OUR CONTRIBUTORS

The winner of the Best Writer, Specialist category,

THEY’RE BACK!

Backbeat Books

WELCOME

Across his illustrious back catalogue, Prince may have

Black Grape are getting fruity on studio album No.4

© Paul Husband Black Grape are back with

CHINA CRISIS RETURN WITH 40TH ANNIVERSARY TOUR

China Crisis are marking the 40th anniversary of

SINÉAD O’CONNOR LAID TO REST IN ADOPTED HOMETOWN

The much-missed Sinéad O’Connor, whose shock death in

ABBA movie is back on the big screen

ABBA: The Movie returns to cinemas worldwide A

MY POP LIFE

THE RADIO 2 DJ AND FORMER TOP OF THE POPS PRESENTER ON HIS MUSICAL PASSIONS…

1 HIT WONDER

GIRLIE GIRLIE SOPHIA GEORGE Jamaican singer Sophia George

Q+A WILL SERGEANT

THE ECHO & THE BUNNYMEN MAINSTAY HAS SCRIBED HIS SECOND MEMOIR, WHICH CHARTS THE BAND’S RAPID RISE TO POP STARDOM AND REVEALS CHANCE ENCOUNTERS WITH ROCK ROYALTY ALONG THE WAY…

LOST & FOUND

BITTER SWEET KING Paul King, and the band

COULD OMD BE WAVING GOODBYE ON THE BAUHAUS STAIRCASE?

OMD have announced their first studio album in

IAN PEEL‘S A TO Z of POP

B IS FOR… LETTING BYGONES BE BYGONES

THIS MONTH IN POP

SEPTEMBER 1983

TOP 5 UK ALBUMS CHART

4 SEPTEMBER 1983

POP TOP TEN

DEVOTED FANS SHOW US THEIR COLLECTIONS AND POP MEMORABILIA

JAPAN

CLASSIC POP MOMENTS

ELTON JOHN NETS MILLIONS AFTER AUCTIONING OFF BELONGINGS

A NEW DECADE

AFTER RULING THE 80S, DIAMONDS AND PEARLS PROVED THAT PRINCE COULD BOSS THE 90S, TOO. WITH A MAMMOTH NEW BOXSET OF THE MASTERPIECE LP ON THE WAY, CLASSIC POP ASKED NEW POWER GENERATION, PRINCE’S ENGINEER, PLUS HIS ESTATE’S ARCHIVIST AND NEW OWNER, HOW THE PURPLE ONE CONQUERED HIP-HOP

TANGO IN THE NIGHT

FLEETWOOD MAC

HOT PROPERTY

FITTINGLY FOR THE MOST HOTLY-ANTICIPATED POP ALBUM OF THE YEAR, THE BULK OF KYLIE MINOGUE’S TENSION WAS RECORDED DURING A THERMOMETER-MELTING, RECORD-BREAKING SUMMER. WE MEET TWO OF THE LP’S KEY COLLABORATORS, RICHARD ‘BIFF’ STANNARD AND DUCK BLACKWELL, TO HEAR HOW THEY KEPT THEIR COOL DURING THE MAKING OF A REMARKABLE GENRE-SPANNING RECORD.

ORCHESTR AL MANOEUVRES IN THE DARK

THE SYNTH-POP ICONS WHO MASTERED THE BLEND OF EXPERIMENTALISM AND MELODY

“Being a pop star was a weird secret I had to keep to myself”

RE-EXAMINING WORK FROM BOTH ENDS OF THEIR CAREER, SOFT CELL HAVE JUST RELEASED TWO COMPANIONS TO LAST YEAR’S COMEBACK ALBUM *HAPPINESS NOT INCLUDED AND ARE SET TO UNVEIL A MAMMOTH BOXSET OF THEIR INFLUENTIAL 1981 DEBUT, NON-STOP EROTIC CABARET. MARC ALMOND PONDERS WHETHER THIS MEANS SOFT CELL ARE A PROPER BAND AGAIN, WHILE DAVE BALL DISCUSSES FOR THE FIRST TIME IN DETAIL THE HORRIFIC ACCIDENT WHICH LEFT HIM IN AN INDUCED COMA.

THE GIFT THAT KEEPS ON GIVING

AS HIS DEBUT SOLO ALBUM IS REISSUED AS A LAVISH BOXSET, MIDGE URE RECALLS HIS ANNUS MIRABILIS – WHEN NOT EVEN JOE DOLCE COULD STOP HIM HITTING THE UK TOP SPOT...

Story Behind The Song: Ashes To Ashes

IN THIS EXTRACT FROM HIS BOOK SILHOUETTES AND SHADOWS: THE SECRET HISTORY OF DAVID BOWIE’S SCARY MONSTERS (AND SUPER CREEPS), ADAM STEINER TAKES A DEEP DIVE INTO THE ICONIC SINGER-SONGWRITER’S SEMINAL 1980 SINGLE

THE THE -INFECTED

IN A YEAR’S TIME, WALL STREET’S GORDON GEKKO WOULD DECLARE “GREED IS GOOD,” BUT IN 1986 MATT JOHNSON WASN’T SO SURE. ACCOMPANIED BY A ‘VISUAL COMPANION’ 30 YEARS BEFORE BEYONCÉ’S LEMONADE, THE THE’S MASTERPIECE’S SCATHING STATE-OF-WESTERN-CIVILISATION ADDRESS IS STILL FRIGHTENINGLY RELEVANT TODAY.

TOP 2O DEBUT SINGLES

YOU NEVER GET A SECOND CHANCE TO MAKE A FIRST IMPRESSION AND, FOR MANY ARTISTS AND BANDS, THEIR DEBUT SINGLE PROVED TO BE THE FOUNDATION FOR A LONG-LASTING CAREER

SMOOTH SOUL

YOUR AT-A-GLANCE GUIDE TO SOME OF OUR FAVOURITE SUB-GENRES

“IT OLD THIS RECORD MY SECRETS"

RÓISÍN MURPHY HAS SPENT THREE DECADES LEAPING INTO THE UNKNOWN. THIS TIME SHE’S LANDED ON HIT PARADE, A CAREER-HIGH ALBUM PRODUCED BY DJ KOZE, AND IT’S FURTHER PROOF THAT SHE’LL NEVER PLAY IT SAFE.

REVIEWS

Rick Astley’s new studio album Are We There

HOT LIST

NEW RELEASES THAT NEED TO BE ON YOUR CULTURAL RADAR

KYLIE MINOGUE

TENSION

PRETENDERS

RELENTLESS

RICK ASTLEY

ARE WE THERE YET?

ANDY TAYLOR

MAN’S A WOLF TO MAN

THE CHEMICAL BROTHERS

FOR THAT BEAUTIFUL FEELING

RÓISÍN MURPHY

HIT PARADE

KOOL & THE GANG

PEOPLE JUST WANNA HAVE FUN

CORINNE BAILEY RAE

BLACK RAINBOWS

THE CORAL

SEA OF MIRRORS/HOLY JOE’S CORAL ISLAND MEDICINE SHOW

TEENAGE FANCLUB

NOTHING LASTS FOREVER

DON LETTS

OUTTA SYNC

BEVERLEY KNIGHT

THE FIFTH CHAPTER

ROMY

MID AIR

ASH

RACE THE NIGHT

SAY SHE SHE

SILVER

SCOUTING FOR GIRLS

THE PLACE WE USED TO MEET

LAURA GROVES

RADIO RED

JESSY LANZA

LOVE HALLUCINATION

MAE MULLER

SORRY I’M LATE

DOT ALLISON

CONSCIOUSOLOGY

CLAIRE RICHARDS

EUPHORIA

MIDGE URE

THE GIFT: EXPANDED EDITION

PRINCE

FOR YOU/LOVESEXY/BATMAN/GRAFFITI BRIDGE/COME

JIMMY SOMERVILLE

READ MY LIPS

MADONNA

MADAME X: MUSIC FROM THE THEATER XPERIENCE (LIVE)

ELECTRONIC

GET THE MESSAGE: THE BEST OF

CICERO

FUTURE BOY

DEACON BLUE

ALL THE OLD 45S: THE VERY BEST OF/ YOU CAN HAVE IT ALL: THE COMPLETE ALBUMS COLLECTION

VARIOUS ARTISTS

NOW USA THE 80S/NOW YEARBOOK EXTRA ‘92/ NOW YEARBOOK ‘73/ NOW MILLENNIUM ‘02-’03

TRACIE

SOULS ON FIRE

VARIOUS ARTISTS

NOW PRESENTS CLASSIC SOUL

SIOUXSIE

MANTARAY

VARIOUS ARTISTS

AUTONOMY: THE PRODUCTIONS OF MARTIN RUSHENT

DEPECHE MODE

SOUNDS OF THE UNIVERSE: THE 12” SINGLES

TOYAH

THE CHANGELING

ERASURE

ALWAYS (THE VERY BEST OF)

THE CINEMATIC ORCHESTRA

MAN WITH A MOVIE CAMERA

PRIMAL SCREAM

REVERBERATIONS (TRAVELLING IN TIME)

THE BOO RADLEYS

GIANT STEPS

DISCLOSURE

SETTLE

BAD NEWS

EVERY MISTAKE IMAGINABLE

MADNESS

CAN’T TOUCH US NOW

SHEENA EASTON

MADNESS, MONEY AND MUSIC

P!NK/GWEN STEFANI

BST @ HYDE PARK, LONDON

BLUR

WEMBLEY STADIUM, LONDON

LET’S ROCK SHREWSBURY

THE QUARRY, SHREWSBURY

SPARKS

THE CIVIC AT THE HALLS, WOLVERHAMPTON

NICK BANKS

SO IT STARTED THERE: FROM PUNK TO PULP

BRIAN J. ROBB

ON TRACK: DEPECHE MODE

ED GILLETT

PARTY LINES

DAVID CAVANAGH

THE CREATION RECORDS STORY: MY MAGPIE EYES ARE HUNGRY FOR THE PRIZE