Saturday 28 January 2023

Thank you for the days: Saturday

A new, seven-part series as a thiny veiled excuse to have something to write about: three songs that have a day of the week in the title. Not (just) in the lyrics but in the title. Today, part six: the weekend is upon us in the form of Saturday.

First up, Whigfield. No, wait, come back! I promise this is the only Eurodance track I will feature all year, okay? For yes, this is disposable, bubblegum nonsense ... but it's catchy, isn't it? That "Dee dee na na na" hook is ... well, hooky, isn't it? Plus Sannie Carlson pranced around the video in a towel which, in '94, was quite exciting (Whigfield was the name of the group, not her). It's of its time, sure ... but Saturday Night is also the first song that came to mind for day six, and that has to be for a reason. Here you go:

Still here? Good; let's get back to safer territory. This is Suede, with Saturday Night, a real peach from their first Bernard-less album Coming Up. It hit #6 in early '97, and yes, that is a young Keeley Hawes in the video.

Onwards then. I'm hesitant to feature the same artist twice in this series, and he already appeared for Thursday but this is such a good clip, almost as much for the time-capsule introduction from Russell Harty as for the performance of Drive-In Saturday by David Bowie (a song that Alyson wrote excellently about at WIAA, just a short while ago). I was going to feature SPM's excellent cover of this ... but I'm saving him for the last post. So here's David:

No prizes for guessing what comes tomorrow.

6 comments:

  1. I have really enjoyed this series, Martin. I did wonder if you might sneak in a post of Friday Night, Saturday Morning by The Specials between these two but great choices throughout (yes, including Whigfield). That performance of Drive-In Saturday is superb, isn't it?

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    1. Cheers. That's a great idea about Friday Night, Saturday Morning, I'll do that if I ever run this series again. And yes, great clip.

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  2. I remember Whigfield's Saturday Night from the last Christmas work night out I went on before becoming a mum - did the dance with the youngsters and probably got very drunk. The following year, with a new baby in the house, I think I missed Christmas altogether.

    I revisited Bowie's song for my new 50 year retrospective earlier this month. That's a great clip isn't and certainly doesn't feel dated at all (except the Russell Harty bit) - The Swede pointed out that he'd got the lyrics wrong in the Jagger line - he did and has a bit of a smirk to himself about it.

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    1. I think Russell Harty was dated even when he was contemporary.

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  3. The Man Of Cheese28 January 2023 at 19:22

    Good Lord,I vaguely recall drunkenly dancing to Whigfield in some Greek or Spanish nightclub,in a previous life. I think I still remember a couple of the moves. Fast forward 30 years and 2 drinks and a nice chat in a micropub is my limit. I have a Sunday song I'm hoping you choose tomorrow,and it's not Blur!

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    1. 2 drinks and a pub chat sounds good to me. As for tomorrow, I can't promise no Blur... But there will be three songs, so hopefully the song you want will appear.

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