CLASSIC POP WHO’S WHO

WHICH BAND IS TOP OF YOUR REUNION

OUR CONTRIBUTORS

The winner of the Best Writer, Specialist category, in

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DURAN DURAN RELEASE THEIR FIRST CHART-TOPPING SINGLE IN THE UK

14 MARCH 1983

WELCOME

80 @ClassicPopMag LISTEN NOW When the news broke

Rick Astley takes legal action against Yung Gravy

Rick Astley has filed a lawsuit against Matthew

OMD to celebrate 40 years of Dazzle Ships

Orchestral Manoeuvres In The Dark have shared details

MADONNA SET FOR EPIC CELEBRATION WORLD TOUR

© Ricardo Gomes Madonna has announced a globe-spanning

BETTER LATTE THAN NEVER FOR SPARKS’ RETURN TO ISLAND LABEL

Sparks have announced that they are returning to

Future of Fleetwood Mac in doubt after McVie’s death

Fleetwood Mac mainstay, drummer Mick Fleetwood, has stated

Q+A ROBERT HODGENS (THE BLUEBELLS)

BOBBY BLUEBELL ON HIS BAND’S BELATED RETURN AND WHY THEIR MOST FAMOUS HIT HAS A “DIFFERENT RESONANCE” FOR HIM NOW

Chrgsalis

FUNKYTOWN LIPPS INC

There may have been a disco backlash in

OBITUARY TOM VERLAINE

13 DECEMBER 1949 – 28 JANUARY 2023

GRACE JONES SET FOR HEADLINE SLOT AT BLUEDOT FESTIVAL

© Andrea Klarin The mighty Grace Jones is

Matt Everitt MY POP LIFE

THE BBC RADIO 6 MUSIC DJ – AND FORMER MENSWE@R DRUMMER – TALKS US THROUGH HIS MUSIC OBSESSIONS

LOST & FOUND

THE PACIFIC AGE ORCHESTRAL MANOEUVRES IN THE DARK

B.E.F GO BACK TO THEIR ROOTS FOR ‘STOWAWAYS’ REISSUE

The first material produced by the British Electric

IAN PEEL‘S A TO Z of POP

C IS FOR… THE CONCEPT ALBUM

WIN A FAMILY TICKET TO CAMP BESTIVAL WORTH UP TO £1,150!

Camp Bestival, the much-loved all-encompassing family festival experience,

POP MARCH 1982

THE ROCKET MAN TAKES OFF, THE JAM DROP A CLASSIC, SPANDAU CUT DIAMOND AND BABS IS IN LOVE …

DEVOTED FANS SHOW US THEIR COLLECTIONS AND POP MEMORABILIA

IAN HARRIS, LONDON

TOP TEN

IT’S GETTIN’ KINDA HEAVY IN A WEEK OF JAM HOT BASSLINES, BLISSED-OUT BEATLES, SAXY SOLOING, ENDLESS LOVING – AND THE LOVE SHACK, BABY!

“We always had the confidence that we were something special”

SHINY ENOUGH TO HAVE THEIR OWN COMIC STRIP AND POTENTIAL TV SITCOM, HAIRCUT 100 WERE ALSO AN ODD MIX OF SIX DIVERSE PERSONALITIES, INCORPORATING POST-PUNK, JAZZ, BRAZILIAN RHYTHMS AND MARTIAL ARTS MOVIE SOUNDTRACKS INTO ONE POP MASTERCLASS. EVEN 40 YEARS AFTER THE ORIGINAL LINEUP’S ONLY ALBUM TOGETHER, THERE’S STILL NOTHING QUITE LIKE PELICAN WEST. AS THE BAND REUNITE FOR A ONE-OFF SHOW TO CELEBRATE A NEW BOXSET, THEY REVEAL: “THERE WAS AN ENERGY IN HAIRCUT 100 THAT WE ALL MANAGED TO HARNESS. WE WERE LIKE A COMET.”

WARM LEATHERETTE

FELIX ROWE

“CBGBS WAS A WONDeRFUL iNCUBATOR FOR BABY BANDS”

ONE OF THE GREAT LOVE STORIES IN MUSIC, AS WELL AS ONE OF ITS FINEST RHYTHM SECTIONS, TINA WEYMOUTH AND CHRIS FRANTZ ARE PREPARING TO SHARE THEIR MEMORIES OF LIFE IN TALKING HEADS AND TOM TOM CLUB. IT’S BEEN AN INCREDIBLE ADVENTURE, AS THEY REVEAL ALL ABOUT THEIR DAYS OF SWEATING WITH RAMONES, FORSAKING POLITICAL POP AND WHY IT’S IMPORTANT TO REMIND PEOPLE OF THE JOY OF WORKING WITH DAVID BYRNE.

KYLIE MINOGUE

OVER THE PAST 35 YEARS, THE AUSTRALIAN SUPERSTAR HAS DELIGHTED FANS, CONFOUNDED CRITICS AND CONSISTENTLY CHALLENGED HERSELF, EMERGING AS ONE OF POP’S ALL-TIME GREATS

SIMPLY IRREFUTABLE

FAR FROM THE DILETTANTE PLAYBOY HIS IMAGE SUGGESTED, COULD THE SHAPESHIFTING ROBERT PALMER BE ONE OF THE MOST UNDERRATED SINGERSONGWRITERS OF HIS ERA? AS A NEW BOXSET COMPILES HIS RECORDINGS FOR THE ISLAND LABEL, WE REASSESS HIS CHAMELEON-LIKE SOLO CAREER AND COLLABORATIONS WITH SUPERGROUP THE POWER STATION.

THE LIFE AND TIMES OF A MAN CALLED TERRY

IN DECEMBER, WE LOST ONE OF BRITISH POP’S MOST SIGNIFICANT FIGURES WITH THE SAD PASSING OF TERRY HALL. SHOOTING TO FAME WITH THE SPECIALS, HE ALSO BROKE THE MOULD WITH HIS NEXT BAND, TOO. WE CELEBRATE HIS LEGACY AND, WITH THE HELP OF NEVILLE STAPLE AND LYNVAL GOLDING, TAKE A LOOK BACK AT HIS INNOVATIVE WORK WITH FUN BOY THREE...

Frankie Goes To Hollywood -Liverpool

THERE WERE PERSONNEL PROBLEMS, HUGE RECORDING COSTS AND AN ABORTED COVER VERSION OF A MUCH-DERIDED ROD STEWART NO.1 HIT. SO HOW DID FRANKIE GOES TO HOLLYWOOD’S SECOND AND FINAL ALBUM LIVERPOOL EMERGE AS ONE OF THE MOST STRIKING RECORDS OF THE MID-80S?

TOP 2O PRE -STARDOM TRACKS

DELVING DEEP INTO THE PAST LIVES OF OUR FAVOURITE STARS, WE UNCOVER 20 FASCINATING CURIOS BEFORE THEY BURST FULLY ONTO THE WORLD STAGE

GOtH

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

A Kind Of Magic

AS THE BLOW MONKEYS’ ANIMAL MAGIC RETURNS AS A NEW DELUXE REISSUE, FRONTMAN ‘DR ROBERT’ HOWARD TELLS CLASSIC POP HOW HIS PLAN TO ROPE IN A CERTAIN CHILDREN’S TV LEGEND CAME PERILOUSLY CLOSE TO RUINING THE WHOLE THING...

REVIEWS

Damon Albarn, Jamie Hewlett and a star guest list return with Cracker Island, the eighth album by virtual superstars Gorillaz

THE HOT LIST

UPCOMING RELEASES THAT NEED TO BE ON YOUR CULTURAL RADAR

U2

SONGS OF SURRENDER

GORILLAZ

CRACKER ISLAND

P!NK

TRUSTFALL

THE BLUEBELLS

IN THE 21ST CENTURY

ADAM LAMBERT

HIGH DRAMA

NATALIE MERCHANT

KEEP YOUR COURAGE

BMX BANDITS

DREADED LIGHT

SIGALA

EVERY CLOUD

LEVELLERS COLLECTIVE

TOGETHER ALL THE WAY

DMA’S

HOW MANY DREAMS?

ELLIE GOULDING

HIGHER THAN HEAVEN

RAYE

MY 21ST CENTURY BLUES

JOHN FOXX

T HE ARCADES PROJECT

INHALER

CUTS AND BRUISES

KATIE MELUA

LOVE AND MONEY

THE LATHUMS

FROM NOTHING TO A LITTLE BIT MORE

FEVER RAY

RADICAL ROMANTICS

STEVE MASON

BROTHERS AND SISTERS

MEDIÆVAL BÆBES

TALES OF LOVE AND LOSS

THE GO-TEAM

GET UP SEQUENCES PART TWO

LOWLY

KEEP UP THE GOOD WORK

HAIRCUT 100

PELICAN WEST

ROBERT PALMER

THE ISLAND YEARS: 1974-1985

VARIOUS

DANCE CRAZE

VARIOUS

YOUNG LIMBS RISE AGAIN: THE STORY OF THE BATCAVE NIGHTCLUB 1982-1985

A-HA

HUNTING HIGH AND LOW

VARIOUS

NOW YEARBOOK ’86/NOW DANCE: THE 80S/NOW YEARBOOK ‘80-’84: THE FINAL CHAPTER – EXTRA

DE LA SOUL

3FT HIGH AND RISING

MADNESS

THE LIBERTY OF NORTON FOLGATE

VARIOUS

STEVEN WILSON PRESENTS INTRIGUE: PROGRESSIVE SOUNDS IN UK ALTERNATIVE MUSIC 1979-89

PETER SCHILLING

COMING HOME: 40 YEARS OF MA JOR TOM

THE AUTEURS

PEOPLE ‘ROUND HERE DON’T LIKE TO TALK ABOUT IT

THE PALE FOUNTAINS

PACIFIC STREET/…FROM ACROSS THE KITCHEN TABLE

SHEENA EASTON

TAKE MY TIME

CARTER THE UNSTOPPABLE SEX MACHINE

30 SOMETHING

MARIANNE FAITHFULL

KISSIN’ TIME

THE SOUP DRAGONS

RAW TV PRODUCTS

GARY NUMAN

PURE/SCARRED

VARIOUS

MUSIK MUSIC MUSIQUE 3.0

WHITNEY HOUSTON

WHITNEY HOUSTON/ WHITNEY

THE SUPERNATURALS

IT DOESN’T MATTER ANYMORE

BOW WOW WOW

WHEN THE GOING GETS TOUGH, THE TOUGH GET GOING

THE HIDDEN CAMERAS

THE SMELL OF OUR OWN

THE CURE

CARDIFF INTERNATIONAL ARENA

BELINDA CARLISLE

SYMPHONY HALL, BIRMINGHAM

CONFORM TO DEFORM: THE WEIRD & WONDERFUL WORLD OF SOME BIZZARE

WESLEY DOYLE

LEAD SISTER

LUCY O’ BRIEN

I AM THE WARRIOR: MY CRAZY LIFE WRITING THE HITS AND ROCKING THE MTV EIGHTIES

HOLLY KNIGHT

THE TASTEMAKER: MY LIFE WITH THE LEGENDS AND GENIUSES OF ROCK MUSIC

TONY KING