What are your top five Showaddywaddy songs of all time

What are your top five Showaddywaddy songs of all time? Most Showaddywaddy fans would have totally different 'top-fives' and it is interesting to see how our tastes differ.

My top five is liable to change every week, but at the time of writing (Thursday 31st May 2001) the selection at the top of the list was my choice. If you would like to submit your choice for inclusion on this page, please send me an e-mail with the title Top Five and I'll put it on!

1. Chain Gang. I'm not quite sure why this is my favourite song. I love the string section and the song for me is perfect. I've even heard a 'neutral' music fan say that this is better than Sam Cooke's original version!

2. Pretty Little Angel Eyes. I think I have to put this in my top five as it was the first ever Showaddywaddy song I heard, and the one that got me hooked when I was five years old!

3. Trocadero. I like Dave's and Buddy's shared vocals on this song and also the drumming. Trocadero was also the name of my first band.

4. Big Big Star. I like this one because it rocks and is a real foot tapper.

5. Paint Your Picture. This ballad, like my first choice has a string section complimenting the drums, bass and guitars an altogether makes a great sound.

Here you are my top 5 Showaddywaddy songs. It's not easy to choose which song is the best because SWW have done a lot of great songs but these are the best ones for me:

1. If You Know What I Mean. This song rocks. This is definitely one of the best songs. It's impossible for me getting tired of hearing this song.

3. Under The Moon Of Love. Just like you Paul, this was the first song I ever heard and I have to put it my top 5. This song was my introduction to the world of SWW and I never regret it.

4. When. The second song I heard. And as a kid I played back this song a million times.

5. Chain Gang. This is indeed better than 'Cooke's' version. I can play this song again and again for hours.

1. King of the Jive. Probably because at my first concert when I was 13 was at Hammersmith Odeon, I was on my own and a bit shy. A lady next to me grabbed my arm when they sung this, she pulled me up and I didn't stop dancing for the rest of the show! And because Al James was on vocals.

2. Lucy Jane. The lyrics are great, and my niece has the same name and I used to sing it to her.

4. Rock 'n' Roll Music. SWW did this really well, a good foot tapper (to use your phrase Paul!)

5. Blue Moon. My last choice was a toss up between Paint Your Picture which has lovely lyrics, and Blue Moon. The vocals on Blue Moon and the backing are brilliant, so I'll have to choose Blue Moon.

1. Blue Jean Baby. Like the sound of the song and production, simply! Dave's singing comes over well and the sound of the cut is very 1975. Could've been a 7" success! Anoraks compare it to any other memorable "pop" release which was a singles chart success!

2. I'm a Traveller. A joyful song with a simple chorus. Raw, with the "double drum" sound and rich acoustics and good guitaring from Russ. Nice harmony from Bill in the chorus and note the odd bit of feed-back too on occasion!

3. CUT 1E. This is nice! You could imagine Choise doing this. This shows the songwriting abilities of Trev and Dave. A soulful ballad from the opening album.

4. Big Big Star. Glam Pop at its best. Bill's trademark multi-tracked singing shines through along with the melodic guitar you can hear throughout the track. Love the middle eight...(Whoo ooh ooh, whoo ooh ooh, big big big big star!)

5. Hey Rock And Roll. A glitter glam pop classic! Who could argue with that when Gladiators take it up some 20 years later?! Would have been interesting to hear the cut before Mike Hurst got his hands on it. If it wasn't for Gary Glitter (also on Bell Records) who knows how it would've sounded? Very 1974 when the band were at their best, evident in their enthusiasm, image and sound.

Don't use my full name...I'm married to someone else who would chop my bits off if she saw this!

1. Pretty Little Angel Eyes. I was dating an absolutely beautiful girl at the time - I see her every now and again and she has still got pretty little angel eyes.

SWW didn't do a song called 'Absolute A***hole' or it would have been a contender! I still see my ex....I finished with her.........bad decision day or what! She doesn't know I still carry a torch for her.

2. Paint Your Picture. Lovely words, still feel emotional when I think of it.

5. You Got What It Takes. Reminds me of when I fell in love with Dave.......

I love all Showaddywaddy's records, but five of my favourites are written below:

1. Why Do Lovers Break Each Other's Hearts? I really like this song because although it came near the end of their chart career it sounds like SWW in 77 or 78. It's very up-tempo with fantastic vocals.

2. I Wonder Why. Again similar to above. Great vocal performance by the band. That's part of what distinguished SWW from Darts etc.

3. Cutie. Simple little song that even my 3 year old can sing along to. A song about a car. Perfect.

4. Lost. Like this song a lot because its a little different to SWW usual ballad. I must say it was a tight run between this song and Swansong from Red Star. The lyrics are brilliant. They really describe the life of a rock 'n' roll star. A sad song that has a wonderful finish.

5. A Little Bit of Soap. A song that I first heard back in the late 70s when my mother made us sit down and watch a SWW concert on TV. It's on the 76-78 album that love so much. I remember SWW doing this song on their '84 Irish tour. They did it just like the record unlike now where they only do half of it at a slower pace.

1. Then Came You. This has been my favourite SWW song for over 20 years. The vocals are so strong and haunting. Speaking with Dave after a show once, he told me he actually wrote this one. This is from my favourite album, Bright Lights.

2. Win Your Heart. This shows a different side to SWW, well away from how people would look back on them with the rock 'n' roll teddy boy scene. This is a song I like to play myself on piano.

3. Sing On Louise. I've loved this song ever since I first heard it, when I was about 4 years old. This song features great strings throughout the track. Taken of course from the Step Two album. Its great to have this on CD after all these years.

4. Lost. This song is sung with such emotion. I love how this track starts so quietly and then progresses into such a powerful song. Sang so well, you can almost feel the sadness it was wrote about.

5. Don't Turn Your Back On Me Baby. Taken from the yellow album, this song builds up to a great ending and features powerful vocals and strings throughout. Another great self penned track.

1. When. In the early '80s my girlfriend at the time hated this song! She sold it to me when we made an end to the relationship....

3. Maybe Maybe Maybe. I sang this song under the shower a long time ago! It´s a little different to the other ballads Showaddywaddy did.

4. Blue Moon. A good song with sad lyrics at the beginning, but Dave's voice brings me light and confidence.....

5. Win Your Heart. I won the heart of a great woman a long time ago. We married in 1991 and when I hear the song I will remember this great day!

1. Pretty Little Angel Eyes. Like yourself, this is the track that made me a Showaddywaddy fan. I loved it from the first time I heard it and used to play it over and over again until I drove my mum and dad mad. They were sick of hearing it after a while! I still think this is one of their best songs.

2. Remember Then. Whenever I hear this it reminds me of a fantastic day I had when my brother took me to Scarborough for the day. On the way back I was listening to the charts and this was in the top 40.

4. Pretty Little One. Again this is just a brilliant track. I love the way it speeds up and slows down again.

5. That's Alright With Me. This one always reminds me of Christmas 1979. I pestered my brother to death to buy me the Crepes & Drapes album for Christmas and he did. Well he had to really otherwise he would have never lived it down! This is definitely the best track on the album for me.

1. Ever Lovin'. It was on the first single I got, the b-side to I Wonder Why of course.

2. Maybe Maybe Maybe. It was on the first album I bought and I liked every song on it.

5. Why? My last Showaddywaddy single. Great song - why did the band do no more?

It is not possible to limit myself to 5 tracks as there are too many good ones. It would be easier to list my 5 worst! Here goes anyway not necessarily in order:

2. Pretty Little Angel Eyes. 'Greatest Hits 76-78' was my first album so this needed to be in.

4. Then Came You. In my view Bright Lights is the best album of them all and this the best song on it.

5. Say Mama. I loved this song when I heard it on Showaddywaddyshow and did not have it in my collection until a couple of months ago when I found Trocadero in an old record shop.

Okay, here is my 5 top all time favourite Showaddywaddy songs and some of the reasons why I think they are good.

1. Hey Rock And Roll. Well for me this song has to be No 1. Its got it all, that pulsating beat really gets the blood pumping and the feet dancing and Hey! (it's original). It is also the song we play live as a tribute to The Greatest Rock N' Roll Show Ever.

2. Under The Moon Of Love. Always been a classic song and of all the cover versions, this is the best in my opinion. It is full of fun and has that Showaddywaddy magic all over it (and those kettle drums), wow!

3. Windows. Love this song to death. A truely romantic song blended with the Buddy Holly guitar sound and it gives me goose pimples up and down my spine.

4. Three Steps To Heaven. Being a big big fan of Eddie Cochran, I just had to choose this song. Loved the re-interpretation of this track and for me Showaddywaddy deserved every piece of credit that came their way.

5. Heavenly. Perhaps not one of the more popular singles in terms of chart success, but nevertheless, a great self composed track with it's drum intro, acoustic guitar, hand claps and backing vocals made this a nice song to sing along to. Dave Bartram sounds really good on this track and just made me appreciate their own creative song writing.

1. Rock 'n' Roll Music. Especially the live version from October 1975 in "Musikladen". It is one of the finest songs they ever did. They really play the "stereo sound". Two drummers (Romeo and Malc in best conditions), three different vocals (Why doesn't sing Rod more songs?) and two guitar solos (Russ and Trevor at their best)! SWW in top form, very dynamic, everyone's in action, the perfect show! I know that the LP-version doesn't come that way as their live performance, but nevertheless: That's Rock 'n' Roll by SWW!

2. Dancin' Party. It has a good tempo and rhythm. I like the sax solos. It really is a classic "party song".

3. Three Steps To Heaven. A fine version of Eddie's last hit record. I like the way Al plays the bass.

4. The Party. This one rocks, the sound catches you at once. You know SWW are in town and they will rock it tonight! Fine guitar played by Russ.

5. Paint your Picture / Lost. Although I haven't listened to them for a while. These are the best ballads they ever did. I wonder what would have happened if they had released them as singles. On 'Paint Your Picture', I prefer the strings while on 'Lost' it's Dave's voice and Russ's big guitar solo.

1. I Wonder Why. It was the first song I ever saw SWW sing live and reminds me of a great night.

2. (You've Got) Personality. I think this is the best SWW song not to be released as a single. I`m sure it would have made number one if it had been.

3. Dancin` Party. This was the first record I ever bought but it wasn`t the last until I had got all the back catalogue of SWW singles and albums.

4. Pretty Little Angel Eyes. Not really sure why I picked this one but it reminds me of a great holiday I had while this was in the charts.

5. A Night At Daddy Gees. This was the last great single they released before the did some dodgy stuff in my opinion, but I still support them and still bought all the other material they released.

2. (You're My) Soul & Inspiration. An absolutely brilliant single, it should have been a number one.

1. Hey Rock and Roll. 'Cos it is the first record that I heard around the time SWW were on New Faces and from then on I was a fan.

3. Heavenly. At the beginning of the song Dave says, "Mmm it's Heavenly" in a sexy voice and at the time made me go weak at the knees!!

4. You Got What It Takes. It seemed to say a lot about my boyfriend at the time (who is now incidentally my husband!)

5. When. Because although I liked the Kalin Twins version from way back before my time(!), the SWW version is by far superior.

It's quite hard to name my favourite 5 songs, but the ones I'm going with are the ones I can never get tired of hearing (if you can ever get tired of hearing SWW songs that is!)

1. Swansong. This is my favourite one to sing very loud and very out of tune!

4. That's Rock 'N' Roll. When I first heard the drumming at the beginning I thought "hmmm this sounds good" and it just got better.

5. Johnny Remember Me. Purely for remembering seeing Dave on stage swaying his hips to the ending, ooh the memories!

As far as I am concerned, Showaddywaddy were the classiest band of the 70's. I've grown up with their music (as all my 4 older brothers were all Teddyboys), and I never get tired listening to their music.
My Top Five at the moment are:

And not one single in sight! I look forward to the new Cherry Red collection with anticipation. They have done a great job with the first two albums.

1. Hey Rock And Roll. This record was one that I loved and when it went to number 2 in the charts, I snapped it up. I love the live performances because they always play this last and it is a great song to dance to.

2. Three Steps To Heaven. This has to be my favourite cover that Showaddywaddy have done.

3. Chain Gang. Again this is taken from Step Two. I have to say that I prefer this to the original Sam Cooke version as I love the way that Buddy sings on it. It leaves my hair standing on edge and it should be in their Hey Rock 'n' Roll theatre shows.

4. Under The Moon Of Love. I like the double drumming and the sax cuts right through me. I like the live performance of the song as Dave gets the audience to sing it back at him. When this came out I knew that it would go to the top. It still is played at clubs and pubs right across Cardiff.

5. Jailhouse Rock. I love this tribute to Elvis. Al James sings this live and it is the party song at every concert. I have been on stage twice when this song has been played. It is a pity that this was never on any of the albums until the Hey Rock 'n' Roll album which has just been released.

4. Just A Country Boy. A great song about Elvis. (I was fortunate enough to see Elvis live in 1976 whilst in the States on a student exchange).

Stephen Holt of Rochdale

This is my top 5 Showaddywaddy songs (this week) - they change so often:

1. Runaway Girl. This is a very emotive song, (from The One & Only album). A relatively new song to me, but still one of the best Showaddywaddy have ever written, I do hope this wasn't written out of personal experience.

You really are a g*t Paul, how on earth can we only pick 5 tracks! It's taken me a long to come up with these, so here goes:

1. Paint Your Picture. Always a heartwarmer and Dave's vocals are second to none.

2. Swansong. I remember singing to this dreaming I was That pop star - aaaahhh happy days!

3. Cutie. Another classic, another memory.

4. Rollercoaster. Can't play this one unless it's guaranteed to break sound barrier!

5. Everybody On Your Feet. Personal this - I suffered from an illness that nearly crippled me and this got me through some very hard times.

1. Hey Rock And Roll. In 1974 you couldn't buy rock 'n' roll records in the shops. Me and my mates had to make do with swapping our parents old 45's. This record changed that!

2. When. I saw the Wads performing this track live, it reminds me of what rock 'n' roll is about, great riffs, great sax, great fun. When there was 8 of them on stage you didn't know which one to watch.

3. Pretty Little Angel Eyes. Doo Wop at it's very best!

4. You Will Lose Your Love Tomorrow. A classic ballad, every band should have ONE of these.

5. Smiling Eyes. Showaddywaddy had TWO of them. Only regret, I've never seen this or 'Love Tomorrow' performed live!

2. Why Do Lovers Break Each Other's Hearts. I've got the original of this on a album of the 60's. SWW's version is definitely better - it's more jazzy!

3. Johnny Remember Me. Because of the haunting vocals and smoke effect on stage when performed live. It adds to the atmosphere of the song.

Carol Newman from Vancouver Island, Canada

1. Has to be You Got What It Takes. In grammar school (a long time ago), we did dance routines to this in the hallways before afternoon classes. Still know the moves more than 20 years later.

2. When. Do I need to say anymore? Better than the Kalin Twins!

3. Paint Your Picture / Johnny Remember Me: Both great ballads to sing your heart out to. They give me the chills.....

4. Three Steps To Heaven. Can't believe this was in the '70s - what a song!

5. Blue Moon. The greatest backing track around, and the harmonies are excellent

1. Smiling Eyes. The BEST ballad!

2. Lucy Jane. Loved the harmonies

3. Dancin' Party. Memories come flooding back of the old 'Rovers Disco' on a Thursday night!

4) Remember Then.

5) Trocadero. This along with Remember Then give me great memories of sitting in my then boyfriends house, playing these on his stereo! We went and saw SWW in the Capitol Theatre in Cardiff in September 1977. Such a great time, my boyfriend had the drapes and everything...... ahhhhhhh, those were the days!

Another set of top 5 tracks for you! As you said on your selection, these can change regularly (and there were loads of great ones I had to leave out...), but at the time of writing:

1. Paint Your Picture. Perfect song, vocals, arrangement - I've always loved it!

2. One Of These Days. Should have been an album track, great song - Dave's voice is excellent.

3. In Above Your Head. Has almost a country feel with the pedal steel, beautiful. A song you can listen to time after time.

4. I'm A Traveller / You Will Lose Your Love Tomorrow. Can't decide between these two 1974 b-sides - I play them both equally!

5. Go Ahead Make My Day. Shows just how good the Bartram / Oakes songwriting team is (and was!) Wish it had been a single.

1. Pretty Little Angel Eyes. This was the first record I ever bought and it reflects me!

2. Runaway Girl. This reminds me of myself and on reflection, I know what my parents must have gone through.

3. Windows. Romantic and speaks volumes, also lovely tune.

4. Gypsy Rose Lee. ....as I am always searching for answers.

5. Footsteps. Loss is a haunting memory, this song could reverse its verses and still make complete sense.

1. The Party. A great band playing a great song. Typified the youthful arrogance they had in the early seventies. Musically the first two albums were the best by miles.

2. Smiling Eyes. Beautiful. Joins Muds' "Morning" as the most beautiful, heart-wrenching song that hardly anybody ever heard.

3. Sweet Music. Could've been any of the first 3 singles but this just nicked it.

4. Tribute. (Obviously I guess to Lennon). Bet no one else has got this. Just think it's a cracker.

5. Everybody On Your Feet. Just remember at the time it was my favourite song on Step Two, so who am I to argue with an eleven year old!

1. Smiling Eyes. Tthe best Showaddywaddy record by far - and surely one of the best records ever.

2. Johnny Remember Me. Party song from the '70s

3. Heavenly. A record I borrowed from a friend and never gave back.

4. Windows. From an album I leant to a friend and never got back.

5. Somethin' Else. Much better than the Sex Pistol's version!