Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by Rod on August 1, 2010 at 12:12am

O. M. G. ... I've wasted my life... I don't know how many months Bobby and Cissy spent developing those moves, but every second was worth it. Simply unbelievable clip Gwen - maybe we need a new thread for this 'Can't get that dance-routine out of my head - though I desperately want to'? It appalls me to realize that we Aussies have been denied this kind of freak-out all our lives. And Jean Marie, I DO appreciate you standing up for the Nolans!

Permalink Reply by Gwen F. Blunt on August 7, 2010 at 6:12pm

Fantastic find, Jean Marie! I agree that it's not quite as good as their choreography in their fried-egg outfits on "Gotta Pull Myself Together", but it's a close second! They love the eccentric arm gestures, don't they? And I'm glad to see that two of them were still rocking the mullets at that stage!

If you want to see what they're up to these days, check out their website. (Unfortunately, it looks like we missed their UK reunion tour!)
http://www.nolansisters.com/

Permalink Reply by Rod on August 8, 2010 at 6:04am

Seems like 2 people on this thread are going TOO FAR. I have NEVER owned a pair of Bobby's bell-bottoms. They were shorts. And moreover, I threw out my Bobby wig, mask, and cologne at least a YEAR ago. Crazy people...

Anyway, thank you Jean Marie for such a CRACKER (sooo funny you pointed out that meaning!) of a Nolans clip - that sounded live, and if so, I seriously had no idea they were so genuinely talented - how tight are those harmonies, particularly since they were sort of dancing?!

You inspired me to look for more of the Nolans, and I found what I remember to be their very first big hit here in Oz, when I was still in high-school - who knew there was a mysterious 5th Nolan?!
I'd also like to clear up one other misrepresentation you've both made about me (I wondered why my ears were burning down here in Oz) - not only do I not have Bobby's trousers in my closet, in fact I only keep my DIY tattooing kit there, with my chest-hair clippers.... oh, and my video copy of this live performance of a number 1 hit from 1976 (if you can, stay for the last look to camera - it's pictured in the dictionary under the definition for "twee")

Permalink Reply by Gwen F. Blunt on August 7, 2010 at 6:18pm

Oh yeah, we'll have to wage a campaign the likes of which NO ONE has seen since the "Bobby and Cissy Reunite!" campaign of 2010!! The Nolans NEED to do another reunion tour since we missed the last one!!

Permalink Reply by Gwen F. Blunt on August 7, 2010 at 6:32pm

Would you expect anything less from the Nolans than those eight hunky men? Although the plumber has me concerned...I've never seen a hunky plumber - just chunky ones with trouser cleavage...

Permalink Reply by Rod on August 15, 2010 at 5:25am

Oh Jean Marie, we are of one mind! Yes the 'BoM' are brilliant - with moves both rare and enchanting. That's why I keep my 'BoM' video in my closet - I'm worried about thieves.

I begrudgingly acknowledge your earlier comment about the Nolans seeming a little stiff in their dancing – but keep in mind they had obviously only learned the steps the very morning of the video shoot.

I genuinely LOLd at your suggestion we all go see the Nolans & then drink the lime Kool-Aid, but then I thought, no, you're right! After all, what more can life hold once you've experienced such a pinnacle? E.g. Here's the Nolies (as we called them back in the day) going all new-romantic in the early 80s, with smmmouldering looks, disturbingly adult-oriented content (verging on x-rated – e.g "we might make out, who knows") and very styled and coiffed hair to the point where they've ALMOST thought themselves out of a good haircut. The song is 'Don't Love Me Too Hard' – oh Nolies, how could we NOT?! I'm becoming obsessed, and I'm LLLOVING IT!!!

Permalink Reply by Gwen F. Blunt on August 8, 2010 at 7:53am

Great Nolans clip, Rod. I just LOVE the line "You know I SHAN'T ever stop tonight"!! I especially love it when they sing that line towards the end of the clip in a particularly tough voice!

And does it get any more twee than Brotherhood of Man? As always happens when I watch this video, I find myself up on my feet in front of my computer, practising their dance steps. And does anyone know where I can get one of those FANTASTIC jumpsuits?!? (Rod, you don't have one in your closet, do you?)

Permalink Reply by Gwen F. Blunt on August 13, 2010 at 5:54pm

Well, Jean Marie, tattoos are another possibility...Can you imagine a full back tattoo with all the Nolan heads together and "I SHAN'T EVER STOP TONIGHT" emblazoned over them?!? How COOL would that look?!?

**Disclaimer: I have no tattoos and have never had a desire for a tattoo, yet I'm CONSTANTLY thinking of bizarre tattoos that SOMEONE ELSE should get!

Permalink Reply by Gwen F. Blunt on August 16, 2010 at 10:52am

Yeah, you're right, Jean Marie. It would be a shame to leave out the Nolies' costumes in the tat. So I guess I'd have to size it right to fit all four onto my back, with the quote overhead...and maybe the mysterious 5th Nolan could be kind of a modified tramp stamp? With the top of her head and her eyes peeking over the top of my jeans and looking up to her 4 sisters above? I think it would look AWESOME! I'll send you the photo...uh, when I convince someone ELSE to actually get that tattoo! (Maybe Rod could be convinced? It could go right below his Brotherhood of Man tat?)

And I'm totally on board with our new campaign to drop "I shan't ever stop tonight" into casual conversation. What a tribute to the Nolies! To bring back their greatest lyric and make it a commonplace comment! People will be using it as frequently and as casually as they now do "At the end of the day" or "To be perfectly honest"!!

Permalink Reply by Rod on August 22, 2010 at 5:15am

Okay, I'm up for the tatt – I'll even sculpt my back-hair so that it forms the part where their gorgeous locks are indicated – achieving almost a 3-D effect. And Gwen, perhaps the Nolie who gets to be a "tramp stamp" could be looking up with eyes WIDE in admirATION! While I'm waiting for my appointment, check out yet ANOTHER bottler of a band that you vulgar Yankees no doubt ignored back in the 70s. I'm sick of the girly dances, and these hard-rockin' guys provide a macho antidote. The lead singer - a man's man if ever there was - inspired me to play the piano. (Btw, Jean Marie - LOVED your description of your 80s get-up - post a pic!)

Permalink Reply by Gwen F. Blunt on August 22, 2010 at 5:45pm

Rod, I'm LOVING the idea of using back hair as a 3-D part of the Nolans tat!! (Though at the same time I find it disturbing...) We should have a Nolans tattoo contest!! We could showcase the various tats at the next Nolies' reunion tour. What a tribute to them - I'm sure they'd be thrilled!!

And Racey? Well, where do I start? The white shoes (Jean Marie, didn't they call those "jazz shoes" in the 80's?), the "unique" dancing, the lead singer's uber-masculinity...that video's simply got the lot!! Fantastic find, Rod!! What's going on with the lead singer when she...uh, I mean he...does that weird limp-wrist move while dancing? Putting one arm across the chest and the other up as if cupping the ear, and through it all hunching the shoulders up - what was the meaning behind that, do you think?

Well, MOVE OVER Brotherhood of Man! There's a new dance in town!! You'll now find me practicing the Racey dance steps in front of my computer, not BoM!!

And Jean Marie, you HAVE to find and post some of your 80's fashion photos!! I'll look for some of my own. (Though I have to admit you sound like you rocked the 80's fashions better than I did!)

Permalink Reply by Rod on July 30, 2010 at 6:14am

It's funny that you say "hickphobes" for people who don't like country music - here in Oz American country music doesn't have a hick image. It just sounds very foreign and exotic and fascinating, with very strong accents, and when I was young I thought very sappy - y'know, Tammy Wynette etc. When I was a teen in the 70s, almost all the music we listened to was British or Australian. Up until the mid-90s the only American music I'd bought in my life was Alice Cooper and Simon & Garfunkel as a kid, and Manhattan Transfer when I was 17 (1979).

I first realized there was more to country when I saw the movie 'Red Rock West' in the 90s, and it finishes with Dwight Yoakam singing 'A Thousand Miles From Nowhere', and it just SO suited that final scene, and I liked the emotional honesty of the lyrics - very unusual. Since then I've come to like a lot more country from the soundtracks of US movies, and have made a compilation CD of all my favourites - some infectious toe-tappers, most have great lyrics, unaffected singing, some great instrumental work etc. Count me as a fellow fan!

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