Various Artists - Now 80s Alternative (2023)

EU import

Musically, my Gen X contemporaries living in the UK had a very different '80s than I. So when I saw a post regarding this 4 disc compilation over at superdeluxeedition, I pre-ordered the thing based on my unfamiliarity with many of the titles. Turns out it was a good pick-up: of the 80 tunes offered up, a full 41 (51.25%) tracks were new to me. Well, "new-to-me" to the best of my (increasingly faulty) recollection, at least. But if I had somehow been introduced to these tracks upon release, most would have been welcome additions to the soundtrack of my high school and college years.

Reminds me of the Left Of The Dial: Dispatches From The 80s Underground 4 disc set released by Rhino back in 2004.

Peak on the US Billboard Top 200 chart: Not released in US

Tracks, with chart peaks from UK (Official Charts) and US (Billboard Hot 100) plus an indication if this compilation was my introduction to the track:

CD ONE (78 minutes)
Song	Artist	Year	UK	US	New
Thieves Like Us	New Order	1984	18	-
Beethoven (I Love To Listen To)	Eurythmics	1987	25	-	✔
Love Will Tear Us Apart	Joy Division	1980	13	-
Red Guitar (7" version)	David Sylvian	1984	17	-	✔
Party Fears Two (single edit)	The Associates	1982	9	-	✔
Stories Of Johnny	Marc Almond	1985	22	-	✔
Oblivious	Aztec Camera	1983	18	-
Come Back	The Mighty Wah!	1984	20	-	✔
Broken Land (7" version)	The Adventures	1988	20	95	✔
Shades	Iggy Pop	1987	87	-	✔
Talk Of The Town	Pretenders	1980	8	-
So. Central Rain	R.E.M.	1984	-	85
Monkey Gone To Heaven	Pixies	1989	60	-
President Gas	The Psychedelic Furs	1982	-	-
Planet Claire	The B-52's	1979	-	-
Mad Eyed Screamer	The Creatures	1981	24	106	✔
The Cutter	Echo & The Bunnymen	1983	8	-
That's Entertainment	The Jam	1981	21	-
Listen To The Radio: Atmospherics	Tom Robinson	1983	39	-	✔
Shipbuilding	Robert Wyatt	1982	35	-	✔

CD TWO (78 minutes)
Song	Artist	Year	UK	US	New
O Superman	Laurie Anderson	1981	2	-
I'm In Love With A German Film Star	The Passions	1981	25	-
European Female	The Stranglers	1982	9	-	✔
Getting Away With It (7" edit)	Electronic	1989	12	38
Dr. Mabuse	Propaganda	1984	27	-
Vicious Games	Yello	1985	-	-	✔
No Memory	Scarlet Fantastic	1987	24	-	✔
Suddenly Last Summer	The Motels	1983	-	9
Always Something There To Remind Me	Naked Eyes	1983	59	8
I Got You	Split Enz	1980	12	53
Lawnchairs	Our Daughter's Wedding	1981	49	-
Whip It	Devo	1980	51	14
After A Fashion (7" version)	Midge Ure & Mick Karn	1983	39	-	✔
Gentlemen Take Polaroids (edit)	Japan	1980	60	-
Dreams Of Immigrants	Sandii & The Sunsetz	1984	-	-	✔
African And White	China Crisis	1981	45	-	✔
The First Picture Of You	The Lotus Eaters	1983	8	-	✔
Flowers	Zaine Griff	1982	-	-	✔
He! Stranger	Anne Pigalle	1985	-	-

CD THREE (78 minutes)
Song	Artist	Year	UK	US	New
This Corrosion	Sisters Of Mercy	1987	7	-
Peek-A-Boo	Siouxsie & the Banshees	1988	16	53
Kick In The Eye (remix single version)	Bauhaus	1981	45	-	✔
A Forest (shortened edit)	The Cure	1980	31	-
Atmosphere	Joy Division	1980	-	-
Birthday	The Sugarcubes	1987	65	-
Pop Song	David Sylvian	1989	83	-	✔
Snobbery & Decay	Act	1987	60	-
The American	Simple Minds	1981	59	-
Down In The Subway (extended single version)	Soft Cell	1984	24	-	✔
There's A Ghost In My House	The Fall	1987	30	-	✔
Grimly Fiendish (album edit version)	The Damned	1985	21	-	✔
Liberator	Spear Of Destiny	1984	67	-	✔
Do You Believe In The Westworld? (7" version)	Theatre Of Hate	1982	40	-
This Is England	The Clash	1985	24	-	✔
Edie (Ciao Baby) (edit)	The Cult	1989	32	93	✔
Tower Of Strength (radio edit)	The Mission	1988	12	-	✔
Martha's Harbour	All About Eve	1988	10	-	✔
Hit The Ground	The Darling Buds	1988	27	-	✔
Head Over Heels (album version)	The Go-Go's	1984	-	11
I Know What Boys Like	The Waitresses	1982	-	62

CD FOUR (79 minutes)
Song	Artist	Year	UK	US	New
Hand In Glove (single version)	The Smiths	1983	124	-	✔
Love Is A Wonderful Colour	The Icicle Works	1983	15	-	✔
Driving Away From Home (Jim's Tune) (single version)	It's Immaterial	1986	18	-	✔
The Future's So Bright, I Gotta Wear Shades	Timbuk 3	1986	21	19
Mexican Radio	Wall Of Voodoo	1982	64	58
Senses Working Overtime	XTC	1982	10	-
Remembrance Day	B-Movie	1981	61	-
The Last Film	Kissing The Pink	1983	19	-	✔
I Love A Man In A Uniform	Gang Of Four	1982	65	-
Der Kommissar (7" version)	After The Fire	1983	47	5
Dead Pop Stars	Altered Images	1981	67	-	✔
Ieya (single version)	Toyah	1980	-	-	✔
Cartrouble	Adam & The Ants	1980	33	-
World Shut Your Mouth	Julian Cope	1986	19	84
Crash	The Primitives	1988	5	-	✔
Sonic Boom Boy	Westworld	1987	11	-	✔
Def. Con. One	Pop Will Eat Itself	1988	63	-	✔
Medicine Show	Big Audio Dynamite	1986	29	-	✔
Radio Africa	Latin Quarter	1985	19	-	✔
The "Sweetest Girl"	Scritti Politti	1981	64	-	✔

Of the "new-to-me" bunch, my favorites are Red Guitar, European Female, No Memory, African And White, Tower Of Strength, Martha's Harbour, Hit The Ground, Sonic Boom Boy, and Def. Con. One; while my least favorites are Mad Eyed Screamer, Pop Song, and Ieya.

Personal Memory Associated with this CD: None

Previously revisited for the blog:
Now That's What I Call 12" 70s (2022)
Now That's What I Call Christmas! (2001)
Now That's What I Call Music! 1981: The Millennium Series (1999)