Old Grey Whistle Test
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URL: http://www.progarchives.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=114099
Printed Date: April 28 2024 at 16:44
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Topic: Old Grey Whistle Test
Posted By: Davesax1965
Subject: Old Grey Whistle Test
Date Posted: March 05 2018 at 06:19
Any UK fans here ?
There was a recent retrospective of the OGWT on BBC. Watched it and horrors !!! Virtually every band on there was miming. Whispering Bob Harris must have been telling porkies. ;-))))
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Replies:
Posted By: AZF
Date Posted: March 05 2018 at 08:02
I'd heard of it. Enjoyed bits of footage but the recent broadcast was just so tedious and dull.
"Bit like the original show!" snarked someone on the forum.
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Posted By: Squonk19
Date Posted: March 05 2018 at 10:06
An integral part of my 70s upbringing. The OGWT was an essential watch for any UK rock fan - with always a good spattering of classic rock, blues, prog, folk, fusion and West Coast jamming. It boosted the profile of the likes of Camel and Focus - who's record sales soared the day after any appearance. Lots of interviews (some good, some deadly dull), film clips and often a new track played over some old B&W movie clip or animation (Zep's Achilles'' Last Stand, Zappa's Dancing Fool etc.). Seeing Skynyrd play Freebird at Knebworth and the first full play of the Bat Out of Hell video were landmark moments. Studio and concert footage of Rory Gallagher always kept me happy!
Of course it had to move with the times with punk, new wave and electronica and not all the presenters worked. Remember Television doing Marquee Moon, and Lone Justice, Robert Johnson and Tubeway Army impressing. Eventually it moved away from its classic/prog rock core values and I wasn't too heartbroken when it faded away.
The recent anniversary retrospective was interesting, but at times underwhelming (nice seeing Mrs Fripp though! Last I saw her and hubby on TV was on 'Mr and Mrs'!). Much better to check out the compilation DVDs that have been released in recent years - although just like the show, they will be a curate's egg of a selection and serious cherry-picking would be needed. BBC4 often recycle clips as part of their genre shows - but we could all do a better job in editing the thousands of hours of footage into some quality episodes.
Anyone from the BBC reading.....I'm always available for this at weekends for a nominal fee (some IPAs possibly?)
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“Living in their pools, they soon forget about the sea.”
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Posted By: chopper
Date Posted: March 05 2018 at 12:56
I forgot to tape it but I did see Focus doing "Hocus Pocus", it certainly wasn't the original seeing the crazy speed they played at!
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Posted By: Atavachron
Date Posted: March 05 2018 at 15:55
^ probably the time factor (though many bands seemed to quicken the tempo when performing), not to mention the poor sound quality of TV back then. That show is such a dinosaur, Don Kirshner's Rock Concert was a bit more hip .
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"Too often we enjoy the comfort of opinion without the discomfort of thought." -- John F. Kennedy
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