INSPIRATION

I heard you making patterns rhyme like some new romantic looking for the T.V sound

Published in 2020 at 4.20pm

Words, Art and Photography by GRRR

WE WERE SEVEN YEARS OLD WHEN 1980 arrived. The currency of music in the playground was without doubt the compact cassette tape and the beloved mix-tape. We spent hours sitting next to the radio trying to time the perfect recording of 1999 and hustling friends for their uninterrupted version of Take on Me or Mirror Man. We did have vinyl records too (mostly seven inch singles) and we purchased collectively to avoid overlap, with limited funds we would do anything to expand the music available. High fidelity technology (DON’T LAUGH) was pretty new to our generation and to an extent we have been culturally defined though the cassette and Sony Walkman (we had lesser brands). By the time the ominous year 1984 came along we were riding around on a BMX (probably a Raleigh Burner) in small tight–knit friendship gangs with portable cassette tape players listening to I Feel For You and Sweet Dreams recorded from the Top 40. It’s no surprise the first Now Music compilation was released in 1983, it tapped into the strange beauty of the mix-tape, how the songs can all mean something or link together in just the way you remember. The songs and artists for our 1980s house party are chosen for their familiarity, from or around the time of release and our seemingly never ending love of each (misguided or not).

You can listen to our ’80s PARTY MIXTAPE on Spotify.

Song	Artist	Year of Release	Chart Pos
Upside Down	Dianna Ross	1980	2
Atomic	Blondie	1980	1
Just Can't Get Enough	Depeche Mode	1981	8
You Make My Dreams (Come True)	Daryl Hall & John Oates	1981	5
Planet Earth	Duran Duran	1981	12
Rapture	Blondie	1981	5
Don't You Want Me	The Human League	1981	1
Tainted Love	Soft Cell	1981	1
Hungry Like the Wolf	Duran Duran	1982	5
White Wedding	Billy Idol	1982	6
Billie Jean	Michael Jackson	1982	1
Only You	Yazoo	1982	2
Mirror Man	The Human League	1982	2
Don't Go	Yazoo	1982	3
Rio	Duran Duran	1982	9
The Message	Grandmaster Flash & The Furious Five	1982	8
Really Saying Something	Bananarama	1982	5
Karma Chameleon	Culture Club	1983	1
Beat It	Michael Jackson	1983	3
Ain't Nobody	Chaka Khan	1983	1
Sweet Dreams (Are Made of This)	Eurythmics	1983	2
Blue Monday	New Order	1983	9
Fascination	The Human League	1983	2
Rebel Yell	Billy Idol	1983	6
I.O.U.	Freeez	1983	2
Borderline	Madonna	1984	2
Relax	Frankie Goes To Hollywood	1984	1

Song	Artist	Year of Release	Chart Pos
I Would Die 4 U	Prince	1984	8
Smalltown Boy	Bronski Beat	1984	3
Together In Electric Dreams	Philip Oakey & Giorgio Moroder	1984	3
I Feel for You	Chaka Khan	1984	1
Down on the Street	Shakatak	1984	9
Here Comes the Rain Again	Eurythmics	1984	8
Lucky Star	Madonna	1984	14

Song	Artist	Year of Release	Chart Pos
Sexcrime (Nineteen Eighty-Four)	Eurythmics	1984	4
Smooth Operator	Sade	1984	19
99 Red Balloons	Nena	1984	1
New Moon on Monday	Duran Duran	1984	9
I Want To Break Free	Queen	1984	3
Dr. Beat	Miami Sound Machine	1984	6
Take on Me	a-ha	1985	2
Running Up That Hill (A Deal With God)	Kate Bush	1985	3
Sisters Are Doin' It for Themselves	Eurythmics, Aretha Franklin	1985	9
The Power Of Love	Huey Lewis & The News	1985	9
System Addict	Five Star	1985	3
We Close Our Eyes	Go West	1985	5
Boys Don't Cry	The Cure	1985	22
Would I Lie to You?	Eurythmics	1985	17
Raspberry Beret	Prince	1985	25
You Are My World	The Communards	1985	30
1999	Prince	1985	2

Song	Artist	Year of Release	Chart Pos
I'm Your Man	Wham!	1985	1
Who Needs Love Like That	Erasure	1985	55
We Built This City	Starship	1985	12
West End Girls	Pet Shop Boys	1985	1
Everybody Wants To Rule The World	Tears For Fears	1985	2
You Spin Me Round (Like a Record)	Dead Or Alive	1985	2
Kiss	Prince	1986	6
Don't Leave Me This Way	The Communards	1986	1
Walk This Way	Run–D.M.C., Aerosmith	1986	1
Addicted To Love	Robert Palmer	1986	5
Big Fun	The Gap Band	1986	4
You Keep Me Hangin On	Kim Wilde	1986	2
Ain't Nothin' Goin' On But The Rent	Gwen Guthrie	1986	5
Walk Like an Egyptian	The Bangles	1986	3
Nasty	Janet Jackson	1986	19
Pull Up To The Bumper	Grace Jones	1986	12
Wishing Well	Terence Trent D'Arby	1987	4
I Wanna Dance with Somebody (Who Loves Me)	Whitney Houston	1987	1
Everywhere	Fleetwood Mac	1987	4
Sign Your Name	Terence Trent D'Arby	1987	2
Walk The Dinosaur	Was (Not Was)	1987	10
U Got the Look	Prince	1987	11
Faith	George Michael	1987	2
I Knew You Were Waiting (For Me)	George Michael, Aretha Franklin	1987	1
Push It	Salt-N-Pepa	1988	2
My One Temptation	Mica Paris	1988	7
A Little Respect	Erasure	1988	4
Good Life	Inner City	1988	4
Theme from S-Express	S’Express	1988	1
She Drives Me Crazy	Fine Young Cannabals	1989	5
Like A Prayer	Madonna	1989	1
Back To Life	Soul II Soul	1989	1