For One Night Only The Old Grey Whistle Test

Hello and welcome back

to the Old Grey Whistle Test Live:

For One Night Only.

We're here after 30 years

away and we're back

at Television Centre -

our home for the 16 years that

Whistle Test was on the air.

We're older, maybe a little wiser,

certainly greyer, and totally

ready to bring you three hours

of fantastic music,

memories and conversation.

There are loads of friends with us

in the studio tonight -

An incredible list.

Joan Armatrading, Dave Stewart,

Ian Anderson, Chris Difford

and Toyah Wilcox are among those

here to help us explore the archive

and share their recollections

of appearing on the show.

Gary Numan, Richard Thompson,

Peter Frampton, Albert Lee

and Kiki Dee will all be playing

live, and in true programme

tradition, I'll be introducing

you to some essential new music,

with performances from

Robert Vincent and Wildwood Kin.

But first, a montage of memories -

a whistle stop journey

through the Whistle Test years.

Happy New Year!

ROCK MUSIC

how you doing?

Complaints?

# It's been a long time, rock and

roll...

You were wonderful!

# It's been a long time, a long,

long time...

The Whistle Test works

for me.

ROCK MUSIC

# Living rock and roll...

The taxi Johnny Mitchell Santner

about.

I really enjoyed that bit of film,

if I may say so.

Still haven't got

that fixed.

# Open your arms, open your arms...

# It's been a long time

# Lonely, lonely, lonely time #.

CHEERING AND APPLAUSE

It is amazing to see all those clips

again.

But of course, The Old Grey Whistle

Test was always about live music,

and kicking us off tonight is a very

dear friend of the show.

This is the wonderful Kiki Dee.

# Oh she's smiling now

# She has broken down

# All her barriers

# All her demons

# Oh it fills my cup

# To see her shining so bright

# No regrets she says

# Will touch her life

# It was a long time coming

# But she flowered and in time

# Every day is her playground

# Un-abandoned and free to choose

# In the midst of something

that we don't understand

# Then the answers come

and guide us once again

# Oh she's smiling now

# She has broken down

# All her barriers

# All her demons

# Oh it scares me somehow

# It's never too late to fall

in love with life again

# There are people in this world

# That touch you more

than life's design,

# You want to see them go out

and live the life they choose

# For all the things

that they have done for you

# Oh she's smiling now

# She has broken down

# All her barriers

# All her demons

# Oh it fills my cup

# To see her shine so bright

# No regrets she says

# Will fill her life

# Oh she's smiling now

# Oh she's smiling now

# Smiling #.

CHEERING AND APPLAUSE

Thank you.

Thank you. Thank you, Bob. We have

one more song and we are so thrilled

to be here. This is a song from' 73,

and the lyric is from Gary Osborne,

who is out there in the audience.

Thank you, Gary. And it got my first

hit! This is Amoureuse.

# Strands of light

upon a bedroom floor

APPLAUSE

# Change the night

through an open door

# I'm awake but this not my home

# For the first time I'm not alone

# Reaching out I touch another skin

# Breathing out

as he is breathing in

# Deep inside I feel my soul aflame

# Can my life ever be the same?

# I should have told him

# I'd do anything

if I could hold him

# For just another day,

for just another day

# His love is something

I will not forget

# When I am far away,

when I am far away

# I feel the rainfall

of another planet

# Another planet

# Close together in the afterglow

# I remember how his loving flow

# Turned the key into another world

# Made a woman of a simple girl

# Daylight comes as

we both know it must

# Soon my fantasy will turn to dust

# But I would give him

anything he asked

# If my first love could be my last?

SINGING IN FRENCH

# I feel the rainfall

of another planet

# When I am far away,

when I am far away

# I feel the rainfall

of another planet

# Another planet

Enter

CHEERING AND

APPLAU seven

Thank you to Kiki seven

for that performance.

She'll be joining me on the sofa

to share her Whistle Test

memories later in the show.

But right now it's time to revisit

The Old Grey Whistle

Test's very first days.

Here's Tom Robinson

to explain how it all began.

As the 1960s gave way to the 70s,

music TV had been going on happily

with stuff like this.

# Only the lonely

# Knows the way I feel tonight... #

Then in 1971, this happened.

Then in 1971, this happened. Let's

go back to how it all began. This is

a BBC producer. His name is Mike

Appleton and he's looking for a new

programme idea.

programme idea. In 1967 there were

pop and rock audiences. Pop fans

were catered for by the Top 40

singles format of Top of the Pops on

BBC One. Mike Appleton understood

there was now a huge hunger among

serious music fans for a different

kind of TV show focused on albums.

In September 1971, that's what he

gave them.

# And there's still choice

# When we keep on keeping on... #

Everybody knows this. Just in case.

The phrase "The Old Grey Whistle

Test" came from a New York building,

a publishing house where songwriters

sat and wrote pop hits by the yard

as their 9 to 5 job. At the end of

every week the building's doormen

and cleaners would be played a

selection of the latest songs. If

they could whistle the tune after a

single hearing it was deemed a

potential hit having passed the Old

Greys Whistle Test. Ironic really

given that the programme itself was

focused on credible album artists

rather than per Fayers of catchy hit

singles.

singles. The first series was

presented by rich yard Williams.

Hello and welcome to the #3r0e gram

with a funny name.

It was screened

at 11.00pm, perfect for its target

audience. Since most households had

one.telly album fee nannics with

watch after the family went to bed.

This was our time.

This was our time. Fanatics.

# After the first series, Richard

Williams left to concentrate on his

writing career and. A am turned to

Radio 1DJ and co-editor of Time Out

magazine, he was Bob Harris at the

time.

Welcome to this week's Whistle

Test.

Despite being on BBC Two at

the nonprime-time of 11.00pm, the

programme built to an audience of

over five million viewers.

over five million viewers. The

tipping point came when an unknown

Dutch band called Focus first sang

Hocus Pocus to an unsuspecting

Britain.

# Ahhhh! ... #

Following that performance Polydor

records turned their plant over to

making Focus albums for the next ten

days to keep pace with demand. The

Old Grey Whistle Test had arrived. I

like that very much indeed.

APPLAUSE

Here we are again.

We have the show's creator and

producer, Mike Appleton.

APPLAUSE

Also with us my predecessor and

presenter of the first series,

Richard Williams.

APPLAUSE

And an early fan and great friend of

the programme, Danny Baker.

Thank

you.

APPLAUSE

So Mike, we have to discuss the

origins and how the programme grew

because it took a while, didn't it,

with BBC Two to bring music into the

curriculum?

Yeah. It's... It was

always on the cards, but it was

actually how we infiltrated the

line-up which we would introduce

every night of the week, or most

nights of the week. And... We were

beginning to think that it was

reaching its, sort of, sell by date

because we were taking sections of

media and concentrating, like film

night, on film. We started academy

pop when BBC Two went into colour.

Obviously. No need to explain that.

68. That was followed by Disco Two.

That was purely a name. It had

nothing to do with disco music, but

it was of the moment, really. Yeah.

Then on the end of that we decided

to go full speed ahead with a music

programme. I wanted for a long time

to make the equivalent on television

of something like Sounds or NME or

Melody Maker, which treated the

music with a little bit more

seriousness than it was generally

treated. After all, the only thing

at the time on television was Top of

the Pops that was the top 20. That

was their menu, the Top 20. You

didn't get outside that. Academy Pop

featured the music of one band. It

hadn't really got itself put

together properly as a hopefully an

instruction on an interesting piece

of music paper.

Yeah.

That was what

Whistle Test was aimed to be.

The

two things about it was, a, an album

programme.

Yes.

Designed as a

magazine show. When you break down

the format of The Old Grey Whistle

Test there was a main band, a

support band, if you like, a news

desk, film features, interviews. So,

as you are going through the

programme, in a sense you are

turning the pages, aren't you, of a

magazine and finding these different

features?

That is what I was aiming

to do with it. It was something for

people to get into. Not just to sit

down in front of a television set

and watch music, but also hear about

music and see things they might not

have seen without the opportunities

of Whistle Test.

Absolutely.

I mean,

if you lived in the north, in

Scotland and things and touring

bands coming from the States they

didn't go up there. The only chance

you got to see them was on Whistle

Test.

Yeah.

That's why we never

turned it into a showbusiness

programme. It was always a sort of

reporting type programme.

Hence

journalistes -- journalists who

could broadcast. You got the call

from Mike, Richard, how did it

happen for you at the time?

Well, I

had done a couple of things for him

on Disco Two. We did an interview

with Frank Zapper and it slid into

being invited to do the series.

Obviously, you know, I was 22 or 23,

it is was an interesting thing to be

asked to do. There were weeks when I

was rather sorry that in the

magazine format you introduced

interviews somebody like Gerry Lee

Lewis put me in fear of my life.

I

think he did most people, actually.

Not always on camera to a national

audience. There is a great story of

a blues musician who called himself

the Guitarist from Hell. He called

to see Jerry Lee. He got to the

front door. There was a massive

party going on inside the house. He

kept knocking. All the sound stopped

completely. It was silence. Then two

seconds later he saw the barrels of

a double barrel shotgun appear out

of the letterbox. Which is kind of

sort of what happened to you in a

while?

It was a sharpened metal comb

whipped out of the back pocket and

held towards me in a menacing way.

In the studio he walked out of the

passage way with a glass of wine and

handed it to me and said, "look

after this boy." He played a couple

of numbers. Walked out, didn't say

anything, thank you or anything.

Picked up the wine and went off

again.

You introduced, I was a you

videoer of that first series,

Richard. I remember just absolutely

being blown away by the show and the

artists that you had on. Jackson

Brown in that first series. There

was one particular performance that

I know remains one of your

favourites from the entire history

of the show?

Yeah. Physical there

was a flaw in the programme to me

was that it didn't have enough black

music on it at the time. The real

highlight of that year for me was

when Mike got Curtice Mayfield. He

came in with his four-piece band.

Fantastic musicians. The great thing

about it was, it was a tiny studio.

This is like Hyde Park compared to

it. The telephone box we did the

first year of shows in. You couldn't

play loud. If you were playing live.

Curtice' musicians turned everything

down to one and below one and played

with intensity and power that they

played with at the Rainbow or

somewhere, which is where they were

playing that weekend. It was magical

for me.

Danny, when do you begin

seeing the show?

13 or 14 in 71. It

was the otherness of it. You have

the benefit and the honour of

actually creating it, being involved

in it. Somebody who... It can't be

stated enough, not that BBC Four

audience of the demographic, but how

extraordinarily rare was hearing any

music on television and this music,

whatever it was, the fact, 11.30pm

at night. You would wait. It felt

like the twilight zone. It wasn't...

I was staggered to see the figures.

It never felt popular. It went out

of its way to be popular. It's a

good things. I can't think of being

a young person saying, "they were on

TV. We can see them on YouTube." It

felt other. They looked other. I

didn't know who the boys were. I

took on trust they were any good. I

was abused of that many years later.

The last thing on television, which

is an alien concept in itself now,

would be this thing. Which I

thought, me and only another kid at

school knew about it, Bernard. It

was that otherness. They looked so

strange. It was underground. It's

something that is very important in

music. To get that personality of

being underground off the radar. It

felt particularly unBBC. It looked

like they had just said, leave these

kids to get on with it. It was so

important that sense that it wasn't

part of a mainstream. Equally, the

bands, the Stones were never going

to play the Whistle Test. Might be

on film. You would never get

McCartney in. The procession of

bands, like Curtice May Field and

Druid... I know. I would give them

the benefit of the doubt. They

looked unlike anything else in

television or in my life. It was an

extraordinary world. Yourself and

Richard introducing the bands saying

they have tours coming up. It felt

like, oh, I didn't know where else

you could go for this stuff. I would

travel to Soho and buy the albums

the next day. You felt, even though

I heard it's a five million club.

That idea of being part of something

that wasn't anything to do with any

pop culture. It was a beautiful

thing. Once pop culture is now

spread so thin, I don't envy people

at all. That rarity. It felt like a

nightclub you would go to

once-a-week. It was a wonderful

experience.

Yeah. We will look

through the archive of course during

the course of the evening and see

some of these early performances as

well. The archive is the fantastic

legacy of the show. The many amazing

performances that resonate down the

years. We have already seen some

clips and we will be seeing more

during the course of this evening. I

picked a handful of my own

favourites. You have now got the

chance to vote for the you would

like to see in full later this

evening. So here are my four

contenders.

So, my first choice tonight is one

of the most historic and iconic

moments from the entire history of

the show. The first ever appearance

on British television in 1973 of Bob

Marley and the Wavers.

Next, another from our days in

presentation B, our tiny studio

situated behind the lift shaft on

the fourth floor of Television

Centre. Humble pie plate black

coffee with the vocal group and what

a great atmosphere they made. This

is Steve Marriot, one of our most

soulful vocalists ever.

My third choice comes from the stage

of the BBC television Theatre, now

known as the Shepherd's Bush Empire.

It's from there that we broadcast

the Whistle Test live concert

specials from 1976, this is Bonnie.

And my final choice, Tom Petty and

the Heartbreakers. We were the first

to film them at a showcase in Los

Angeles in 1977, and soon after they

made their first visit to Britain

and called in the BBC television

Theatre to play a fantastic set

which included this version of

American Girl.

# She was an American girl... #.

Those are the choices. So had to

distil so many performances down to

that four.

You have until 11pm to cast your

vote and it couldn't be easier.

Just go online to

bbc.co.uk/whistletest

where you will also find

terms and conditions.

The song that gets the most votes

will be played in full

later on in the show.

Please do not try and vote

if you are watching on demand.

But now we have another live

performance here in the studio

and one of my favourite memories

from the mid-'70s is of

a concert we broadcast

from the Hemel Hempstead Pavilion

around the release of the album

Frampton Comes Alive,

which became one of the biggest

selling albums of all time.

The love in the room that night

was incredible and I'm so pleased

that Peter has flown

in from Nashville especially

to be with us tonight.

Ladies and gentlemen,

this is Peter Frampton.

CHEERING AND APPLAUSE

# I heard her at the back door

# The little-wing bird

# Lying there, it should've been

# The end for her

# Was she going somewhere?

# Did she have a place to be?

# Perhaps, today, was on her way

# To rescue me

# Sometimes you fly

# On top of the world

# Sometimes you cry

# Sometimes it hurts

# We all need somebody

# To understand

# We all need somebody

# Lend a hand

# I could see some movement

# An idea came clear

# To care for one another is

# The reason we are here

# I wrapped her in a blanket

# The sky falling stray

# I took her to the river

# And watched her get away

# Sometimes you fly

# On top of the world

# Sometimes you cry

# Sometimes it hurts

# We all need somebody

# To understand

# We all need somebody

# Lend a hand

# Sometimes you fly

# On top of the world

# Sometimes you cry

# Sometimes it hurts

# We all need somebody

# To understand

# We all need somebody

# Lend a hand #.

CHEERING AND APPLAUSE

Thank you. That one, I wrote that

recently about a very large bird, an

American coot that flew into my

bathroom window, knocked itself out

and then lay on my balcony. This

next one is also about a bird that

knocked me out about 30 years ago.

LAUGHTER

# Shadows grow so long

before my eyes

# And they're moving across the page

# Suddenly the day turns into night

# Far away from the city

# But don't hesitate

# 'Cause your love won't wait

# Oh baby I love your way, everyday

# Wanna tell you I love

your way, everyday

# Wanna be with you night and day

# Moon appears to shine

and light the sky

# With the help of some firefly

# Wonder how they have the power

to shine, shine, shine

# I can see them under the pine

# But don't hesitate

# 'Cause your love won't wait

# Oh baby I love your way, everyday

# I wanna tell you I

love your way, oh

# Wanna be with you

night and day, oh yeah

# But don't hesitate

# 'Cause your love won't wait

# I could see the

sunset in your eyes

# Brown and gray, blue besides

# Clouds are stalking

islands in the sun

# I wish I could buy one

# Out of season

# But don't, don't hesitate

# 'Cause your love won't wait

# Oh baby I love your way, everyday

# I wanna tell you I love your way

# Wanna be with you night and day

# Oh baby I love your way, everyday

# I wanna tell you I love your way

# I wanna be with you

night and day, yeah #.

CHEERING AND APPLAUSE

And while Peter makes his way over,

let me introduce you to the two

people he'll be joining on the sofa,

because I'm really thrilled that

Mollie Marriott is here to talk

about her Dad, Steve Marriott,

and her own career.

We also have with us

a man who made his first

appearance on the show as part

of Emmylou Harris' Hot Band in 1977.

Albert Lee. APPLAUSE

I've seen him on many stages since,

including the Concert For George

at the Royal Albert Hall

and he is one of the most

versatile and brilliant

guitarists in the world.

Peter is also with us now. Your

history, Mollie and Peter's join.

Converge.

With your dad Steve.

Before we chat, I have a wonderful

piece of film I want you to see.

Let's go back to the 60s, the small

faces, All Or Nothing. You're on!

Next time, speak up!

LAUGHTER

# Don't just sit there... #.

Such a great song.

Look at that!

It

was a song that topped the chart in

1966, one of their best records

ever. But you've inherited your

dad's voice, the soul and depth of

his voice.

Thank you.

Establishing

your own career, Mollie, help or

hindrance having such a famous dad?

Oh, both, I think. I think people

think that straightaway it is a help

and you are in. But it's not. I

think you have do kind of,

especially with my dad, I have a

lock to prove, vocally. I think it

would be different if I was a boy,

because I would have the comparison

more, so that is a help.

Yes!

That

I'm not. I think it's a bit of both

but I think that is healthy, good.

You have a new record out and on the

threshold of a tour. Tell us a bit

about the album.

The album has taken

a while to make. I was very happy

being a backing vocalist, I still

am, I love doing backing vocals,

it's my favourite thing. But it was

a cathartic thing for me, I needed

to write. I needed to just do it

purely for selfish reasons, and if

anyone else linked to it or heard

and liked it, it's a bonus.

A final

thought about the title, Truth Is A

Wolf.

That Came About In Nashville

With The Wonderful Trudi. I Had A

Great Time Out There and met Gary

Nicholson. He showed me the song I

had written for Bonnie Riat, I asked

if I could have it and I won!

LAUGHTER

It tied the whole album up for me.

It is the only song I haven't

written on the album but the truth

is a wall firm will hunt you down, I

love that.

Peter, you worked with

Mollie's dad. Humble pie was a great

band and you already had great

success, so in a way I guess you

were at least somewhat prepared for

the incredible success that came

along.

Humble Pie was the place where I

found my musicality and put it

altogether. You know, when you

start, you listen to everybody and

you try to copy them. I listened to

the Blues and Jazz. Humble Pie was

the place that it all came together

for me. I felt like I woke up one

morning and I had a guitar style

that was my my open, you know. I've

always thought and felt thankful to

Humble Pie. It was the best band

anyone could have been in. Steve,

who was the one that convinced me in

the end to leave the herd.

I always

wanted to be in the Small Faces.

When I first saw him on Ready,

Steady Go! He was helping me put a

band together. I had Jerry Shirley

that he found for me on drums. We

were looking for another two

players. Steve decided that he was

going to leaved and called me up and

said, "hello, mate, can I join your

bad band." That was it. He had Greg

Ridley, from Spooky Tooth, which

isn't bad. Off we went. That was it.

The peak was 76, 77, 78. In the

middle of that moment, 77, you were

Emmylou Harris. The Liner Album, a

massive success for her. She brought

it over with her when you played on

The Old Grey Whistle Test?

The first

track I played with her. It ended up

nothing like the way Graham wrote

it. It turned into a vehicle for me,

too.

What a band that was, the Hot

Band. Run through the line-up.

Ronnie.

Gordy on base. Piano and

John on drums. Hank on steel.

Yeah.

That was 77. Hiding came out in 79.

That is right.

That's recently been

released that album?

Yeah.

One of

two or three records you put out

again.

Yeah, they were unavailable.

I had to put them out. People ask

are are You have dates them.

In the

UK?

I will start the tour. It worked

out to be here a couple of days

early! Yes.

You have been touring

America and about to again with

Steve Miller.

That's Right.

Yes.

Great double bill.

I've known Steve

about the same time as Humble Pie

formed. We had done a few days

together, a couple of stadium dates

in the 70s. We always liked playing

with each other. He called me up and

said, "I think it's time we need to

play together again." I said, "I

thought you'd never ask." It went so

well last year that he said, "let's

do it again. " The places we haven't

played. We are trying to come here.

Is there any chance of bringing it

over here

I think it will be

amazing. A great night. I get to go

and jam with him and his set too.

It's a lot of fun.

Yeah. Well, I

wish you all the best with the tours

and the new releases and everything.

Albert we will see you in a few

minutes playing live for us tonight.

Yeah.

Peter Frampton, Albert Lee and

Mollie Marriott everybody.

APPLAUSE

You do not want to miss Albert.

Stick around he'll be playing live

for us in a few minutes' time. We

have had a taster of some of the

standout performances featured on

the show in the 70s. Here's just a

few more.

# I'm watching the cruisers below

# You're married with a kid when you

could be having fun with me

#

There ain't no doubt about it

# You've got to go and shout it

# There ain't no doubt about it

# We were doubly blessed

# You were barely 17 and we were

barely dressed

# Whatever I ask of you, you deny it

# I don't even get a chance to try

it

# You give me your reason

# But I just don't buy it

# What's going on

# I wish was your honey man, baby

# I wish I was your...

# I hate myself when... I get enough

rope

# Hold me closer tiny dancer

# Count the headlights on the

highway

# And she only reveals what she

wants you to see

# And she hides like a child, but

she's always a woman to me

#

I'll

# O

# I won't come home for me

# He acted cool and cocky

# There's going to be a party

# I'll met you at 7.30

# She visualised

heaven

#

# Telephone is ringing

# You've got me on-the-run

# I'm driving in my car now

# I got you under my...

# Psycho

# Psycho killer

# Ba-ba,

# Ba-ba, ba-ba

# Waltzing Matilda

# You come a waltzing Matilda with

me

# White shining, silver, stud with

the nose

# Horses, horses, horsing

# Long live rock

# Be it dead or alive

#. Just amazing range of music on

The Old Grey Whistle Test. We will

be seeing more later on. One of the

other things that makes me feel very

proud is the extent to which Whistle

Test always supported new music and

we wanted to continue that tradition

tonight. Later we'll be hearing live

music from the hauntingly brilliant

Robert Vincent. First, a band that

I'm sure you're going to love.

They're from the West Country and

released their debut album Turning

Tides late last year. This is the

exquisite Wildwood Kin.

# You run to meet me in the shadows

# You come to find me in the dark

# You place your hand

upon my shoulder

# You set your seal upon my heart

# When I fall

# You run to meet me out again

# Steady my hands

# Steady my heart

# Steady my eyes

# So I can see where you are

# Steady my hands

# Steady my heart

# Steady my eyes

# So I can see where you are

# When hope is gone

you are my safe house

# When lies get hold,

you are my truth

# When bitterness is

taking root in my soul

# I'll be running right back to you

# When I fall

# You run to meet me out again

# Steady my hands

# When I fall

# You run to meet me out again

# Steady my hands

# Steady my heart

# Steady my eyes

# So I can see where you are

# Steady my hands

# Steady my heart

# Steady my eyes

# So I can see where you are

# Steady my hands

# Steady my heart

# Steady my eyes

# So I can see where you are

# Steady my hands

# Steady my heart

# Steady my eyes

# So I can see where you are

# Ooooh hoo hoo

# Ooooh hoo hoo

# Ooooh hoo hoo

# Steady my hands

# Steady my heart

# Steady my eyes

# So I can see where you are

# Steady my hands

# Steady my heart

# Steady my eyes

# So I can see where you are #.

CHEERING AND APPLAUSE

It's such a prif ledge to be here,

it really is. That was our latest

single Steady My Heart. This next

song is another one from our album,

it's called Taking A Hold. Thank you

so much, Bob, for having us.

# Bear within my cold hearted soul

# Burning a fire shut-up in my bones

# It's taking a hold

and it won't let go

# The sirens will teach

what I don't yet know

# Ooooo Ohhhhhh, Ooooo Ohhhhh

# Sing sing all you weary

# Light the fire and feel it

rising up in your soul

# Sing sing all you weary

# Light the fire and feel it

rising up in your soul

# Bear within my cold hearted soul

# Burning a fire shut-up in my bones

# It's taking a hold

and it won't let go

# The sirens will teach

what I don't yet know

# The sirens will teach

what I don't yet

# Sing sing all you weary

# Light the fire and feel it

rising up in your soul

# Sing sing all you weary

# Light the fire and feel it

rising up in your soul

# Sing all you weary

# Light the fire and feel it

rising up in your soul

# Sing sing all you weary

# Light the fire and feel it

rising up in your soul

# Oooooo Woahhhhh, Ooooo Woaahhh

# It's taking a hold

and it won't let go

# It's taking a hold

and it won't let go

# Sing sing all you

weary (taking a hold)

# Light the fire and feel

it

(taking a hold)

# Sing sing all you

weary

(taking a hold)

# Light the fire and feel it

# Taking a hold

# Sing sing all you weary

# Light the fire and feel it rising

up and it's taking a hold

# Sing sing all you weary

# Light the fire and feel it rising

up and it's taking a hold

. #

CHEERING AND APPLAUSE

Yes, fantastic. Wildwood Kin.

Now, while live music

was the backbone of Whistle Test,

it wasn't always possible to get

the artists we wanted

actually into the studio.

So how did we showcase tracks

we liked in those pre-video days?

Well, Tom Robinson explains...

By the mid-19 60s, the music

industry began reducing short films

to promote the upcoming record

releases. Record companies could

then send these two TV channels

whenever their artists couldn't or

wouldn't turn up in person. At the

time, this still cost a considerable

amount of money, so even as the 70s

rolled into town, it was quite a

rare occurrence and usually done

only for singles. This created a

problem for The Old Grey Whistle

test, which had to come up with a

way of illustrating music from

important album releases if the band

themselves weren't available. Step

forward Philip Jenkinson.

I think

this cinema is the only art form

that actually had its beginnings in

living memory...

Creator of The Old

Grey Whistle test Mike Appleton had

attended a lecture on vintage

cinema, presented by Jenkinson. Mike

was impressed and immediately

offered him a job at the BBC.

Jenkinson had amassed an enormous

private collection of films, so Mike

sent him some of the tracks they

needed to cover and Jenkinson would

trawl through his library to find a

suitable match.

Led Zeppelin one of the major album

bands of the late 60s and early 70s,

by then way too big to show up and

promote it in the studio themselves,

so Philip Jenkins managed to find in

his archive some dancers who were

just in the right movement with the

shoulders rolling and the foot

action, the tempo was just right. It

is an extraordinary match.

You can see the real genius of what

Jenkinson did when you take a track

like High roller which is fairly

average rock and roll and he brings

it to life in a way that makes you

really look at the track in a

completely different way. This

footage is so silly, so funny and so

entrancing, you just are drawn into

it.

# Got to have your love... #.

One of the best-known combinations

with the footage of skiers and

tubular Bells.

MTV launched in 1981 and music

videos became essential to the

success of any artist. They were a

promotional tool for the band and

so, even when there was a narrative,

they still tended to feature the

performance.

# When I'm kneeling by the candle at

the foot of my own bed... #.

But as Philip Jenkinson had proved,

if the band weren't available, some

well chosen archive provided a

useful alternative.

# This is our last dance

# This is our last dance

# This is ourselves under pressure

#.

He was amazing. He was a kind of

genius, I think, Philip Jenkinson,

at finding exactly the right films

are exactly the right piece of music

and cutting it to the beats match

the film. These animations in the

films were very, very important

right at the beginning of the

history of the show. Two of our

friends here in the studio remember

these moments really well, Danny

Baker and Ian Emes. You are part of

the real folklore history of the

Whistle Test and of Pink Floyd. I

will set the scene... We received a

piece of film from you when you were

at university.

Yes.

Which you had

cut to a Pink Floyd track. Animated.

Brilliant. Yes, explain the process

and how you got that to us and what

happened best, well there it is

playing.

What happened if I went to

a party and they put on this track.

For some reason or another, the

whole thing flooded into my head and

I pictured this, really. Then it was

drawings, individual drawing

storyboards. I went home and grabbed

a storyboard and had this vision of

animated film and spent six months

making it. And as this was

happening, it was the most amazing

process because from hearing music

you saw images coming alive and

film. When the film was finished,

six months later a friend of mine

said you should send it to The Old

Grey Whistle test, which I did. That

was my first TV screening.

And what

happened was we basically received

it, put it more or less straight on

air and Rick Wright was watching

that night. Did he get in touch with

you afterwards?

Actually, no, Steve,

the manager got in touch with me.

The thing is, they were my gods. I

never even thought I would get near

those guys. I made that film because

I loved their music and I had to

single album. When I got a call from

Steve O'Rourke I thought I thought I

was actually in trouble.

LAUGHTER

I thought he going to tell me for

using Pink Floyd music for my film.

He said, did you make that film?

Yes. Well, we'd like you to run it

with the band. I was like, oh my

God. I to hire a preview theatre in

Wardour Street which was then the

Hollywood of the UK. It all happened

in Wardour Street. It was the bijou

preview theatre, which was a very

dated, 50s place with kind of carpet

tiles on the walls. I sat there

waiting and the projectionist at the

film ready and they kind of came in

very quietly and sat next to me and

Dave Gilmour was sitting here, you

know, and that thing is... What I'd

done, because actually one of these

days is six minutes. I'd taken out a

little bit of music, because it was,

animation takes forever. I trimmed

it a little bit. As it played,

Gilmour was drumming his fingers and

the chair next to me and suddenly he

stopped and said, "Did you cut

something out of that?" . I said

yes, I'm afraid I did. Then they

asked me to animate the time

sequence from Dark Side Of The Moon.

This is where I came on again. I was

at the rainbow theatre when they

played Dark Side Of The Moon and

famously left the stage with the

instruments humming and the big

circular screen at the back and it

was on that screen they projected

your film.

Yes.

You must have been

feeling incredible that night to see

this work realised in this way.

First time from burning so it's hard

to ever feel incredible!

LAUGHTER

I was thinking, is it time to write,

is it moving well enough? I was

being ultra-professional. I was very

concerned it was all perfect. And

actually, in retrospect... Amazing.

All, well not all, but you Tube now

congratulate itself when anyone

takes on old Laurel and Hardy dancer

but scanning a West on it, they say

is wow, what a mash up. Watching

those, so familiar, that one in

particular, I thought it was just...

Researchers had smoked dope, gone

down to the bins and all, we will

Ramis over it. Until you said

Jenkinson did it, I had no idea.

Creative energy.

You watch it late

at night... The strange thing about

Whistle Test as a testing ground for

any kind of art, it was such and

remains probably unique, I think, in

the history of music television of

having no audience. That no audience

being made it seem like...

We've

changed it tonight.

You've changed

it tonight and I think it's a

terrible sell out! Whistle Test

moment to moment had its own field.

Alice Cooper would be on and any

rock band is going... Then nothing.

Camera out to you going... Alice

Cooper there...

LAUGHTER

In silhouette at the back the band

would stand there going... Until you

linked to a piece of video. The

extraordinary tone of the old

Whistle Test which of course now we

realise that art. At the time...

It

became the showcase for experimental

animation. Us animation students

would have to watch it because all

the new stuff and ideas had been

worked through visually. All right,

the music is everything, but you

were really pushing the envelope, in

terms of the music and the music

video as well.

Yes, because you used

to start by thing in the studio

tonight we have... Barefoot Jerry

and Sam apple pie. And music from...

And you always knew that was the

point... It would normally be a big

band, music from the Rolling Stones,

bouncy would never get in the

studio, but the audience trust you

because you knew there was something

like that to go with it.

A creative

relationship between the two things.

The fact music is a great inspirer

of moving images and film-makers.

There was a really happy kind of

playfulness is going on each week

with ideas exploring visual ideas as

well as musical ones.

That's the

thing. People don't appreciate

because it is only recognised now or

remembered, people like to send it

up and that whole era up, they don't

realise how experimental The Old

Grey Whistle test was. Musically,

the way the bands looked. It was so

experimental, it felt so other. Now

it's easy to say look at those old

hippies, it's not quite as simple as

that. It wasn't, certainly there was

an different bands but any music

show guilty of that. The tone of The

Old Grey Whistle test will never be

repeated because I don't think pop

culture, it's exploded now. That

little capsule, work he was doing,

and certainly the bands themselves,

that's what made it extraordinary.

It felt like nothing on television

and it generally wasn't anything

like what was on television.

I'm so

glad you have been here this evening

and made such a vital contribution

to the programme. Ian Emes. APPLAUSE

The truth is, we're talking about

time Creevy hence we had to put some

of these films together, because

there wasn't the video tape or the

bands available, but as music

changed, so did The Old Grey Whistle

test.

Annie Nightingale took the show

from the '70s to the '80s.

Here are her thoughts

on some of her favourite

Whistle Test moments.

Hello and welcome to Whistle Test.

Ladies and gentlemen, the

Ladies and gentlemen, the Wailers! I

could go into a supermarket and the

day after Azhar Mahmood, and I saw

the show and bought the album.

That's what brought home to me the

power of it. The power was immense.

There wasn't any other programme

that would play albums like that. It

made such a difference to music

culture.

Hello and welcome to deny's Whistle

Test. If there was anything you

didn't like him to say you could go

on and off him up. Tonight the

Beatles, who decided to reform this

week and with us in the studio.

Which is a complete lie that I have

always wanted to say it!

We began in Japan.

This song is

called O what a day!

While we were

in Hong Kong, there was something

called the Rock and pop awards. The

idea was I was going to present two

awards via a satellite link. What we

didn't know was that at the

beginning of the rock and pop

awards, there would be dancers

coming on the stage, dancing to the

hit single of the day. They decided

to

to use oil, the girls slipped and

fell on their bums. We didn't know

any of this that they would go, OK

we have to take that again, do it

again, and then the same thing

happened.

In Hong Kong, the Police were

playing the longest version of

Walking on the Moon you could ever

imagine. They were waiting for me to

jump on the stage and interrupt them

and go, "hey, guys, you've just won

two awards." Eventually they went,

"well, we've had enough of this."

They retired to the dressing room.

They went, "you can come in the

dressing room and surprise us

there." So Radio 1DJ Annie

Nightingale has flown to out to Hong

Kong with their-to-ies. Let's go

over to Annie Nightingale.

You have

come off stage.

Best Album. I would

like to present you from London

British Rock and Pop Awards 1979 for

the Best Album.

Never ask a question

that can be answered yes or no.

Did

you think when you made this album

you would be presented with an award

in Hong Kong?

Yes.

You were being

very apprehensive when I saw last

about coming back here...

I was only

joking. When I was going, "I'm not

coming back to England." That one?

Yes.

I remember that.

John Lennon

had released an album called Double

Fantasy, which had had mixed

reviews. First song I heard, the

song called y just Starting Over. I

had this shiver. I remember really

well, I went, that's going to be

No1. It was a few weeks later

because of what happened to him. I'm

sure by now you heard of today's

tragic news of the death of John

Lennon, shot outside his home in New

York late last night. I was woken up

by daughter who said said, "John

Lennon's been killed in New York."

Is it was decided we would do a live

programme that evening as a tribute

to him.

# Your

# Your fool no more... #

Mike Appleton says, "Paul wants to

speak to you." While that film was

on Paul McCartney said to give you a

message. On behalf of Yoko, George,

Ringo and Linda to thank everybody

for their support since this

tragedy. That really hit home. I

thought, there's only three Beatles

left now. Gary Numan and Two Boy

Army. Very important new music. It

was electronic. There had been

nobody like that, really. I didn't

realise he was very nervous.

realise he was very nervous. But

when everything goes wrong together,

it was one of those. They brought

with them some props which the fire

department were not happy about. One

of his bands swung around and

knocked into a piece of this special

set they brought with them. So this

was all going a bit hay wire. So

there was kind of a lot of tension

in the studio. Which was quite

unusual. The other band that was on

were a German rock band called The

Scorpians. As the floor manager is

counting down 10, 9, 8 there was a

cry from the

Scorpions saying, "where is our

drummer." This was going haywire.

Gary Numan said, you laughed. He was

throwing up backstage. He was so

nervous about it. I want to say,

Gary, I'm sorry I was trying to

lighten the atmosphere a bit.

Another number from Thompson Twins,

In The Name of Love. Good night.

Thanks Annie.

And it looks like Gary Numan has

forgiven her, because I'm thrilled

to say he's here to perform

for us right now.

Accompanied by his very

talented daughter Persia.

Ladies and gentlemen,

please put your hands together

for the incomparable Gary Numan.

APPLAUSE

# When they called me broken, I knew

# When they called me evil, I knew

# When they called me Ruin, I knew

# I would always find my way to you

# When I begged

forgiveness, they knew

# When I begged for mercy, they knew

# When I begged for

nothing, they knew

# I would always find my way to you

# My name is Ruin,

my name is vengeance

# My name is no-one,

and no-one is calling

# My name is Ruin,

my name is heartbreak.

# My name is lonely,

my sorrow's a darkness

# My name is Ruin, my name is evil

# My name's a war song,

I'll sing you a new war

# My name is Ruin, my name is broken

# My name is shameless,

I'll tear your world open

# When I called you poison, you knew

# When I called you

shameful, you knew

# When I called you a liar, you knew

# I would always find my way to you

# I'll show you Ruin,

I'll show you vengeance

# I'll show you no-one,

and no-one is calling

# I'll show you Ruin,

I'll show you heartbreak

# I'll show you lonely,

a sorrow in darkness

# I'll show you Ruin,

I'll show you evil

# I'll sing you a war song,

I'll sing you a new war

# I'll show you Ruin,

I'll show you broken

# I'll show you shameless,

I'll tear your world open #.

APPLAUSE

INSTRUMENTAL

APPLAUSE

# It's cold outside

# And the paint's

peeling off of my walls

# There's a man outside

# In a long coat, grey hat,

smoking a cigarette

# Now the light fades out

# Now the light fades out

# And I wonder what I'm doing

# In a room like this

# There's a knock on the door

# And just for a second I thought

# I remembered you

# So now I'm alone

# Now I can think for myself

# About little deals

# And issues

# And things that I

just don't understand

# A white lie that night

# Or a sly touch at times

# I don't think it

meant anything to you

# You know I hate to ask

# But are "friends" electric?

# Only mine's broke down

# And now I've no-one to love

# So I found out your reasons

# For the phone calls and smiles

# And it hurts

# And I'm lonely

# And I should never have tried

# And I missed you tonight

# It must be time to leave

# You see it meant

everything to me #.

CHEERING AND APPLAUSE

Fabulous, fabulous stuff.

I'll be catching up with Gary

shortly on the impact

Whistle Test had on his career.

He will be joining us for a chat in

a few minutes time.

But right now, it's time

for a reminder that you at home get

to decide which of my picks of past

Whistle Test performances

will be shown in full

at the end of the show.

All you have to do to place

your vote is go online

to bbc.co.uk/whistletest.

But first, let's see them again...

# Stir it up... #.

# Black coffee...

# You can love me like a man that...

#.

# She was an American girl #.

If you want to vote,

Do not delay.

The poll closes tonight at 11pm

so please don't delay.

To pick your favourite,

go to bbc.co.uk/whistletest

and remember do not try to vote

of you are watching on demand.

The world wide web wasn't even

invented the last time

we were on the air...

Incredible to think.

The Old Grey Whistle Test gave huge

support to new artists and often

played a major part

in their success.

So many of the people we now think

of as household names

made their first UK television

appearance on the show.

And here are just a few of them...

# But you did, but you did, but you

did, I thank you

# All my life...

# Without your love, it's a crying

shame #.

# Two weeks, I went back

# Trying to

# Trying to find my way in society

#.

# Like you was my baby... For

# Use you, now confuse you

# Then I lose you but still you

won't forsake me #.

# Is it true that calling you the

Chelsea boys?

#

# She records the rise and fall of

every soldier passing

# The only soldier now is me

# Fighting things I cannot see...

# I've got the brains, you've got

the looks

# Let's make lots of money

# You've got the Braun, I've got the

brains

# Let's make lots of money #.

# Among emptiness...

#

# I'm not prepared to go on like

this

# I can't, I can't stand losing

# I can't, I can't, I can't stand

losing

# I can't, I can't stand losing

you...

# An ocean liner

# All the kids are complaining

there's nowhere to go

# All the kids are complaining... #.

It is great.

My next three guests

are without doubt icons of British

music, selling millions of records

all over the world.

All of them, I'm proud to say,

made their television debuts

here on Old Grey Whistle Test -

Joan Armatrading, Dave

Stewart and Gary Numan.

CHEERING AND APPLAUSE

That is a powerful performance you

gave us just now, Gary. And the

look. The thing I always think of

with your music is it isn't just

music. You think outside the music

and the way to present the music and

the look and the atmosphere of what

you are trying to do. That really

does show through and the new

record.

It does a bit, I can't hide

it. I think because when I write

things, I see them, as much as

anything. I'm part of what I'm

trying to do with the music itself

and then the music afterwards, to

describe what you see. So there is

already a visual element to it,

pretty much from the word go. I've

always enjoyed that side of it as

well. Sometimes I've done it right

and sometimes it's been dreadful!

LAUGHTER

Really embarrassing, but you try.

Exactly, until you try, and that's

it, you are pushing up the

boundaries. The idea of this record,

the savage... Tell us how this idea

came to fruition.

I've been trying

to write a novel for a long time so

it actually started out as a book.

When I started to write savage I

didn't have many ideas so I started

to liberate the ideas from the book.

I thought I'd have two or three and

then get going. The book is about a

global warming apocalyptic future,

it's all gone to desert. As I

started to write a book, Donald

Trump started to come along and say

things about global warming and it

made me want to write more about it.

I ended up doing a whole album. It's

not really about that future, but it

is set in that future.

OK. Joan, I

have so many great memories of your

first appearance on The Old Grey

Whistle test, 1973.

Yes, what I

wanted to start off with, I have a

new album coming out in the spring,

hear me out! I have a new album

coming out in the spring. I am and

tour September and October, if you

want to know where that is, go to my

website. This will be my 21st album.

Now, why do you think I am able to

say that? Because of The Old Grey

Whistle test.

APPLAUSE

This is why. When I came onto The

Old Grey Whistle test, people really

didn't know me, they may have heard

of me and I have to include John

Peel because he did such a lock for

different artists.

So much for all

of us.

So people might have heard me

and John Peel but they hadn't really

seen me and then I came on the Grey

Whistle Test and they saw me.

Luckily, you asked me back and got

to see my face again and then you

asked me back and got to see my face

again. So the relationship I've got

with the audience I've got is built

up, really, through The Old Grey

Whistle test.

I think it is also

true to say, Joan, I'm sure you to

also feel the same icon in the 70s,

the record labels tended to take a

longer-term view of building an

artist's career. You appeared for

the programme in the first time in

73. Love and Affection burst through

on 76, that was three years your

music was aborted, supported what

you are doing. That long-term

support was so important artists

those days.

Very important. I feel

very lucky because I love to write.

I write because I kind of have to.

So I had the first album and on 705I

did another album and came on the

show, then in 76, and then as you

say, they spend their time nurturing

people. But I like to think that

they could see that I was going to

get there.

Absolutely.

And I think

that's what they did to a lot of

artists. They could see they were

going to get there and just needed

time to maturing and get it out.

Was

that the same with you, Dave, that

long-term support at that point?

Well, I think nowadays it's like

they see an artist and they do what

I call pick it up, mess it up and

drop it.

APPLAUSE

They get a young artist, like a

young girl or singer and say, you

are fantastic, with signing you. I

just want you to write with these

other people and they get to centre

basement full of LA and everywhere

and they have 63 songs and they

forget who they are on the record

company has changed staff about

three times so then they go, this

artist? We don't understand what

you're doing, and they drop them.

That is a rather tale,

unfortunately!

Because I meet them

after they have all been dropped.

The one place you and I know that

does handle things rather

differently from that is Nashville

and the country music community does

nurture its artists, looking long

term into the future for their

career.

I think what's happened is

artists tend to like huddled

together, there is kind of a

geographical Paul or a lightening

rod in certain places around the

world, like Kingston Jamaica, or

have family in Cuba, Liverpool at a

certain time Nashville had it coming

round again but now it has welcomed

in all sorts of new artists in

different genres but it still has

that thing about and everyone wakes

up in the morning and goes, I will

write the best song I possibly can

today. Not I'm going to get as many

Instagram like sci-fi candidate.

It's this world people think is

happening -- as I can today. But

it's not really happening. It's

happening in, I don't know... You

have likes in Taiwan but you are not

touring in Taiwan at that time. So

what we used to do, cut me off

whenever you want! I had a coffee

whilst I was waiting!

At 7:30pm!

Anyway... Actually, one thing I will

say...

I'm going to pull the three

of you together with one thought.

All three of you...

I was wondering

how you are going to do that. Gary,

Dave, Joan, together as one.

Each of

you have pushed up the barriers,

you've moved across different

musical genres and been prepared to

put your soul on the line, as it

were, to experiment, to push out

this particular card and see where

it takes you, which is not always a

complete success, but then when it

is, and I'm thinking Joan in

particular about your particular

success in the blues album chart in

America, 2007?

Yes.

You got to

number one. I think I am right in

saying you were the first British

female artist ever to top the

American blues chart.

Yes, yes, and

it debuted at number one as well,

which was great.

APPLAUSE

Brilliant achievement, yeah.

Let me

just come back to what Dave was

saying. I think he is absolutely

right in the wake young artists are

today. I just want to point out one

by Postman loner. Do you know him?

He is a rapper. I say you must

listen to him, because he writes

songs and he writes really well.

When you hear the words he is

saying, he is telling a proper

story. -- Post Malone. Sometimes he

goes off into the sweary thing. He

writes great strands and wants to do

performance. One of his songs is

called Congratulations and he is

talking about people thinking you

were making and telling him he is no

good and here he is now he has made

everyone is saying congratulations

and wants to be his friend. I think

there are lots of artist to do want

to write. When I look at him, I

think he wants to write, he is not

thinking of the success. I think

eventually, because that is what

will happen. You will get success if

you just want to kind of express

yourself.

I think about half the

income I've made, I've invested into

young upcoming artists, you know,

just without ever thinking I'm going

to get it back.

to get it back.

We will be seeing

another great young artist coming up

on the programme a little later, but

meanwhile, Joan Armatrading, Dave

Armstrong and are Newman, thank you,

so great to see you. APPLAUSE

Time to continue our trip down

memory lane.

As the '80s dawned, Whistle Test

continued to be the home of the very

best music and live performance.

Here are just some of the standout

moments from the decade of big

hair and shoulder pads.

# If you're lonely, I will call

# Your flesh will always creep...

# I saw him...

# Just a rumour spread around town

# Somebody said someone got booted

saying that people get killed...

# Is it a crime

# Is it a crime that I still want

you...

#

# I was on the outside when you say

you needed me

# I was looking at myself

# I was blind, could not see...

# You know you've got me so confused

# The way you're walking in your

shoes

# I get the blues

# But I feel all right, all right...

# Oh, yeah

# On my T-shirt...

# On my T-shirt... #

Made the right decision

# I was the boy with 20-20 vision...

# Things will get better

# Oh-oh, oh-oh, no, no...

# I love a gypsy woman

# I

# I love you gypsy woman Another

amazing selection of performances. A

performance coming up now that has

become the stuff of Whistle Test

legend. Viewers of a nervous

disposition might want to look away

now.

Edecided I wanted to be a popstar

from the age of nine years old. I

just thought the Whistle Test was a

great wrung on the ladder. What I

didn't realise it was the whole