Back To NOW!

Summer 1999.
The End of the Century beckons.

As we prepared to send the clocks back to zero, millennium bugs threatened our very existence. David Bowie foretold us (well Jeremy Paxman, at least) that we were on the cusp of something exhilarating and terrifying and what this new Internet was going to do was unimaginable.
Party over, oops out of time..?

Not a bit of it, as the team at NOW That’s What I Call Music activate their latest release and it’s a hot one! The Popworld was in overdrive and the key word everywhere was Positivity. The kaleidoscope that was the ‘fin de siecle’ UK charts was encompassing something for everyone – Boybands!, Girlgroups! Solo stars from Girl groups! Superstar DJs! Even Hollywood film directors providing us with lifestyle coaching!
NOW43 had it all! Whilst the future pop masterminds such as Max Martin and Gregg Alexander plotted world domination for the next decade, pop fans revelled in this millennial musical feast! We were definitely at the end of something and whatever was coming next, NOW! was going to take us all the way!

Join writer, DJ, music consultant and millennial pop generalist Daryl Easlea as we relive the hits, misses and memories of this unforgettable last summer of the 20th century. As we unashamedly wallow in the ‘optimistic daftness of pop’, find out which track always saves a middle-age spread dance floor, who were ‘the choppy haired trip hop darlings of ’99’, which act on the LP we are now calling the ‘Fisher Price Beta Band’ and why Cilla Black and Petula Clark have more to do with the pop stars on this LP than you may think!
And discover why Mel B (G?) and Cartoons probably won’t be returning our calls.

As The Chemical Brothers (euphorically said) HERE WE GO!

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It’s autumn 1989 and a decade where pop has transformed itself into an all encompassing mass culture is drawing to a spectacular close. Ten years have seen huge growth in music sales and an explosion of genres, with rock morphing through glam metal and beyond, disco had danced through electro towards a new house, and hip hop had grown from the streets of New York to become an emerging and exciting influence on global pop culture.

The nineties are almost here, but first the Now That’s What I Call Music team are set upon closing this unforgettable decade with some fireworks. NOW 16 provided the narrative for this time and as you would expect contained the diverse snapshot of the UK Charts we had come to expect from the country’s favourite compilation LPs.

Tears for Fears were back, Back, BACK with a huge slice of psychedelic love power pop in tune with the chart’s positive vibe, alongside fellow returning performances from the likes of Tina Turner, Wet Wet Wet and the sensual Kate Bush. However, as always, the album also celebrated the diversity and excitement of the charts with the vibrance of the ever growing dance and hip hop scenes thanks to Technotronic, Neneh Cherry, De La Soul and Rebel MC. Throw in some glorious pop gems from the likes of Shakespear’s Sister, Deborah (not Debbie) Harry and Jimmy Somerville and you have the technicolour pop party that is NOW 16! And did we mention three bonus tracks on the CD as well? Phew!

Join author, artist (www.raw-art.co.uk) and host of the Bigmouth podcast Siân Pattenden as I as we explore the pop culture landscape as the 80s turned into the 90s. Expect a swingorilliant serving of pop stories from Siân’s time at Smash Hits (who controlled the office stereo?) as well as shiny tales and musings including (amongst other vital things) how Erasure enlisted neighbouring indie rockers for some ‘drama’, being on tour with Big Fun (and Sonia!) and which NOW 16 star made ‘advances’ on the young Miss Pattenden! And does anyone know anything about the whereabouts of Fresh 4 and Lizz E?

Parties have to end, history speeds on, and things always turn out to be much more complicated than they first appear. And, as 1989 teaches us, everything will sooner or later change again. John Harris.

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Autumn 1987 and the pop world is at a crossroads. Some of music’s Big Names are in need of some inspiration, trends were fast moving and the decade that brought us a plethora of pop glitz and glamour was looking for some direction to the next chapter.
As always, the NOW! team were on hand to gather up all that was happening across the charts and NOW 10 provides a fascinating snapshot of a very distinctive moment in time – both in the world of culture and beyond.
From Freddie Mercury’s grandiose operatic Olympic opening to M/A/R/R/S cutting and pasting up the rulebook of dance through a variety of 80s ‘sophistipop’ and not forgetting a sizeable gathering of shiny Glam Metal stars, this volume certainly had it all!
Join Justin Quirk, writer of ‘Nothin’ But A Good Time – The Spectacular Rise and Fall of Glam Metal’ and myself as we navigate the hits, misses and memories of NOW 10 and autumn 1987.
Find out why metal and disco are more closely linked than you may think, what makes Bananarama a national treasure, what happened to a-ha’s video mannequins (yes, really!) and what really turns a Festive Fairtytale into a Christmas Classic.
And , we’re still not expecting a callback from Hue and Cry…

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It’s November 1988, and the latest chapter in the successful NOW compilation series is launched – and looking at the cover, it really is heading out of this world!
And what an interesting period Autumn 1988 was! Shiny pop classics from the likes of Yazz, Erasure and Brother Beyond rubbing shoulders with seasoned artists rediscovering the glories of the charts – that’s you Bryan Ferry, The Hollies and Tom Jones!
Meanwhile new and exciting dance acts were looking to the next decade with Inner City, Bomb the Bass and The Beatmasters flying the dancefloor flag. Oh, and did we mention ACIEED?
Rap was (weirdly) looking back to the 60s and several experienced acts of the 1980s were having a slight ‘identity crisis’. What do you do, when you’re not really the Next Big Thing anymore?
Join author, journalist and broadcaster Pete Paphides as we explore an LP packed with interesting tracks that tell an even more interesting story of pop as the eighties began to draw to a close. And having Pete onboard, we also discuss his exciting new record label Needle Mythology and his wonderful 2020 biography ‘Broken Greek’ – a story of chip shops and pop.
Find out how the Isley Brothers infiltrated (at least) three tracks, what makes a classic Big Eighties Ballad, the band that were auctioned off to Stock, Aitken and Waterman, which artists on NOW 13 have ‘the kindest faces’ and what links Trevor and Simon and Wee Papa Girl Rappers.
And find out why Hue and Cry probably won’t be returning our calls.

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Every story has a beginning and in November 1983, EMI and Virgin came together to create their own piece of compilation history.

And so it was, that a poster of a certain pig signalled a change in how various artists would be viewed and consumed from NOW on. As the first Now That’s What I Call Music LP curated thirty of the years biggest hits, the story of pop in 1983 was much more.

Whilst the popstars of the 80s were either splitting up, missing the chart mark or simply going stratospheric in the US, the pop path was blown wide open to a range of new stars, one hit wonders and some hugely memorable moments.

And a shimmering summer soundtrack signalled that one of the decades most colourful years would be remembered for many great reasons. And a few others too…

Join writer and chief music critic for The Guardian Alexis Petridis as we revisit the iconic first NOW LP and explore the pop culture of 1983 that launched it. Along the way find out which pop act made the first (and possibly biggest) impact on Alexis, why Summer ‘83 is still so memorable and which of the acts on that double album won’t be returning our calls.

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It’s Autumn 1986 and the charts are once again filled with a glittering array of colourful, confident pop.

The post-Live Aid landscape of 1985 has enabled its stars and supporting cast to build their singles and album popularity. Shiny new CDs are ensuring an aspirational digital era is on the way.

But the singles chart still manages to reign supreme with an exciting range of tastes and flavours – from the Nile Rodgers produced funk of returning popsters Duran Duran, to the polished, sharp R’n’B courtesy of Janet Jackson and Cameo. And as the eighties moved on, new acts such as the Pet Shop Boys and Swing Out Sister were making their mark and looking onwards to ’87.

As always, the NOW compilation series captured a moment in time, as we moved from the dance joy of Mel and Kim through the glorious Peter Gabriel & Kate Bush and onwards to a soap opera wedding that gave us a certain barman’s Big No.1 ballad!

Oh, and did we mention HITS 5?

Join Radio 2’s ‘Sounds of the 80s’ producer Johnny Kalifornia and I as we first of all explore his love of pop growing up, before we head back to the chrome covered pop of ’86.

Expect starring roles for Kim Wilde, Grace Jones, Robert Palmer and find out why Boris Gardiner and Don Johnson probably won’t be returning our calls.

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It’s Spring 1988 and pop music is BIG once again!

And as always, NOW That’s What I Call Music is there to capture the charts in all of its late 80s bombast as symbolised by Volume 11 and THAT wonderful, mirrored skyscraper cover.
The Pet Shop Boys are reigning supreme in their imperial phase, the girls are conquering the charts from Kylie to Belinda and Vanessa to Sinead.

But change is in the air as the decade draws to a close and as the BPM increase so does the excitement – a whole side of House signals that dance music has the charts and the UK under arrest!

Join music compiler Mark Wood and I as we revisit his musical influences and why NOW11 is such an important time capsule for him.
Along the way expect starring roles for Kylie, Bomb the Bass, Blondie and The Wombles (!) and find out all about one of Mark’s biggest musical passions – what The Guardian describe as ‘Britain’s Greatest and Strangest Nightclub’ – Duckie.

I Know You’re Gonna Dig This!

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For this special episode, I am joined by musician, writer, DJ, and film producer Bob Stanley.

Bob is a founder member of Saint Etienne, and a regular contributor to amongst others, The Guardian, The Times and Record Collector. Bob has compiled and produced an enviable collection of compilation albums for his own record label Croydon Municipal and with a host of collaborators for Ace records. 

Bob shares his love for 70s compilations albums, library culture, the joy of discovering forgotten tracks and the wonderful nature of sequencing that the likes of K-Tel and Ronco provided us with.
We also explore the evolution of NOW through the 80s, how dance music came to the fore in the ‘90s and why we love collecting music in the UK.

With the launch of his latest compilation, Café Exil: New Adventures in European Music 1972-1980, Bob also provides an insight into his own process of creating compilation albums; where inspiration comes from, his favourites and what themes he is looking to curate next.

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It’s Christmas!!!

In this episode we shamelessly deck the halls, crack open the eggnog and pass around mince pies in honour of NOW – The Christmas Album. Cue, sleigh bells!

Join pop pundit & musician Ian Wade as we celebrate the classic festive compilation. From Band Aid to Bing Crosby via Slade, Macca and a dazzling array of hits, the first off-shoot LP from the NOW brand set the tinsel-drenched tone for all Christmas compilations that came afterwards.

And of course, as it’s Christmas, we provide a second course of glittering insights and rambles about lost classics, missing tracks and basically, why we all love our festive favourites so much at Christmas.

Grab your favourite tipple, pull a cracker and enjoy a very seasonal episode!

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In 1984, it wasn’t George Orwell’s Big Brother that was beaming out of our TVs, it was (to quote Rick Astley), the Ruddy Big Pig.

As the year began, the first NOW LP was dominating the charts, but its successor was not far behind! As sequels go, NOW 2 was pretty spectacular, bagging the top spot in the LP charts for five weeks and proving that the most successful compilation series in history was well and truly here to stay.

To explore the album, I’m joined by Simon Philo, lecturer in Popular Music in Society and American Studies at the University of Derby.  In a 25-year career in higher education, he has made it his mission to introduce as many students as possible to the joy of popular music.

Simon is also the author of British Invasion: The Crosscurrents of Musical Influence (2015) and Glam Rock: Music in Sound and Vision (2018) and presents shows on Radio Free Matlock and Stranger Radio.  

As well as revisiting the LP, Simon and I also explore the pop culture that shaped his musical journey towards the Spring of 1984 and beyond.

Expect supporting roles for Kate Bush, The Dooleys, Dollar, Cyndi Lauper, The Smiths and Thomas Dolby. Discover why Matthew Wilder and Re-Flex probably won’t be returning our calls, the record Simon threw out of his pram and what the difference really is between a banger and a clanger.

And as it is 1984, a healthy dose of Global Nuclear Annihilation thrown in too.

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