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WELCOME TO CLASSIC POP

”I WANTED OUR FIRST TOP OF THE POPS APPEARANCE TO HAVE AN IMPACT THE WAY BOWIE’S HAD.” SO SAYS MARC ALMOND, AND WITH SOFT CELL’S DEBUT PERFORMANCE OF TAINTED LOVE ON THE TV INSTITUTION, WE CAN SAFELY SAY THAT THE ICONIC RENDITION WILL REMAIN ETCHED ON THE MEMORIES OF A WHOLE GENERATION OF POP FANS.

POP UP

The 100th edition of Now That’s What I Call Music!

1 HIT WONDER

No.44 GIRLFRIEND PEBBLES

Pop Quiz

1 Which Britney Spears song did Mark Ronson cover on

LOST & FOUND

Labour Of Love was a superb pop single, throwing brothers

THE PRODUCERS

Super-producer, DJ, pop star and all-round tastemaker

GODMOTHERS OF POP

Candi Staton is set to release Unstoppable, her 30th

IAN PEEL’S A TO Z OF POP

STING AND SHAGGY NOT ONLY DELIVERED ONE OF THIS YEAR’S MOST UPLIFTING ALBUMS, BUT ALSO ONE OF THE MOST SURPRISING COLLABORATIONS OF RECENT TIMES. HAS THERE EVER BEEN A BIGGER JUXTAPOSITION IN POP?

POP SEPTEMBER

IN OUR ROUND-UP OF SEPTEMBER’S MOST IMPORTANT MOMENTS IN POP HISTORY, MORTEN MEETS HIS A-HA MATES, MADONNA HITS THE SILVER SCREEN AND BOWIE HITS THE STAGE

POPARAZZI

READERS SHARE THEIR FAVOURITE PHOTOS AS THEY GET UP CLOSE AND PERSONAL WITH SOME OF THE BIGGEST NAMES IN PLANET POP

No.10 FRANKIE GOES TO HOLLYWOOD

DEVOTED FANS SHOW US THEIR COLLECTIONS AND POP MEMORABILIA

TOP TEN

THE COMMUNARDS SCALE THE HEIGHTS WITH THE BIGGEST-SELLING

Say Hello, Wave Goodbye

SOFT CELL’S CHAOTIC, CREATIVE FIRST INCARNATION WAS

NON-STOP EROTIC CABARET

THRUST INTO THE SPOTLIGHT WITH THEIR UNIQUE TAKE ON A SOUL CLASSIC, SOFT CELL’S DEBUT ALBUM NON-STOP EROTIC CABARET DELVED DEEP INTO DIVE BARS, SEEDY S&M CLUBS AND PORNO CINEMAS, EXPOSING SOHO’S NOCTURNAL ACTIVITIES IN EYE-WATERING DETAIL…

NEXT-LEVEL THINKING

INSPIRED AS A YOUNGSTER BY THE JAZZ GREATS, MARK KING SOON REINVENTED BASS PLAYING AND TOOK LEVEL 42 INTO THE UPPER ECHELONS OF THE POP CHARTS WITH AN IRRESISTIBLY FUNKY SOUND

ART OF THE ALBUM

WITH SONG SEGUES THAT PAY HOMAGE TO THE STRUCTURE OF

GEARS FOR FEARS

FRESH FROM CELEBRATING THEIR 30TH ANNIVERSARY, THE PROCLAIMERS ARE BACK WITH ENERGETIC, POLITICISED NEW ALBUM ANGRY CYCLIST. CLASSIC POP MEETS THE REID TWINS IN EDINBURGH TO HEAR WHY IT’S IMPORTANT TO STAY FRESH – AND HOW THE SPECTRE OF UNEMPLOYMENT STILL HAUNTS THEM, DECADES ON…

SUBSCRIPTION FORM

*Savings are available to UK Direct Debit and overseas

Keeping it reel

IF YOU THOUGHT THAT CASSETTE TAPES WENT THE WAY OF YOUR VHS VIDEO RECORDER AND CAMCORDER, THEN THINK AGAIN. A WHOLE NEW GENERATION IS MAKING THE FORMAT COOL AGAIN. CLASSIC POP HITS REWIND…

LUTHER VANDROSS

LUTHER VANDROSS WAS AN IN-DEMAND BACKING SINGER WHO WENT ON TO SELL MORE THAN 35 MILLION RECORDS WORLDWIDE AND WIN EIGHT GRAMMY AWARDS, INCLUDING BEST R&B VOCAL PERFORMANCE FOUR TIMES. NO WONDER HE WAS HAILED THE “BLACK PAVAROTTI” BY CONTEMPORARY ALEXANDER O’NEAL.

Forever Free

BRINGING THE PUNK AESTHETIC INTO 80s POP MUSIC WITH HER RADICAL SENSE OF STYLE AND KINETIC PERSONALITY, TOYAH CHALKED UP A SUCCESSION OF MEMORABLE HIT SINGLES. FOUR DECADES ON, SHE’S DETERMINED TO LOOK BACK WITH SATISFACTION ON A JOB WELL DONE.

SMILEY CULTURE

THE ESTABLISHMENT FIRST IGNORED IT, THEN EMBRACED IT, BEFORE FINALLY TRYING TO BAN IT… BUT THE CHARTS WERE HEATED UP 30 YEARS AGO BY A STRING OF CLASSIC HOUSE MUSIC TUNES DURING THE SECOND SUMMER OF LOVE.

THE FRENCH NEWWAVE

AT THE FOREFRONT OF THE SYNTHWAVE MOVEMENT, CARPENTER BRUT MINES 80s INFLUENCES AND CONCEPT ALBUMS. “I’M NOT TRYING TO REINVENT ANYTHING,” HE INSISTS. “I JUST WANT TO MAKE THE MUSIC I LIKE.”

WIN! ALL SAINTS & JAKE SHEARS ALBUMS

ENTER OUR COMPETITION FOR A CHANCE TO WIN GREAT NEW POP ALBUMS ON EITHER VINYL OR CD

SINGLES

THE HOST OF FORGOTTEN 80S ON ABSOLUTE 80S RADIO SELECTS

PRINCE PIANO & A MICROPHONE 1983

TWO YEARS AFTER HIS PREMATURE DEATH, THE FIRST ALBUM TO EMERGE FROM HIS LEGENDARY VAULT FINDS PRINCE AS WE LAST SAW HIM ON TOUR: ALONE WITH HIS PIANO

PET SHOP BOYS BEHAVIOUR/VERY/BILINGUAL: FURTHER LISTENING

THESE THREE REISSUES – PLUS EXTRAS – COVERING THE PET SHOP BOYS’ 1990S OUTPUT PROVE THAT WE SHOULD TAKE THEIR POST-IMPERIAL PHASE SERIOUSLY...

DAVID BOWIE LOVING THE ALIEN [1983-1988]

THIS FOURTH BOXSET INSTALMENT IN PARLOPHONE’S BOWIE RETROSPECTIVE GIVES A COMPELLING MAKEOVER TO SOME OF HIS LEAST-INSPIRED POP AND ROCK

CURIOSITY KILLED THE CAT MISFITS: THE MERCURY YEARS 1986-1990

A FOUR-CD SET COVERING THE BRIEF CAREER OF A BAND WHO, AT THEIR BERET BEST, MOULDED JAZZ, FUNK AND SOUL STYLES INTO A SERIES OF INFECTIOUS SINGLES...

COMPILATIONS

It’s curious to think that a music originating in Jamaica

REISSUES AND BEYOND

FROM THE BEST OF U2’S POP OFFERINGS AND THE FALL’S SINGLES TO CLASSIC 70S ELO, THE FINAL EURYTHMICS’ ALBUMS AND OUTLYING EXPERIMENTS FROM THE BETA BAND AND LUNA, WE DROP THE NEEDLE ON THE LATEST VINYL RELEASES…

KEVIN MACDONALD WHITNEY

As someone who was fiercely protective of her privacy

CHRIS HEATH REVEAL: ROBBIE WILLIAMS

In the 13 or so years since Robbie Williams teamed

DARRYL W. BULLOCK DAVID BOWIE MADE ME GAY: 100 YEARS OF LGBT MUSIC

DARRYL W. BULLOCK DAVID BOWIE MADE ME GAY: 100 YEARS

NATIONAL PORTRAIT GALLERY MICHAEL JACKSON: ON THE WALL

To coincide with what would have been Michael’s 60th

THE CURE HYDE PARK, LONDON

ROBERT SMITH AND HIS BLACK-CLAD BAND BRAVE THE LONDON

LET’S ROCK SHREWSBURY THE QUARRY, SHREWSBURY

THE TOURING FESTIVAL CELEBRATES ITS 10TH ANNIVERSARY WITH SMASH HITS GALORE FROM MARC ALMOND, KIM WILDE, MIDGE URE, TOYAH, JASON DONOVAN AND MORE

NICK HEYWARD KOMEDIA, BATH

NEW STANDOUTS FROM HEYWARD’S NATURE-LOVING WOODLAND

DEL AMITRI SYMPHONY HALL, BIRMINGHAM

FIVE YEARS AFTER THEY REFORMED, THE SCOTTISH COMBO CONTINUES TO PULL IN THE CROWDS – AND THERE’S A DASH OF NEW MATERIAL, TOO

NATALIE MERCHANT KOMEDIA, BATH

HOT IN THE CITY! THE NEW YORK SONGSMITH PLAYS TOURIST FOR A UK VISIT TAKING IN A SERIES OF LOW-KEY GIGS THAT ARE OFF HER USUAL BEATEN TRACK

THE BREEDERS 02 ACADEMY, BRISTOL

GIGANTIC LAUGHS ARE HAD BY ALL AS THE BREEDERS – LED BY THE DEAL TWINS IN PLAYFUL MOOD – WOW THE BRISTOL ACADEMY CROWD WITH A VARIED SETLIST

No.44 TINA TURNER ‘ S STATESIDE COMEBACK

1 SEPTEMBER 1984