Now 12 inch 80's Pt.II

 The World of NOW, gets bigger and bigger taking in numbered volumes of Now That's What I Call Music,, Now Yearbook, themed Now That's What I Call ..... and was joined by the cd only Now 12" 80's series which looks at 12" singles from a specific year rather than the three compilations of 80's 12 inch singles.

The first bunch 1980 to 1982 are on an earlier post.

My original intentions were to group post all the series together but the 1982 edition gained two volumes which doubles the post and you will note they've done the same with this edition so it seems that the remainder will follow the two part format.

That makes it more sensible to break them into chunks and update each.

As ever this is a bare bones card wrap around cover set which is a pity as a book form with some notes as with the Deluxe Now Yearbooks would of been better as this is amimed more at music fans and collectors but we live in their world....

Disc 1 opens with two of 1983’s biggest artists with Wham!’s "Bad Boys”, followed by Eurythmics’ (over 12 minutes remix of) "Right By Your Side”before being joined by Duran Duran with "Union Of The Snake (The Monkey Mix)", and the extended “Communication” by Spandau Ballet. The Human League keeps the momentum with their massive hit "(Keep Feeling) Fascination" which I bought straight on 12 single back then, while Howard Jones and Orchestral Manoeuvres In The Dark keeps up the Synth-Pop  with "New Song" and "Genetic Engineering" from the Dazzleships album respectively. Extended versions from Blancmange, Ultravox, and Tears For Fears  "The Way You Are" are also feature on the first disc.

Disc 2 celebrates Pop Gold with Adam Ant’s "Puss 'N Boots"one I remember from early Signal Radio here, Bananarama’s "Na Na Hey Hey Kiss Him Goodbye", plus The Belle Stars, and Bucks Fizz. Pop and New Wave fused on fabulous tracks from Haysi Fantayzee, and Altered Images with the unforgettable "Don't Talk To Me About Love", and hits from a huge chart year for Kajagoogoo and Paul Young. The disc closes with more Synth-Pop from Heaven 17, Soft Cell and a huge U.S. hit for Taco with an unexpected cover choice in “Puttin’ On The Ritz”.

Disc 3 starts from the dancefloor with the iconic "Flashdance…What A Feeling", from Irene Cara, and the stunning Electropop work-out in extended form on Freeez’s "I.O.U. (Megamix)" a personal favourite. The legendary Arthur Baker produced “Confusion” for New Order, and “The Harder They Come” for Rockers Revenge, and Forrest enjoyed a smash covering “Rock The Boat” while Modern Romance and Level 42 bought Pop and Funk crossover to the charts. This disc works towards its finale with four UK acts who all enjoyed great success in ’83 with these 12” versions enhancing already great tracks – Madness, Fun Boy Three, The Style Council, and Nick Heyward who’s “Whistle Down The Wind” was his first solo hit.

Disc 4 offers a star-studded line-up opening with 12” and remixed versions of Paul McCartney & Michael Jackson’s "Say Say Say" that took much effort to steem a sudden drop in the charts and Billy Joel’s "Tell Her About It" before The Fixx appear with their huge US hit “One Thing Leads To Another” from the album Reach The Beach, followed by Debbie Harry, and Laura Branigan who achieved a global success with “Gloria” from her first album. Hi-Energy floor-fillers from Miquel Brown and Divine, are next alongside Ryan Paris’ pan-European smash “Dolce Vita”. The collection concludes with classic dance hits from Lydia Murdock and Phil Fearon & Galaxy and a great collaboration between the legendary Donna Summer and Musical Youth.

For gathering so many interesting and important 12 inch singles of the year, a good number I personally bought at the time, this set is well worth it filling next to Now Yearbook 1983 (and Extra+Vault) before the next instalment is released. 

On October 18 Part 2 duly arrived adding some additional 49 tracks to this years selection packaged in its now common place wrap around card sleeve.

Just why these cannot be in book form like "Yearbooks" or "Yearbook Vaults" really escapes me as the material more than justifies such treatment with pictures and commentary.

Disc 1 kicks off with the U.S. remix of Wham!’s classic "Wham Rap! (Enjoy What You Do?)", starting off a stellar run of huge hits in their 12” versions: Spandau Ballet with the iconic "Gold", "Who's That Girl?" by Eurythmics, Bananarama with "Cruel Summer", while Culture Club’s infectious "I'll Tumble 4 Ya" was a big U.S. and an essential 12” version. Some of 1983’s new chart stars are up next…the extended version of Marilyn’s "Calling Your Name" and Kajagoogoo’s "Too Shy (Midnight Mix)" feature alongside The Lotus Eaters, Men Without Hats and Flash And The Pan. The first disc wraps up with 12” gems including Joe Jackson’s cool, synth driven "Steppin' Out", and Mike Oldfield’s Top 5 hit ‘Moonlight Shadow’.

Within a collection of ‘80s 12” versions, Disc 2 couldn’t open with anything more legendary than New Order with their groundbreaking "Blue Monday" – released only on 12” in 1983. Some timeless new-wave follows including The Cure with the extended version of "The Lovecats", Echo & The Bunnymen’s "Never Stop (Discotheque)" and Public Image Limited with the remix of "This Is Not A Love Song". Aztec Camera’s "Walk Out To Winter" adds a touch of indie-pop before huge chart pop from Madness with "The Sun And The Rain", and TRACIE and Tracey Ullman providing a fun, upbeat interlude. The disc closes with extended versions of anthemic pop from Paul Young with "Love Of The Common People", Rick Springfield’s "Human Touch", and Yes with the ‘Special Remix Dance Version’ of “Owner Of A Lonely Heart”.

Disc 3 is all about the dancefloor, opening with one of the decades’ biggest floor-fillers from Lionel Richie with "All Night Long (All Night)", followed by KC & The Sunshine Band’s irresistible #1 "Give It Up". Donna Summer’s empowering "She Works Hard For The Money" is up next, followed by ‘80s disco classics, Indeep’s "Last Night A D.J. Saved My Life", and Divine’s “Love Reaction”. Enjoyable mash ups of hip-hop and electro-pop follow courtesy of Malcolm McLaren with the iconic ‘Double Dutch’ in its full 12” version, and Rock Steady Crew with the extended version of “(Hey You) The Rock Steady Crew”. More dance-pop from Modern Romance, and Shalamar, while Booker Newberry III’s soulful "Love Town", Billy Griffin’s ‘Hold Me Tighter In The Rain’ and Level 42’s smooth "The Sun Goes Down (Living It Up)" round off this funky disc.

Disc 4 begins with the Monster Mix of Duran Duran’s first #1 "Is There Something I Should Know" and Heaven 17’s timeless "Temptation". Tears For Fears deliver brilliant pop on the extended version of "Change", while Orchestral Manoeuvres In The Dark and Blancmange continue a superb run of synth-pop gold with “Telegraph” and “That’s Love, That It Is”, ahead of Japan’s cover of “All Tomorrows Parties” and Annabel Lamb’s cover of "Riders On The Storm". The disc concludes in style with Yello ahead of Talk Talk’s "My Foolish Friend" and Midge Ure’s collaboration with Mick Karn on "After A Fashion" – even more sublime in its’ extended version, wrapping up this second volume of 1983’s 12” essentials!