4 December 1982 'Mirror Man' made it to number one for a week in Ireland but was kept off the UK top spot by 'Beat Surrender', The Jam's farewell single. Neither track shows these bands at their best. This was The Human League's first new music since 'Don't You Want Me' a year earlier; few … Continue reading The Human League – ‘Mirror Man’ →

6 November 1982 An '80s icon arrives. I was far too young at the time to be aware of any controversy, prurience or debate: for me, Boy George was Boy George, as fundamental a part of the '80s pop ecosystem as Top of the Pops. About his band, I had no strong views either; there … Continue reading Culture Club – ‘Do You Really Want To Hurt Me’ →

30 October 1982 Aside from 'Fame' the theme song, I also remember a Fame single called 'High Fidelity' but I don't know this 'Starmaker'. So, as I did with 'Stars On 45', I will listen to this LIVE for the first time as I write this. What am I expecting? Well, even though the title … Continue reading The Kids from Fame – ‘Starmaker’ →

16 October 1982 It wasn't the case in my family, as our parents didn't listen to pop music radio, but one friend of mine and her siblings spent many '80s mealtimes handing each other condiments to the air of "pass the ketchup on the left hand side" with no notion of what a 'dutchie' was. … Continue reading Musical Youth – ‘Pass The Dutchie’ →

2 October 1982 The most popular type of music in the world is soft rock. We can see that today with the stadium-filling success of Coldplay, Ed Sheeran and The Script, acts who draw heavy influence from U2. The word 'bland' immediately comes to mind, if only because they seem to try to appeal to … Continue reading Chicago – ‘Hard To Say I’m Sorry’ →

11 September 1982 Anyone who's a member of a sports club has probably been asked to fill out a Q&A or profile for the club website or newsletter, a get-to-know-your-teammates sort of thing. One of the standard questions is along the lines of 'What music do you listen to for motivation?' — the expectation being … Continue reading Survivor – ‘Eye Of The Tiger’ →

14 August 1982 If 'Fame' was huge in 1982, 'Come On Eileen' was stratospheric. It was everywhere then and, unlike any other non-Christmas '80s record, it still is. At any family gathering or celebration you know the DJ will play it, and this is probably how people have experienced it most. At the time, being … Continue reading Dexys Midnight Runners – ‘Come On Eileen’ →

24 July 1982 The lasting legacy of Fame is a wry smile at the notion of legwarmers. There had been a film two years earlier, but the TV series is what caught the world's imagination. Not being an avid watcher as a small child—it was a serious drama—I can only speculate at why it was … Continue reading Irene Cara – ‘Fame’ →

17 July 1982 I don't get it. Was there a big 'South Pacific' revival that year? A Captain Sensible cargo cult? Or is it simply that the critical mass of 'children's record' plus 'stage musical record' plus 'novelty record' overheated into a number one hit? Obviously as a small child back then I was aware … Continue reading Captain Sensible – ‘Happy Talk’ →