M80s Soundtrack for an 80s Generation

Severed Heads - Rotund For Success

2012-01-30T11:03:00.013Z

Severed Heads was an Australian band formed in Sydney in 1979, and as such, they were one of the longest-lasting Aussie post-punk bands, not really calling it a day until 2004.

Rotund For Success was originally released via the Nettwerk and Volition labels in 1989, and saw Severed Heads flirt outrageously with mainstream success. Although all material was written by chief Head Tom Ellard, it were Robert Racic's seamless mixes of slinky dance tracks Greater Reward and All Saint's Day which set the album apart. Elsewhere, the most obviously 'Severed' of all the tracks are Rotund For Success, First Steps, 7 Miles and Midget Sings.

Tracklisting:
01 - All Saints Day
02 - Triangle Tangle Tango
03 - Bad Times Too
04 - Midget Sings
05 - Seven Miles
06 - Greater Reward
07 - Big Car Intro
08 - Big Car
09 - First Steps
10 - Rotund For Success
11 - L.F.M.
12 - Chasing Skirt

Click the link below to download the album:

http://www.mediafire.com/?f913q73i23w4m

Severed Heads - Gashing The Old Mae West

2012-01-30T10:14:00.014Z

Now for the first of 2 posts by the Australian band Severed Heads.

Gashing The Old Mae West was originally used in 1983 as a soundtrack for a play by Jan Hubrechson. It was subsequently cut down for the Since The Accident album, then released fully as a limited edtion 12 inch single (3000 made and sold) in 1986.

Click the link below to download the following:
Single Version
A Million Angels
A Relic Of The Empire
Blast Patter

http://www.mediafire.com/?y71sq3u8s7h7d

The Neat - Hormones In Action

2012-01-27T10:56:00.000Z

Well I have to say that when I originally got this single I was in fact looking for singles by the Beat that I had not got at the time. So going to record fairs back in the late 80's and 90's I came across this little single, miss-read it as the Beat and got it.

Well as it turned out it was'nt a track by the band but by another band that at the time I had'nt heard of. So here is the single for your listening pleasure.

Originally called Acropolis. The Neat were an impressive mod/powerpop outfit hailing from leeds, active from 1978 with a line up of Paul Jepson (Vocals and Guitar), Ray Fensome (Guitar), Andy Jepson (Bass and Voculs) and Tim Mills (Drums).

The Neat's lone 45 was recorded in April 79. The A-Side, 'Hormones In Action' being composed by Dave Parkinson (from pub rock combo 'Sneakers') was released that same year with only 1000 copies sold.

The band broke up in the early 80's although the nucleus of the band metamorphosed in to 'Zed Warren Six'

Click the link below to download the following:
Single Version
Take Your Chances - B-Side

http://www.mediafire.com/?kn03fsfzd4pms

Modern English - Ricochet Days - Album

2012-01-27T10:22:00.017Z

Modern english released their 3rd album in1984 entitled 'Ricochet Days'.

Two singles were released from the album being 'Chapter 12' and 'Hands Across The sea'.

the album managed to make it to number 5 in the UK Indie charts and number 93 on the American charts.

Tracklisting:
01 - Rainbow's End
02 - Machines
03 - Spinning Me Around
04 - Ricochet Days
05 - Hands Across The Sea
06 - Blue Waves
07 - Heart
08 - Chapter 12

Click below to download the album:

http://www.mediafire.com/?lv46icdiai1iu

Classix Nouveaux - The Robots Dance

2012-01-26T10:39:00.019Z

In 1980 Classix Nouveaux recorded a four track session for Capital Radio and one track, 'Robots Dance', was played regularly by DJ Nicky Horne.

This got the interest of A and R at United Artists, but as negotiations dragged on Classix decided to release the track as their debut single on their own ESP label.

'Robot's Dance' was released on 29 August and they also performed for the first time on television on Thames TV in London.

'Robot's Dance' spent eleven weeks on the UK Indie Chart, reaching number 22, and became a popular alternative dance floor track.

Click the link below to download the following:
Single Version
623 - B-Side
http://www.mediafire.com/?t8guehil539i9

Dance Craze - Soundtrack

2012-01-26T10:02:00.016Z

Dance Craze is a 1981 British documentary film about the English 2 Tone music genre.

The film was directed by Joe Massot, who originally wanted to do a film only about the band Madness, who he met during their first US tour. Massot later changed his plans to include the whole 2 Tone movement. The film, shot in 1980, comprised performance footage of Madness, The Specials, The Selecter, The Bodysnatchers, The Beat and Bad Manners on tour throughout the United Kingdom.

A soundtrack album of the same name was released the same year, featuring fifteen of the songs that were featured in the film

Tracklist:
01 - Concrete Jungle – The Specials
02 - Mirror In The Bathroom – The Beat
03 - Lip Up Fatty – Bad Manners
04 - Razor Blade Alley – Madness
05 - Three Minute Hero – The Selecter
06 - Easy Life – The Bodysnatchers
07 - Big Shot – The Beat
08 - One Step Beyond – Madness
09 - Ranking Full Stop – The Beat
10 - Man At C and A – The Specials
11 - Missing Words – The Selecter
12 - Inner London Violence – Bad Manners
13 - Night Boat To Cairo – Madness
14 - Too Much Pressure – The Selecter
15 - Nite Klub – The Specials

Click the link below to download the album:

http://www.mediafire.com/?czrifcfi26rwm

Thompson Twins - Perfect Game

2012-01-25T10:50:00.026Z

Thompson Twins released their thired single in 1981 entitled 'Perfect Game'.

The single would eventually appear on the groups first album entitled 'A Product Of (Participation)'.

Like the previous two singles released by the band this one also failed to trouble the singles chart.

Click the link below to download the following:
Single Version
Politics - B-Side

http://www.mediafire.com/?4mnefgid0v1oe

The Police - Secret Journey

2012-01-25T10:50:00.015Z

'Secret Journey" is a song released as a single by The Police on May 1982 released in the United States, as an alternative to the single 'Invisible Sun' which was only released in the United Kingdom and Ireland.

For years I always thought that this was only released in the US untill at a record fair I found an Australian copy. Found out that the single was indeed released there but as far as I know did not chart.

Sting said the following about the song:

"It's a quasi-mystical song. You have to do something, go somewhere, to get outside yourself. I read the book "Meetings with Remarkable Men" which says you have to make a journey. It doesn't have to be a real journey, it can be a mental journey."

The Song charted at number 29 on Billboard's Mainstream Rock chart and at number 46 on Billboard's Pop Singles chart.

The song was performed live only in America for ten days on the Ghost In The Machine Tour.

Click the link below to download the following:
Single Version
Demo Version 1
Demo Version 2
Darkness - B-Side

http://www.mediafire.com/?pbvbr7axafev0

Adam And The Ants - A.N.T.S - Blue Fexi Disc

2012-01-24T11:00:00.009Z

Adam And The Ants released a One sided Blue Flexi Disc that came free with issue 4 of the Flexi Pop magazine in1981.

Entitled A.N.T.S. it took the disco hit Y.M.C.A, by the Village People and changed the lyrics, turning it into yet another ode to Antmusic for Sexpeople. Pretty funny.

Release Information
UK 7" flexi 1981 (Lyntone FLEXIPOP 004)

Click the link below to download the track:

http://www.mediafire.com/?gft29097jbl9v

Smash Hits - 5th -18th February1981

2012-01-24T10:36:00.022Z

Another issue of the Smash Hits Magazine. This one is from the 5th - 18th February 1981.

In this issue you can find the following:

Cover: Suggs
Centrespread: Adam Ant
Back Cover: Debbie Harry
Interviews Include: Madness; Phil Collins; The Stranglers

Lyrics include: Ultravox - Vienna;
Dire Straits - Romeo And Juliet;
Stray Cats - Rock This Town;
Sheena Easton - Take My Time;
Paul Collins - In The Air Tonight;
Adam And The Ants - Zerox; Styx - The Best Of Times; Heatwave - Gangsters Of The Groove;
Pretenders - Message Of Love; Honey Bane - Turn Me On Turn Me Off;
Bruce Springsteen - Born To Run; Susan Fassbender -Twilight Café; Jane Kennaway - I.O.U.;
U.F.O - Lonely Heart; Rainbow - I Surrender.

You can click the link below to take you to the main page:

https://sites.google.com/site/smashhitsmagazineremembered2/

or alternatly you can click the link below to take you to the issue page:

https://sites.google.com/site/smashhitsmagazineremembered2/5th-february---18th-february-1981

Smash Hits - 22nd January - 4th February 1981

2012-01-23T10:22:00.031Z

Well here is the 2nd of my Smash Hits posts for today and the one that was released on my birthday (22nd Jauary) 31 years ago, Scary.
This issue is the 22nd January - 4th February 1981.

In this issue you will find the following:

Front Cover: Steve Strange
Centrespread: XTC
Back Cover: Hazel O’Connor
Interviews include: Visage; Bauhaus; The Look
Lyrics include:
The Clash - Hitsville UK;
John Lennon - Woman, Starting Over, Imagine;
Cliff Ricard - A Little In Love; Blondie - Rapture;
David Bowie - Scary Monsters;
Gap Band - Burn Rubber On Me;
Stevie Wonder - I Ain’t Gonna Stand For It;
Stranglers - Thrown Away; Spandau Ballet - The Freeze; Pauline Murray - Dream Sequence; XTC - Sergeant Rock; Adam And The Ants - Young Parisians; Boomtown Rats - The Elephants Graveyard

Click the link below to go to the main page:

https://sites.google.com/site/smashhitsmagazineremembered2/

or alternatly you can click the link below to take you to the issue page:

https://sites.google.com/site/smashhitsmagazineremembered/home/1981-issues/22nd-january---4th-february-1981

Smash Hits - 21st January - 3rd February 1982

2012-01-23T10:00:00.001Z

Well here is another Smash Hits. This one is the 21st January to the 3rd February 1982 issue.

In this issue you can find the following:

Front Cover - Depeche Mode

Centrespread - Fun Boy Three & Bananarama

Back Cover - ABC

Interviews: Depeche Mode; Go-Go's; Fun Boy Three & Bananarama

Lyrics:
Soft Cell - Say Hello, Wave Goodbye; Orchestral Maneouvres - Maid Of Orleans; Haircut One Hundred - Love Plus One; Go Go's - We Got The Beat; Shakin Stevens - Julie; XTC - Senses Working Overtime; Mobiles - Drowning In Berlin; Kraftwerk - The Model; Kraftwerk - Computer Love; Philip Lynott - Yellow Pearl; Olivia Newton-John - Landslide;Christopher Cross - Best That You Can Do; Spandau Ballet - She Loved Like Diamond; Shakatak - Easier Said Than Done

Click the link below to go to the main page:

https://sites.google.com/site/smashhitsmagazineremembered2/

Or alternatly click the link below which takes you to the issue page:

https://sites.google.com/site/smashhitsmagazineremembered/home/1982-issues/21st-january---3rd-february-1982

Queen vs U2 - Without Pressure

2012-01-20T10:51:00.011Z

Well I another one of these mash up's for you all to hear today.

This one is a mash up of Queen's Under Pressure and U2's With Or Without You.

Hope you all enjoy it as much as I did.

Queen vs U2 - Without Pressure

Supertramp - It's Raining Again

2012-01-20T10:00:00.013Z

'It's Raining Again' is a song recorded by Supertramp and released as a single from their 1982 album …Famous Last Words….

Its writing credits are given to Rick Davies and Roger Hodgson, although it is a Hodgson composition. Like John Lennon and Paul McCartney of The Beatles, Hodgson and Davies joined writer's credits from 1974 until 1983, when Hodgson left the band to pursue a solo career.

All of the voices on the studio version of the track were done by Hodgson. In live versions on the accompanying Famous Last Words tour, John Helliwell and Scott Page sang the lower harmonies on stage while Hodgson sang higher parts. The end of the song incorporates the old nursery rhyme "It's Raining, It's Pouring". For the most part, the song is upbeat. It contains a brief melodica solo by Rick Davies, originally thought to be by John Helliwell until proved incorrect by a French radio interview.

The song's video, directed by future Highlander director Russell Mulcahy and conceptualized by Keith Williams, anticipates Daniel Powter's "Bad Day" in multiplicate.

The five members of Supertramp make cameo appearances in the video. At the beginning, John Helliwell is a street musician playing an alto saxophone. Before the first chorus, Dougie Thomson appears as the bus driver (this was the last filmed video where Thomson would appear with his then trademark moustache and beard). Hodgson plays a guitar-playing bus passenger. Lastly, Rick Davies and Bob Siebenberg play the two pickup truck rednecks.

The single made it to number 26 in the UK singles charts and number 11 in the US Billboard Hot 100.
Click the link below to download the following:
Video
Single Version
Bonnie - B-Side

http://www.mediafire.com/?137re1m5iixes

Smash Hits - 24th December 1981 to 6th January 1982

2012-01-19T10:23:00.014Z

So here is another issue of the Smash Hits Magazine but this time covering the 24th December 1981 to 6th January 1982.

In this issue you can find:

Front Cover - Altered Images, Clare Grogan,
Centre Spread - Altered Images,
Back Cover - Adam Ant

Includes: The 1981 Smash Hits Readers Poll Winners,
David Bowie Story Part 2

Lyrics Included:
Abba - One Of Us; Four Tops - Don't Walk Away; The Snowmen - Hokey Cokey; Foreigner - Waiting For A Girl Like You; Kool And The Gang - Get Down On It;
Rod Stewart - Young Turks;
Sheena Easton - You Could Have Been With Me; Slade - Merry Christmas Everybody;
David Bowie - Wild Is The Wind; ELO - Here Is The News;
Jon And Vangelis - I'll Find My Way Home; Showaddywaddy - Footsteps;
Adam And The Ants - Ant Rat

So head on over to the site where you can read this and other issues:

https://sites.google.com/site/smashhitsmagazineremembered/

Or alternately click on the link below to take you straight to the issue page:

https://sites.google.com/site/smashhitsmagazineremembered/home/1981-issues/24th-december-1981---6th-january-1982

Hope you all enjoy it.

Adam Ant - Desperate But Not Serious

2012-01-19T10:09:00.014Z

Adam Ant released his 3rd solo single in 1982 entitlted 'Desperate But Not Serious'.

Taken from his debut solo album 'Friend Or Foe', 'Desperate But Not Serious' didn't do as well as the previous two singles from the album.

The single only managed number 33 in the UK singles Charts and number 66 on the US Billboard Charts.

Click the link below to download the following:
Video
Single Version
Why Do Girls Love Horses? - B-Side

http://www.mediafire.com/?rsx3sfaf0j03r

Smash Hits - 10th December to 24th December 1981

2012-01-18T10:30:00.015Z

Well here is another issue of the fantastic Smash Hits Magazine. This time it is the 10th - 24th December 1981.

In this issue you have the following:
Front Cover: The Human League,
Centre Spread: Japan,
Back cover: Simon Le Bon

Interviews: Human League; Godley & Creme

Part 1 of the David Bowie Story

Lyrics included:
Altered Images - I Could Be Happy; Human League - Don't You Want Me; Police - Spirits In The Material World;
Elvis Costello - Sweet Dreams; Madness - It Must Be Love; Status Quo - Rock 'n' Roll; Bad Manners - Buena Sera;
Siouxsie And The Banshees - Hong Kong Garden; Boomtown Rats - Never In A Million Years; Bucks Fizz - The Land Of Make Believe; Light Of The World - Ride The Love Train; George Benson - Turn Your Love Around; Godley And Cream - Wedding Bells; Gary Numan And Dramatis Love Needs No Disguise; Meatloaf - Dead Ringer.

So go on over to my Smash Hits site to see this and other issues:

https://sites.google.com/site/smashhitsmagazineremembered/

Or alternatly click the link below to go dirrectly to the issue page:

https://sites.google.com/site/smashhitsmagazineremembered/home/1981-issues/10th-december-to-24th-december-1981

Hope you all enjoy:

Vangelis - Chariots Of Fire - Soundtrack

2012-01-18T10:00:00.021Z

Well yeaterday I posted the single from the motion film Chariots Of Fire.

Today is the turn of the Soundtrack to the film.

Chariots of Fire is a 1981 musical score by Greek electronic composer Vangelis (credited as Vangelis Papathanassiou) for the British film Chariots of Fire, which won four Academy Awards including Best Picture and Original Music Score.

The album topped Billboard Top 200 for 4 weeks.

The album reached number 1 in the sales charts of various countries, including 4 weeks at number 1 in the U.S. In total, the album stayed 97 weeks in the Billboard top 200, selling 3 million copies in the first year alone.

The album reached number 5 in the UK album charts and stayed in top 100 for 107 weeks.

Tracklisting:
01 - Titles
02 - Five Circles
03 - Abraham's Theme
04 - Eric's Theme
05 - 100 Metres
06 - Jerusalem
07 - Chariots of Fire

Click the link below to download the album:

http://www.mediafire.com/?b81pf6c5wz626

Vangelis - Chariots Of Fire - Single

2012-01-17T10:33:00.027Z

'Chariots of Fire' is an instrumental theme written and recorded by Vangelis for the soundtrack of the 1981 film of the same name. The recording has since been covered by numerous performers and used as theme music for various television programmes and sporting events.

On the film's soundtrack album, the piece is called 'Titles' because of its use in the movie's opening titles sequence, but it widely became known as 'Chariots of Fire'.

According to Allmusic, the track title was listed as 'Chariots of Fire - Titles' on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 chart, and simply as 'Chariots of Fire' on the Adult Contemporary chart.

A 1989 CD single release also gave the title of the piece simply as 'Chariots of Fire'.

When the single debuted at number 94 on the Billboard Hot 100 during the week ending December 12, 1981, it was known simply as 'Titles.' Seven weeks later, when it moved to number 68, the Hot 100 chart dated Jan. 30, 1982, the single was now listed as 'Chariots of Fire' and stayed with that name for the remainder of its chart run. Radio listeners and radio DJs could now better identify with the song.

Vangelis was accused of plagiarising 'Chariots of Fire' from a song by fellow Greek composer Stavros Logaridis called 'City of Violets'. Vangelis won in court by convincing the judge to allow him to bring his setup to the court and demonstrate his method of composing by improvising new music.

'Chariots of Fire' stayed for one week at number-one on the Billboard Hot 100 in May 1982, after climbing steadily for five months (it made number 1 in its 22nd week on the chart), and to date remains the only song by a Greek artist to top the U.S. Charts.

The single spent 64 weeks on the Australian charts, although it only peaked at number 21. In Japan, 'Chariots of Fire' was the biggest-selling single of 1981. The track proved moderately successful in the UK, where it reached number 12, but its parent album peaked at number 5 and spent 107 weeks on the album chart.

Click the link below to download the following:
Video
Single Version
Eric's Theme - B-Side

http://www.mediafire.com/?wd14tgt9a1r1k

Smash Hits - 7th January to 20th January 1982

2012-01-17T10:30:00.002Z

Well early last year I set up a sister blog with the intention of putting up old issues of Smash Hits Magazine. I put up a couple of issues and then life took over, as it does.

Well I decided to try and do better this year and put more issues up (Can't promise this will happen but will try hard I promise).

So here is to the first of the new issues and this is one that is 30 years old this week being the 7th to 20th January 1982.

In this issue you can find:
Front Cover - Orchestral Manoeuvres In The Dark,
Centre Spread - Squeeze,
Back Cover - Dollar

Interviews:
Orchestral Manoeuvres In The Dark,
Adam Ant,
Pigbag,
Siouxsie and the Banshees

Lyrics included:
Hazel O'Connor - Sons And Lovers; Heaven 17 - Geisha Boys And Temple Girls;
Depeche Mode - Dreaming Of Me; Duran duran - Friends Of Mine; Pink Flloyd - See Emily Play; Echo And The Bunnymen - Monkeys; Elvis Presley - King Creole; Soft Cell - Memorabilia;
Leyton Buzzards - Saturday Night Beneath The Plastic Palm Trees; Queen - Killer Queen;
Bauhaus - Bela Lugosi's Dead; The Damned - Don't Cry Wolf; Talking Heads - Psycho Killer;
Human League - Being Boiled; The Shangri-Las - The Leader Of The Pack.

So head on over to my site to check out this one and others on there:

https://sites.google.com/site/smashhitsmagazineremembered/

Or click the link below to take you straight to the issue page:

https://sites.google.com/site/smashhitsmagazineremembered/home/1982-issues/7th-january---20th-january-1982
Hope you all enjoy.

The Kids From Fame - We Got The Power

2012-01-16T11:07:00.027Z

As this is the 30th year since the TV series of The Kids From Fame aired in the UK I asked my partner Mark which track I should put up to celebrate this.

He said the single 'We Got The Power'.

This was not released officially but was released as a 7 inch and 12 inch Promo in 1983.

Mark had made a video for the 12 inch mix of the track which is for download - Link below.

Please click the links below to download the various tracks.

Also don't forget to go on over to my partners blog which is packed full of all Kids from Fame and Fame news, music and other tit bits.

http://kidsfromfamemedia.blogspot.com

We Got The Power

12 inch Mix - Video
http://www.mediafire.com/?kwtl5d7w57hzsvv

MP3 of the above mix
http://www.mediafire.com/?hwyiyt1zkyg

JayB No Electric Mix
http://www.mediafire.com/?9s00vg6wr9a8w7w

Episode MP3 Version
http://www.mediafire.com/?hqxqfol32esfw8x

Album Version
http://www.mediafire.com/?lgtmikz4k3u

Video Version
http://www.mediafire.com/?y6w210plrmzpccl

Kraftwerk - Neon Lights

2012-01-16T10:25:00.015Z

Well last week I posted up a single by the Kratwerk entitled 'The Model'. This made me realise that I have neglected to put up much on this band (like a lot of other bands no dout) so I thought I would put another one of their's up but from an earlier time when I started to get into them.

'Neon Lights' (original German title: 'Neonlicht') is a song by Kraftwerk, released in 1978 on their The Man-Machine album (released in German as Die Mensch-Maschine).

The song was initially a B-side to their single, 'The Model' ('Das Model'), but later the sides were swapped and re-released.

The 12" single was pressed on luminous vinyl.

In the UK the single managed to make it to number 53 on the Singles Charts.

Click the link below to download the following:
Video
Single Version
German Version

http://www.mediafire.com/?16738fk44853r

Janet Jackson vs Kraftwerk - Control The Robots

2012-01-13T10:40:00.008Z

Well a couple of days ago I posted a mash up.

Well here is another Mash up but this time by Janet Jackson's Control mashed with Kraftwerk's Robot.

Again two traks I would not have thought would have gone together nut do bring something new to the mix.

Hope you enjoy this.

Janet Jackson vs Kraftwerk

Chicago - Hard To Say I'm Sorry

2012-01-13T10:13:00.025Z

'Hard to Say I'm Sorry' is a 1982 Billboard Hot 100 number 1 hit ballad performed by American rock group Chicago, written by band member Peter Cetera and producer David Foster from the album Chicago 16, released in 1982. The song hit number one for two weeks on the Billboard Hot 100 chart on September 11 of that year. It was their first top 50 hit since 'No Tell Lover' in 1978.

The song, as well as the album on which it is featured, was a marked departure from Chicago's traditional soft rock, horns-driven sound, taking on a more polished and modern feel. There were minimal horns on the track, instead featuring more layered synthesizers and heavier distorted electric guitars in a more updated 1980s fashion. This was done to revitalize the band that was considered by some to be past its commercial prime at the time.

The album version of 'Hard to Say I'm Sorry' segued into a second song titled 'Get Away,' which was closer to the older horn-driven Chicago sound.

Deviating from Chicago's practice of having mostly band members playing on their albums, 'Hard to Say I'm Sorry' featured several session musicians. The song featured producer David Foster on the piano, as well as three members of the American rock band Toto: Steve Lukather on guitar, while David Paich and Steve Porcaro both contributed synthesizers. The song's vocals were performed by Cetera and new member Bill Champlin.

The music video, itself using the album version, was shot in Greece. In Chicago performing the act with some studio musicians.

The single managed to make it to number 4 in the UK singles charts.

Click the link below to download the following:
Video
Single Version
Sonny Think Twice - B-Side

http://www.mediafire.com/?o0eppts9mjssz

Kraftwerk - The Model

2012-01-12T10:20:00.013Z

'Das Model' (spelling on album: 'Das Modell'; English version title: 'The Model') is a song recorded by the electro-pop group Kraftwerk in 1978; written by musicians Ralf Hütter and Karl Bartos, with artist Emil Schult collaborating on the lyrics.

It is featured on the album, Die Mensch-Maschine; English version title: The Man-Machine. It is one of the band's most accessible and melodic songs.

First released as a 7 inch single in Germany (B-side: 'Neonlicht'), under its English translation the song was eventually included on the B-side of the 'Computer Love' single released in July 1981, which reached number 36 in the UK charts.

When radio DJs started playing the B-side, EMI re-issued the single in December 1981 – apparently against the band's wishes – with 'The Model' as the A-side. It reached number 1 in February 1982 and spent a total of 21 weeks in the top 75 of the UK singles charts.

Click the link below to download the following:
Video
Single Version
German Version
Computer Love - B-side

http://www.mediafire.com/?eh3v2y2wm5ksg

Steve Miller Band - Abracadabra

2012-01-12T10:00:00.023Z

'Abracadabra' is a song by American rock group Steve Miller Band, written by Steve Miller. The song was released as the first single from the 1982 album of the same name. The song is said to have been inspired by the American singer Diana Ross with whom Miller had met while performing together on Hullabaloo in the 1960s and is listed at number 70 on Billboard's Greatest Songs of all time.

The song became a world-wide hit, charting in ten countries and topping the charts in six countries, and has became one of the band's biggest hits, along with 'The Joker'.

In the United States, the song was number 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 for two non-consecutive weeks. It knocked Chicago's 'Hard to Say I'm Sorry' out of the number 1 spot, just as Chicago had done to the Steve Miller Band in 1976 when 'If You Leave Me Now' knocked 'Rock'n Me' out of the number 1 spot.

The song holds the record for the biggest drop out of the Top 10/Top 40. In the fall of 1982, as it was moving down the chart, 'Abracadabra' fell 38 spots from number 10 to number 48 in one week.

In the UK the single made it to number 2 in the Singles Charts.

Click the link below to download the following:
Video
Single Version
12 inch Version
Never Say No - UK B-Side
baby Wanna Dance - US B-Side

http://www.mediafire.com/?3b1no6jdnoy78

Lisa Stansfiled vs Japan - People Hold On For A Quite Life

2012-01-11T10:25:00.000Z

Well came across this mash up of two tracks that I just love. They are Lisa Stansfield - People Hold Up and Japan - Quite Life.

I have to say that I would not have thought that these two tracks would meld together but this is really great mix.

Mix is done by Bobby Martini. you can look at his website listed below where he has other mash up's.

www.bobbymartini.co.uk
Hope you all enjoy this.
Lisa Stansfield vs Japan

Hot Chocolate - It Started With A Kiss

2012-01-11T10:00:00.012Z

Hot Chocolate released their 32nd single in 1982 entitled 'It Started With A Kiss'.

A favourite love song the single proved very popular in the UK where it reached number 5 on the Singles Chart.

In New Zealand the single did even better by getting to number 2 but the single failed to enter the US charts.

Click the link below to download the following:
Video
Single version
Emotion Explosion - B-Side

http://www.mediafire.com/?k115wp897k94h

Shalamar - Three For Love - Album

2012-01-10T10:32:00.000Z

'Three for Love is the fourth album by American R and B group Shalamar, released in 1980 on the SOLAR label. It was produced by Leon Sylvers III and features the 'classic' Shalamar line-up (Jeffrey Daniel, Howard Hewett and Jody Watley).

Three for Love has been certified Gold in the United States for sales of over 500,000. It peaked at number 8 on the R and B chart and number 40 on the Billboard chart.

The album to chart on the U Album Charts.

In 2002, Three for Love was re-released by Sanctuary Records in the United Kingdom in a two-for-one CD format with Shalamar's previous album Big Fun.

Traclisting:01 - Full of Fire
02 - Attention to My Baby
03 - Somewhere There's a Love
04 - Some Things Never Change
05 - Make That Move
06 - This Is for the Lover in You
07 - Work It Out
08 - Pop Along Kid

Click the link below to download the album:

http://www.mediafire.com/?2edghf9piktux

Hall And Oats - I Can't Go For That

2012-01-10T10:00:00.022Z

'I Can't Go for That (No Can Do)' is a song recorded by Daryl Hall and John Oates.

It was the fourth number-one hit single of their career on the Billboard Hot 100 and the second hit single from their album Private Eyes. It features Charles DeChant on saxello.

In the US the single was released in December 1981. However in the UK the single was not released until 1982.

On January 30, 1982, 'I Can't Go for That' ended a 10-week run at the top of the Hot 100 by Olivia Newton-John's song, 'Physical' (which had knocked out Hall & Oates' 'Private Eyes' from the top spot). The song also went to number one on the Hot Dance Club Play chart for one week in January 1982.

Thanks to heavy airplay on urban contemporary radio stations, 'I Can't Go for That' also topped the U.S. R and B chart, a rare feat for a non-African American act. According to the Hall and Oates biography, Hall, upon learning that 'I Can't Go For That' had gone to number one on the R and B chart, wrote in his diary, "I'm the head soul brother in the U.S. Where to now?"

In the UK the single was another hit as it reached number 8 on the UK Singles Chart.

Click the link below to download the following:
Video
Single Version
12 inch Version
Ungarded Minute - B-Side

http://www.mediafire.com/?q86ib3v4mbwg9

Dire Straits - Making Movies - Album

2012-01-09T10:50:00.000Z

'Making Movies' is the third album by English rock band Dire Straits, released in 1980.

The title of the album comes from a line in the song 'Skateaway' and the unreleased song 'Making Movies'.

Rolling Stone ranked the album number 52 in their survey of the "100 Best Albums of the 80s".

Making Movies was the biggest selling album in Italy in 1981 with one million copies; in Europe the album sold 3.8 million copies.

It was remastered and released with the rest of the Dire Straits catalogue in 1996 for most of the world outside the U.S. and on September 19, 2000 in the United States.

The songs 'Making Movies' and 'Suicide Towers' were recorded during the sessions and were never officially released. They do however appear on bootlegs.

In the U the album made it to number 4 on the Album charts and spent 252 weeks on the Album charts.

Traclisting:
01 - Tunnel of Love
02 - Romeo and Juliet
03 - Skateaway
04 - Expresso Love
05 - Hand in Hand
06 - Solid Rock
07 - Les Boys

Click the link below to download the album:

http://www.mediafire.com/?732bnh4kv4v7z

Fiat Luxx - Feels Like Winter Time Again

2012-01-09T10:05:00.015Z

Fiat Lux was an English synthpop band formed in Wakefield, Yorkshire, England, in 1982, by Steve Wright (vocals) and David P Crickmore (guitars, bass, keyboards). Ian Nelson (sax, keyboards), younger brother of Be-Bop Deluxe guitarist and lead vocalist Bill Nelson, joined shortly afterwards, complementing the classic line-up of the band, who remained until the mid 1980s, when Crickmore departed.

They named themselves Fiat Lux, which is the Latin translation for the Biblical quotation 'Let There Be Light.'

The band released their first single entitled 'Feels Like Winter Again' in 1982, following successful radio sessions that led the band signing a record deal with major label Polydor. At this point Hugh Jones was brought in as their record producer.

'Feels Like Winter Time Again' failed to enter the Singles Charts.

Click the link below to download the following:
Single Version
What Is This Illness - B-Side

http://www.mediafire.com/?t3r47gsaepg5t

Happy New Year 2012

2012-01-01T00:01:00.000Z

                        Another year has come to an end and another year is at it's beginning.

                                             I've enjoyed bringing you all this blog.

It has given me a lot of pleasure in re-discovering the music of my past and bringing it to you all.

                    So as we embark on our new year I would like to wish everyone a

                                                            Happy New Year.

Merry Christmas To Everyone

2011-12-25T00:01:00.000Z

Well here is that special time of year once again.

I would like to thank everyone who has visited the blog a Very Merry Christmas.

I hope you all enjoy your time and I will be back to posting in the new year.

Merry Christmas to Everyone

Erasure - Crackers International EP

2011-12-23T12:00:00.001Z

Crackers International is an EP released by Erasure in 1988, in between the albums The Innocents and Wild!.

The EP appeared in several different versions. The original UK release by Mute Records consisted of four original, self-produced tracks.

In the UK, where at the time EPs were eligible for the singles chart, it became one of Erasure's most successful releases, matching the number two peak of 1986's 'Sometimes'.

In the U.S., Crackers International was still considered an EP, although two remixes were added (bringing the tracklist count to six) when Sire Records released it. In the U.S., where EPs chart on the Billboard 200, it hit number seventy-three. The song 'Stop!' was also released as its own stand-alone single in the U.S., just barely making an appearance on the Billboard Hot 100 (number ninety-seven). On the U.S. Hot Dance Music/Club Play chart 'Stop!' / 'Knocking On Your Door' peaked at number four as a double-sided entry.

Additionally, a version of the EP was released in the UK by Mute Records in a very limited-edition, seasonal pressing, titled Crackers International Part 2. Released originally in 12 inch vinyl with extended versions of 'Stop!' and 'Knocking On Your Door', both remixed by Mark Saunders, it also added the Christmas standard 'God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen'. It was subsequently released as a 3-inch compact disc containing the original 7" versions of 'Stop!' and 'Knocking On Your Door'.

Click the link below to download the following:
Video
Single Version

Mark Saunders Remix
Knocking On Your Door - Bonus Track
Knocking On Your Door - Mark Saunders Remix
She Wont Be Home - Lonely Christmas - Bonus Track
God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen - Bonus Track
The Hardest Part - Bonus Track

http://www.mediafire.com/?3kb4v42v7644s

Bing Crosby - White Christmas

2011-12-23T10:25:00.035Z

And so to the grand daddy of the christmas songs.

'White Christmas' is an Irving Berlin song reminiscing about an old-fashioned Christmas setting. According to the Guinness Book of World Records, the version sung by Bing Crosby is the best-selling single of all time, with estimated sales in excess of 50 million copies worldwide.

Accounts vary as to when and where Berlin wrote the song. One story is that he wrote it in 1940, in warm Tucson, Arizona.

The first public performance of the song was by Bing Crosby, on his NBC radio show The Kraft Music Hall on Christmas Day, 1941; the recording is not believed to have survived. He subsequently recorded the song with the John Scott Trotter Orchestra and the Ken Darby Singers for Decca Records in just 18 minutes on May 29, 1942, and it was released on July 30 as part of an album of six 78-rpm songs from the film Holiday Inn.

At first, Crosby did not see anything special about the song. He just said "I don't think we have any problems with that one, Irving."

The song initially performed poorly and was overshadowed by the film's first hit song: 'Be Careful, It's my Heart'. By the end of October 1942, however, 'White Christmas' topped the 'Your Hit Parade' chart. It remained in that position until well into the new year. (It has often been noted that the mix of melancholy — "just like the ones I used to know" — with comforting images of home — "where the treetops glisten" — resonated especially strongly with listeners during World War II. The Armed Forces Network was flooded with requests for the song.)

In 1942 alone, Crosby's recording spent eleven weeks on top of the Billboard charts. The original version also hit number one on the Harlem Hit Parade for three weeks, Crosby's first-ever appearance on the black-oriented chart. Re-released by Decca, the single returned to the number 1 spot during the holiday seasons of 1945 and 1946 (on the chart dated January 4, 1947), thus becoming the only single with three separate runs at the top of the U.S. charts. The recording became a chart perennial, reappearing annually on the pop chart twenty separate times before Billboard magazine created a distinct Christmas chart for seasonal releases.

Following its prominence in the musical Holiday Inn, the composition won the Academy Award for Best Original Song in 1942. In the film, Bing Crosby sings 'White Christmas' as a duet with actress Marjorie Reynolds, though her voice was dubbed by Martha Mears. This now-familiar scene was not the moviemakers' initial plan; in the script as originally conceived, Reynolds, not Crosby, was to sing the song.

The version of 'White Christmas' most often heard today is not the original 1942 Crosby recording, as the master had become damaged due to frequent use. Crosby re-recorded the track on March 18, 1947, accompanied again by the Trotter Orchestra and the Darby Singers, with every effort made to reproduce the original recording session. There are subtle differences in the orchestration, most notably the addition of a celesta and flutes to brighten up the introduction.

Crosby was dismissive of his role in the song's success, saying later that "a jackdaw with a cleft palate could have sung it successfully." But Crosby was associated with it for the rest of his career. Another Crosby vehicle — the 1954 musical White Christmas — was the highest-grossing film of 1954.

There has been some confusion and considerable debate on whether Crosby's record is or is not the best-selling single in the world, due to a lack of information on sales of 'White Christmas,' because Crosby's recording was released before the advent of the modern-day US and UK singles charts. However, after careful research, Guinness World Records in 2007 concluded that, worldwide, Crosby's recording of 'White Christmas' has, in their estimation, sold at least 50 million copies, and that Elton John's recording of 'Candle in the Wind 1997' has sold 33 million, making Crosby's recording the best-selling single of all time. However, an update in the 2009 edition of the book decided to further help settle the controversy amicably by naming both John's and Crosby's songs to be "winners" by stating that John's recording is the "best-selling single since UK and US singles charts began in the 1950s," while maintaining that "the best-selling single of all time was released before the first pop charts," and that this distinction belongs to 'White Christmas,' which it says "was listed as the world's best-selling single in the first-ever Guinness Book of Records (published in 1955) and - remarkably - still retains the title more than 50 years later."

Click the link below to download the following:
Film Version
TV Performance
Single Version
Let's Start The New Year Right - 1954 B-Side
God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen - 1977 B-Side

http://www.mediafire.com/?jbp9e8xo7i8o1

Slade - Merry Christmas Everybody

2011-12-22T10:48:00.047Z

'Merry Xmas Everybody' is a 1973 song by the English rock band Slade. Written by lead vocalist and guitarist Noddy Holder and bassist Jim Lea, and produced by Chas Chandler, it was the band's sixth number-one single in the UK. It earned the UK Christmas Number One slot in December 1973, beating another Christmas-themed song, Wizzard's 'I Wish It Could Be Christmas Everyday', which reached fourth place. By mid-January it was still at number one; it stayed in the UK Singles Chart well into February 1974.
Based on melodies from discarded songs written six years before, 'Merry Xmas Everybody' was Slade's best-selling single, released at the peak of their popularity, and sold over a million copies upon its first release. It is Slade's last number-one single, but by far their most successful. It has been released during every decade since 1973, and has been covered by numerous artists. In a 2007 poll, 'Merry Xmas Everybody' was voted the UK's most popular Christmas song.

The single was certified UK Platinum by BPI in December 1980.
According to the Fan Club Newsletter for January and February 1974, the album was rewarded a Silver Disc for pre-order sales, even before the single's release. Within the first week of release, the single had sold 500,000 copies.
Also, according to the same newsletter, 'Merry Xmas Everybody' was in such big demand that Polydor records had to make special arrangements to have 250,000 discs sent from Los Angeles, as well as 30,000 copies a day they were receiving from Germany.

By 1973 Slade were one of the most popular bands in Britain, having achieved two number one singles—'Cum On Feel The Noize' and 'Skweeze Me Pleeze Me'—in three months. These singles had both entered the charts straight at number one, a rare feat at the time as this was the first occurrence since The Beatles hit number one in 1969 with Get Back.

The band and their record company, Polydor, decided to produce a Christmas hit. For inspiration Slade members Noddy Holder and Jim Lea looked at previous material they had written. Lea recalled a melody and verse he came up with while showering, and Holder recalled a song he had discarded in 1967, which he had written when the band were named the N'Betweeners. It was entitled 'Buy Me a Rocking Chair', and was Holder's first solo work. Holder used the melody of this song for the chorus, and Lea's melody became the verse. After an evening out drinking, Holder worked through the night at his mother's house in Walsall to write the lyrics, which he completed in one draft. In a 2007 interview with the Daily Mail, he spoke about the song's creation:

"We'd decided to write a Christmas song and I wanted to make it reflect a British family Christmas. Economically, the country was up the creek. The miners had been on strike, along with the grave-diggers, the bakers and almost everybody else. I think people wanted something to cheer them up – and so did I. That's why I came up with the line 'Look To The Future Now It's Only Just Begun'. Once I got the line 'Does Your Granny Always Tell You That The Old Ones Are The Best', I knew I'd got a right cracker on my hands."

The song was recorded in the late summer of 1973, during Slade's east coast US tour. Despite its association with the British working class, it was actually recorded at the Record Plant in New York, where, in an adjoining studio, musician John Lennon was working on his album Mind Games. Lennon planned to use a harmonium, which Slade's producer Chas Chandler decided the song needed. 'Merry Xmas Everybody' took five days to finish, but the band disliked the first completed version. It ended up being rerecorded, with the corridor outside used to record the chorus, as it provided an appropriate echo.

Before its release, 'Merry Xmas Everybody' received about half a million advance orders. 350,000 copies were bought upon its release on 7 December 1973. On 15 December it became the third song by Slade to enter the UK Singles Chart at number one (all in 1973) and the sixth number one of their career, and became the fastest selling single in the UK. Polydor, Slade's record label, were forced to use their French pressing plant to keep up with the demand, and the song eventually went on to sell over one million copies, becoming the Christmas number one of 1973, beating another Christmas-themed song, 'I Wish It Could Be Christmas Everyday' by Wizzard. 'Merry Xmas Everybody' remained number one until mid-January, and stayed in the charts for a total of nine weeks. That it remained in the charts after Christmas caused confusion for Holder, who wondered why people continued to buy it.

For the fan club newsletter in 1979, Jim Lea spoke of the b-side 'Don't Blame Me', 'Don't Blame Me' was a time-filler, I think that it was created as that. When it was used as a b-side, we didn't even know it was being used, it was chosen by the offices. We were in America recording the Christmas single, there was a rush to choose what to put on the back of it, and that track happened to be used."

No promotional video was created for the single. Bassist/co-writer Lea stated that no film was needed for the single as the band absolutely blitzed the T.V. over Christmas, appearing on shows as bizarre as 'The Lee Dawson Christmas Show'. Lea remembered that on the Tuesday that the single went straight to number one in the charts, the band were filming the 'Lift Off' TV show in Manchester. Apparently the band drove around the streets of the city to check that they were number one before arriving at the studios. When they arrived, Roy Wood's girlfriend of the time Ayshea Brough, said that the next few weeks would be interesting to see who had the Christmas number one out of Slade, Wizzard and Elton John. Slade then surprised her by saying that they were there already.

Click the lin below to download the following:
TV Performance
Single Version
1985 12 inch Extended Version
Don't Blame Me - Original B-Side
Come On Feel The Noize - 2006 Re-release B-Side

http://www.mediafire.com/?i2ekplg2dkpap

New Order - Happy Xmas From The Hacienda - Flexi disc

2011-12-22T10:21:00.000Z

Limited edition of 4400 given away at the Hacienda Christmas Eve 1982.

Nowhere on the flexi does it say that it is New Order performing the songs, but it has been confirmed later that it actually is New Order. The tracks were recorded the year before for a local TV special.

The tracks were a cover of Beethoven's Ode To Joy and a xmas flavoured piece called Rocking Carol.

The flexi was given away in a brown bag stamped with 'FAC51 HACIENDA'.

The bag also contained a party hat, a whistle, a coiled streamer, and a yellow and navy blue piece candy (shaped like a rock).

Click the link below to download the following:
Rocking Carol - Side A
Ode To Joy - Side B

http://www.mediafire.com/?g2fwy6fge5rig

Johnny Mathis - When A Child Is Born (Soleado)

2011-12-21T10:58:00.014Z

'When a Child is Born' is a popular Christmas song. The original melody was 'Soleado', a tune from 1972 by Ciro Dammicco (alias Zacar), composer for Italy's Daniel Santecruz Ensemble.

The English language lyrics were written a few years later by Fred Jay. They do not make specific mention of Christmas but the importance they attach to looking forward to the birth of one particular child somewhere, anywhere, suggests a reference to the birth of Jesus Christ, and the citing of "a tiny star" that "lights up way up high" may allude to the Star of Bethlehem. Fred Jay's lyrics have been sung by many artists over the years.

Johnny Mathis released his version of the song in 1976. Reaching number 1 in the IK Singles Charts Mathis version of the song has proved to be the most successfull.

Click the link below to download the following:
Performance
Single Version
Every Time You Touch Me (I Get High) - B-Side

http://www.mediafire.com/?utxqy42cjxqbk

Boney M - Little Drummer Boy

2011-12-21T10:32:00.004Z

'The Little Drummer Boy' originally known as 'Carol of the Drum' is a popular Christmas song written by the American classical music composer/teacher Katherine K. Davis in 1941.

In the lyrics the singer relates how, as a poor young boy, he was summoned by the Magi to the nativity where, without a gift for the infant Jesus, he played his drum with the Virgin Mary's approval, remembering "I played my best for him" and "He smiled at me".

Boney M released their version of the song in 1981. The single was also included on their Christmas Album.

'Little Drummer Boy' peaked at number 20 in the German charts and was the last song to feature dancer Bobby Farrell.

Click the link below to download the following:
Single Version
Boney M on 45 - B-Side

http://www.mediafire.com/?n6v95sc5633st

Nova - Christmas Forever

2011-12-20T10:52:00.003Z

And so for a bit of cheesy christmas pop.

'Christmas Forever' is a single released in 1981 by the Dutch band Nova.

Released on the MacProPoc Records Label the single failed to make it into the charts.

Credited to E.O. MacDonald and H. Promes, this is as much about the record and duo as I know.

Still a pleasent enough record to lift the spirits at christmas.

Enjoy.

Click the link below to download the following:
Single Version
My Dream - B-side

http://www.mediafire.com/?3zj32y4a63nah

Bon Jovi - Please Come Home For Christmas

2011-12-20T10:00:00.009Z

'Please Come Home for Christmas' is a Christmas song, released in 1960, by the American blues singer and pianist Charles Brown. Hitting Billboard’s Hot 100 chart in December 1961, the tune Brown co-wrote with Gene Redd peaked at position number 76.

It appeared on the Christmas Singles chart for nine seasons, hitting number 1 in 1972. It includes a number of characteristics of Christmas music, such as multiple references in the lyrics to the Christmas season and Christmas traditions, and the use of a Church bell type sound, created using a piano, at the start of the song. It is sometimes referred to as Bells Will Be Ringing.

Bon Jovi covered and released their version of the song in 1994. Released as a stand alone single it failed to set the charts alight in the UK or US but it did manage to make it to number 6 in the Irish charts.

Click the link below to download the following:
Video
Single Version
I Wish Everyday Could Be Like Christmas - B-Side
Back Door Santa - Extra Track
Blue Christmas - Bonus Track

http://www.mediafire.com/?cgmq741xh4v94

Pop Quiz - Christmas 1981

2011-12-19T12:31:00.000Z

Here is the Christmas episode broadcast on 29th December 1981. the teams are

Team 1:
Midge Ure - Paula Yates - Barry Gibb

Team 2:
Cliff Richard - David Grant - Rick Parfitt

Click the link below to download the Episode in 3 parts

http://www.mediafire.com/?8mo9r9h87q1x0 Part One

Part Two

Part Three

Wings - Mull Of Kintyre

2011-12-19T10:04:00.022Z

'Mull of Kintyre' is a song written by Paul McCartney and Denny Laine and performed by Wings. The song was written in tribute to the picturesque Kintyre peninsula in Scotland, where McCartney has owned High Park Farm since 1966, and its headland or Mull of Kintyre.

The song was Wings' biggest hit in the United Kingdom where it became Christmas number one, and was the first single to sell over two million copies in the UK.

'Mull of Kintyre' was recorded in August 1977 in London, during a break in recording the London Town album caused by Linda McCartney's advanced pregnancy, which led to the departure of Jimmy McCulloch and Joe English from Wings.

Bagpipes from Kintyre's local Campbeltown Pipe Band were included as a prominent part of the recording. 'Mull of Kintyre' and 'Girls' School' (a rocker that had been previously recorded for London Town) were released as a double A-sided single on 11 November 1977, independently of the album. It was also included on the Wings compilation Wings Greatest in 1978, and the UK/Canada version of McCartney's 1987 compilation album, All the Best!.

The song's broad appeal was maximised by its pre-Christmas release and it became a Christmas number one single in the UK, spending 9 weeks at the top of the charts. It also became a massive international hit, dominating the charts in Australia and many other countries over the holiday period. It went on to become the first single to sell over two million copies in the UK and becoming the UK's best-selling single of all-time (eclipsing The Beatles' own 'She Loves You') until overtaken by Band Aid's 'Do They Know It's Christmas?' in 1984 (which also featured McCartney on the B-Side).

The song remains the UK's best-selling completely non-charity single. (Queen's 'Bohemian Rhapsody' has sold more in its two releases, but the profits of the 1991 release went to charity.)

The millionth copy of the disk sold in the UK included a special certificate. It was sold to David Ackroyd, who was presented with a gold disk of the single by Laine.

However, one place where the song was not a hit was the United States, where the flipside 'Girls' School' received more airplay and reached number 33 on the Billboard Hot 100 while 'Mull of Kintyre' only managed to reach number 45 on the Easy Listening chart. As a consequence, McCartney has not played 'Mull of Kintyre' during his subsequent concert tours of America, only adding it back on forays into Canada.

Click the link below to download the following:
Video
Single Version
Girls School - B-Side

http://www.mediafire.com/?4b79q4mqoytmw

The Jets - Christmas With The Jets

2011-12-16T11:00:00.000Z

'Christmas with The Jets' is the second studio album by The Jets.

It was released in 1986 and includes nine out of ten original Christmas recordings written by Sean Kelly of Foxboro, Massachusetts for The Jets.

'Christmas in My Heart' was released as an airplay-only single (although a physical release was made available in Japan), and therefore never charted.

Tracklisting:
01 - This Christmas
02 - Christmas in My Heart
03 - All Alone on Christmas
04 - On Christmas Night
05 - I'm Home for Christmas
06 - Somewhere Out There
07 - Love So Rare
08 - Christmas Is My Favorite Time of Year
09 - You Make It Christmas
10 - This Christmas, This Year

Click the link below to download the album:

http://www.mediafire.com/?sywcgbbii93qd

The Pretenders - 2000 Miles

2011-12-16T10:51:00.018Z

'2000 Miles' is a song by The Pretenders released in 1983 as the preceding single to their 1984 album, 'Learning to Crawl'.

In the US, it was released as both 7 inch 45 as the B-side of the single 'Middle of the Road' and a 12 inch remix.

It was most popular in the UK, where it charted at number 15.

Considered a Christmas song, it has also been released on various compilation albums. While most people believe 2,000 miles is the distance between two long distance lovers who miss each other over the holidays, it is actually meant to be for James Honeyman-Scott, the group's original guitar player.

Click the link below to download the following:
Video
Single Version
Fast Or Slow (The Laws The Law) - B-Side
Money (Live) - B-Side

http://www.mediafire.com/?wqra7ybrkcota

Mud - Lonely This Christmas

2011-12-15T10:50:00.011Z

'Lonely This Christmas' was a popular single by the English glam rock band Mud, that topped the UK singles chart in 1974 and reached Christmas number one.

The song is noted for a memorable performance on Top of the Pops in which guitarist Rob Davis was covered in tinsel and wore Christmas baubles as earrings, while vocalist Les Gray sang to a ventriloquist's dummy.

In 1985 the single was released as a 12 inch with an extra track.

Click the link below to download the following:
Performance
Single Version
I Can't Stand It - B-Side
The Cat Crept In - 1985 12 inch Extra Track

http://www.mediafire.com/?jcaecm3ejvj0v

Elton John - Step Into Christmas

2011-12-15T10:09:00.025Z

'Step into Christmas' is a Christmas song by Elton John (Music by Elton John, Lyrics by Bernie Taupin) released in 1973.

It was originally released as a stand-alone single in 1973 with the B-Side 'Ho! Ho! Ho! (Who'd Be a Turkey at Christmas), peaking at number 23 in the UK.

Due to Billboard magazine's editorial policy it was held off the Hot 100. It did, however, make number 1 on a specially designated Christmas chart, and it appeared in the Cashbox Top 100 charts. It was later included as a bonus track on the 1995 remastered reissue of the album Caribou, even though it was released in the Goodbye Yellow Brick Road days.

According to liner notes about the song by Elton John and Bernie Taupin (in 'Rare Masters' and 'Elton John's Christmas Party'), the track and its b-side, both produced by Gus Dudgeon, were recorded during a quickie session at Morgan Studios in London, owned by drummer Barry Morgan, who had played on several of Elton's early albums. 'Step Into Christmas' was mixed to sound like one of producer Phil Spector's record, using lots of compression and imitating his trademark "wall of sound" technique. This was according to both Elton and Taupin intentional, an homage of sorts to Christmas songs by Spector-produced groups such as The Ronettes. In 2009, 'Step into Christmas' was the 9th most played Christmas song in the UK.

Click the lin below to download the following:
Video
Single Version
Ho Ho Ho (Who'd Be A Turkey At Christmas - B-Side

http://www.mediafire.com/?o9usv32akpj0w

The Jets - Christmas In My Heart

2011-12-14T11:00:00.000Z

'Christmas In My Heart' was released as the first and only single from The Jets' Christmas album 'Christmas with The Jets'.

The song peaked at number 20 in Japan in December 1986.

Click the link below to download the following:
Single Version
This Christmas - B-Side

http://www.mediafire.com/?km4w4jrw9c4q8

Wizzard - I Wish It Could Be Christmas Everyday

2011-12-14T10:00:00.028Z

'I Wish It Could Be Christmas Everyday' is a popular Christmas song, first released in 1973 by the English glam rock band Wizzard.

It reached number four in the UK singles chart. The song was famously beaten to Christmas number one by Slade's 'Merry Xmas Everybody' which remained there for nine consecutive weeks, from December 1973 to February 1974. As with most Wizzard songs it was written and produced by Roy Wood.

The song features the lead vocals of frontman Roy Wood but also contains backing vocals by "The Suedettes" as well as the choir of The Stockland Green Bilateral School First Year (arranged by pianist Bill Hunt, who was the brother-in-law of the school Maths teacher), with additional noises being produced by "Miss Snob and Class 3C", as credited on the sleeve.

The single was actually recorded in the August so to create a wintry feeling, engineer Steve Brown decorated the studio with Christmas decorations and turned the air conditioning down to its coldest setting. Singer Roy Wood wore a woollen hat found in Lost Property.

The first issue of the single was on Warner Brothers, as they had signed with them at the end of 1973, but this single proved to be the last EMI single, so the single was immediately issued on Harvest with the same picture sleeve.

Although Wood had arranged for the members of the Stockland Green school choir to sing at the Top Of The Pops television recording, their place was taken by children provided by a local London stage school.

With the failure of its first release to reach number 1 in 1973 - it was kept from number one by Slade's 'Merry Christmas Everybody' - it was re-released in 1981 (only reaching number 41) and then again in 1984, this time with an additional extended 12" version and getting as far as number 23.

As downloads as well as physical sales became eligible for the weekly Top 75 as from January 2007, and with the help of additional exposure thanks to an Argos television advertisement later in the year using an excerpt of the song for a soundtrack, it was one of several Christmas oldies to chart again in November and December 2007. This time it reached number 16, despite the absence of a physical release in the shops. In December 2008 it reappeared in the chart at number 31. In December 2009, the song had returned to the chart, at number 45. In December 2010 the song charted again at number 46 in the UK charts

Click the link below to download the following:
Video
Single Version
Rob Roys Nightmare - B-Side
http://www.mediafire.com/?65oo2jpo1youa

Queen - A Winter's Tale

2011-12-13T10:34:00.013Z

'A Winter's Tale' is a song by Queen, from the album Made in Heaven, released in 1995 after Freddie Mercury's death in 1991. It was written after the Innuendo sessions, inspired as Mercury was staring out the windows of their recording studio, at Lake Geneva. The song has a psychedelic, dreamy feel, and describes what Mercury saw outside the windows.

It was said to have been recorded two weeks before Mercury's death. He wrote, composed, and did the vocals and keyboards for it. In the documentary "Queen - Champions of the World", it was stated that this was if not the first then an extremely rare style of recording for Freddie, as it was all performed in one take live in the studio. It was stated in the film that Freddie had always insisted upon music being completed prior to the vocal arrangement beginning, but acknowledged that he had little time left and there was not enough time to work on it differently.

The song was released as the second single from the album. In the UK the single was also available in a special limited edition green paper CD case which resembled Christmas wrapper.

The single made it to number 6 on the UK Singles Chart.

Click the link below to download the following:
Single Version
Cosy Firside Mix
Than God It's Christmas - B-Side
Rock In Rio Blues (Live) - B-Side

http://www.mediafire.com/?wc2pca0du3vqg

Boney - Mary's Boy Child / Oh My Lord

2011-12-13T10:27:00.052Z

'Mary's Boy Child - Oh My Lord' is a 1978 Christmas single for Boney M., a cover of Harry Belafonte's 1956 hit, put in medley with the new song 'Oh My Lord' (Farian / Jay).

The single was recorded in a hurry early November, included in the group's live set and rushed out at the end of the month, topping the UK charts for four weeks during its eight week stay in the charts, and becoming the second single for the group in the all-time best selling singles charts. The song was later included in the group's Christmas Album, 1981.

In the United States, the track reached number 85 in the Billboard Hot 100, Boney M's last of four singles to chart; despite its chart position, the medley is an airplay favorite in the United States during the Thanksgiving/Christmas holiday season on radio stations which change to temporary all-Christmas music formats.

A promotional gatefold single (15 816 AT) backed with 'Never Change Lovers in the Middle of the Night' (from Nightflight to Venus) was released shortly before the commercial single which had a new track on the B-side 'Dancing in the Streets'. Different edits were issued in various countries. In Spain and France, the 3rd verse (Now Joseph and his wife Mary came to Bethlehem that night ...) had been cut out, the French mix of 'Oh My Lord' was a different mix. A 4:29 edit surfaced on the 1980 compilation The Magic of Boney M. - 20 Golden Hits, possibly the originally intended single edit. The full-length 6:18 mix appeared as the B-side of the 12" single 'Dancing in the Streets'.

'Rivers of Babylon' / 'Mary's Boy Child / Oh My Lord' is a 1988 remix single by German band Boney M., issued to launch the group's reunion, having been split since their 10th anniversary, 1986. The double-A-side single contained new mixes of the band's two very most successful single releases ever. Although their remix album sold well, the single failed to chart.

After Christmas, Hansa Records flipped the single and released it with 'Dancing in the Streets' on the A-side. The non-album track was sung solely by the group's producer Frank Farian, singing the chorus in multi-dubbed falsetto vocals and singing the verse in his deep voice. The mix that came out on the B-side of 'Mary's Boy Child' in the UK and US was an early version with shriller falsetto vocals and no answer-back chorus vocals in the verses. Despite the lack of success, the track was chosen as the one to launch Boney M. in the USA which remained the only territory the group had yet to conquer. The group did a promotional tour in April 1979 and also lip-synced the track at important TV shows Soul Train but the single stalled at number 105 in the Pop charts and fared only slightly better in the R and B charts at number 75.

Click the lin below to download the following:
Video
Single Version
PWL 1988 Edit Version
Dancing In The Streets - B-Side
Dancing In The Streets - Live Performance
Dancing In The Streets - Long Version
Never Change Lovers In The Middle Of The Night - B-Side

http://www.mediafire.com/?4j80ecc27ekf3

Carpenters - Santa Claues Is Coming To Town

2011-12-12T10:40:00.003Z

Well I wanted to do soething a little different this christmas and post some songs that I love from various years (not just the 80's). So here goes....

'Santa Claus is Coming to Town' (sometimes with Coming changed to Comin') is a Christmas song.

It was written by John Frederick Coots and Haven Gillespie, and was first sung on Eddie Cantor's radio show in November 1934.

It became an instant hit with orders for 100,000 copies of sheet music the next day and more than 400,000 copies sold by Christmas.

In 1974 The Carpenters released the song as their 19th single. Released fro the albu 'An Old Fashioned Christmas' the single ade it to number 35 on the UK singles Charts.

The B-Side to the single was 'Merry Christas Darling'.

'Merry Christmas, Darling' was written by Richard Carpenter & Frank Pooler and originally recorded in 1970. At the time, it was first available on a 7" single from A&M Records (1236) and later in 1974 reissued as A&M 1648 and in 1977 as A&M 1991.

The single went to number one on Billboard's Christmas singles chart in 1970, and did again in 1971 and 1973.

Billboard magazine did not display Christmas singles on the Hot 100 in 1970. This song just missed the top 40 in Cash Box.

Click the link below to download the following:
Santa Claus Is Coming To Town - Single Version
Merry Christmas Darling - B-Side (Same as single version from 1970)
Mr Guder - B-Side to Merry Christmas Darling

http://www.mediafire.com/?4gb8mlvljl431

Sheila E - Sister Fate

2011-12-12T10:00:00.000Z

'Sister Fate' was the first single to be released from Sheila E.'s second album Romance 1600, released four weeks before the album.

The single contained an edit (removing an instrumental coda), an extended version, and an instrumental version of the track.

The 12" single included a previously-unreleased track, 'Save The People', which contained no input by Prince. The single was released in the US, Canada and Germany.

The single did not enter the US Billboard Pop Chart, but reached number 36 on the Billboard Black Chart.

Prince appeared in the Sister Fate video promoting the single, although his appearance was taken directly from the Raspberry Beret video, and did not contain any new footage.

Click the link below to download the following:
Video
Extended Version
Save The People - B-Side

http://www.mediafire.com/?bqq7t2ooc4sai

Madness - The Prince

2011-12-09T11:16:00.003Z

'The Prince' is a song by British ska/pop band Madness. It was written by Lee Thompson, and was the band's first single. On 10 August 1979 the single was released through 2 Tone Records and peaked at number 16 in the UK singles chart, spending a total of 11 weeks in the charts.

'The Prince' is a tribute to Jamaican ska singer Prince Buster who highly influenced Madness (the band took their name from one of his songs, 'Madness', which they also covered on the b-side of 'The Prince').

As this was the band's first single, they were relatively unknown prior to the release. Due to this fact, no music video was filmed for the single. However, the band later bought the rights to a performance on Top of the Pops from September 6, 1979. This performance has since become associated with the single, and has featured on compilations featuring the band's music videos.

Click the link below to download the following:
Single Version
Madness - B-Side

http://www.mediafire.com/?ce65upi42v2aq

Howard Jones - Pearl In The Shell - Fan Club Single

2011-12-09T10:00:00.005Z

The Howard Jones fanclub released three different live singles in the course of a few years.

This second single was recorded by Radio Clyde, but a date and
venue are not mentioned on the label.

The live tracks are 'Pearl in the shell' (originally released on Howard Jones' debut album 'Human's lib') and 'Things can only get better' (originally released on Howard Jones' second album 'Dream into action').

Click the link below to download the tracks:

http://www.mediafire.com/?11utbd64ink5p

Madness - One Step Beyond

2011-12-08T11:05:00.003Z

'One Step Beyond' is a tune written by Jamaican ska singer Prince Buster as a B-side for his single 'Al Capone'.

It was made famous by British band Madness who covered it for their debut 1979 album, One Step Beyond..., also named after the song.

Although Buster's version was mostly instrumental except for the song title shouted for a few times, the Madness version features a spoken intro by Chas Smash and a barely audible but insistent background chant of "here we go!".

The spoken line, "Don't watch that, watch this", in the intro is from another Prince Buster song, 'The Scorcher'.

According to Alan Winstanley, one of the producers, the released Madness version was a rough mix, created by taking the original 1 minute 10 second instrumental and repeating it, with the second half treated with an Eventide harmonizer to make it sound slightly different. Langer and Winstanley intended to do a full remix but found that the double-length rough mix had already been sent for mastering before they got the opportunity.

The song is often used to begin live performances by the band.

The single produced the band's first music video, directed by Chuck Statler. The video mainly features a performance on the Hope and Anchor stage in Islington, which was filmed on 7 October 1979. The video also features Chas Smash, performed the lead vocal chant, although he was not at the time a member of the band. Lead singer Suggs is present in the video in front of the band, holding a microphone, although he does not sing the lead vocals.

Click the link below to download the following:
Video
Single Version
Mistakes - B-Side
Nutty Theme - 12 inch Extra Track

http://www.mediafire.com/?0h9loicndr92k

Howard Jones - Pearl In The Shell

2011-12-08T10:33:00.003Z

'Pearl in the Shell' is the fourth and final single released by musician Howard Jones from the album Human's Lib.

Released in May 1984, the song reached number seven on the UK Singles Chart. It features a saxophone solo by Davey Payne of Ian Dury's band The Blockheads.

Unlike Jones' previous singles, the 12 inch single edition did not feature an extended mix of the main track, though an extended mix later appeared on The 12 inch Album.

Instead, the track 'Total Conditioning' was an extended version of the song 'Conditioning' also taken from Human's Lib, featuring additional lyrics lifted from most of the other songs on that album.

Two Limited Edition singles were released featuring the same tracks as above. One was the standard 7 inch in a poster bag sleeve, the other was a shaped picture disc.

Click the link below to download the following:
Video

Single Version

Extended Remix

Law Of The Jungle - B-Side

Total Conditioning - 12 inch Extra Track

http://www.mediafire.com/?lh3gs4k6w91ak

Dead Or Alive - Misty Circles

2011-12-07T10:36:00.003Z

'Misty Circles' is a song written and recorded by English New Wave/Dance band Dead or Alive. It was co-produced by the band and Zeus B. Held and released as the first single from Dead or Alive's album Sophisticated Boom Boom.

'Misty Circles' was the first song to be released by Dead or Alive after being signed to a major label, Epic Records. The band's prior single releases were issued independently.

Upon its release, 'Misty Circles' was not a success, peaking at number 100 on the UK Singles Chart.

In 1984, the song was placed on the B-side of 'You Spin Me Round (Like a Record)'. As both sides earned significant play in American nightclubs, they charted together as a double-sided hit on the U.S. Hot Dance Club Play chart, peaking at number four.

The band performed it before a live audience on Razzmatazz, which features Pete Burns wearing a wardrobe similar to Boy George's, and thus created some temporary friction between the two singers in later years.

The single became the groups first entry on the UK Singles Chart, as well as their lowest peaking single.

The 'Dance Mix' and the b-side 'Selfish Side' were released on the 2007 remastered CD version of the Dead Or Alive album 'Sophisticated Boom Boom' the 'Dub Mix' has not been released on CD.

Click the link below to download the following:
Extended Version
Dance Mix
Dub Mix
Selfish side - B-Side

http://www.mediafire.com/?682mw0g2wav8o

Sylvester - Do You Wanna Funk

2011-12-07T10:32:00.003Z

'Do Ya Wanna Funk' is a dance song recorded by American recording artist Sylvester.

The song was released in 1982 and it was produced by Patrick Cowley, who incidentally died the same year.

'Do Ya Wanna Funk' was mostly successful in Europe, especially Switzerland - number 12, Netherlands - number 17, Norway - number 8 and even the United Kingdom where it made number 32.

The song is heard briefly in the movie Trading Places, a comedy-drama movie starring Eddie Murphy and Dan Aykroyd.

Click the link below to download the following:
Radio Edit
Remix
Instrumental Version

http://www.mediafire.com/?7z57m5yy6twto

Yazoo - Only You

2011-12-06T10:32:00.005Z

'Only You' is a ballad written by musician Vince Clarke. He wrote it while with Depeche Mode, and offered it to them when he was leaving. They declined, and Clarke recorded it after forming the duo Yazoo with Alison Moyet.

It was an instant success in 1982, hitting number two in the UK, and charting in the U.S. (number sixty-seven, Billboard Hot 100), a feat only attained by one other Yazoo single (coincidentally, that single was 'Situation' the original UK B-side of 'Only You'). 'Only You' also made the U.S. Adult Contemporary chart at number thirty-eight.

A remix of 'Only You' made the UK Top 40 again in 1999, while reaching number sixteen on the U.S. Billboard Hot Dance Music/Club Play chart.

There was no video released when this single was originally released. Kute records released a live version to promote the single.

The music video for the new version was created using the Houdini 3D animation software package.

Although not a Christmas song, it has become a popular song to play at that time of year. This is probably due to the Flying Pickets version being the UK Christmas Number One in 1983.

Click the link below to download the following:
Mute Live Promo
1996 Video

Single Version

Situation - B-Side

Situation - Extended Version - 12 inch B-Side

http://www.mediafire.com/?vd8nwkkw8rhma

Bananarama - Robert De Nero's Waiting

2011-12-06T10:31:00.004Z

'Robert De Niro's Waiting...' is a song written and recorded by English girl group Bananarama. It was the second single released from their self-titled second album in 1984.

The single is one of the group's strongest performing releases, peaking at number three in the UK singles chart (the single to date stands in a three-way tie as Bananarama's highest-charting UK hit). It made a brief appearance on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100, peaking at number ninety-five.

An extended version of the song was available on the 12 inch single. The B-side of both 7 inch and 12 inch singles was a song called 'Push!'. Also included on the 12" single, was an unlisted track; a different version 'Link' from Bananarama.

Bananarama re-recorded 'Robert De Niro's Waiting...' with Latin instrumentation on their 2001 album Exotica.

The Duncan Gibbins-directed music video for 'Robert de Niro's Waiting...' shows Bananarama walking around dark streets, possibly followed by mafia-style clothed men. When it gets to the bridge part of the song, Sarah is shown running along, looking behind her as if being followed: her backcombed hair bounces up and down, with strands flying across her face. The video ends with Bananarama back in their apartment, when the door bell rings. Keren answers the door, only to be confronted by the man who might have been chasing them, armed with a Mafia-style violin case. As she looks nervously at him, the case falls open to reveal a sign saying "Pizza Delivery", along with three pizzas. Both the man and Keren start laughing, and right at the end, Bananarama are shown in their apartment eating the pizza and laughing.

Click the link below to download the following:

Video

Single Version

Extended Version

Short Dub

Push - B-Side

Link - Unlisted B-Side - Includes Link II - Album Version

http://www.mediafire.com/?b5buqxsdjbv1k

Peter Gabriel - In Your Eyes

2011-12-05T11:40:00.000Z

'In Your Eyes' is a song by musician Peter Gabriel from his 1986 album So.

It reached number 1 on the Billboard Mainstream Rock Tracks and number 26 on the Billboard Hot 100 in November, 1986.

It was not released as a single in the UK.

Gabriel later released an extended version of the song which was nearly 9 minutes in length (as compared to the original 5:29 version that appears on the album).

In 1989 the single was again released in the US where it made it to number 41 on the Billboard Hot 100.

The song was the finale of the Secret World Tour, and is the final track on the 1994 Secret World Live album, where it is over 11 minutes long and includes the extra lyrics from the Special Mix, in addition to solos by the the other singers and players.

It was included on the US version of his 2003 compilation Hit, but not on the European or Japanese versions.

In 2005, after 19 years of accumulated sales, the song brought Gabriel his first Gold single, certified in the U.S. by the RIAA.

The B-Side to this single was Biko. This has been released around the workd previously and also features on my blog so I decieded not to include it in this post as there was no difference in the track.

In 2002 Darren Hayes released his cover of the song on the CD single Version. I have to say that this is one of the better cover versions of the song I have heard as it gave the song something new with more emotion.

Click the link below to download the following:
Video
Radio Edit Version - 1989 Release
Special Mix Version
Say Anything Long Version

Darren Hayes Version

http://www.mediafire.com/?ha6sezzzoo5kx

Imagination - In The Heat Of The Night - Album

2011-12-05T10:29:00.004Z

Well for my 1000 post I had put up 'In The Heat Of The Night' single. To kick start the next 1000 posts I decided to put up the album frmo Inagination.

So here goes.....

'In the Heat of the Night' is the second album by British soul/dance group Imagination, produced by Steve Jolley and Tony Swain and released in 1982.

In the Heat of the Night was Imagination's most successful album, reaching number 7 in the United Kingdom.

'Just an Illusion' was the group's highest charting single, peaking at number 2 (kept off the top spot by the Goombay Dance Band's 'Seven Tears'), and also making the top 10 in several other countries in Western Europe and Scandinavia. It was covered by Destiny's Child on their self-titled album and Mariah Carey sampled this song for her hit Get Your Number in her 2005 album The Emancipation of Mimi.

'Music and Lights' was another UK top 5 hit, and 'In the Heat of the Night' and 'Changes' also charted.

Tracklisting:
01 - In the Heat of the Night
02 - Heart 'N Soul
03 - Music and Lights
04 - All Night Loving
05 - Just an Illusion
06 - All I Want to Know
07 - One More Love
08 - Changes

Click the link below to download the album:

http://www.mediafire.com/?6629vmef6e9dp

1000th Post - Imagination - In The Heat Of The Night - Single

2011-12-02T11:00:00.003Z

Well this is a bit of a milestone for me as I have worked out that this is my 1000th post that I have posted since the start of my blog over 2 years ago.

When I started this blog I never thought I would last this long in time let alone manage to make it to 1000 posts. I have to say that over the time the blog has given me a lot of pleasure as I rediscover songs and albums that I havent listened to in a long while.

So here is to this 1000th post and to the next 1000.

Well to round of the 1000 post I thought I would give you all another slice of Imagination, the group that started it all off for me.

Imagination released their 6th single entitled 'In The Heat Of The Night'. Taken from the album of the same name the song is sultry and one of my favourites.

In the UK the single made it to number 22 in the Singles Charts while making number 48 in the German charts. However it was in the Netherlands that the single faired better by reaching number 14.

Click the link below to download the following:
TOTP Performance
12 inch Version
Instrumental Version

http://www.mediafire.com/?lehiybfj2ey2h

New Order - Blue Monday

2011-12-02T10:27:00.007Z

'Blue Monday' is a single released in 1983 by British band New Order, and later remixed in 1988 and 1995. The song has been widely remixed and covered since its original release, and became a popular anthem in the dance club scene.

At nearly seven-and-a-half minutes, 'Blue Monday' is one of the longest tracks ever to chart in the UK, and is the biggest-selling 12 inch single of all time. Despite selling well it was not eligible for an official gold disc because Factory Records was not a member of the British Phonographic Industry association. However, the Official UK Chart Company (UK Singles Chart) has estimated its total UK sales at over one million. In the all-time UK best-selling singles chart, published in 2002, 'Blue Monday' came 76th.

'Blue Monday' is often seen as one of the most important crossover tracks of the 1980s pop music scene. Synthpop had been a major force in British popular music for several years, but 'Blue Monday' was arguably the first British dance record to exhibit an obvious influence from the New York club scene, particularly the work of producers like Arthur Baker (who collaborated on New Order's follow-up single 'Confusion').

According to Bernard Sumner, 'Blue Monday' was influenced by four songs: the arrangement came from 'Dirty Talk', by Klein + M.B.O.; the signature bassline with octaves came from Sylvester's disco classic, 'You Make Me Feel (Mighty Real)'; the house beat came from 'Our Love', by Donna Summer; and the long keyboard pad on the intro and outro was sampled from the Kraftwerk song 'Uranium', from the Radio-Activity album.

In an interview for Channel 4's countdown of the biggest selling UK singles, the band claimed to have written the song in response to crowd disappointment at the fact that they never played encores. This song, they say, allowed them to return to the stage, press play on a synthesiser and leave the stage again. An example of this happening appears on New Order's concert video Pumped Full of Drugs.

A popular misconception about 'Blue Monday' holds that the single's die-cut sleeve, created by Factory designer Peter Saville, cost so much to produce that Factory Records actually lost money on each copy sold. It is unlikely that Factory Records could have sustained the losses implied, and the sleeve was soon changed to a similar non-die-cut design that would cost no more than a regular sleeve. It is, however, probably true that New Order saw little profit from the single's success, since an investment in the Haçienda nightclub swallowed much of the money they made from their hit.

Another notable feature of the sleeve is that it does not display either the group name nor song title in plain English anywhere. Instead the legend "FAC 73 BLUE MONDAY AND THE BEACH NEW ORDER" is represented in code by a series of coloured blocks. The key enabling this to be deciphered was printed on the back sleeve of the album, Power, Corruption & Lies. 'Blue Monday' is one of three New Order releases from this time period to employ the colour code. The sleeve's spine simply reads "FAC SEVENTY THREE".

A music video for a shortened version of the original song was created in 1983, featuring military clips with false colour, simple computer-generated graphics such as colour blocks and geometric lines, digitised video of band members at very low resolution and framerate, and a short appearance of the game Zaxxon (reportedly the Apple II port). The colour blocks were created using Peter Saville's colour coded alphabet.

The music video for 'Blue Monday '88' (the Quincy Jones re-recording and mix of the song), shortened by several minutes and featuring added vocal effects, appears on the Substance video collection released as a companion to the album of the same name. It features sketches by photographer William Wegman and his Weimaraner dog named Fay Ray doing balancing acts intercut with hand-drawn animation by Robert Breer. The band members are shown standing around doing various tasks, such as walking a wooden plank over a floor that is painted blue, holding wire-mesh constructed art and milk crates over their faces, being hit by tennis balls, and standing still while they flip through various flip books (tying into the hand-drawn animation sequences).

On the Australian show Rage, a video was shown containing footage taken from their Top of the Pops performance with the studio track dubbed over it. At other times, the aforementioned videos also get airings.

'Blue Monday' has been a hit several times in the UK. In 1983, it charted twice, initially reaching number 12, then re-entering the chart later in the year and climbing to number 9, helped by the fact that neither side of the single (the B-side 'The Beach' was an instrumental re-working of 'Blue Monday') was featured on the UK version of the group's subsequent album, Power, Corruption & Lies.

New Order appeared on the BBC's Top of the Pops, on 31 March 1983, to promote the song. It had long been the show's policy that artists would mime to a backing track, but New Order insisted on performing 'Blue Monday' live. The performance was dogged by technical problems, and was unrepresentative of the recording. In the words of drummer Stephen Morris, "Blue Monday was never the easiest song to perform, anyway, and everything went wrong. The synthesisers went awry. It sounded awful".

In 1985, 'Blue Monday' and 'Thieves Like Us' were officially released in Poland as a 7 inch single in different sleeve by Tonpress under license from Factory Records and sold over 50 000 copies and reached number 5 on end of year single chart.

In 1988, 'Blue Monday' was officially remixed by Quincy Jones and John Potoker under the title 'Blue Monday 88' (with the instrumental flip being titled 'Beach Buggy'). The single reached number 3 in the British charts, number 4 in the Australian charts, and topped the dance charts in the United States. A further official remix/reissue in 1995, with a mix by Hardfloor as the lead track, also made the British Top 20.

Click the link below to download the following:

Video

Original Version

1983 Extended Edit

Version Instrumental

Version Vocal

Extended Hardfloor Mix

1988 7 inch Version

1988 12 inch Mix

1988 Dub Version

1988 Single Mix

The Beach - B-Side

Beach Buggy - 1988 B-Side

Beach Buggy - 12 inch B-Side

http://www.mediafire.com/?gegwdqti8a8tj

Mandy Smith - I Just Can't Wait

2011-12-01T10:48:00.001Z

'I Just Can't Wait' is a Pop-dance song written and produced by Stock Aitken Waterman for Mandy Smith's debut studio album Mandy (1988).

The song was released as Mandy's debut single and the album's first single.

This song has a B-side, 'You're Never Alone', which also appeared on her debut album.

In the UK the single didn't fair very well as it made it to number 91 on The Singles Charts. However it faired better overseas by hitting number 1 in Japan, 14 in Germany and number 9 in Italy and Norwegian charts.

Click the link below to download the following:
Video
Single Version
12 inch Extended Mix
German 12 inch Mix
You're Never Alone ' B-Side

http://www.mediafire.com/?9gj80pc44zafs

Yazoo - Situation

2011-12-01T10:09:00.004Z

'Situation' is the title of a 1982 single by the British synthpop band Yazoo.

The song was originally released in the UK as the B-side to Yazoo's debut single, 'Only You', which went to number two on the UK Singles Chart.

Released as a single in its own right in the U.S., the song peaked at number 73 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart. However, it became Yazoo's first song to top the Billboard Hot Dance Club Play chart in the late summer of 1982, and it remained at number one on this chart for four weeks, and even crossed over to the R&B chart, peaking at number 31 there.

The song features a memorable synthesizer hook by Vince Clarke (similar to the work he had done with his previous band, Depeche Mode) combined with the vocals by Alison Moyet (including her laughter, which has since been sampled in countless other songs including the international dance hit 'Macarena'). The song has been featured on various 1980s compilation albums, as well as an appearance in a commercial for Classic NES Series.

Its most famous version is the American 12-inch remix by François Kevorkian. This version was included on the U.S. version of Yazoo's album Upstairs at Eric's, and is the version of the song which receives the most radio airplay in the United States (where the song, despite its modest showing on the Hot 100, is still played on alternative, variety-hits, and dance-oriented radio stations).

It was covered by welsh singer Tom Jones in 1994 on his album The Lead and How To Swing It.

The song was featured in the 2002 film The Rules of Attraction.

In 1990 and again in 1999, the song was remixed by various noted DJs, including Peter Rauhofer and Richard "Humpty" Vission. The 1999 remixes were released to dance clubs, and this renewed interest in the song sent 'Situation' to Number 1 on the Billboard Hot Dance Club Play chart for a second time in October of that year.

Click the link below to download the following:
Single Remix
7-up's Revamp
Deadline Mix
Dub Version
Kevorkian Remix
Long Ultrasund Remix
Richard 'Humpty' Vission Visits The Dub Version
Space Dub
Special Dance Mix
Special US Dub - Vocal Edit
The Aggressive Attitude Version
Wicked Mix

State Farm - Madhouse Mix Edit - 1990 B-Side
Situation - Live At Dominion Theatre - Bonus Track
Don't Go - Live At Dominion Theatre - Bonus Track

http://www.mediafire.com/?ugt7wdw9uy617

Men At Work - Down Under

2011-11-30T10:29:00.003Z

'Down Under' (also known as 'Land Down Under') is a pop song recorded by Men at Work for their debut album Business as Usual. The song went to number 1 on American, British, Canadian and Australian charts.

It was reissued in 1982, and is the only Men at Work song to go to number 1 in the United Kingdom, and their only single to make the UK top 20. It has become a popular and patriotic song in Australia.
The lyrics are about an Australian traveller circling the globe, proud of his nationality, and about his interactions with people he meets on his travels who are interested in his home country.

One of the verses refers to Vegemite sandwiches, among other things; the particular lyric "He just smiled and gave me a Vegemite sandwich" has become a well-known phrase.

Colin Hay told Songfacts: "The chorus is really about the selling of Australia in many ways, the over-development of the country. It was a song about the loss of spirit in that country. It's really about the plundering of the country by greedy people. It is ultimately about celebrating the country, but not in a nationalistic way and not in a flag-waving sense. It's really more than that."

Slang and drug terms are used in the lyrics:

Travelling in a fried-out Kombi, on a hippy trail, head full of zombie.
Here 'fried-out' means overheated, Kombi refers to the Volkswagen Type 2 combination van, and having 'a head full of zombie' refers to the use of a type of marijuana. Cultural slang is also used: after the second verse the refrain is "where the beer does flow and men chunder"; 'chunder' means vomit.

The music video was filmed in a number of places, including Lake Mackenzie on Fraser Island. The video also features several litre-size cans of what appear to be Foster's Lager (although the brand is removed), a beer drunk mainly outside Australia while being marketed as Australian.

The song is a perennial favourite on Australian radio and television, and topped the charts in the U.S. and UK simultaneously in early 1983. It was later used as a theme song by the crew of Australia II in their successful bid to win the America's Cup in 1983. Men at Work played this song in the closing ceremony of the 2000 Sydney Olympics, alongside other Australian artists. It was also often played after Australian athletes had received medals during competition, as they walked around the venue on a parade lap after the medal ceremony.

Click the link below to download the following:
Video
Single Version
Helpless Automaton - B-Side
Crazy - Australian B-Side

http://www.mediafire.com/?r5vddhs55p9gf

Martika - I Feel The Earth Move

2011-11-30T10:00:00.004Z

'I Feel the Earth Move' is a song written and recorded by pop singer-songwriter Carole King. A track on King's album Tapestry, the song is one half of the double A-sided single, the flip side which was 'It's Too Late'. Together, both 'I Feel the Earth Move' and 'It's Too Late' became among the biggest mainstream pop hits for the year 1971.

Released in autumn 1989, 'I Feel the Earth Move' was the third single from Martika's self-titled debut, Martika. 'I Feel the Earth Move' reached the number 25 on the pop charts in the U.S., and number 7 in the UK and number 2 in Australia.

The high energy music video was shot during the promotional tour for this album. The song's tenure on the U.S. charts was cut short when radio stations pulled it from their playlists in the wake of the 1989 San Francisco earthquake.

Click the link below to downlaod the following:
Video
Single Version
Seismic Rhythm Mix
Alibis - B-Side

http://www.mediafire.com/?cldda9oxb00zk

Toni Basil - Shoppin From A To Z

2011-11-29T10:30:00.000Z

'Shoppin' From A to Z' is the fourth single by Toni Basil, and the third from her debut album, Word of Mouth. It was released in the US only.

After the poor performance of 'Nobody' in the UK, there was a lot of dependence on 'Shoppin' From A to Z' for its performance in the US. It peaked at number 77.

The song features a shopping list consisting of various grocery items, each beginning with a different letter of the alphabet. On the album version, it is shouted out by a chorus. However, in the single version this is replaced by comical voices saying the name of each item.

the track was also used in the TV series Fame. the episode was called 'Wishes' and was was from the 4th series.

Click the link below to download the following:
Video
Single Version
Special Club Mix
Time After time - B-side

http://www.mediafire.com/?mp0plkvkbbav9

Martika - Toy Soldiers

2011-11-29T10:00:00.003Z

'Toy Soldiers' is a song by Martika appearing on her eponymous debut album in 1989 as a ballad. The single was a number-one hit in the United States. It was sampled by Eminem in his 2004 single, 'Like Toy Soldiers'. The song's subject matter concerns drug abuse and how it can devastate the lives of the user and those who care about them.

Martika is the only one who sings throughout the song, although she is joined on the chorus by some of her former castmates from Kids Incorporated, including the Black Eyed Peas's Stacy Ferguson, Rahsaan Patterson, Renee Sands, as well as later cast members Jennifer Love Hewitt and Devyn Puett, as backup vocalists.

The song spent two weeks at number one on the Billboard Hot 100 in the U.S. and New Zealand while reaching number five in both the United Kingdom and Australia. When it spent its first week at number one, it had leapt over Madonna's 'Express Yourself' and kept that song from reaching the top spot. On Billboard's year-end chart for 1989, 'Toy Soldiers' placed number 29. It was Martika's only number-one single in the U.S., and her highest-ranking single in the United Kingdom. The single was certified Gold in the United States by the RIAA.

Click the link below to download the following:
Video
Single Version
Japanese Version
Exchange Of Hearts - B-Side

http://www.mediafire.com/?d374b7u52be4o

Danielle Dax - Cat House

2011-11-28T10:37:00.000Z

Danielle Dax is an experimental musician and producer most active from the late-1970s to the mid-1990s. She was born in Southend-on-Sea, Essex.

In 1988 Dax released her 4th single entitled 'Cat House'. It didn't chart.

Click the link below to download the following:
Single Version
House Cat - B-Side
Touch Piggy's Eyes - 12 inch Extra Track

http://www.mediafire.com/?olb5kfx7ydsa9

Journey - Behind The Music

2011-11-28T10:30:00.011Z

Well here is another of the VH1 Behind The Music that I have reccently been watching but this time from the group Journey.

Originally broadcast on 18th February 2001

VH1 Behind The Music - Journey Part 1

VH1 Behind The Music - Journey Part 2

VH1 Behind The Music - Journey Part 3

VH1 Behind The Music - Journey Part 4

Depeche Mode - Behind The Music

2011-11-25T10:39:00.000Z

Well I have recently been watching some 80's stuff and felt that it was about time to share them on here.

This is Depeche Mode's VH1 Behind The Music Documentary.

>The alternative rock group, whose singer Dave Gahan battled depression for years and survived several suicide attempts.

The band was almost torn apart, before he went to a drug rehab and cleaned himself up in 1996.

Originally broadcast on 28th February 1998

VH1 Behind The Music - Depeche Mode - Part 1

VH1 Behind The Music - Depeche Mode - Part 2

Depeche Mode - Master And Servant

2011-11-25T10:04:00.000Z

'Master and Servant' is Depeche Mode's eleventh UK single (released on August 20, 1984) and the second single from the Some Great Reward album.

Despite a lot of controversy surrounding the song, it still managed to reach number 9 in the UK Singles Chart.

'Master and Servant' comes with the 'Slavery Whip Mix', the longest 12" DM song at the time with the outro being turned into a swing version of the refrain, and the "Voxless" version which is an instrumental mix of the song.

The B-side is '(Set Me Free) Remotivate Me', its Release Mix is the 12" version. The 7" version edits out much of the beginning.

The 'Master and Servant' music video was directed by Clive Richardson.

The overtly sexual, BDSM-themed lyrics of 'Master and Servant' - complete with synthesized whip-and-chain sound effects - reportedly got the song banned by many radio stations in the United States (although the song reached the Billboard Hot 100 chart anyway, albeit only at number 87 and for only a three-week chart stay). Reportedly the song narrowly avoided a radio ban by the BBC as well, and might have been banned if the one BBC staffer who wanted to ban the record had not been away on holiday at the time the other staffers voted on whether to add 'Master and Servant' to their playlist.

Click the link below to downlaod the following:
Video
Single Version
Slavery Whip Mix
Hammerhead Mix
(Set Me Free) Remotivate Me - B-Side
(Set Me Free) Remotivate Me - 12 inch Remix

http://www.mediafire.com/?0ae46kro6xryr

Duran Duran - Behind the Music

2011-11-24T10:36:00.000Z

Well here is another of the VH1 Behind The Music doccumentaries that I have recently been watching but this time by Duran Duran.

Behind The Music: Duran Duran gave a profile of the band including a report on the group's chart success in the 1980s, as well as its formation during 1999 as a threesome.

Originally broadcast on the 4th April 1999.

On the 20th November 2010 it was shown again but this time in a remastered format bringing the fans up to date with the band and the release of new music.

VH1 Behind The Music - Durran Durran - Part 1

VH1 Behind The Music - Durran Durran - Part 2

VH1 Behind The Music - Durran Durran - Part 3

VH1 Behind The Music - Durran Durran - Part 4

Duran duran - My Own Way

2011-11-24T10:09:00.000Z

'My Own Way' is the fourth single by Duran Duran, originally released as a stand-alone single on 16 November 1981.

The single was designed as a stop-gap release to capitalise on the Top 5 success of 'Girls on Film' and to provide a gateway to the band's forthcoming second album. The 7 inch single and 12 inch versions were recorded in October 1981, well before the rest of the Rio album was recorded in the early months of 1982.

'My Own Way' was another hit, peaking at number 14 on the UK Singles Chart, and was even more successful in Australia, where it became Duran Duran's second Top 10 hit at number 10.

Despite its success, the single has often been cited by the band as their least favourite and is rarely played live. Keyboardist Nick Rhodes has expressed astonishment that 'My Own Way' performed better than 1987's 'Skin Trade', which ended the band's record of twelve consecutive Top 20 hits in the UK.

Click the link below to download the following:
Video
Single Version
Night Version
Eyes Like An angel - B-Side

http://www.mediafire.com/?pyk022qtx0kaf

Pat Benatar - All fired Up

2011-11-23T11:00:00.003Z

In 1988 Pat Benatar released her 31st siingle entitled 'All fired Up'.

This was the first single from the Wide Awake In Dreamland album.

The single made it to number 19 on the UK Singles's Chart whilte in the US the single made it to number 19 on the Billboard Hot 100 and number 2 on the Hot Mainstream Rock Tracks Charts. The single also reached number 8 in Canada and number 2 in Australia.

Click the link below to download the following:
Single Version
12 inch Version
Cool Zero - B-Side

http://www.mediafire.com/?04meund5ryjqv

Front 242

2011-11-23T10:26:00.000Z

Front 242 is a pioneering Belgian electronic music group that came into prominence during the 1980s. They are known for being the premier pioneer of electronic body music and as a major influence on the electronic and industrial music genres.

'Headhunter' is a song by the Belgian EBM band Front 242. It was released in 1988 on the album Front By Front, in two versions (Version 1.0 and Version 3.0). Version 1.0 was then released as a single, with Version 2.0 as one of the b-sides. The song was a major hit in the electronic and industrial music scenes, and Front By Front subsequently became the top selling album in the history of Wax Trax! Records.

After a long hiatus from 1993 onwards, Front 242 regrouped to re-record the song in late 1999, releasing it with multiple remixes on the dual-CD single Headhunter 2000.

Click the link beow to download the following:
V1 - 12 inch Version
Welcome To Paradise - V1 - B-Side

http://www.mediafire.com/?lsrclgm885b6w

Lionel Richie - Behind The Music

2011-11-22T10:49:00.005Z

VH1 Behind the Music - Lionel Richie

Story of Lionel Ritchie's phenomenal rise to fame--both as a Commodore and as a solo artist.

Originally broadcast on 29th November 1998

VH1 Behind The Music - Lionel Ritchie - Part 1

Vh1 Behind The Music - Lionel Ritchie - Part 2

VH1 Behind The Music - Lionel Ritchie - Part 3

Pat Benatar - Crimes Of Passion - Album

2011-11-22T10:26:00.000Z

'Crimes of Passion' is the second album by Pat Benatar, released in 1980.

It peaked at Number 2 on the Billboard 200 and produced the hits 'Hit Me with Your Best Shot' (US Number 9), 'You Better Run' (US Number 42), 'Treat Me Right' (US Number 18), plus a cover of Kate Bush's international hit, 'Wuthering Heights'.

Crimes of Passion is Benatar's highest selling album to date, certifying 5x platinum (for sales of 5 million units)

'Hell Is for Children', which was not released as an A-side single, was also a hit on album-rock stations. However, a live version of this song from her Live from Earth album was released as the B-side of her 'Love Is a Battlefield' single three years later.

The music video for the song 'You Better Run' was the second music video ever aired on MTV in 1981.

This album featured Myron Grombacher on drums, replacing Glen Alexander Hamilton.

Traclisting:
01 - Treat Me Right
02 - You Better Run
03 - Never Wanna Leave You
04 - Hit Me with Your Best Shot
05 - Hell Is for Children
06 - Little Paradise
07 - I'm Gonna Follow You
08 - Wuthering Heights
09 - Prisoner of Love
10 - Out-A-Touch

Click the link below to download the album:

http://www.mediafire.com/?fol4y089xbst0

Pat Benatar - Behind The Music

2011-11-21T10:14:00.003Z

Well Here is another of the VH1 Behind The Music tat I have recently enjoyed. It's great to find out things about the people and bands you liked back in the day. Hope you enjoy.

Rocker Pat Benatar is profiled via interviews with the singer, band mates, family members, peers and industry insiders.

Originally Broadcast on the 5th August 2001.

VH1 Behind The Music - Pat Benatar.

Laura Branigan - Hold Me - Album

2011-11-21T10:05:00.003Z

'Hold Me' is the fourth album by the singer Laura Branigan, released in 1985 on Atlantic Records.

The lead single from Branigan's fourth album, 'Spanish Eddie', was her sixth top 40 hit in two and a half years, although it failed to enter the top 20.

The following single release, 'Hold Me', was a top 40 dance hit and her introduction of the rock ballad 'I Found Someone' (co-written by Michael Bolton) reached even higher on the AC chart.

Despite the weak sales, the album has many of her fan-favourite songs. Not only did she continue to perform 'Spanish Eddie' in concerts throughout her career, but she began a life-long tradition of closing every show with an encore of 'Forever Young', the ballad that was made a cult hit by German band Alphaville.

Traclisting:
01 - Hold Me
02 - Maybe Tonight
03 - Foolish Lullaby
04 - Spanish Eddie
05 - Forever Young
06 - When I'm with You
07 - I Found Someone
08 - Sanctuary
09 - Tenderness
10 - When the Heat Hits the Streets

Clcik the link below to download the album

http://www.mediafire.com/?jbjt6d09gjdnb

Brenda Russell - Piano In The Dark

2011-11-18T10:13:00.004Z

On Tuesday I was reading Chris Daniel's 80's Man blog and he posted the song 'Piano in the Dark' by Brenda Russell.

Well I realised that I had also not included it here on my little blog, and as I love this song I decided to rectify this little error. So here it is.

'Piano In The Dark' was released in early 1988, nine years after Russell's previous charting single on the Billboard Hot 100 (1979's 'So Good, So Right').

'Piano In The Dark' was the first single to be released from the 1988 album 'Get Here'.

The song gained heavy airplay and became Russell's biggest hit, peaking at number 6 on the Billboard Hot 100, number 8 on the R&B Chart and number 3 on the Adult Contemporary Chart. The song was also a moderate hit in the UK, peaking at 23.

The song earned Russell three Grammy Award nominations in 1989, including one for Song of the Year.

The B-Side 'In The Thick Of It' was taken from Russell's 1979 self titled album.

I have to say that like chris I too remember listening to this song on the late night radio stations that played the slow music as I went to sleep. Listening to it again is just a delight as I just love this soulfull classic song and I hope you enjoy it too.

Click the link below to download the following:
Video
Single Version
In The Thick Of It - B-Side

http://www.mediafire.com/?7z4z94ps8uvkq

Ultravox - Love's Great Adventure

2011-11-18T10:00:00.000Z

'Love's Great Adventure' is a single released by Ultravox on the 12th October 1984, peaking at number 12 in the UK Singles Chart.
The style of this single is different from any of their preceding Lament singles, aiming for a more lightweight, pop-oriented approach.

The music video features the band members in a humorous parody of Indiana Jones, with Midge Ure being chased across deserts and forests by a ruthless treasure hunter. Midge Ure stated in his autobiography, If I Was, that the aim of the single and its video was to promote Ultravox as having a sense of humour, away from the seriousness of their previous releases. Also in the video is Ure's future wife Annabel Giles. The music in the video stops halfway through where a seemingly exhausted Midge Ure, tired from minutes of endless running around has to sit down for a moment and take a breather. He rests for a moment then takes a breath before standing up recovered and continuing with the song at which point the music starts up once again.

The song, based on a riff for a Levi's jeans commercial which was not taken up by the company, was not released on a studio album, instead appearing on their 1984 compilation album The Collection.

Click the link below to download the following:
Video
single Version
Extended Version
White China - Live - B-Side
White China - Special Mix

http://www.mediafire.com/?0e7246jmq216p

Culture Club - Sydney Breakfast TV Interview

2011-11-17T18:13:00.003Z

This is an interview on the Sydney Breakfast TV on the 15th November 2011. They are talking about the new Album and Tour for next year and playiing at Sydney on New Years Eve with other bands including Pet Shop Boys.

Tour dates have not been anounced yet.

Just wanted to share this with you all.

Interview on Sydney Breakfast TV - 15th November 2011

Boy George New Book And Single - Turn To Dust

2011-11-17T10:00:00.000Z

An official, definitive legacy edition of a stunning new coffee table book ‘King of Queens’ by legendary pop icon Boy George will be released on December 12th 2011 by Kitchen Sink Publishing.

The book reveals a deep and personal journey through Boy George’s fascinating life, from conception until now, in stunning imagery and reflective commentary. Contents include many unseen personal photos, illustrations, artist photos, school reports, baby book, rare memorabilia, letters and other fascinating insights.

It’s strictly limited edition – only 999 unique pieces will ever exist, each one uniquely numbered, signed and certificated. Each 18”x12” book includes a 10” picture disc vinyl, hand built into the back cover, featuring unheard and unreleased material from over the years. Each book features a unique centrefold spread, personalised by Boy George himself! Quarter bound in luxury litho finish, hand sewn and bound in Italy using only the finest sourced materials and presented in a silkscreen printed cloth-bound clamshell case, featuring embossed blocking and gold leaf finishing.

Retail Price: £499 + P&P

Turn 2 Dust remixes are now officially confirmed as being released on Monday 5th September 2011– releasing on Beatport and iTunes exclusively, then across all digital download stores from 3rd October. New Reggae remix package will be released on October 31, 2011. Also available is a stunning new 7" single released on October 10, 2011 for 'Turn 2 Dust' & 'Go Your Own Way' were two of the stand out singles from the album, and as such has been given a limited & collectable 7" release with a surprising twist! Both tracks have been given an intoxicating reggae rework courtesy of the highly acclaimed Kevan Frost, whose production & musical journeys have been associated with Boy George since the 90s. Highly collectable & in limited pressed numbers, this authentic looking reggae 7" is sure to be a real head turner in any serious collectors possession. This limited edtion beautiful 7" single will be released with two new remixes of Turn 2 Dust as well as Go Your Own Way as the b-side.

Sida A Turn 2 Dust (Kevan Frost Mix)
Side A Turn 2 Dust (Dubvesive Mix)
Side B Go Your Own Way (Dubvesive Mix

Boy George - Turn To Dust

Boy George - Keep Me In Mind

2011-11-16T10:21:00.004Z

'Keep Me In Mind' was Boy George second solo single release.

Released in 1987 this single was the follow up to the hit single 'Everything I Own'.

Taken from the album Sold the single was not as successful as it's predecessor as it reached number 29 in the UK singles charts.

However the single faired better in the Italian charts as it reached number 3.

Click the link below to download the following:
Video
Single Version
State Of Love - B-Side
I Prey - Extra Track
I Prey - Shortened Version

http://www.mediafire.com/?579isvjncj949

Boy George Interview

2011-11-16T10:03:00.002Z

Broadcast on 12th November 2011 is this BBC Radio 2 Boy George Interview with Graham Norton.

You will need to fast forward to about 1 and half hours into the programme to get to the interview but it is a great interview, talking about the release on vinyl of the single and the new book.
This is only available for the next 3 days so be quick. If anyone knows how to download this so I can share it properly please get in touch.

Enjoy

http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/console/b0171p6n

Akiko Yano - Ai Ga Nakucha Ne

2011-11-15T11:12:00.004Z

Akiko Yano is a Japanese pop and jazz musician and singer. She was born as Akiko Suzuki (Suzuki Akiko) in Tokyo and raised in Aomori, Aomori, and later began her singing career in the mid-1970s. Her vocals and singing style has often been compared to the contemporary English singer Kate Bush

Akiko Yano released her 9th studio album 'Ai Ga Nakucha Ne' in 1982. Yano had been working with members of Yellow Magic Orchestra and the group Japan who helped Yano to record this album in London.

David Sylvian sang on the track 'Good Night' while both Mick Karn, Steve Jansen and Ryuichi Sakamoto played and sometimes provided backing voculs on some of the tracks.

Tracklist:
01 - 愛がなくちゃね - (Ai Ga Nakucha Ne)
02 - 悲しくてやりきれない - (Kanashiku Te Yari Kire Nai)
03 - What's Got In Your Eyes?
04 - おいしい生活 - (Oishii Seikatsu)
05 - みちでバッタリ - (Michi De Battari)
06 - 女たちよ男たちよ - (Onna Tachi Yo Otoko Tachi Yo)
07 - あいするひとよ - (Aisuru Hito Yo)
08 - Sleep On My Baby
09 - Another Wedding Song
10- どんなときも□どんなときも□どんなときも - (Donna Toki Mo Donna Toki Mo Donna Toki Mo)
11 -Good Night

Click the link below to download the album:

http://www.mediafire.com/?37u2qjxuh5kk0

Billy Idol - Eyes Without A Face

2011-11-15T10:12:00.002Z

'Eyes Without a Face' is a song by Billy Idol, co-written with guitarist Steve Stevens from Idol's 1983 album Rebel Yell. The song is softer and more ballad-like than most of the album's other singles.

Released on May 29, 1984, this was the second single from the Rebel Yell album. It was very successful and reached a high of number 4 on the Billboard Charts, becoming Idol's first Top 10 hit in the U.S. The single also made it to number 18 on the UK Singles Chart.

The song is notable for the female voice of Perri Lister that sings 'Les yeux sans visage' (French for 'eyes without a face') as a background chorus.

The title of the song refers to French director Georges Franju's movie 'Les yeux sans visage'.

The video was directed by David Mallet and begins with a close-up of Idol's sneering face, interspersed with three unidentifiable ('faceless') female singers. During the song's bridge, the scene changes to Steve Stevens soloing on guitar and Idol in familiar punk poses while dancing in a flaming hexagon surrounded by hooded acolytes. The imagery of the video contrasts with the relative softness of the song and its lyrics of longing.

Reportedly filmed in a marathon 30-hour session, the video was released in June 1984 and subsequently nominated for MTV Video Music Awards for "Best Editing" and "Best Cinematography". The video's extensive filming near fog machines, lighting, and fire sources nearly fused Idol's contact lenses. At the conclusion of filming, Idol attempted to leave, and promptly passed out on the studio lawn from exhaustion. Initially mistaken for a vagrant, a police officer who roused Idol was alarmed at his reddened eyes. The officer immediately brought Idol to a local hospital, where doctors were able to coax out the lenses, saving his vision.

Click the link below to download the following:
Video
Single Version
The Dead Next Door - B-Side

http://www.mediafire.com/?3qua9wp106p4v

Japan - Life In Tokyo

2011-11-14T10:50:00.007Z

'Life in Tokyo' was Japan's 5th single.

Released originally in 1979, on the Hansa Record Label, the single failed to make any impact on the UK Singles Charts.

Fast forward to 1981 and Japan are having some success on the Virgin Record Label. Due to this Hansa decided to cash in and release the single for a 2nd time. Unfortunatly this didn't pay off as the single failed to reach the charts.

We move again to 1982 and Japan are making it big now. Hansa decide to re-mix the single and try releasing it again this time with the bands approval. With Sylvian co-ordinating the Sleeve design, this time the relase pays off as the single made it to number 28 in the UK Singles Chart.

A classic Japan song with a big Giorgio Moroder production.

Click the link below to download the following:
Video
Single Version
Original 12 inch Version - 1979
Part 2 - 1979 B-Side
'Souvenir From Japan' Mix - 1981
Assemblage Cassette Bonus Remix - 1981
Steve Nye - 7 inch Remix - 1982
Steve Nye - 12 inch Remix - 1982

European Son - 1981 B-Side
European son - John Punter 12 inch Mix - 1981 12 inch B-Side
Theme - 1982 B-Side

http://www.mediafire.com/?i373g21fz10gl

The Communards - So cold The Night

2011-11-14T10:00:00.004Z

Following the number 1 hit of 'Don't Leave Me This Way', The Communards released their 4th single in 1986 entitled 'So Cold The Night'.

This was the bands last single to be released from the bands debut album Communards.

'So Cold The Night' became the bands 2nd top ten hit in the UK Singles Charts as the single made it to number 8 in the charts.

Click the link below to download the following:
Single Version
Full Version
Extended Version
When The Walls Come Tumbling Down - B-Side
Never No More - 2nd B-Side

http://www.mediafire.com/?tccvs5e7fw3n6

Remebrance Day

2011-11-11T10:45:00.003Z

We Shall Remember! To donate go to:

http://www.poppy.org.uk/

World As One

2011-11-11T10:40:00.002Z

As it is Remembrance day today I thought today would be a great opportunity to plug this organisation.

'World as One' are an organisation who are committed to spreading the seeds of peace Worldwide. Below is their mision statement and a video where the board members talk about the organisation.

For more information and to donate to the cause go to their website:

http://waomovement.org/

'World As One' is an organization that is committed to creating a world where mankind is inspired to embody and practice peace principles that work for all. The purpose of this organization is to increase global connection through oneness and partnership as individuals interact as global citizens. World As One is aligned and focused to implement initiatives of peace to individuals, communities and children of the world.

A flag is the initial representation of this organization, a Universal peace flag that signifies peace for all beings on planet Earth. Every country of the world is honored on this flag, remembering that we are all One. The intention is that the flag shall fly in all nations and open up connection through deepening conversation of practicing of global citizenship.

A powerful element of education works hand and hand with the World As One flag. It is here that principles of global citizenship are brought forward to the children of the world. The educational foundation is based on oneness, seeing beyond borders, embracing all mankind, and teaching respect for our unique differences as well as similarities.

World As One is an organization with the belief that it is possible for individuals on the planet to live in harmony and create a peace filled world that works for all. With this philosophy, we aim to accept that peace is not only possible, but also probable and attainable. "

Fashion - Eye Talk

2011-11-11T10:35:00.003Z

Fashion released their 10th single in 1983 entitled 'Eye Talk'.

Released ofter the moderate success of their previous single 'Love Shadow', 'Eye Talk' managed to make it to number 69 in the UK Singles Chart.

Click the link below to download the following:
Single Version
Mutant Version
Eye Talk - Talk Version
Slow Down - B-Side

http://www.mediafire.com/?5it9s6dja6i85

Fatal Charm - Paris

2011-11-11T10:13:00.003Z

Fatal Charm (also known as The Fatal Charm from 1978–1979) were a punk then rock/pop band from Nottingham, England.

Formed in 1978 by Paul Arnall, they quickly became a three-piece and then a four-piece.

By 1980, the line-up was;

Paul Arnall (guitar, vocals, songwriter)
David Barker (keyboards)
Kevin Davies (bass guitar)
Kevin Gallagher (drums)

As might be expected, the collapse of various recording contracts precipitated frequent changes to the personnel, but the addition of vocalist Sarah Simmonds in the same year breathed new life into the band and enabled Arnall to concentrate on his writing and musicianship.

Supporting big name acts like Ultravox and Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark on tour, ensured that the band got some media coverage, including an appearance on the first ever (1982) transmission of Channel 4's groundbreaking music programme 'The Tube', hosted by Jools Holland and Paula Yates.

'Paris' had origianlly been released in 1979 on company records. Backed with the tracks 'Glitterbug' and 'Out Of My Head', the single failed to enter the charts.

'Paris' would again see the light of day. This time produced by Midge Ure of Ultravox the single was again released in 1981 but this time backed by the song 'Christine'. Again the single failed to trouble the charts.

I never got around to getting the first single with the tracks 'glitterbug' and 'Out Of My Head'. If anyone has this released and is willing to share please contact me.

Click the link below to download the following:
Paris - Video
Paris - Single Version
Christine - Unrrleased Video
Christine - B-Side

http://www.mediafire.com/?hmlcvl21v9kl4

Blue Zone - Thinking About His Baby / Big Thing

2011-11-10T10:44:00.000Z

Before Lisa Stansfield made it big in 1989, first with Cold Cut and then as a solo artist, she first appeared in a band called Blue Zone. The band added UK to the name in the US due to a name dispute.

The band consisted of:

Lisa Stansfield on Lead Vocals
Ian Devany on Trombobe, Keyboard, Guitar and Backing Voculs Andy Morris on Trumpet, Fluglehorn, Electronic Keyboard and Backing Voculs.

'Thinking About His Baby' was released as a singe in 1987. On the B-Side was the track Big Thing.

These were then flipped in 1988 when the single 'Big thing' was given a release as a 12 inch single and promo single. Backed with the previous A-Side the 12 inch also included the Big Dub Club Mix.

'Thinking About His Baby' eventually reached number 79 in the UK singles Chart while 'Big Thing' failed to chart in 1988.

Click the link below to download the following:

Thinking About His Baby:
Video
Extended Version

Big Thing
single Version
Extended Version
Big Dub Club Mix

http://www.mediafire.com/?9augs160c11c7

Lisa Stansfield - This Is The Right Time

2011-11-10T10:00:00.003Z

'This Is the Right Time' is a song by British singer Lisa Stansfield, released during the summer of 1989 from her first album, Affection.

The song became her first single to reach the UK singles chart, where it reached number 13 and remained on the chart for eight weeks.

In the U.S., the single was released in the fall of 1990, where it peaked at number 21 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart.

The song also reached number 1 on the American dance chart, her second song to top this chart ('All Around the World' had gone to number 1 on the dance chart earlier in 1990).

Click the link below to download the following:
Video
Single Version
Extended Remix
Miles Ahead Mix
Affection - B-Side

http://www.mediafire.com/?c90e9td6cis0j