Now 1 conclusion

Thirty tracks down, and what have we learnt? Well, I've discovered that I'd heard more of them than I thought I had. Will I be picking up a copy of the re-release on the way home from work? No. But I do think I have some sort of understanding of some of the songs now, even if I wouldn't claim to like any more of then than I used to.
Since Now 1 (as it was retrospectively called) is the only one in the regular series that tries to cover an entire year, I suppose we have to ask how accurate a reflection of the time it is; well there's certainly more Kajagoogoo than I remember. Also no Spandau Ballet, who had one of the few Number One singles of 1983 not represented. What I think has struck me most is how much of the album seems to conform to a stereotypical sound of the time.

One interesting comparison point: a series of digital-only compilations were released a couple of years ago, so we can get a sort of 21st-century perception of the year (admittedly compiled exclusively from the vaults of EMI and Universal). Here's what they came up with:

1 Red Red Wine - UB40
2 Karma Chameleon - Culture Club
3 Is There Something I Should Know - Duran Duran
4 Let's Dance - David Bowie
5 Beat Surrender - The Jam (this is actually from 1982, although it was still in the charts in January 1983)
6 Steppin' Out - Joe Jackson
7 I Won't Let The Sun Go Down On Me - Nik Kershaw
8 Temptation - Heaven 17
9 The Sun Goes Down (Living It Up) - Level 42
10 Tonight, I Celebrate My Love - Peabo Bryson & Roberta Flack
11 Too Shy - Kajagoogoo
12 (This Is Not A) Love Song - Public Image Ltd
13 Dear Prudence - Siouxsie & The Banshees
14 Speak Like A Child - The Style Council
15 Pale Shelter - Tears For Fears
16 Our Lips Are Sealed - Fun Boy Three
17 Only You - The Flying Pickets (this is on Now II)
18 Every Breath You Take - The Police
19 The Sun Goes Down (Living It Up) [extended version] - Level 42
20 Too Shy [12-Inch version] - Kajagoogoo

Draw your own conclusions there.
Meanwhile, my vaguely-defined mission to understand the success of the Now albums continues. So you'll be "pleased" to hear that I shall be doing another one shortly as soon as I've got some more material on the Hit Parade blog.

EDIT: It turns out James Masterton, who unlike me did buy the thing, has had the same idea