career spanning best of and re-recording the vocals for I Want You Back.

These days, they're 'gay icons'  and an act on the "Hits of the Eighties" tours with Rick Astley and Paul Young and passed over as naff, poxy poppets lumped in with the Stock, Aitken and Waterman stable of fabricated hits.

But it wasn't always like this.

Starting off as raffish, post-punk tomboys (caked in makeup) with scruffy, teased hair, bandana head bands and over-alls and Bovva-boots.  In fact, the remnants of the Sex Pistols helped them record their first demo.  Mixing a dash of New Wave counter culture, synth pop and (laughable) social consciences, they released a slew of hits that smashed the charts for most of the years between 1982-1988.  Eventually, they would strip away the 'streetwise' look for more sophisticated feminine glam and a Euro-dance sound.  However, you could never accuse Bananarama of being boring.

Their earliest film clips helped them win air time on MTV in America, where, they are mostly remembered as a 'one hit wonder' act, hitting the Billboard #1 spot with a cover of Shocking Blue's Venus in 1986.  Yet their catalogue - whilst 80's pop - is littered with plenty of gems.  The production was always great and the girls sang in unison, not in harmony, so you could hear the nuances of each vocal very clearly.  Overall, Bananarama were popstars who delivered the whole package - sound, style, image - and sold bucket loads of albums and singles.  In fact, the Guinness Book of World Records lists Bananarama as the all-female group with the most chart entries in the world, a record they still possess.  By the 1990's and 2000's, only Sara and Keren still performed and recorded as Bananarama, and whilst they may release new material, they're pretty much a nostalgia act.

But for mine, it's that trio of later singles - I Head A Rumour, Love In The First Degree and I Want You Back - that win me over every time.  Poptastic in so so many ways, these are party tunes that deserve to be played loud and fill the dance floor.  Maybe I'm showing my age - I was 11/12 when they came out - but they form a part of my music vocabulary.  Sure, there's nostalgia but when you dive on in, Bananarama are a great female act with heaps of beats and lots of great singles.  And I'm guessing I'm not alone in liking Bananarama either.

So this summer, 'fess up.  When you are at your Xmas soirees, throw down the gauntlet and tell that DJ to whack on some Bananarama.  You might find yourself in a room full of closeted fans just itching to boogie to Venus one more time.




It Ain't What You Do (It's The Way That You Do It) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XJonGASrEac


Na Na Hey Hey Kiss Him Goodbye https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8IUIYwrMyiQ















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