Department S - Is Vic there? (TOTP)

[markyboythewolf]

What's this garbage called then?

[puskascat]

Blimey, was that Top of the Pops? I never saw that edition, but if it kept the standard of that running order up it would have been the coolest TV music show ever.

[ricdontap1]

i am alone that name rings a bell. we might have supported you lol. those were the days. we used to play the greyhound in fulham palace road the rock garden and loads of pubs around putney.

[deltrig]

Vic's still here just

[swanfibre]

they were big fans of commodore vic20 computers and had problems with early modem connections - which led them to write this song

[SPFXsynthesisers]

@swanfibre lol

[TheLastCaress]

I remember being 11 y.o and watching this very episode of TOTP. The way Vaughan Toulouse held his mic stuck in my mind, and hearing this song again has reminded me of just how POWERFUL it was.

The economy of lyrics made it so memorable and it still is, 31 years later.

So sad that VT died so young. There are no rock stars like him anymore.

[kandi6790]

i used to go out with this guy his real name was vaughn cotiard and he lived in st blazey gate cornwall ex boyfriend b 4 he made this song.

[kingofthedammed]

RIP Vaughn

[Fenellaribena]

@TheReverendRaver - God bless you Reverend, you will never be more right!

[RockAndRollMassacre]

i have a 12'' single signed by VT...the only dead pop star's signature i own

[tennisaus]

this is one of the best songs & videos I have ever seen. congratulations to all involved in producing it !

[THEBOXINGPOST]

Fantastic track. Poor old Vaughn Toulouse died young of AIDS.

[000silversurfer000]

@THEBOXINGPOST no way!!! when??

[THEBOXINGPOST]

@000silversurfer000 around 1992. 

[departments2006]

@000silversurfer000  dept-s.com

[supsterjr]

@TheReverendRaver Tremendous shout.

[berlinmitte10117]

Peter Powell 'Hello mate!'

[LionheartNh]

Is Vic there?

[areyoureceivingme]

I loved (and bought) Going Left Right, and I Want, when they came out, and I still cannot work out why they wern't huge hits.

[mrcodhead67]

Shame the sound quality is so shit

[susanosman]

love love this song! thankyou for posting it!

[CaptainLazer1000]

These guys were friends of my band 'I Am Alone in 1982, and were stitched up by their record label who shelved their LP because of creative differences. They couldn't even continue as Department S, gig, rehearse, or play without breaking their cast-iron contract. They were NOT ONE-HIT wonders. They were screwed by their label!

[vicn17]

yeah im here...

[Obarmoth]

Absolutely no way, you've got the wrong guy! The Department S singer has been dead for 20 years...

[33suzyq]

@Obarmoth You're right. His real name was Vaughan and he was from st Blazey in Cornwall...Very good friend from school.  Lovely, lovely man who, sadly, died very young.

[dakarlion1]

One-hit wonder. It was a nice hit.

[SPFXsynthesisers]

Who would have thought they were talking about the vic 20 home computer?

They loved commodore computers apparently.

[26highstreet]

@SPFXsynthesisers They sure did, i think they did a follow up called "is commodore there".

And there last single was a forgotten gem called " is spectrum there"

A great band with an unhealthy liking for writing songs about personal computers

[dogsbreath101]

Ask the Janets.......in Northampton...........XXXXXXXX­XXXXXX

[Obarmoth]

Where on earth did you get that from, supsterjr? Department S's singer was Vaughn Toulouse, and he died in 1991!

[supsterjr]

@Obarmoth It's definitely Darren Ferguson who has now re-assumed his former position in the Peterborough United hotseat since my original comment. As well as being an excellent vocalist as demonstrated here, he is also capable of getting the best out of striker Craig Mackail-Smith. A rare talent indeed.

[supsterjr]

Former Peterborough United and current Preston North End manager Darren Ferguson on lead vocals.

[EVERTONIC]

vics not in..leave a message

[victormusictechnique]

Real drums just sound fucking brilliant when played well like this.

[sorted2]

awful. but memories x :) ps a double side from the beat!

[snodds88]

FUK SAKE VIC ANSWER THE PHONE...

[polascerbic]

I LOVE DEPT. S! I'm posting on the B-52's wall (Cindy Wilson)

[superalihare]

I had difficulty remembering the lyrics!!!!!!!!!!!  He he

[baldy1]

class record good days when many good bands going about

[chaz22111]

Vic is here; but he`s busy. I`ll get him to call you back; just leave your number . Thanks .

[HAZZo1981]

Great tune,heard it on the radio yesterday,aint heard it in years

[StanleyWiddos]

Vic Here,

Anyone called while I was out?

[whitbyjet65]

@StanleyWiddos Yes, Peter Powell wants your arse.

[idonthavealoginname]

@StanleyWiddos

Class reply haha

[MrAdelaide1]

great track, was covered in Adelaide, Australia in the 80s by a band called Screaming Believers

[tmtp76]

Heard this on bbc radio 2 the other week.

[Martin1767]

Great song. Great guitar.

[beautydaddy]

I actually remember this from some of the better clubs in Boston ca. early 1980's..definitely a blast from the past.

[Weirdbald]

The song title comes from Monty Python's Matching Tie And Handkerchief album =, which had a phone-on sketch where one of the callers asks the host, "is Vic there?" THAT is where the song title comes from (as if anyone cares).

[departments2006]

Want a small wager on that? :)

[maestroh]

@departments2006 its obviously about tryin to get drugs, the question is what KIND of drugs? Vicatin? Coke?

[departments2006]

@maestroh

Um no really. It was about a mysterious phone call.

[ThePaintermanful]

@departments2006 Inspired by Monty Python's sketch 'Mr. Phone-In'

[departments2006]

@ThePaintermanful

Wanna bet?

[ThePaintermanful]

@departments2006 The very name of the group comes from TV series, that aired in 69, Monty Python started the same year... I guess that, however, lyrics could have ambiguous meaning

[bodsnvimto]

@ThePaintermanful

Inspired by Python, how can you imagine that?

Welcome to the 'Phone-In'. Today we have on our panel our resident Psychiatrist, a Psychiatrist who isn't resident but is staying with the other one because he can't bear to go home and a Psychiatrist who has lived with the first one but who when the second one arrived felt alienated and since has undergone a total personality change. Our subject tonight is Farming and our first caller is from Redding...etc. etc.

[MrBazzabee]

DearWeirdbald......You are of course COMPLETELY RIGHT However Dept.S and THE JAM were on the same label and had the same producer.....One. VIC Coppersmith-Heaven !!! ...I smelled an In-joke even then,back-in-the-day !!!!

Best Wishes MrBazzabee

[mitchmeister111]

died so young

[wildenfree]

What..is the lead singer dead?????

[GS160Mk2]

Yes. Died in 1991.

[wildenfree]

Blimey, didn't know ....he must have been young. I'M being cynical here..was it drugs?.

[departments2006]

Sadly he died of an AIDS related condition.

[wildenfree]

Thats sad, you always think the guys you grew up with will always be there around you as you age.

Some of them never make it.

[missmarypickford]

@departments2006 blimey-he's dead???

[departments2006]

@missmarypickford

Sadly yes. But we carry on. check out the new website.

[forestgumpaed]

sugar minott followed by department s,introduced by peter powell.....rocket fuel man.

[BigBossGFW]

it was a homage to Vic Godard of Subway Sect fame,iconic punk pand.

[deafboyone]

great guitar riff, great song. wonderful. irreverent :) i used to cover it in my band Clockwork Orange... ah memories

[CreativeSheffieldUK]

apparently they have just reformed, used to work with the keyboard player in london

[fannycraddock99]

Great to see this again. Thanks. 5*

[jjwroemer]

The song is great. Reminds me of the time i was a teenager. Funny how the singer holds the microphon. Cool, cool, cool!!

[attackofthemongs]

I'll just get him , I think he's making a cuppa tea.

[alemappurple]

I remember when this song first came out, I thought it was hilarious.

Is Vic there?

Ha ha!

Great song.

[pontello3]

this is cool!

i love this song!

[nicolamilburnjones]

Peter Powell was Anthea Turner's manager and husband and is about 5'2"

[looper35uk]

Vic's not answering his phone due to him recently having a Virgin Media line installed!.

[garyifny]

Where's Bananarama? I thought they were friends with Department S and did some of their backing vocals?

[westbromrshit]

this is mega

[hamwor]

The young Shane Ritchie

[EVERTONIC]

spring 81

[Shunlyman]

Vic here,

anyone called while I was out?

- Vic

[browndomino]

You. Are. A. Legend.

[nameshaveallbeenused]

who is that presenter? becuase he is such a knobhead

[vulpecula999]

I think his name is Peter Powell. He is/was a talentleess tit

[Artemetra]

But he invented a new way to hold the microphone. He should get a grammy for that....

[brickbat246]

I turned 18 to that song, even tho I turned 18 in 1995

[harryshand]

I remember listening this in bed on radio Luxemborg on my minature Tony the tiger radio.

[picturesofpictures]

You had a Tony the tiger radio? Luxury! I used to stand outside with my ear pressed up against your window shivering in the cold just to overhear your Tony radio. Sometimes it would be so cold I would have to peel my wretched frostbitten ear from the glass when it was time to settle down under the bushes for the night. brrrrrrrrrrr I also used to search through your empty Frosties boxes in wide eyed hope that you had left a few of those delicious sugery flakes at the bottom of the box.

[picturesofpictures]

Is it a mere coinsidence that the band before Department s in the above video is called "Sugar" Minott? I think not me old bamboo, I think not. See how everything in the universe eventually comes around again?

[RSLICKER]

fuck of sugar is vic there

[wilson2810]

i used to play bass in a band and we used to cover this/i loved this song then and still do now/thanks for posting//

[SazBob2223]

Brilliant! Thanks for uploading. Happy days and memories!

[twold4this]

Thanks for posting this almost forgotten classic. I still remember watching Department S (the British ITV programme) in the 1970s (?)...Jason King and all that, the moustache...ah, the boring memories of a middle-aged man...

[PAULLONDEN]

~~~«d~_◘b»~~~yeahhh

[21qpalzm12]

Shit...I remember watching that very show. Scary! Excellent song though.

[jafalad]

Best air guitar song of all time.

[sduddy]

that goes to prediliction

[exproggo]

Cracking song....Going Left Right was another great single by them....not a hit, sadly

[jimmystagger]

You can't help but love this Stiff Records classic...

[hopki65]

one of those wonderfull one hit wonders

[GRAHAMAUS]

Proves the Kaiser Chiefs have been done 30 years ago.

[maestroh]

@GRAHAMAUS not just done but done better. I dunno if it was the equipment or the times or what, but the post punk era (78 - 84) birthed what is in my opinion the greatest music of all time. This scene fascinates the shit out of me. I mean everyone knows what the hippies were doing in the 60s, but what the FUCK were the post punkers doing??? Being american, I'm especially clueless on the subject.

[departments2006]

@maestroh

Look at the Dept S website sir.

[clemzzz]

@maestroh It's punk without the glue sniffing HTH

[sjpor2]

@GRAHAMAUS - that's easy. We were getting ready to go over the wall.

[andyh109]

@GRAHAMAUS - Yup, as soon as I first heard Kaiser Chiefs, I thought 'Is Vic There'! This is just so good. Mind you, the Kaiser's ain't half bad either...!

[prediliction]

it's vic marks you fucking pratts...one of if not the greatest English cricketers of all time!!!!

[vikmegha]

He's talking about ME. OMG I can't believe ya neva knew that man - GET WIV THA PROGRAM!!

[sduddy]

and how do you know that daft cunt

[BlueSkyAtMidnight]

Vic was a guy that owed him a tenner and when he rang trying to get repaid Vic, being the slippery old weasel, pretended not to be there. The moral of this catchy song from back in the day is, don't ever lend Vic money.

[BlueSkyAtMidnight]

From the few seconds of Sugar Minnet at the start I can deduce that they were absolute boring shite

[sduddy]

his boyfriend victor

[VeniVidi]

Marvellous.

Who was Vic?

[Nickthetoast]

Vaughan Toulouse really living the rock star dream with his hair, make-up and jacket. Holding the mic like a dagger- rock and roll! Pity AIDS took him down...

[flemwad]

he's not holding it like a dagger...he's holding it like a telephone receiver, to go along with the lyrics

[superalihare]

Could never remember the lyrics!

[lepommelet]

Me and my mate used to phone people up and say "Is Vic there"....memories! Glad to see the video after all these years.

[ds23efi2cv6]

No Vic's not here mate. I think you've got the wrong number.

[23JM23]

What's all this weird microphone angle business? Looks like he's gonna stab someone in the audience with it....

[flemwad]

its sposed to look like he's on the phone..is vic there?

[666UFO666]

Cool Tune

[iamthepig]

Solid Gold Easy Action is the flip side

[datapanikinyearzero]

Lead singer Vaughan Toulouse died back in the early 90s from complications due to AIDS - dunno what happened to the rest of the band. If you're gonna be remembered, it might as well be for a song as great as this - fantastic tune

[modgirl64]

what a great song

[hellen66]

brilliant excellent wot happened to them ?

[badmattam]

i absolutely love this.i saw this very show which i recorded on my new video machine (they were just out then)of course when i saw department S i played it over and over i thought it was the coolest thing ever.25 years on it is still cool and great memories too.thanks for sharing.

[cRYPtmeister]

Vaughan Toulose has to be the best rockstar name ever.

[dontapefriends]

Great, I found this song on a complication CD and got blewn away!

[rosemaryswf]

Fantastic, thanks, this brings back great memories for me :)

[faeembrugh]

Great - expect for that stupid c*nt Powell talking all over the intro.

[StormyTgurl]

The night is young the moon is mellow and there's music in me ears - what else d' ya need IS VIC THERE

[humber]

Ive been searching for this brilliant song since I joined youtube and have the vinyl in my basement! Thankyou Thankyou Thankyou!