Do They Know It’s a comedy?

WELCOME TO CLASSIC POP

SOME POP STARS ARRIVE ON THE SCENE AS THE FINISHED ARTICLE STRAIGHT OUT OF THE BOX, WHILE OTHERS GRADUALLY GROW INTO THE ROLE. KYLIE MINOGUE IS DEFINITELY IN THE LATTER CATEGORY. OVER THE PAST 30 YEARS, WE’VE SEEN SEVERAL REINVENTIONS AND THE ODD MISSTEP, BUT MOST INTRIGUINGLY OF ALL, THE GRADUAL REFINEMENT OF A REMARKABLE POP PERSONA.

POP UP

It’s A Miracle! Boy George & Culture Club announce tour

1 HIT WONDER

Black Slate established a huge reputation as a backing

LENNOX HANGS UP HER PEN

Annie Lennox hasn’t written a pop song in 10 years

Ch-Ch-Changing names

A petition has been started by David Bowie fans to

George’s secret project

George Michael was planning a secret project shortly

Pop Quiz

1 Which single did Kylie co-write with James Dean Bradfield

BURIED TREASURES

Rooting around those boxes of “junk” in your loft may

LOST & FOUND

Hot Chocolate were a classic example of the music snob’s

Music for Eno fans

New, rare and previously unreleased music will feature

Tennant sets the barre high

In a parallel universe Neil Tennant is a ballet dancer.

OMD IN THE PINK

Orchestral Manoeuvres In The Dark might be enjoying

Ladytron return to The Circus

Electroclash kids Ladytron are back and they have a

Luxury Gap ‘still relevant’

Heaven 17 are hitting the road to toast an old classic.

A ‘psychedelic puzzle’ for Cure‘s Robert

Robert Smith has unveiled the first round of names

PALOMA’S A CLASS ACT

Paloma Faith fears the working class is being forced

GODFATHERS of POP

British guitar-slinger Mick Jones cut his musical teeth

Video Tech

THREE PROMO VIDEO NUGGETS FROM THE SOPHISTI-POP LOCKER

Take That hit the West End

Take That are bringing their hit musical The Band to

GODFATHERS of POP

Pat Kane formed the jazz-infused Hue And Cry with his

Tiffany laments magical malls

Tiffany famously made her name performing at US shopping

Tune in again

Freak Power, the 90s funkateers, are back minus their

Reinvigorated Ryuichi’s creative revival

Ambient master Ryuichi Sakamoto has been making up

IAN PEEL’S A TO Z of POP

DOES SLAP BASS HAVE A PLACE IN POP, OR IS IT A RARE ASTEROID HITTING OUR UNIVERSE FROM PLANET FUNK? I WOULD ARGUE ITS IMPORTANCE, AS THE BEATING HEART OF EVERYTHING FROM POST-PUNK TO SYNTH-POP.

THIS MONTH IN… POP MAY

PAUL HARDCASTLE’S COMMENTARY ON THE AGE OF U.S. SERVICEMEN

POPARAZZI

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

TOP 10: WEEK ENDING 26 MAY 1984

OSCAR-NOMINATED SONGS DOMINATE A CHART THAT INCLUDES CLASSICS FROM BOB MARLEY, WHAM! AND A LYRICALLY OBLIQUE DURAN DURAN

KYLIE

AFTER 14 STUDIO ALBUMS, TOP 10 SINGLES APLENTY AND WITH WORLDWIDE RECORD SALES OF MORE THAN 80 MILLION, KYLIE MINOGUE JUST KEEPS ON GETTING BETTER. FROM RAMSAY STREET AND PWL TO CLUB CLASSICS AND NASHVILLE, JOIN US AS WE HONOUR THE DOYEN OF THE DANCEFLOOR…

CLASSIC ALBUM

HAVING MADE HER TRIUMPHANT RETURN TO POP WITH 2000’S SHIMMERING DISCO OPUS LIGHT YEARS, KYLIE CAPPED HER COMEBACK THE FOLLOWING YEAR WITH A STREAMLINED NEW SOUND AND A COOL NEW IMAGE, WHICH SAW HER POPULARITY REACH FEVER PITCH

The accidental Pop Star

GREEN GARTSIDE, THE CREATIVE FORCE BEHIND SCRITTI POLITTI, DISCUSSES THE HIGHS AND LOWS OF THE MUSIC INDUSTRY AND REVEALS HOW HE OVERCAME CRIPPLING ANXIETY TO FALL BACK IN LOVE WITH POP

The Rough Trade re-releases

THE THREE ALBUMS SCRITTI POLITTI MADE FOR VIRGIN RECORDS ARE SOON TO BE RE-RELEASED BY ROUGH TRADE ON VINYL, INCLUDING ANOMIE & BONHOMIE FOR THE FIRST TIME. EXPANDED VERSIONS OF THE ALBUMS WILL FOLLOW. SO, WHICH SHOULD YOU INVEST IN?

Blue In Green…

HANGING WITH JAZZ LEGEND MILES DAVIS

TOP 15: Sophisti-pop albums

BY MIXING ELEMENTS OF JAZZ, R&B AND SOUL, A NEW WAVE OF ARTIST EMERGED DURING THE MID-80S, BRINGING WITH THEM A CERTAIN CULTURED ELEGANCE TO THE CHARTS. HERE IS OUR PICK OF THE SOPHISTI-POPS

PREFAB SPROUT

FROM THEIR QUIRKY ROOTS TO COMMERCIAL BREAKTHROUGH, THE COUNTY DURHAM COLLECTIVE FORMED BY THE BROTHERS MCALOON HAVE COMBINED CLASSIC SONGWRITING WITH A MASTERY OF MELODY TO CREATE ONE OF THE MOST IMPRESSIVE BODIES OF WORK IN BRITISH POP

SISTER ACT

AS ONE HALF OF THE TRULY ICONIC 80s DUO MEL & KIM, KIM APPLEBY IS A PART OF POP ROYALTY. NOW SHE’S BACK, HEADING UP A BBC FOUR SERIES CALLED THE 80s POP ROAD MAP WITH CO-PRESENTER MIDGE URE. THE PWL LEGEND TALKS US THROUGH A LIFE IN MUSIC.

POP ART: AREA

RICHARD SMITH’S CREATIVE OUTPUT INCLUDES A DIVERSE RANGE OF CLIENTS AND STELLAR COLLABORATIONS. AS HALF OF THE DESIGN DUO, AREA, THE GRAPHIC DESIGNER’S IMPRESSIVE POP PORTFOLIO WAS HUGELY INFLUENTIAL IN THE 90s.

Girls JuSt wanna Have Fu n !

The last time we saw Daphne & Celeste they were

WITH STRINGS ATTACHED

IT WAS 20 YEARS AGO THIS SUMMER THAT SOPHIE ELLIS-BEXTOR

TIMELINE sophie’s choice cuts

FROM DARLING OF THE INDIE PRESS TO DANCEFLOOR DIVA TO FULL-ON ORCHESTRAL RE-WORKINGS OF HER GREATEST HITS, WE CHART THE CAREER OF SOPHIE ELLIS-BEXTOR

PHIL HARDING

FROM BEING STOCK AITKEN AND WATERMAN’S ENGINEER AT THE HIT FACTORY IN THE 80s, PHIL HARDING THEN PRODUCED EAST 17, 911 AND BOYZONE IN THE 90s. CLASSIC POP CATCHES UP WITH A MAN WITH A UNIQUE PERSPECTIVE ON TWO DECADES OF HUGE CHART ACTION

THE BEAT GOES ON

WITH THEIR MESSAGE OF INCLUSION AND UNITY, THE BEAT WERE AT THE FOREFRONT OF THE UK 2-TONE BOOM. NOW THE BEAT STARRING DAVE WAKELING ARE SET TO RELEASE A HOTLY-ANTICIPATED NEW ALBUM. THE BAND’S FOUNDING MEMBER TALKS WATCHING BLACK SABBATH PLAY FOOTIE AND THEIR REVOLUTIONARY APPROACH TO ANDY WILLIAMS AND SMOKEY ROBINSON COVERS.

WIN A PORTABLE BLUETOOTH SPEAKER WORTH £149.99

CLASSIC POP JOINS FORCES WITH BRAVEN TO HELP SOUNDTRACK YOUR SUMMER

SINGLES

Our round-up of new singles plus new albums from Sting

STING & SHAGGY 44/876

STARFISH AND COFFEE, MAPLE SYRUP AND JAM. NOW YOU CAN ADD STING & SHAGGY TO THE LIST OF IMPLAUSIBLE COMBINATIONS THAT MAY NEVER BE FORGOTTEN…

JOHN FOXX METAMATIC

38 YEARS AFTER ITS ORIGINAL RELEASE, THE FUTURE FINALLY CATCHES UP WITH JOHN FOXX’S DARK MASTERPIECE WITH THIS 49-TRACK, 3CD DELUXE EDITION

NEW YORK DOLLS PERSONALITY CRISIS: LIVE RECORDINGS & STUDIO DEMOS 1972-75

PLAGUED BY UNSYMPATHETIC PRODUCTION, THE DOLLS’ STUDIO ALBUMS LACKED THE POWER OF THEIR LIVE SHOWS – THIS 5CD BOXSET LOOKS TO REDRESS THE BALANCE

BRIAN ENO MUSIC FOR INSTALLATIONS

STRIKING NEW SET COLLECTS MUSIC FROM VARIOUS ENO AUDIO-VISUAL INSTALLATIONS AROUND THE GLOBE FROM 1986 UP TO THE PRESENT DAY

SUBSCRIBE TODAY

TO CELEBRATE 40 ISSUES OF CLASSIC POP, WE’RE GIVING

ERASURE EVENTIM APOLLO, LONDON

OVER 30 YEARS INTO THEIR CAREER AND THE PIONEERING SYNTH-POP DUO DELIVER THEIR A-GAME WITH A CAREER-SPANNING SET – LET’S GIVE THEM A LITTLE RESPECT

MORRISSEY ALEXANDRA PALACE, LONDON

ALWAYS LACONIC AND SOMETIMES IRONIC, THE ANTI-MONARCHY MORRISSEY RULES ALEXANDRA PALACE AS HE LETS THE MUSIC DO THE TALKING FOR ONCE