The Tams – A History of Dubious Taste

It Was 50 (and a bit) Years Ago Today…

Firstly, many thanks to you all for the birthday messages last Sunday; they were most unexpected and, perhaps, undeserved, given that I rarely remember to return the favour.

I have a friend back in Cardiff called Huw. We haven’t actually seen each other for around fifteen years (because, I’m lazy), but he let me house-sit whilst he went on holidays when I was very down on my luck around twenty years ago, and I’m forever indebted to him for his kindness back then.

I mention him now, because on the twenty-sixth day of the ninth month of every year one of us will always text the other the following: “Happy Birthday, Same Birthday Dude!”

I went to text him on Sunday, and was gob-smacked to see that we didn’t remember to do it last year. Something else to blame Covid for, I guess.

Anyway, I sent the text, he replied, and we had a quick catch up.

But something else seemed to be missing, and I managed to pin it down to having happened here. Last year, I had posted Bad Moon Rising, as I always do, but I had then gone on to post the record that was #1 in the UK charts on my first birthday: Freda Payne’s glorious Band of Gold.

I announced that every year, I would feature the record that had been #1 on my birthday fifty years earlier, to see how long my run of good luck continued. (And I promised that, as I’d nicked the idea from him, I’d buy Martin from New Amusements a pint at the Martin Rossiter gig which has been rescheduled Lord knows how many times and now actually looks like it might happen – offer still stands, Martin!)

And then I went and forgot to continue the theme this year.

So, here it is, a week late (but it was still #1 then, I think). Here’s what wiki has to say about it:

“…a popular single by The Tams. Written by Ray Whitley, it was originally released in 1964 and…later became a favourite on the Northern soul scene in the UK, belatedly reaching number one on the UK Singles Chart for three weeks in September 1971.”