BEST FROM THE EIGHTIES

WHAM! THE FINAL : This was the first ever CD that I've bought way back in 1991. I choose Wham! to be the first of my CD 'cos, well George Michael was a larger than life figure back then and still is. Wham! is George Michael and George Michael is Wham!. Period. He don't need Andrew Ridgeley. George Michael is equally good in the fast as well as the slow department. The most recognisable tracks here are of course 'Wake Me Up Before You Go Go', a song that I don't like initially 'cos of the nonsensical lyrics but I grew to love it. And then of course there's the weepie 'Careless Whisper' and the Christmas favourite 'Last Christmas' Other tracks like 'Wham Rap! ( Enjoy What You Do ? ), 'Young Guy ( Go For It ), Bad Boys', 'Freedom' are seriously good. DOP : 19th July 1991.

GEORGE MICHAEL : TWENTYFIVE : When he was with Wham!, there was no doubt who the brain was and who was going to be the star. It's to no one's surprises that George Michael went solo soon after and he did scored hits after hits. In fact he was so prolific that even 2 CD is not sufficient to contain all his songs. Includes are a few songs from his days with Wham!, namely ''Everything She Wants', 'Wake Me Up Before You Go Go', 'Freedom', 'Careless Whisper' and 'Last Christmas'. On his own, he scored with 'A Different Corner' which to me was just a pale rehashed of 'Careless Whisper', 'Father Figure' and 'One More Try'. Songs of interest to me are a duet with Paul McCartney, 'Heal The Pain', his live duet with Elton John on his 'Don't Let The Sun Go Down On Me'. and 'John And Elvis Are Dead' which is obvious. Like Sting, I find his solo outings not as appealing as when he was with Wham!. Perhaps he does needs Andrew Ridgeley after all, for inspiration at least. DOP : 30th November 2006.

PRINCE THE HITS 1 : The Purple One. This is a weird one. I've never like the image that Price represented. Sullenness, unsmiling, unsociable. He was all of these but the man got talents. This is one time when talents won through. Any lesser artist would have been killed off with this characteristic and his aloofness. but he survived and grandly too. I don't really know what to make of Prince. I bought this two CD set knowing only a handful of songs. I am making a bet here based on the man's reputation. I'm glad I did. For other than 'When Doves Cry', there are loads of gems here. 'Pop Life', 'Soft And Wet', 'I Feel For You'  which he gave to Chaka Khan, and need I say anything about 'Nothing's Compare To You'. Listening to this CD after all these years, I still don't know what to make of  Prince except that he is good. Here's to His Purple Highness. DOP : 9th October 1993.

PRINCE THE HITS 2 : The second CD's cream of the crop for me surely have to be 'Purple Rain', a close to eight minutes opus that can only came out of Prince. The icing on the cake are 'Raspberry Beret' 'Kiss' and 'Peach'. Little wonder that he was once proclaimed to be even more talented than Michael Jackson. I've won one of this CD at a radio contest and I sold it to my friend. This is actually a 3 CD sets but because of my hesitation in purchasing an otherwise untested CD, I went for the 2 CD set. After having listened to both CD, I regretted buying it. I should have go for the 3 CD set. DOP : 17th October 1993.


DIRE STRAITS : MONEY FOR NOTHING : I like Mark Knopfler and I like Dire Straits. The man's a step back in time when music was music with no gimmicks. He was like a more refined Bob Dylan. I first heard them through the disco sounded 'Sultan Of Swing'. It was unlike anything I've heard. Disco cum Rock. Dire Straits reached their pinnacle with 'Money For Nothing'. After this they broke up and wisely so 'cos they know they could never top this. Favorites here are a live version of 'Portobello Belle', a rocking 'Twisting By The Pool', 'Romeo And Juliet' and everyone favouite, the infectious 'Walk Of Life'. Somehow I think that I will get me another Dire Straits collection in the not so distance future. DOP : 26th April 1992.

LIONEL RICHIE : BACK TO FRONT : Of all those who made waves in the eighties, Lionel Richie was the most accessible. Started out as a member of The Commodores, he started composing ballads for them and gradually became their balladeer par excellent. With The Commodores, he produced 'Three Times A Lady', 'Still', 'Sail On,, 'Easy'  and Oh No'. On his own, he scored big with 'Hello', Penny Lover', his tour de force duet with Diana Ross, 'Endless Love', 'Stuck On You' and 'Say You, Say Me'. Oh, and he also co composed 'We Are The World' with Michael Jackson. This CD have almost all his songs that matters except for a slight hitch. 'Still' is an edited version. Sign. DOP : 10th May 1992.

SHAKY THE EPIC YEARS : Shaky or Shakin' Steven as he was more commonly known, actually started his career in the sixties but only came to prominence during the eighties thus his placing here. He holds the distinction of being the most successful singer / songwriter of the eighties. Playing mostly old fashioned rock 'n' roll of the fifties in the mold of Elvis Presley, he struck a chord with the buying public. I fell in love with his 'You Drive Me Crazy' and was later bowed over by the sentimentality of 'Because I Love You'. The rest of the pack includes 'This Ole House', 'Cry Just A Little Bit', 'Maria, Maria', 'Teardrops' are not bad, not bad at all. The verdict. A damn enjoyable CD. DOP : 20th March 1993.

PAUL YOUNG : FROM TIME TO TIME : THE SINGLES COLLECTION : Paul Young was an English rock and pop musician who briefly made it big in the eighties. He sang along heavy weights like Paul McCartney, Tina Turner, Rod Stewart during their charities concerts. How much bigger can you get. Anyway his hits includes 'Come Back And Stay', 'I'm Gonna Tear Your Playhouse Down', 'Wherever I Lay My Hat ( That's My Home' and of course the Daryl Hall  and John Oates' hits 'Every Time You Go Away' which he totally changed the arrangement and made it into a global smash. This is the song which he will probably be remember by. DOP : Unknown.