A Concise Guide To Eighties' Music, Karl Vorderman [best thriller novels to read TXT] 📗

a less successful acting career. In fact she was such a household name that perhaps every High Court judge had probably even heard of her. Popular singers come and go but the genuinely talented Madonna was here to stay, like it or not.

The song of the month for August 1987
I Just Can't Stop Loving You by Michael Jackson With Siedah Garrett (peak chart position: No.1)
Michael Jackson renewed his onslaught upon both album and singles charts with ten new mouthwatering items from his exciting new long player, entitled 'Bad'. Although 'The Way You Make Me Feel' would be my choice as the best of a very good bunch, the first track to be lifted from the LP was the love song 'I Just Can't Stop Loving You.' Siedah Garrett was drafted in for this duet, but not before the superstar opened with the autobiographical lines:"A lot of people misunderstand me/That's because they don't really know me at all." 'Bad' was a worthy successor to the giants, 'Off The Wall' and 'Thriller'. Michael sang of being 'bad', but 'mad' seemed more apt.

The song of the month for September 1987
Kings Cross by The Pet Shop Boys (not released as a single)
Pop duos were in fashion in the eighties, what with the success of Erasure, Soft Cell, and Yazoo to name but three, but the best of them all was actually the Pet Shop Boys who actually released an album called 'Actually' in September. This project boasted such heavyweights as a collaboration with the pop legend, Dusty Springfield, as well as the big hits 'Heart', 'It's A Sin', and 'Rent'. However, the closing track 'Kings Cross' is one of the great undiscovered treasures in popular music. This atmospheric number is one of the highlights of the 1980s.

The song of the month for October 1987
China In Your Hands by T'Pau (peak chart position: No.1)
Carole Decker and her crew enjoyed the distinction of providing the British hit parade with the six hundredth Number One single. 'China In Your Hands' was an excellent pop song which deservedly lingered at the summit for a full month. The track featured a fine vocal performance from Decker as well as an equally good cameo from the saxophone. T'Pau were not one-hit wonders, yet they failed to replicate this commendable triumph.

The song of the month for November 1987
Build by The Housemartins (peak chart position: No.15)
The likeable, self-deprecating Housemartins hailed from Humberside, a fact they reminded everyone of with their album title 'London 0 Hull 4'. Paul Heaton and the lads had enjoyed a highly satisfactory 1986, courtesy of the chart-topping 'Caravan Of Love' and the jolly 'Happy Hour'. They had less commercial success thereafter but they did construct the admirable 'Build' which made an incursion into the Top Twenty near the end of 1987.

The song of the month for December 1987
Fairytale Of New York by The Pogues, Featuring Kirsty MacColl (peak chart position: No.2)
Shane MacGowan became one of the most recognisable faces on the British music scene, with enough tooth decay to keep several dentists occupied. This Anglo-Irish vocalist remained sober long enough to record one of the great Christmas songs in the history of popular music. Kirsty MacColl, daughter of English folk singer Ewan MacColl, played the role of MacGowan's disillusioned other half in this mini-epic. Shane sang of envisaging "a better time when all our dreams come true". Unfortunately, Kirsty died in a boating accident in 2000, aged 41.

ALBUM OF THE YEAR FOR 1987:
The Joshua Tree by U2 (released in March)
Side 1: Side 2:
1. Where the Streets Have No Name; 5:38 1. Red Hill Mining Town; 4:54
2. I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For; 4:38 2. In God's Country; 2:57
3. With or Without You; 4:56 3. Trip Through Your Wires; 3:33
4. Bullet the Blue Sky; 4:32 4. One Tree Hill; 5:23
5. Running to Stand Still; 4:18 5. Exit; 4:13
6. Mothers of the Disappeared; 5:12
Did the 1980s produce a better album than this? Here U2 make the transition from promising rock group to superstars with a project which was a refreshing break from the alpha male, macho posturing nonsense that characterised most 'great' rock outfits. Instead of which Bono and the gang get all introspective and spiritual with 'I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For'. More than anything the album reveals the band's conscience as they draw attention to the plight of South America's 'Mothers of the Disappeared'. 'The Joshua Tree' is a product of U2's growing fascination with America, be it the music scene, the culture, or the politics. The Dubliners were both intrigued and horrified by their discovery of America, north and south. This is conveyed on this seminal record. The fabulous foursome proceeded to world domination in the two decades hereafter, though it is doubtful whether anything they created quite compared with 'The Joshua Tree'. This magnificent LP is best appreciated in the dark, with the lights turned off, and sits comfortably alongside any classic album from any era.

1988
The song of the month for January 1988
Gimme Hope Jo'anna by Eddy Grant (peak chart position: No.7)
Veteran Caribbean performer Eddy Grant had put in appearances in the British hit parade in the two previous decades with the likes of the poptastic 'Baby Come Back' with the Equals in 1968 and then the formidable 'Living On The Frontline' in 1979. Guyana's greatest singer stepped out of Electric Avenue to address the running sore of apartheid. Far from appealing to a lover called Joanna, Grant was urging Johannesburg to come to her senses and embrace democracy. The worthy sentiments were eventually heeded a few years later.

The song of the month for February 1988
I'm Not Scared by Eighth Wonder (peak chart position: No.7)
1988 was a year that witnessed much chart action from the fairer sex as the likes of Belinda Carlisle, Jane Wiedlin, Tiffany, and Kylie Minogue all invaded the airwaves. However, there was a new trend for groups fronted by an eye-catching female, as pioneered by Blondie and the Pretenders. Transvision Vamp and Voice Of The Beehive were two such bands along with the short-lived Eighth Wonder. The latter featured the blonde bombshell Patsy Kensit. Patsy and her male companions released the fine pop song, 'I'm Not Scared'. They had previously contributed the excellent 'Having It All' for the 'Absolute Beginners' soundtrack.

The song of the month for March 1988
I Pronounce You by The Madness (peak chart position: No.44)
Camden Town's finest act had called it a day, and effectively split in two. The likeable Suggs and co-vocalist Carl Smyth decided to remain slightly mad and they consequently released an album which flopped, but which contained a number of quirky delights, such as the minor hit 'I Pronounce You'. This unusual wedding song included the sound of a sitar from the semi-mad guitarist Chris Foreman. It's worth checking out, if you're mad.

The song of the month for April 1988
There Is Always Something There To Remind Me by The Housemartins (peak chart position: No.35)
Shortly before the Housemartins flew the nest and reinvented themselves in the Beautiful South and in the guise of Fatboy Slim, they signed off with the delightful 'There Is Always Something There To Remind Me' which should not be confused with Sandie Shaw's superb Number One from 1964. Hull's greatest foursome released a 'quite good' compilation which amusingly detailed the impact of their songs upon the likes of New Zealand.

The song of the month for May 1988
With A Little Help From My Friends by Wet Wet Wet (peak chart position: No.1)
After the monumental triumph of Band Aid, there seemed no end to pop acts who wished to volunteer for a charity single. Now it was the turn of Scotland's Wet Wet Wet who shrewdly dipped into the Beatles' catalogue, thus ensuring a smash hit. This was the second time that this Sergeant Pepper track had been successfully covered. To be fair, both Joe Cocker's version and this pop interpretation were improvements on the original. Meanwhile, Billy Bragg was on the flip side,with his attempt at the Fab Four's 'She's Leaving Home'.

The song of the month for June 1988
Breakfast In Bed by UB40 With Chrissie Hynde (peak chart position: No.6)
Whilst Wet Wet Wet delighted many with their breezy cover version, UB40 and their old mate Chrissie Hynde re-united for a bash at an old reggae hit.