BeebRock - The BBC4/BBC3/BBC2/BBC1 Music Programmes thread

I enjoyed the two shows about Rock Music behind the Iron Curtain last week. The Sky one was a Russian Co-Production and seemed a bit more 'worthy' by making sure everyone involved got due credit. The BBC Beatles one was more colourful and fun - I like the guy who needed a decent speaker so he stole the KGB Propaganda Tannoy!

Anyway, if you like Pink Floyd and you have Sky Arts you might want to get the tapes out this weekend. Elsewhere BBC4 starts a new programme fronted by Gregory Porter about Voices. Sounds a bit generic but might have potential. TOTP has already made it to Christmas, where we will find out if Wham! have managed to stop Band Aid getting the Christmas Number One ...



Thursday
4pm Dean Martin: A Legend In Concert (Sky Arts)
A collection of performances by singer, actor and comedian Dean Martin, including That's Amore, Would I Love You and Memories Are Made of This

5pm Discovering Music: Bee Gees (Sky Arts)
Music journalists examine the work of the Gibb brothers, whose hits such as Jive Talkin', How Deep Is Your Love and Stayin' Alive are enduring dancefloor fillers

11pm Rolling Stone: Postcards From The Edge (Sky Arts)
Ep1, repeat of last Friday's show



Friday
6am Radio 2 In Concert: Deep Purple (BBC Red Button, Repeated on Loop at various times over weekend)

3pm Johnny Cash at Folsom Prison (Sky Arts)
Documentary examining the country star's 1968 concert at California's Folsom Prison, with contributions by his family and band members, as well as inmates who witnessed the event

5pm Discovering Music: Blondie (Sky Arts)
A look back at the music of American new wave band Blondie, who were led by Debbie Harry and Chris Stein and rose to fame with their 1978 album Parallel Lines. Nothing about Folsom Prison, alas.


7pm Trailblazers: Heavy Metal (Sky Arts)
Music experts explore the development of heavy metal music, from Black Sabbath and Led Zeppelin to Metallica and Motley Crue

8.30pm & 12.55am Top Of The Pops 1984: December 20th (BBC4)
Simon Bates and Janice Long present the edition from December 20, featuring Roy Wood, Paul McCartney and the Frog Chorus, Bronski Beat, the Council Collective, Foreigner, Thompson Twins and Band Aid. Full details here https://www.thetvdb.com/?tab=episode&seriesid=78332&seasonid=653476&id=5857870&lid=7

9pm & 1.30am Top Of The Pops: Big Hits 1978 (BBC4)
A selection of classic songs from 1978, a year in which punk music and new wave rebellion co-existed with pop, disco, soul, reggae and prog rock. Featuring appearances on the show by Ian Dury, Elvis Costello, Blondie, Bob Marley, the Boomtown Rats, Kate Bush, Sham 69, Brotherhood of Man, Dan Hill, Boney M, 10cc and Manfred Mann's Earth Band

9pm & 1am Rolling Stone: Stories From The Edge
Ep 2/6 Documentary charting the history of the magazine founded in San Francisco in 1967 by Jann Wenner and Ralph J Gleason

10pm A Shot Of Whisky (Sky Arts)
The story of Los Angeles rock venue Whisky a Go Go, featuring classic archive performances by the likes of Led Zeppelin, the Doors and Janis Joplin as well as interviews



10pm & 2.30am Gregory Porter's Popular Voices (BBC4) New!
Ep 1/3 Showstoppers New series. The Grammy award-winning soul and jazz star examines the sound and work of his favourite vocal showstoppers, starting with the world's first pop star, the Italian tenor Enrico Caruso. He moves on to admire the genius of Ella Fitzgerald, the soul of Mahalia Jackson, the power and stagecraft of Freddie Mercury, the artistry and extravagance of Prince, and the modern melisma of Whitney Houston and Mariah Carey. Contributors include Dave Grohl, Beck, Adam Lambert, George Benson, Stephen Costello, Wendy Melvoin and Lisa Coleman


11pm Popular Voices At The BBC (BBC4) New!
Showstoppers at the BBC New series. A celebration of bravura singers who brought the house down in front of BBC cameras with their showstopping vocal delivery and performances in such programmes as How It is, Dusty, Top of the Pops, It's Lulu and Wogan. Clips range from Mahalia Jackson's breath-taking gospel delivery to Ella Fitzgerald's rapid-fire scat, and Tom Jones and Dusty Springfield's '60s big balladry to the soul divas of the '80s and beyond. Plus, vocal eccentrics including Kate Bush and Bjork and the staggering vocal range of Jeff Buckley, captured in his only BBC performance on The Late Show in 1994

11.50pm Free To Rock: How Rock & Roll Brought Down The Wall (Sky Arts)
Kiefer Sutherland narrates a documentary telling the story of how rock music became a symbol of freedom behind the Iron Curtain and how it helped end the Cold War

Midnight Van Morrison Live At Eden (BBC4)
Recorded at Cornwall's Eden Project in July 2017, the Northern Irish singer-songwriter, instrumentalist and producer performs 14 songs - including well-known hits Here Comes the Night, Moondance and Brown Eyed Girl - to a capacity audience

1.30am Children In Need Rocks The 80s (BBC1)
Fearne Cotton and Sara Cox present from Wembley Arena as a star-studded line up celebrates the 1980s, the decade in which BBC Children in Need's first major appeal took place. Featuring performances by A-ha, Bananarama, Boy George, Erasure, Europe, Imagination, Jason Donovan, Katrina, Louisa Johnson, Mica Paris, Nick Heyward, OMD and UB40 featuring Ali, Astro and Mickey, with Roman Kemp reporting from backstage. Repeat of Monday's Show

2am Discovering Music: Pink Floyd (Sky Arts)
Music critics and fans look back at the career of the rock band, famed for their hugely concept albums and elaborate live shows



Saturday
Pink Floyd Weekend! (Mostly on Sky Arts, with one show on BBC2)

7pm Pink Floyd: A Delicate Sound of Thunder (Sky Arts)
An extravagant concert film from the musicians' A Momentary Lapse of Reason tour, recorded at New York's Nassau Coliseum in August 1988 using 27 cameras. The performance sees David Gilmour, Rick Wright and Nick Mason deliver seminal tracks including Shine on You Crazy Diamond, Time, Comfortably Numb and Wish You Were Here

9pm & 3am Pink Floyd: The Story Of Wish You Were Here (Sky Arts)
Documentary telling the story behind the making of Pink Floyd's landmark 1975 album Wish You Were Here, featuring interviews with Roger Waters, David Gilmour and Nick Mason

10.40pm David Gilmour: Live At Pompeii (BBC2)
Highlights of the guitarist's concerts at the ancient Pompeii amphitheatre in Rome in July 2016, featuring songs from his solo career as well as several Pink Floyd favourites

11.15pm A Technicolour Dream (Sky Arts)
Pink Floyd's Roger Waters and Nick Mason recount the story of the musical subculture of the 1960s, which culminated in a 14-hour concert at London's Alexandra Palace

1.15am David Gilmour: Live in Gdansk (Sky Arts)
A 2006 concert by the former Pink Floyd guitarist and singer in front of 50,000 fans at the shipyard in Gdansk, Poland. Gilmour and his six-piece band are accompanied by the 40-strong string section of the Polish Baltic Philharmonic Orchestra, conducted by Zbigniew Preisner, as they perform songs including Shine on You Crazy Diamond, Fat Old Sun and Wish You Were Here


The Rest of Saturday:
3.30pm The Beach Boys - Live At Knebworth (Sky Arts)
A performance from the June 1980 Knebworth Festival featuring all six of the Beach Boys - Brian, Dennis and Carl Wilson, Mike Love, Al Jardine and Bruce Johnston - who provide a set comprising many of their most memorable hits including Good Vibrations, Wouldn't It Be Nice, California Girls, I Get Around and Surfin' USA

11.40pm Film: Spike Island (BBC2)
Five teenage boys from Manchester are desperate to see the Stone Roses in concert during the summer of 1990. Making it to the gig at Cheshire's Spike Island means spending three days on the road, an experience that tests their friendships and forces them to consider what their future holds. Drama, starring Elliott Tittensor and Nico Mirallegro

1.15am Top Of The Pops 1984 - December 20th (BBC4)
Same as Friday



Sunday
8.30pm Pat Shortt's Music From D'Telly (RTE1)
The host introduces some soul-themed music from RTÉ's archive, including tunes by Michael Bolton, BB King, Phil Collins, The Blades, Louis Stewart and Bill Whelan, among others


Pink Floyd Weekend Continued:
8pm Classic Albums: Dark Side Of The Moon (Sky Arts)
Documentary exploring Pink Floyd's ground-breaking 1973 album The Dark Side of the Moon, which remained in the US Top 200 for 724 consecutive weeks. Featuring interviews with band members Roger Waters, Dave Gilmour, Richard Wright and Nick Mason.

9pm Pink Floyd Live At Pompei (Sky Arts)
A 1972 concert in which David Gilmour, Nick Mason, Roger Waters and Richard Wright perform hits including Echoes and A Saucerful of Secrets amid the empty ruins of Pompeii's Ancient Roman amphitheatre

10pm Country Music Awards 2017: Highlights (BBC4)
Bob Harris introduces coverage of the awards ceremony from Nashville, Tennessee. The show is hosted by Brad Paisley and Carrie Underwood and features performances from Garth Brooks, Eric Church, Miranda Lambert, Little Big Town and Keith Urban, as well as appearances by Pink, Tim McGraw, Faith Hill, Niall Horan and Maren Morris

11pm Rich Hall's Countrier Than You (BBC4)
The American comedian, writer and musician explores the early origins of country music in Nashville and Austin. He visits the rustic studios where this much-loved sound was born and discovers how this genre of music has reinvented itself with influences from bluegrass, western swing and Americana. Rich examines how the music industries differ between these two cities and how they generated their own distinct twist on the genre - such as cosmic country, redneck country and the outlaw artists of the 1970s

12.30am Country At The BBC (BBC4)
A compilation of BBC session performances by country artists from the past four decades, including Tammy Wynette, Emmylou Harris, Johnny Cash, Dolly Parton, Charley Pride, Kris Kristofferson, Garth Brooks, Willie Nelson, Alison Krauss, Taylor Swift, kd lang and Billie Jo Spears

10.30pm Pop Goes Northern Ireland (BBC2 NI)
The key events of 1977, including the defeat of a loyalist strike headed by Ian Paisley and Ernest Baird, the Queen's visit to Belfast for the Silver Jubilee celebrations, and Mairead Corrigan and Betty Williams winning the Nobel peace prize

12.20am Rolling Stone: Stories From The Edge (Sky Arts)
Same as Friday

1.20am A Shot Of Whisky (Sky Arts)
Same as Friday



That's it for now, as always if you have seen anything else do let us know
Best Example Of Hall and Oates Fixing London's Inner Cities might be in Big Train (GOLD, Saturday Night 1.10am)

sligojoek wrote: »

Skid You might want to edit Blondie's entry. Unless she supported J C in Folsom prison, 1968.

Heh, Good spot Joe.

This is as close as it gets

Welsh Megaman wrote: »

The Frog Chorus :O

Luckily, I’m already behind the couch in preparation for tonight’s LLS

A timeless classic!

That's from when Christmas records were good, not like these days mumble grumble ...

Weller miming the Rap bit that somebody else did in that Style Council song.

He did it so well that Band Aid got him to mime Bono's bits when they were on stage.

Hi there, it's a quiet enough weekend coming up. BBC4 seems to have rushed through all their 1984 TOTPs a bit early, leaving them with only compilations to show until Christmas. The Gregory Porter and Rolling Stone shows trundle along and there's exciting news for Fairport Convention fans who have access to Sky Arts ...



Thursday
4pm Queen Live in Milton Keynes (Sky Arts)
Highlights from the 1982 concert, featuring many of the band's greatest hits, among them renditions of Flash and Under Pressure

6pm BBC Radio 2 In Concert: Tears For Fears (BBC Red Button, Repeated on loop at various times over weekend)

10.15pm This Is Christy (RTE1)
An intimate documentary about the incredible life story of one of Ireland's greatest singer-songwriters, Christy Dignam

11pm Rolling Stone : Stories From The Edge (Sky Arts)
Episode 2, Repeat of last Friday.



Friday
7pm Trailblazers: New Romantics (Sky Arts)
Toyah Willcox and Billy Bragg are among those examining key moments in the development of the New Romantic genre, from the Human League and Adam Ant, to David Bowie and Ultravox

7.30pm Sounds Like Friday Night (BBC1)
Direct from the iconic BBC Television Centre in White City, west London, Greg James and Dotty present a lively mix of music and entertainment, joined by Ivor Novello and Mobo Award-winner Craig David as co-host. Craig will be introducing performances from Vegas band the Killers and singer-songwriter Anne-Marie, as well as taking to the stage himself to perform two of his latest songs, one of which features Bastille frontman Dan Smith. Greg interviews the guests, while Dotty keeps across the social media streams and goes out-and-about meeting music fans across the country

9pm & 12.55am Top Of The Pops Big Hits 1979 (BBC4)
A look at the year music went portable with the launch of the Sony walkman, and saw the Mod revival and 2-tone music flourish with the Jam, the Specials, Madness and the Selecter. New Wave also thrived with Elvis Costello, Squeeze and Gary Numan. On a more comical note, Dame Edna Everage's performance of Waltzing Matilda made a big impression, incongruously alongside reggae-influenced punk rock band the Ruts. Elsewhere, Chas & Dave continued their success story with Gertcha

9pm & 1am Rolling Stone: Stories From The Edge (Sky Arts)
Ep 3 Documentary charting the history of the magazine founded in San Francisco in 1967 by Jann Wenner and Ralph J Gleason

10pm & 1.55am Gregory Porter's Popular Voices (BBC4)
Ep 2 Crooners & Co The soul and jazz performer explores the soft, intimate art of crooning. Born with the arrival of the microphone in the 1930s, crooning was initially about men seducing women and thrived through signature stars such as Bing Crosby, Nat King Cole and Frank Sinatra. However, far from disappearing with the advent of rock 'n' roll, the art of crooning gained a new existential edge and was transformed by the likes of Roy Orbison, David Bowie and even Lana Del Rey into a haunting and abiding strain of contemporary pop. Contributors include Iggy Pop, Joshua Homme, George Benson and Beck

10pm Freddie Mercury: The Tribute Concert (Sky Arts)
The 1992 concert at Wembley Stadium in honour of the Queen frontman, which featured performances by David Bowie, Elton John, Annie Lennox, Axl Rose, Roger Daltrey, Liza Minnelli, Robert Plant, Seal, Slash and George Michael. Featuring rehearsal footage and interviews with Queen members Brian May, Roger Taylor and John Deacon



11pm & 2.55am Popular Voices At The BBC (BBC4)
Ep 2 Crooners at the BBC From the BBC archives, a compilation of the enigmatic tones of some of popular music's most classic crooners. Featured are the wit and charm of Sammy Davis Jr, the honeyed voice of Nat King Cole, the swagger of Frank Sinatra, the swank of Bryan Ferry and the brooding of Willie Nelson.The programme also revisits some of the modernisers of crooning, from the theatrics of David Bowie to post-punk Echo and the Bunnymen, right up to the sensual murmurings of Lana Del Rey. Featuring clips from such programmes as Twiggs, The Vera Lynn Show, The Late Show, Top of the Pops and Whistle Test

11.45pm Queen: The Phenomenon (Sky Arts)
Profile of the rock group, combining archive interviews with performance footage, from their beginnings in the 1970s to the death of lead singer Freddie Mercury in 1991

Midnight: Madness Live At Eden (BBC4)
A performance from Cornwall's Eden Project, recorded in June 2017, in which the popular Kentish Town band perform 14 of their well-known songs, including House of Fun, Baggy Trousers, It Must Be Love and Night Boat to Cairo. Formed 40 years ago under frontman Suggs, Madness are one of the most successful British pop groups and have had 15 singles in the UK top 10 and remain at the forefront of British pop music



Saturday
6.45pm & 7.45pm Fleetwood Mac Live In Boston (Parts 1 & 2) (Sky Arts)
Mick Fleetwood, John McVie, Lindsey Buckingham and Stevie Nicks play hits from throughout their career in a concert from 2004 as part of the band's Say You Will tour

9pm & 2am Fairport Convention: Folk Heroes (Sky Arts) New!
The original members of the band look back on Fairport Convention's 50-year history and reflect on how they pioneered the British folk rock movement
http://folking.com/tag/fairport-convention-folk-heroes/

10.25pm Film: Walk The Line (RTE2)
Biopic of country singer Johnny Cash. Traumatised by the death of his brother as a child and scorned by his father, Cash leaves Arkansas to serve in the US Air Force in Germany, where he starts to write songs. Although reaching a high point in his career touring alongside Elvis and Jerry Lee Lewis, he descends into drink and drug addiction, while fellow singer and future wife June Carter seems to be the only person standing between him and self-destruction. With Joaquin Phoenix and an Oscar-winning Reese Witherspoon. I still think Joaquin should have got a Oscar for this. Phillip Seymour Hoffman won for Capote, which seems like a serious case of Hollywood voting for a film about someone from Hollywood. Boo.


10.30pm Rolling Stone: Stories From The Edge (Sky Arts)
Same as yesterday

11.30pm 50 Years With Peter, Paul and Mary (Sky Arts)
Documentary celebrating the impact of the trio who brought folk music to America's mass audiences, combining artistry with activism

11.40pm Guth: The Smiths (TG4)
Investigating what life was like in Manchester for members of indie band the Smiths, who are descended from Irish immigrants, and how their ancestry influenced their music. The group's songs struck a chord with an entire generation, and they were strongly aware of their roots, which is evident in singer Morrissey's solo single Irish Blood English Heart

12.45am Soundstage: Joan Baez (Sky Arts)
The Grammy award-winning American folk singer is joined by Gillian Welch and Nickel Creek for this 2004 concert

12.50am A Blackpool Big Band Boogie: Jools Holland and his Rhythm & Blues Orchestra (BBC4)
The pianist and presenter of Later leads his orchestra in a concert at Blackpool's Empress Ballroom celebrating the golden age of big band music from the 1930s-50s, with interpretations of standards by the likes of Count Basie, Louis Armstrong and Woody Herman. Highlights include singer-songwriter Rumer's take on Ac-Cent-Tchu-Ate the Positive, and Marc Almond performing a rendition of Edith Piaf's Hymne a l'amour



Sunday
8pm The Stones In The Park (Sky Arts)
The Rolling Stones' 1969 Hyde Park concert dedicated to the memory of the band's guitarist Brian Jones, who had died two days previously

8.30pm Pat Shortt's Music From D'Telly (RTE1)
Featuring a profile of Philomena Begley and performances by Mary and Francis Black, Jewel, Macy Gray, Leslie Dowdall, Pauline Scanlon and Nana Mouskouri

9pm & 3am Classic Artists: Jimi Hendrix (Sky Arts)
Friends and fans of the American musician tell the story of one of rock's great icons, who dazzled in the 60s with his outrageous guitar-playing skills and experimental sound

9.30pm The Nathan Carter Show (RTE1)
The country singer is joined by guests Steve Harley, Moya Brennan, Aston Merrygold and the High Kings, and races against the world's youngest stunt driver. Last in the series https://www.steveharley.com/latest-news/679-ireland-tv-the-nathan-carter-show.html

10.30pm Pop Goes Northern Ireland (BBC2 NI)
1988 A look back at the key events of 1988, when Anglo-Irish relations were at their worst following the failed appeal of the Birmingham Six, the shooting of a Catholic man by a British soldier at a border checkpoint, and the killing of three IRA members by the SAS in Gibraltar, which set in motion a sequence of violent events

11.45pm Other Voices (RTE2)
Music from Belfast's Duncairn Centre, including sets by Beoga, Jealous of the Birds, Ryan Vail, Picture This, Rosie Carney and Touts. Presented by Huw Stephens, May Kay and Rigsy

1am Rolling Stone: Postcards From The Edge (Sky Arts)
Ep 3 repeated again



That is more or less that for, as always if you have spotted anything else do let us know. Thursday at 2.50pm on Film 4 sees a seasonal slice of Cliff Richard's epic Summer Holiday, I don't think I've ever seen it but presumably Cliff and the gang meet a similar fate to that of the Young Ones in their final episode