Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark 'Locomotion'

Chart Peak: 5

YouTube

You can tell we're back in the mid-80s here, because this track features a synthesised steel-drum solo, something that could only have been countenanced in a hit single for a fairly brief period. Still, it was an acceptable thing to do in 1984, and scored the duo their fourth Top 5 single, though only their second not about Joan Of Arc. That's a cute little fact anyway, but it does point to the move they were making at this point to slightly less arty, slightly more directly pop-focused material.

They're clearly trying to play the old trick of setting a downbeat lyric to chirpier music here, but that's a difficult thing to get right and whilst the latter is pretty much sorted they fall down somewhat on the former. As Andy McCluskey sings of "crossing every ocean for the sake of locomotion" the song is obviously supposed to be about restlessness, but the finished track is just too smooth and orderly to convey that sentiment - whether that's an intentional commercial decision or just a result of synths in that era not being able to cope with complex rhythms I'm not sure, but either way the meaning is lost beneath the gloss. Even the brass section, apparently arranged by no less than Tony Visconti and played by real people in the Netherlands, sounds like a cheap keyboard preset. Still, it does at least work as a pop song, with that low backing vocal of the "crossing every ocean" lyric an indelible hook. And the shaped picture disc does look pretty cool.

On a side-note, this was also the opening track on the Now 3 VHS tape, and one of only six tracks common to the video and audio versions of the title.

Also appearing on: Now 4, 8, 20, 25, 34
Available on: The OMD Singles

Duran Duran 'The Reflex'

Chart Peak: 1 (4 weeks)

YouTube

FLEX-FLEX-FLEX!


Yes, for the next couple of months we're going way way back. Back to the days when the Now albums were new enough that they needed to assert that the tracks were by the original artists (luckily they weren't still claiming that on Now 34) and to underline this with pictures of those artists on the front and rear; for the penultimate time, as it turned out, with Lionel Richie's dodgy tache on the front of Now 4 seemingly putting paid to the idea thereafter. Our porcine friend, so familiar from the early advertising, only lasted one more volume, bowing out on Now 5 - DANISH BACON FACTORIES are thanked on the back cover here for his presence.

Now 3 starts with one of the definitive tracks of the early 1980s from arguably the biggest band of the time (and certainly the biggest band of the time on EMI, which was handy for licensing). Duran Duran are among the handful of acts claiming a hat-trick of appearances with this album, and are promoted to opening track for the first time. Fans of trivia will be interested to note that it's the second consecutive opener to involve somebody called Roger Taylor, both as writer and performer.
So successful that an entire chain of retro nightclubs is now named after it, 'The Reflex' was Duran Duran's second and last single to top the UK chart but their first to do so in the US, pretty good going for the third single off an already successful album. The secret weapon is of course a single-specific remix by Nile Rodgers, meaning all the fans would buy it again and that the track was more appealing to the casual buyer as well. Certainly, the repeated vocals pastiching hip-hop scratching couldn't be more of their time and it's strange to think that there was ever a time when it would be considered modern. They, and the admittedly quite good bassline, lend the track some semblance of dancefloor credibility as Simon Le Bon wails on about something he thinks is very deep and philosophical, although by the time he's complaining on the second verse that "they won't slow down the roundabout" he sounds more like a petulant small child. I actually was a small child in 1984 and even I thought some of this why-y-y-y-y stuff was a little bit silly, but that seems typical of Duran's desire to have it both ways, to claim the teenyboppers' pocket money and to think of themselves as serious artists. The combination of po-facedness and inanity often seems to ruin the fun.


Also appearing on: 1, 4, 5, 8, 13, 24, 25, 31
Available on: Pure Gold

Now 4 CD round-up

One final piece of business to wrap up Now 4 is the CD release which carries over the numbering of the LP it coincided with, even though it's not the fourth CD and there's so little in common with the other formats that they'd struggle to be classed as the same album in the charts; the artwork is different of course, because two of the four acts who stare out at you from the cover of the vinyl and tape aren't even on the CD. Still, despite the tenous connection between the two records, I thought I should record the content, or at least paste it off the internet...

1. Duran Duran 'The Reflex' (video) ^{Originally included on Now 3}
   
2. Ray Parker Jr. 'Ghostbusters (Searchin for the Spirit)'
3. Culture Club 'The War Song'
4. John Waite 'Missing You'
5. Orchestral Manoeuvres In The Dark 'Locomotion' (video) ^{Originally included on Now 3}
6. UB40 'If It Happens Again'
7. Tina Turner 'What's Love Got to Do with It' (video) ^{Originally included on Now 3}
8. Bronski Beat 'Why?'
9. The Style Council 'Shout to the Top!'
10. Phil Collins 'Against All Odds (Take a Look at Me Now)' (video) ^{Originally included on Now 3}
11. Giorgio Moroder & Philip Oakey 'Together In Electric Dreams'
12. Julian Lennon 'Too Late for Goodbyes'
13. Status Quo 'The Wanderer'
14. Thompson Twins 'Doctor! Doctor!'
15. Queen 'Radio Ga Ga' ^{Originally included on Now 2}

By sneaking in selections from early in 1984, this seems to equate to a more consistent collection than the standard version, and Queen certainly offer a more satisfying finale than Eugene Wilde. That said, my favourite track from the entire album is absent and it's sort of a pity in retrospect that 'Listen To Your Father' didn't get a CD release. Either way not many people jumped at the chance to pay more for a shorter album and this has now become such a rarity that it's reputed to change hands for over £200 on the rare occasions one comes up for sale, presumably to collectors only.

By the way, I think all this makes 'The Reflex' the only track to have opened two Now albums, albeit only on a technicality.

UB40 'If It Happens Again'

Chart Peak: 9

YouTube

Another song I remember hearing a lot at home for some reason; in fact I tend to associate it particularly with the Feargal Sharkey track, possibly because they both have that dramatic brass punch. 'If It Happens Again' was their first self-penned hit after the Labour Of Love covers set that's represented twice on the first Now album. As such, they'd already passed their artistic peak so far as I'm concerned, but they had a few good pop songs left in them and this is one of them.

However, it's hard to agree with the comment on this other upload that it "hardly sounds like it's an 80s hit." In fact one of the most notable elements of this track is the use of electronic drums and other synthesisers alongside the traditional instrumentation, in line with contemporary trends in reggae. The grouchy lyric suits the whiny quality in Ali Campbell's voice quite well and the only major flaw is that they seem to run out of ideas too long before the end, and that video is a bit creepy. Otherwise though, this is about the best of the after-they-were-really-good years.

Also appearing on: Now 1, 6, 7, 9, 13, 17, 18, 26, 41, 56
Available on: The Very Best of UB40

Ray Parker Jr 'Ghostbusters (Searchin For The Spirit)'

Chart Peak: 2

YouTube

A song that now recharts so regularly in October that it almost feels like cheating to listen to it in February. But listen I did, and for the purposes of this post I actually had to look up 'I Want A New Drug' by Huey Lewis and the News, who sued Parker over this. There are three minutes I won't get back. It's not my place to comment on the (confidential) outcome of the case; suffice it to say that there is some resemblance (though a few people have also mentioned M's 'Pop Muzik' which predates both records) but there's no real comparison.

Parker apparently struggled for inspiration in time for his deadline (which explains a lot I guess) before he came up with the mock-ad-jingle idea. The lyrics he wrote to it have some air of first-draft silliness about them but that's no bad thing in this context; what really sells it is his deadpan delivery. It was enough for the single to come near the top of the UK chart in late summer, months before the film was actually released here. I don't know how he feels about the fact that this has overshadowed the rest of his career, but he'll have to live with it.

Oh, and I've never seen that 'Searchin For The Spirit' subtitle anywhere but this album.

Available on: Greatest Hits

Status Quo 'The Wanderer'

Chart Peak: 7

YouTube

As it happens, I do actually remember this record; but if I didn't then knowing the original song I could have guessed exactly what a Status Quo version would sound like and I'd have been right. Recorded as a new track for their compilation 12 Gold Bars Vol 2, this version of Dion's hit recasts the already simple song in typical heads-down Quo style. It seems almost irrelevant to try and criticise this because anybody buying it would have known exactly what to expect.

In fact, the most interesting thing here is the video; not that the premise is at all inventive, but it's quite intriguing to see the passage of time. London looks quite different a quarter-century ago, people's clothes are pretty different and the picture quality attainable on portable video cameras was very different. And yet Quo seem exactly the same. In fact, I don't think it's even the same line-up now, but Francis Rossi and Rick Parfitt seem to have done all their aging by this point and they still sound the same. And all this despite the fact that more time has passed from 1984 to now than from the original 1961 hit to then.

Also appearing on: Now 8, 14, 18, 33 (with the Beach Boys), 53
Available on: Pictures: 40 Years of Hits

Thompson Twins 'Doctor! Doctor!'

Chart Peak: 3

YouTube

Proving yet again that there's no record ever made that hasn't got some YouTube comments saying that it was much better than modern music. Also another case of out-of-sequence Now tracks; this was a hit before 'You Take Me Up', which appears on Now 3. Even though that one got a place higher on the chart, this is the one on the CD as well.

As for the song itself, it seems to follow the usual format of big Twins hits in delivering less-than-deep lyrical content in a heavily portentious manner. Perhaps this is meant to be a joke of some sort, or maybe it was a deliberate attempt to commercialise themselves. Maybe they even thought this was good, but I can't summon up a lot of a enthusiasm for it now.

Also appearing on: Now 2, 3
Available on: Greatest Hits

The Style Council 'Shout To The Top!'

Chart Peak: 7

YouTube

Apparently this is in yet another film I've never seen, Vision Quest, but here in the UK at least I don't think it's closely enough associated with the film to earn that "from the movies" tag.
I often find it hardest to write about the songs I'm fondest of, and this is part of the problem, I face with 'Shout To The Top!' - I'd never have put it on a list of my ten favourite songs, probably not even even my ten favourite Weller songs, but there's something very right about it that doesn't seem to lend itself to unpicking. By this seventh Council single, he seemed to have got over the determination to sound unlike The Jam, and relaxed a bit into a run of good singles before they started to lose their way.

Although it's obviously intended to be a political call to arms (and as the video suggest, it was inspired by the Miner's Strike) but it remains wisely non-specific, concentrating on the vibe and creating an uplifiting joyful atmosphere that doesn't make it seem like homework to listen to. A solid group performance is bolstered by the immaculate string arrangement and one of his best vocals. Perhaps too sweet a concoction for some but it's by far my favourite on the album so far. Even the slap bass is well concealed in the mix.

Also appearing on: Now 3, 5, 10, 14
Available on: The Sound Of The Style Council

Julian Lennon 'Too Late For Goodbyes'

Chart Peak: 6

YouTube

Despite having chosen a hobby that involves a lot of listening to pop productions from the 1980s, I'm actually not very keen on many of the stylistic tics of the time, and there are a lot of them on here, from the heavy keyboard "pad" that dominates the track to the slap bass and the cardboardy drums. It's all the more unfortunate because 'Too Late For Goodbyes' is a good if lightweight pop song, but all the spontaneous-sounding moments (the way the vocal goes up at the end of each line, for instance) are totally overshadowed by the heavy-handed production. A much looser sound would have served it far better, and it would have been better to emphasise the contrast between the verse and chorus. Ooh, get me with my constructive criticism!

One thing I do like about this is the harmonica solo, although I was mildly disappointed to learn that Lennon didn't play it himself (it's by Belgian Jazz legend Toots Thielemans). It cuts through the excess slickness elsewhere on the track. For some reason, at the time I always connected this song with 'Together In Electric Dreams', but I don't quite understand it now.

Also appearing on: Now 20
Available on: Original Hits - Eighties

Culture Club 'The War Song'

Chart Peak: 2

YouTube

Well, if the end of the first side was getting too ballady, this might be good news at the start of Side 2. But, er don't quote me on that. Whilst no act features on all the first four Now albums, the double helping of Culture Club on the first volume means they can claim four appearances out of four; it was almost fifteen years before they added to that total, though.

I have a theory that it's usually a bad sign when a group start using a lot of descriptive song titles; I don't think I've ever heard the unsuccessful follow-up single 'The Medal Song' but I fondly imagine Boy George telling us "Medals are stupid!". It certainly is the case that the band were privately in disarray, rushing out an album while blighted by interpersonal strife and George's increasing drug problems. For all the short-term success it had, posterity has been less than fond of this track, and even the band themselves seem to have titled their 1998 compilation Greatest Moments precisely in order to avoid including it. Presumably the simplistic presentation is intentional, even if it hasn't dated well; in between the insults to Frankie Goes To Hollywood Jon Moss says that this is how The Beano would have tackled the subject, which is a fair shout. It actually sounded rather catchy when I was six, although I didn't understand what "some strange quarters" meant. The trouble is, of course, that most children already know war is stupid. It's the adults you have to worry about.

Also appearing on: Now 1, 2, 41, 43
Available on: Waking Up With the House On Fire

John Waite 'Missing You'

Chart Peak: 9

YouTube

No, this isn't the same John Waite who used to present You And Yours on Radio 4. This is the guy who used to be in the internationally but not locally succesful The Babys, who briefly dallied with the top UK Top 50 in early 1978 with 'Isn't It Time'
More's the pity, because even an episode of You And Yours would have been more interesting than this rather faceless power-ballad, which somehow became so ubiquitous I was surprised it only got to 9 in the charts (it was of course a US Number One). 'Missing You' talks the talk of big emotions, but the formular melody and airbrushed production don't walk the walk. It's rather the sort of thing that gave the 1980s a bad name in my ears. Indeed it's taken me rather a long time to find anything at all to say about it.
And the British public weren't missing him much either: his only other solo Top 75 single was a re-release of this in 1993; he did however make a slight return with the AOR supergroup Bad English, but they weren't totally accurately named because some of them were American.

Available on: 101 Power Ballads

Bronski Beat 'Why?'

Chart Peak: 6

YouTube (live version)

Another oddly difficult one to track down on YouTube, but I have managed to hear it. I think this might have been the first time I heard it in full though of course I recognised the hook from Supermode's hit. Until then it was heavily overshadowed by 'Smalltown Boy', and I can sort of see why. It certainly grabs the attention (at the start of the album as well as in its own right) with Jimmy Somerville's high-pitched call of "Tell Me Why!", setting the scene for a righteous four minutes of questioning homophobia, set to a powerful dance beat.

It was (and arguably still would be) bold to attack the subject so directly as "Contempt in your eyes as I turn to kiss his lips..." but the nature of the arrangement and performance make the finished article anything but aggressive. Like a lot of Somerville's work, I admire it more than I really enjoy it. Good as it was of them not to repeat the formula of 'Smalltown Boy' directly, I do rather miss the haunting quality that was such a strength of that song.

Also appearing on: Now 3
Available on: Age of Consent/Platinum Collection

Giorgio Moroder & Philip Oakey 'Together in Electric Dreams'

Chart Peak: 3

YouTube

And an obvious connection here, as we reach a second movie title song that seemed to make more of an impact than the picture itself. I've never seen Electric Dreams either, but the internet suggests that in it, this song is written by a computer. On that basis, Oakey's determinedly deadpan vocal style could hardly be more appropriate, even if he only got the job because the film director had done some Human League videos.

Much as I don't generally like the Human League at all, I have to confess a certain liking for this track. Maybe it's because I remember hearing it a lot when I was six and being slightly confused by it, or maybe I like Moroder more than I thought I did. Maybe it's just that twinkly little intro that does it for me. I don't recommend it straight-facedly but I can't deny that I enjoy hearing it.

Available on: Philip Oakey & Giorgio Moroder

Queen 'Radio Gaga'

Chart Peak: 2

YouTube

Worryingly, this blog has now started costing me money: as the image below shows, I have invested the sum of 95p in a copy of Now II (as it's officially called - it remains "Now 2" in the tags for clarity's sake) for no better reason than to blog about it. My hopes of being able to quote from the sleeve notes haven't entirely come to fruition, since they are mostly not all that illuminating: the one for this track tells me merely that it "Charted on 31 January at No.4. Was No.2 the first two weeks of February." and gives the catalogue number for the album it came from. Thanks guys.

At least having the record does enable me to confirm that the version used is the full five minutes and 43, rather than the shorter version from the 7" single. And 'Radio Ga Ga' seems like a song that doesn't need much introduction. Although denied the top chart position by an even bigger hit that we'll come to later on this album, it remains one of the the more familiar Queen songs and it's certainly one that I remember very well from the time, although ironically enough considering the subject matter, I remember the video as much as the song. Of course, back then I didn't realise it was supposed to be a reference to Metropolis but the imagery was striking enough in its own right.

All this seems to hint at one of the many paradoxes that seem to surround Queen: the fact that an act who were so keen to embrace the possibilities of the pop video (and are sometimes even credited with inventing the form, although this is hard to justify) should find themselves having such a big hit with a song of nostalgia for the old way of doing things. All the more ironic, indeed, that this is a track where the band who used to write on their album covers that they hadn't used synthesisers capitulated to the drum machine and programmed basslines, to say nothing of the slightly annoying backing vocals where Roger Taylor sings "Ra-dio" through a Vocoder. None of these things is necessarily bad, but they make a confusing combination. Whilst it sounds rather like a filler shoved in to make for a rhyme, even the song itself seems to acknowledge this with the line "We hardly have to use our ears/Our music changes through the years."

To be fair to Taylor, the song is supposed to be about radio as a whole, not just music broadcasting. But it's still a bit difficult to tell whether the implication is that radio itself has gone wrong or merely that the public have abandoned it. It's just another layer of confusion. So much so that, as with many a Queen record, I can't really tell whether I like it or not.


Also appearing on: Now 3, 4, 6, 7, 15, 16, 19, 21, 25 [with George Michael], 32, 33, 54 [with Vanguard]
Available on: Greatest Hits, Vol. 2