Kajagoogoo 'Big Apple'

Chart Peak:

YouTube

Well, I suppose you can't accuse the compilers here of taking sides. We've already had Limahl on his own after he was fired, so here are the rest of the band without him - bassist Nick Beggs took over lead vocals for the remainder of their career.

This is another one I'd never heard before, and I don't feel I can disagree with the YouTube commenters who say this was better than 'Too Shy'. Beggs doesn't seem any worse a singer than Limahl, and the song is mildly less ridiculous than their other hit, although still somewhat trite: I don't know that we really needed a song to tell us that the pace of life in New York City is fast, thanks. Whilst the music is competent (maybe they'd got a bit more practiced since 'Too Shy'?) it doesn't seem to me to capture much of an NYC atmosphere - but then again I've never been there, so I can only assume that. Although there isn't really anything wrong with this, it's not hard to tell why it's not been much remembered by posterity.

Either way, though, this does make Kajagoogoo the first act to appear twice on a Now album, unless you consider Limahl to have done so already. They're definitely the first to appear twice on one and then never make it to another.

Available on: Islands

Kajagoogoo 'Too Shy'

Chart peak: 1 (2 weeks)

YouTube

I was going to say this couldn't be more 80s if it tried. Except that it probably was trying. They've got everything there, from the odd synths and the electric drumkit to the slap bass. And that's even before you see the video, or before I found out it was co-produced by a member of Duran Duran. I did remember hearing this at the time, particularly on the end-of-year chart countdown, but it's not one I've heard very often since, still less paid much attention to. I recalled it as having a certain goofy charm, and perhaps it does still have that, but it's less likeable than I thought nowadays, as if it's a little too eager to please. Also, like a lot of music from this time it's very flabby, with a lot of uneventful sections so that even the usual version sounds longer than it really is - I didn't brave the 12" mix. Ironically, the video rather exacerbates this by showing the band packing up and heading home before the song even finishes.
Lyrically, there's not a lot to this song (not that people would be expecting much) although it's possibly the only Number One single to include the word "dilate" - and in a verse which associates this with "modern medicine" suggesting a rather dirtier song than I'd previously spotted. Not entirely sure I wanted to know that. Undoubtedly the most impressive part of this is Nick Beggs' bassline - fancy having a crack yourself? Slight as it is, though, you could hardly conjure a better package for overnight success in 1983, and this duly did the basis, romping to the top of the UK chart (before any of Duran Duran's own records had done so) and going Top 5 in the US. But as we now know, it wasn't going to last and by the time this Now album arrived, Limahl and the instrumental fabric of the band had gone their seperate ways, not to work together again until 2007. But more of that later.

Available on: White Feathers