Velveteen - Transvision Vamp

Surely the reason mankind invented video recorders was to tape the music videos of Transvision Vamp? Not sure exactly why, but they were compelling to watch. And re-watch. And re-watch. It got to the point where me and my mates knew the songs better than Wendy James herself.

And what a front woman she was. Not exactly blessed with the greatest voice ever, but since when in rock and pop music did that matter? Exactly. What she had in spades though was attitude. And the ability to wear her clothes inside out. Actually when I think about it, in the 80s there was a spate of women who chose to wear their clothing the wrong way round. Madonna started it and then it was closely followed by Cyndy Lauper. Wendy James got in on the act in the late 80s, appearing on TV and in their music videos with her undies on the outside! A bit like Superman. But with more special powers. What was it that sparked this trend of reverse layering? Maybe it was more comfortable that way? If so then surely the manufacturers of such garments were getting it hopelessly wrong. Perhaps it was for practical reasons - with your undies on the outside they'd be less inclined to get mucky, and had the advantage that they could be changed without getting undressed. Whatever the reason, it was effective. Especially on us males who, up to this point, had no idea that it was acceptable to dress this way. But only for women. Imagine the uproar if males started wearing their duds on the outside of their trousers. Questions would be asked in Parliament and the Daily Mail would be outraged (as usual). Thankfully it has never taken off, and we can all only be grateful for that. Let's be honest, mens undies aren't that nice. Somehow I don't think that David Bowie would've been that popular if he'd been regularly photographed with a set of briefs over his spandex. Your average bloke's undies are worn through, washed out and a bit grubby. And that is before they have been worn. I can only think of one exception, putting the fictional Superman to one side for now, and that is the guy from Cameo. But his was a cod-piece and it was plastic. So that's cheating.

This album from The Vamp is not all that bad. I was pleasantly surprised when I slipped on this morning. It is certainly bubblegum pop and they appear to have written pastiche versions of existing songs; take the hit 'Baby I Don't Care' for example. Chords ripped from numerous sources and lightweight lyrics. But it is played with such joie de vivre that it doesn't really matter. And that is the last time I will use joie de vivre on these pages. So ignore the paper thin vocals and enjoy the 45 minutes of pop pastiche fun. Right I'm off to YouTube to find those videos.....