Quite a few potential highlights here but for me it’s The Alarm track that really stands out as being the most interesting overall package.

9	The Alarm	68 Guns	1st and biggest hit for this Welsh group: a wonderful and very interesting song with a dipping middle section
8	Public Image Ltd	This Is Not A Love Song	Their biggest hit criticising the music industry: the twanging guitar and spoken repeated line work brilliantly
8	David Bowie	Modern Love	The call and response part was inspired by Little Richard and it's another vibrant Nile Rodgers produced song
8	Siouxsie And The Banshees	Dear Prudence	A Beatles cover giving them their biggest hit: it's an excellent version with bigger production than the original
7	Howard Jones	New Song	1st hit for this UK singer which sounds rather like "Solsbury Hill", but it's a lovely self improvement anthem
7	Toyah	Rebel Run	The lead single from their final album before Toyah goes solo: as usual it's an enjoyable and exciting track
7	Culture Club	Karma Chameleon	527th #1: I'm tired of hearing it as it's still inescable, but a brilliantly composed, effortlessly sparkling song
6	Soft Cell	Soul Inside	This feels messy and lacks a real hook, but I like the intensity of the vocals and the sense of dread very much
6	Hot Streak	Body Work	The opening of this, later sampled by Missy Elliott and others, is brilliant and striking, thought the rest less so
6	Kid Creole And The Coconuts	There's Something Wrong In Paradise	This also had a film adaptation and it's their last Top 40 until 1990: it's quite good with a very pleasant melody
5	Monyaka	Go Deh Yaka (Go To The Top)	Only hit for this US reggae band: nothing that stands out but it's an enjoyable and authentic track of its kind
4	Kajagoogoo	Big Apple	Their 1st single without Limahl, and a serviceable track that did quite well but I find it quite lacking in oomph
4	Men At Work	Dr Heckyll And Mr Jive	The lead from their 2nd album and last hit, and it's OK but unfortunately not nearly as interesting as its name
3	Nick Heyward	Blue Hat For A Blue Day	His 3rd Top 15 hit but he still can't crack the Top 10: this feels a little limp and lacking in memorable features
3	David Essex	Tahiti	His 10th and final Top 10 hit: it's a very thoughtfully written song but ends up being rather on the cheesy side
2	Unique	What I Got Is What You Need	Only hit for this ironically named US group, with a standard electro-funk track that goes nowhere interesting

1983 Group 17:

#1187	24/09/1983	Black Lace	Superman (Gioca Jouer)	9	59-29-16-12-{9}-10-11-23-34-41-62-69-58-51-51-37-46-73->18
#1188	24/09/1983	George Benson	In Your Eyes	7	52-30-15-{7}-7-9-13-19-33-47->10
#1189	24/09/1983	Tracey Ullman	They Don't Know	2	69-31-9-{2}-2-3-5-13-27-39-57->11
#1190	24/09/1983	Meat Loaf	Midnight At The Lost And Found	17	42-32-28-21-{17}-17-31-50->8
#1191	01/10/1983	Depeche Mode	Love In Itself. 2	21	35-26-24-{21}-22-35-62->7
#1192	17/09/1983	Hot Chocolate	Tears On The Telephone	37	57-41-39-{37}-50->5
#1193	01/10/1983	The Rocksteady Crew	(Hey You) The Rocksteady Crew	6	62-29-11-{6}-6-8-12-18-27-42-64-72->12
#1194	01/10/1983	Lionel Richie	All Night Long (All Night)	2	56-31-16-4-{2}-2-2-4-6-16-24-34-42-42-39-45->16
#1195	01/10/1983	Freeez	Pop Goes My Love	26	44-33-28-{26}-31-51->6
#1196	08/10/1983	David Grant	Love Will Find A Way	24	38-26-{24}-25-38-59->6
#1197	01/10/1983	Bucks Fizz	London Town	34	54-39-37-{34}-36-54->6
#1198	24/09/1983	Lydia Murdock	Superstar	14	65-50-40-30-18-{14}-16-28-46->9
#1199	15/10/1983	Paul McCartney And Michael Jackson	Say, Say, Say	2	25-10-13-14-3-{2}-2-3-12-18-25-25-29-33-50->15
#1200	08/10/1983	Herbie Hancock	Autodrive	33	41-{33}-42-59->4
#1201	01/10/1983	Will Powers	Kissing With Confidence	17	55-42-35-32-27-{17}-22-40-57->9

Alarm 68 Guns is good and sounds quite a bit 90s Britpop with the production, specifically Boo Radleys Wake Up Boo.

This Is Not A Love Song - I love the title and lyrics and the video is funny too!

Howard Jones - New Song is very poppy for synthpop and not as innovative as it tries to portray. However it is still a decent enough song.

Tired of hearing Karma Chamaeleon too. A bit poppy for me anyway.

Edited June 10Jun 10 by TheSnake

we differ at the top end for a change, 68 Guns was never a fave of mine and The Alarm used to annoy me, but that said 68 Guns is far and away their best record, has nice twangy guitar and driving chords amongst the more shambolic punkish-rock vocals and production. Playing it now it has aged quite well though 7/10. This Is Not A Love Song is a bit repetitive, and not as mighty as Public Image Ltd, still their greatest record and debut. It has attitude but it's still a tad annoying and I'm not as keen on it as I was at the time 6/10.

Modern Love, still Bowie-Chictastic, 9/10. Dear Prudence is the definitive version, yes even over The Beatles, the video is fab and the pyschedelic punk goth vibes are top notch 10/10. New Song does sound a bit Solsbury Hill now you mention it, but it's a nice catchy pop ditty with synths tweeting away 8/10. Rebel Run a Toyah fave, great synth-sub-horn intro and it was nicely driving New Wave, I sang loudly along to this at the time, sadly forgotten these days but one of her best singles 9/10.

Karma Chameleon, yes overplayed these days. My mum went mad on Boy George and bought the album, quite a rarity for mum to buy current stuff. Miss You Blind is a 10/10 non-single, very annoyingly, while this is more of an 8/10 these days, though I loved it at the time. Soul Inside wsnt quite up to par, but decent Soft Cell anyway 7/10.

Body Work I have no memory of at all. Playing it now, ah yes, that US military exercise/parade chant borrowed. Not a bad production, I like it. Bizarre how this slipped my mind. 8/10. Kid Creole's was pleasant, from memory, 7/10. Monyaka I liked too 7/10. Kajagoogo post-Limahl's best track but that's not saying a lot 6/10.

Men At Work I barely recall, except it wasnt as good as previous singles but I was still basking in seeing them on tour (they were good) 6/10 Blue Hat For A Blue Day I actually love, my fave solo Nick Heyward record (as I bask in seeing Haircut 100 on tour the other week, incredibly lively and fresh, like a band reborn 40 years younger). Why? You get three hooks for the price of one, those melodies would easily be spread out and repeated endlessly on modern tracks 9/10 Tahiti is from a Musical, and it's a pleasant David Essex Musical offcut 6/10. Unique is another I dont remember at all, so it's possibly a 5/10 ok-ish sort of dance track I'm guessing.

On 06/06/2026 at 08:50, jimwatts said:

(RIP Peabo Bryson)

RIP John Wetton the great singer from Asia - Dont Cry too.

68 Guns definitely the best Alarm hit, very anthemic.

This Is Not A Love Song is great, sounds like nothing else. Not quite my favourite by them, that would be Rise.

Modern Love is not the best, but it’s still Bowie so always great.

Dear Prudence is my favourite of this group, that’s how you do a cover version! Turning the Beatles into a goth anthem.

New Song is lovely, more good stuff to come from Howard.

Karma Chameleon is overplayed of course but I still love it and I’m always happy to hear it. Sparkling is definitely the right word for it.

Edited June 10Jun 10 by Jaz13music

No runaway favourite here but “Love, In Itself” is good enough to get Depeche Mode another win. Nice to have a collaboration from the current album chart Top 2 here.

8	Depeche Mode	Love In Itself. 2	It doesn't quite reach the level of "Everything Counts" but it's another rather thrilling synth laden masterpiece
8	Herbie Hancock	Autodrive	Also not quite as wonderful as the previous hit but another very exciting ride of avant garde electronic jazz
8	The Rocksteady Crew	(Hey You) The Rocksteady Crew	Only Top 40 for this US breakdance collective and a delightful, energetic and influential early hip hop track
7	Paul McCartney And Michael Jackson	Say, Say, Say	A much better collaboration from these two: Michael's parts here are particularly great and will be sampled
7	Tracey Ullman	They Don't Know	Her biggest hit with a Kirsty MacColl cover: it's very similar to the original but an excellently produced version
7	Lionel Richie	All Night Long (All Night)	I do think this is a very good song and much better than most of his material, with an effective calypso style
6	Freeez	Pop Goes My Love	A much smaller hit than "I.O.U." but it's another interesting track with some slightly experimental elements
6	Will Powers	Kissing With Confidence	Only hit for Lynn Goldsmith playing a male character: the lyrics are something else but it's a fun quirky track
6	Meat Loaf	Midnight At The Lost And Found	He's struggling after parting ways with Jim Steinman, but still it's an enjoyable well delivered self penned track
5	Bucks Fizz	London Town	This has a similar staccato style to "When We Were Young" but isn't as good and is their smallest hit to date
5	Hot Chocolate	Tears On The Telephone	A minor hit for them and the follow up will be bigger but they are coming towards the end: a nice track though
4	Lydia Murdock	Superstar	Only hit for this US singer with an answer song to "Billie Jean": a fun idea and not a bad but not a great track
3	Black Lace	Superman (Gioca Jouer)	1st Top 40 for this novelty party pop band: I don't enjoy the talking on this but the track itself isn't all that bad
2	David Grant	Love Will Find A Way	A 3rd hit in the space of a few months for him and they've all been in this post disco style and not interesting
2	George Benson	In Your Eyes	A particularly soppy ballad from him: this sort of track with no drama or tension rarely does anything for me

1983 Group 18:

#1202	08/10/1983	Men Without Hats	The Safety Dance	6	68-36-13-8-{6}-7-8-19-32-50-66->11
#1203	15/10/1983	UB40	Please Don't Make Me Cry	10	38-15-12-{10}-11-15-31-51->8
#1204	15/10/1983	Elton John	Kiss The Bride	20	40-30-23-{20}-24-39-69->7
#1205	15/10/1983	Billy Joel	Uptown Girl	1	54-25-7-{1}-1-1-1-1-3-10-14-14-14-16-33-45-66->17
#1206	15/10/1983	Shalamar	Over And Over	23	43-33-26-{23}-33-52->6
#1207	22/10/1983	Gary Numan	Sister Surprise	32	36-{32}-62->3
#1208	01/10/1983	Olympic Orchestra	Reilly	26	73-44-41-37-34-40-29-35-{26}-36-39-49-58-58-71->15
#1209	24/09/1983	Donna Summer	Unconditional Love	14	53-45-46-42-39-28-22-16-{14}-22-37-61->12
#1210	24/09/1983	Roman Holliday	Motormania	40	63-61-53-47-{40}-42-68->7
#1211	29/10/1983	Duran Duran	Union Of The Snake	3	4-{3}-6-13-28-45-73-75R(2)-75-66-73->11
#1212	29/10/1983	Adam Ant	Puss 'N' Boots	5	21-9-{5}-6-12-22-37-50-68-68-67->11
#1213	29/10/1983	The Cure	The Love Cats	7	24-12-10-{7}-8-14-26-31-54-54-55->11
#1214	22/10/1983	Level 42	Micro-Kid	37	46-{37}-41-52-66->5
#1215	22/10/1983	Sharon Redd	Love How You Feel	39	56-{39}-39-44-67->5
#1216	15/10/1983	King Kurt	Destination Zululand	36	61-43-40-{36}-40-50->6

I agree with you, there’s less to love in this group.

I do however really like the always consistent Depeche Mode, the McCartney Jackson collaboration that works and All Night Long is very catchy.

I have a soft spot for They Don’t Know, and weirdly always liked Kissing With Confidence’s quirkiness.

But my favourite would be Rocksteady Crews infectious old school hip hop.

Love In Itself one of my fave Depeche tracks to date, disappointingly not quite as big as it should have been 8/10 Autodrive I really dont remember oops! Not having a lyric probably the reason. The Rocksteady Crew was fun and fresh at the time but not one that crops up much these days 8/10. Say Say Say, great video and part-Beatle part-Jacko dance was an odd combo but it works 9/10.

Talking of Macca, he's in the video for Tracey Ullman's Kirsty cover, best of this batch for me great song 10/10. Lionel's best solo record by some distance, All Night Long is delicious grooves 9/10. Pop Goes My Love, IOU Part 2, but even more annoying 5/10. Kissing With Confidence is essentially a Carly Simon duet with AI, quirky and fun and annoying Carly got no credit on the record 8/10.

Meat Loaf solo stuff had none of the epic quality of a Steinman, Midnight probably being his best effort but a modest 6/10 for me. London Town I liked, the song isnt as strong but the harmonies and vibe are still good 7/10. Tears On The Telephone, always a pleasure to hear Errol Brown though not up there with their classics 7/10. Superstar essentially a response-record cash-in, but it's an OK example of that genre 6/10.

Superman a turn-off-your-brain party dance novelty which got very annoying. Plus side it's an addition to the list of hit DC superhero name song titles - see Supergirl, Star Boy, Sunshine Superman, Wildfire, Speedy (Gonzales), Flash, Gypsy, Jimmy Olsen, The Joker....etc. 2/10. David Grant's I barely recall at all, but I expect it was mildly pleasant 5/10. In Your Eyes I do recall, slick laid-back jazz soul co-written by Michael Masser and Dan Hill as opposed to the wonderful Rod Temperton. Dan Hill had the dull hit Sometimes When We Touch and Masser had the dull ballads Touch Me In The Morning, The Greatest Love Of All, Nothing's Gonna Change My Love For You, Tonight I Celebrate Your Love among many many more hits: not a single gem amongst them. 5/10.

'Autodrive' is basically almost piano house a few years ahead of time.

Elsewhere, I should disapprove of Tracey Ullman bringing back 60s bubblegum style production but 'They Don't Know' is a very nice song indeed and charming.

'Hey You, Rocksteady Crew' is good and modern for the time although there would be better synth dance/R&B and breakdancing songs in 1984.

The Paul McCartney bit of 'Say Say Say' sounds twee and dated. Not surprised that Hi_Tack only sampled Michael's euphoric parts. Still like the track and video though.

'Superman' is fun but a bit forgotten compared to later and better party dance tracks.

The top 3 are all pretty frequently heard today. “The Safety Dance” is so much fun but it’s the unique storytelling of “The Love Catsl” that gets my top billing.

9	The Cure	The Love Cats	A non album single: this is a quirky and poetic song full of slightly dark and mysterious romantic character
9	Men Without Hats	The Safety Dance	Only hit for this Canadian band written after a member was ejected from a club for moshing: a fabulous track
8	Billy Joel	Uptown Girl	528th #1: it doesn't have the emotional depth of some of his work but it's brilliantly written exuberant pop
7	King Kurt	Destination Zululand	Only Top 40 for this UK band though they will have many follow ups: a rousing, quirky and irreverent rock song
7	Elton John	Kiss The Bride	The 1st 2 singles from "Too Low For Zero" were career highlights: this 3rd one isn't that level but a strong track
6	Olympic Orchestra	Reilly	The theme to this TV drama from "The Gadfly" by Shostakovich: a lovely piece that works quite well on its own
6	Adam Ant	Puss 'N' Boots	His 10th and final Top 10 appearance with the lead from his 2nd album: it's quite repetitive but still enjoyable
6	Duran Duran	Union Of The Snake	The lead from their 3rd album which reached #3 but there's an even bigger hit to come: I find this only decent
5	Gary Numan	Sister Surprise	One of his weaker singles to date, still with his striking vocal delivery but not such a dramatic instrumental
5	Donna Summer	Unconditional Love	This features uncredited vocals from Musical Youth, and it's sugary sweet but somehow works quite well
4	Roman Holliday	Motormania	Their 2nd and last hit with an energetic rockabilly throwback; it's quite nicely done but not at all remarkable
4	Level 42	Micro-Kid	It's about the craze for home computers: quite an interesting lyrical theme but a fairly beige jazz funk track
3	Shalamar	Over And Over	They will have 5 more hits but all will miss the Top 40, and this is a not really an exciting final appearance
3	Sharon Redd	Love How You Feel	Her last solo hit, and it's not bad as such but like the others I don't find that it's memorable or distinctive
2	UB40	Please Don't Make Me Cry	A cover of a song by Jamaican reggae musician Winston Groovy: the original is vibrant while this isn't at all

1983 Group 19:

1217	05/11/1983	Shakin' Stevens	Cry Just A Little Bit	3	19-4-{3}-3-8-13-17-24-24-22-29-48->12
#1218	05/11/1983	Madness	The Sun And The Rain	5	21-9-{5}-7-17-27-36-50-50-53->10
#1219	05/11/1983	Status Quo	A Mess Of Blues	15	24-{15}-20-24-41-65->6
#1220	05/11/1983	ABC	That Was Then But This Is Now	18	25-{18}-22-44->4
#1221	05/11/1983	The Police	Synchronicity II	17	26-{17}-25-45->4
#1222	22/10/1983	Musical Youth	007	26	69-41-32-{26}-30-46->6
#1223	29/10/1983	Kiss	Lick It Up	31	48-33-{31}-47-71->5
#1224	05/11/1983	Limahl	Only For Love	16	34-20-{16}-17-27-42-64-75R(3)->8
#1225	29/10/1983	AC/DC	Guns For Hire	37	73-{37}-38-61->4
#1226	12/11/1983	The Rolling Stones	Undercover Of The Night	11	21-{11}-13-19-32-47-60-60-68->9
#1227	05/11/1983	Eurythmics	Right By Your Side	10	45-27-23-15-{10}-14-19-28-28-31-42->11
	29/10/1983	Joy Division	Love Will Tear Us Apart {1983}	19	71-42-30-{19}-21-35-56->7
#1228	05/11/1983	Marilyn	Calling Your Name	4	47-32-21-9-{4}-7-13-23-23-24-31-52->12
#1229	05/11/1983	Aztec Camera	Oblivious {1983 Re-Release}	18	61-35-29-20-{18}-20-27-40-40-48-54->11
#1230	12/11/1983	The Assembly	Never Never	4	36-10-{4}-6-10-22-30-30-42-58->10
#1231	19/11/1983	The Style Council	A Solid Bond In Your Heart	11	12-{11}-12-25-39-56-56-73->8
#1232	19/11/1983	Paul Young	Love Of The Common People	2	17-5-{2}-2-2-4-4-3-5-14-28-48-60->13
#1233	19/11/1983	Michael Jackson	Thriller	10	24-{10}-11-16-12-13-13-11-12-18-27-37-44-52-60-70-74-75->18

Yes definitely those two top tracks stand out because of the production, Safety Dance is like medieval baroque like Golden Brown was and Love Cats has that great bassline!

Yes I agree, your top 2 are easily the best here, both are very quirky and unusual. Lovecats is one of my favourite Cure singles and Safety Dance sounds so out of time, both then and now. Uptown Girl is joyous with its throwback vibes, it could have come straight out of Grease. I also really like Puss n Boots, the last of Adam’s big hits.

The Love Cats has that Stray Cats 50's retro rockabilly vibe via Goth New Wave whimsy and stood out at the time as being a bit different. Still a great track 9/10. So that's what The Safety Dance is about! I never knew, oops! Fun track though 8/10 and again unlike all else that was around. Uptown Girl is a loving tribute to The Four Seasons, Jersey Boys and all, and the best record they never recorded, still a singalong anthem with exhuberance 10/10.

King Kurt never broke through to me, and I dont recall Zululand much at all, not even an idea how it might have done in my charts of the time (1983 still to do). Kiss The Bride a decent Rock Elton single, wasn't it sampled on a Pnau project - checks: Cold Cold Heart, of course it was! That's a better record. 7/10. I have no memory of that Shostakovich track either, but a kid in my 1972 Music class used to treat that living composer like a pop star, on his school bag and all.

Puss n Boots not up to previous quality control I felt, 6/10. Union Of The Snake I preferred to the Rio era singles, it seemed darker and more strained and a blatant move away from singalong pop 9/10. Sister Surprise lacking the inspiration of 1979 1980 from Gazza 6/10. Unconditional Love was a sweet collab for both acts 7/10.

Motormania another of those too-vaguely-recalled to judge I'm afraid, but I think I liked it so prob around a 6/10. Micro-Kid I have an inkling I bargain-bin bought, but if so it's not been played in 40 years and was always a lesser Level 42 offering 6/10. Over And Over a low-key chart farewell from Shalamar 6/10. Sharon Redd's I dont recall, and UB40's I didnt know the original but this came over as a nice low-key ballad and money-earner for Winston 7/10.

Self-indulgent note that I have paid out cash to see Elton, Billy, Adam, Gary, Shalamar, UB40, Duran, Level 42. The Cure still on my wish list and sadly others I would love to have seen have shuffled off this mortal coil.

'68 Guns' would be my favourite of the first batch on this page too - an anthemic song in a similar vocal style to fellow Welshman James Dean Bradfield of The Manics years later.

'They Don't Know' would be my pick of the second batch, although I think Kirsty's original version, recorded a few years earlier while she was 19, slightly has the edge. Shout out to 'Superman' for not being last, that was played at every primary school disco during my years there.

The top 3 of the last batch are favourites of mine too - one of The Cure's jolliest songs but still with an outsider undercurrent, while 'The Safety Dance' and 'Uptown Girl' are just joyous - the latter was a staple of 80s nights at university so that's how I remember it, not for the Westlife version that came into existence later.

“Thriller” comes behind both “Billie Jean” and “Beat It” for me, but still tops this group.

9	Michael Jackson	Thriller	The ultimate spooky song: only the 7th release from the album which perhaps explains its rather low peak
8	The Assembly	Never Never	Only single for this synth pop group written by future Erasure writer Vince Clarke: it's a really lovely song
8	Paul Young	Love Of The Common People	A cover of a late '60s song with various earlier versions: this really manages to make the song come alive
7	The Police	Synchronicity II	I think this is slightly more successful than "Wrapped Around Your Finger": quite a punchy and engaging song
7	Eurythmics	Right By Your Side	Their 4th Top 10 hit of the year: it's very different from the others with a calypso feel, but a lovely warm track
7	The Rolling Stones	Undercover Of The Night	The lead from their 17th album: a great song with a slightly funky and interesting shimmering instrumental
6	Aztec Camera	Oblivious {1983 Re-Release}	A re-release giving this Scottish band their 1st Top 40: it's a very nice and well written new wave pop song
6	The Style Council	A Solid Bond In Your Heart	Their 4th hit in 8 months: it's not a huge standout but a good track that was written by Paul as part of The Jam
6	Marilyn	Calling Your Name	1st and biggest hit for this UK singer: it's nothing groundbreaking but a very well performed, enjoyable song
5	ABC	That Was Then But This Is Now	The 2nd album lead, and not as successful as their last few hits, but good despite the "apple crumble" lyric
5	Madness	The Sun And The Rain	Their 15th Top 10 hit incredibly, though after this their chart fortunes will go downhill: it's quite a nice track
5	AC/DC	Guns For Hire	The lead from their 9th album so #37 is a relative underperformance: it's nothing new but still a decent track
4	Musical Youth	007	I'm not a fan in general but this actually has quite a catchy tune and rhythm to it, and overall it isn't bad at all
4	Limahl	Only For Love	His 1st solo hit with his distinctive vocal style, but the song is quite lukewarm and not really exciting enough
3	Shakin' Stevens	Cry Just A Little Bit	His only US hit and an actual original song: the style is still rather grating but I think this is not so bad overall
3	Kiss	Lick It Up	Their 2nd Top 40 of the year, and a fairly standard example of its style with a big chorus that doesn't grab me
2	Status Quo	A Mess Of Blues	A 1960 Elvis song: I don't think this perfunctory feeling cover really achieves anything to bring it  up to date

1983 Group 20:

#1234	12/11/1983	Genesis	That's All	16	48-28-23-23-19-{16}-18-18-27-37-67->11
#1235	19/11/1983	Thompson Twins	Hold Me Now	4	31-14-5-{4}-5-6-6-8-9-12-25-30-38-57-73->15
#1236	12/11/1983	The Smiths	This Charming Man	25	55-32-30-{25}-29-33-44-44-51-43-70-69->12
#1237	19/11/1983	Tina Turner	Let's Stay Together	6	36-16-7-{6}-6-9-9-12-17-27-37-43-68->13
#1238	12/11/1983	Yes	Owner Of A Lonely Heart	28	42-37-29-{28}-30-38-49-49-69->9
#1239	26/11/1983	Simple Minds	Waterfront	13	25-{13}-17-21-31-31-34-41-55-67->10
#1240	26/11/1983	Ozzy Osbourne	Bark At The Moon	21	32-24-{21}-26-38-38-49-75->8
#1241	12/11/1983	Abba	Thank You For The Music	33	64-43-{33}-34-43-57->6
#1242	26/11/1983	Cliff Richard	Please Don't Fall In Love	7	34-20-9-{7}-10-10-13-26-46->9
#1243	12/11/1983	Kenny Rogers And Dolly Parton	Islands In The Stream	7	70-45-35-26-15-11-8-8-{7}-8-10-24-32-52-68->15
#1244	19/11/1983	Slade	My Oh My	2	73-36-15-5-3-{2}-2-2-11-30-55->11
#1245	19/11/1983	Roland Rat Superstar!	Rat Rapping (Brilliant Isn't It)	14	63-37-33-34-28-27-27-18-{14}-21-32-56->12
#1246	12/11/1983	Tom Robinson	Listen To The Radio - Atmospherics	39	53-41-40-{39}-47-56->6
#1247	26/11/1983	The Flying Pickets	Only You	1	60-9-{1}-1-1-1-1-10-25-47-70->11
#1248	03/12/1983	Tracey Ullman	Move Over Darling	8	21-{8}-9-12-12-15-21-36-60->9
#1249	03/12/1983	Wham!	Club Fantastic Megamix	15	30-18-{15}-21-21-25-27-71->8
#1250	26/11/1983	Howard Jones	What Is Love?	2	48-31-23-14-11-11-10-{2}-3-4-16-25-44-49-63->15

'Love of the Common People' is very similar melodically to Noah and The Whale 'L.I.F.E.G.O.E.S.O.N'!

'Oblivious' is a nice song but yeah Aztec Camera's other hit is way better.

'Thriller' is a good song but its more about the video! Same with Marilyn.

The Style Council song is a good fast Northern Soul influenced song, preferable to the slow 'Long Hot Summer' and they have more good songs in 1984.

Never Never would be my favourite in this group, another gorgeous Clarke song with great Feargal Sharkey vocals, a pity they didn’t do more stuff together.

Thriller is still great, if a little overexposed, the video is wonderful of course.

Other favourites would be Oblivious with its lovely indie pop, Right By Your Side a great change of direction for the Eurythmics and The Sun And The Rain. I’ve got a real soft spot for those Madness singles, it’s no wonder they’ve got so many best selling greatest hits albums!

Thriller is a masterpiece and it charted far too low for 2 reasons: everyone (like me) had bought the album and that version was better than the single version, and the ground-breaking video got delayed and delayed from debuting, and when it did it was only on late-night TV so kids missed out. 10/10 annual chart visits overplays notwithstanding. On paper I should love Never Never, but I never never did. A bit too under-stated maybe 6/10.

Paul's cover of the mini-classic reggae hit was nicely very different and the contribution of the Fabulous Wealthy Tarts on TOTP should not be under-estimated 9/10. Synchronicity II not remotely commercial and their first lower-chartin single, but still excellent though not heard it in years and years, my memory is "exciting": 8/10. Right By Your Side was unusually upbeat for Eurythmics, but not one of my faves from them 7/10.

Undercover Of The Night the last excellent single from The Rolling Stones until Ghost Town, ignoring reissues and remixes. 8/10. Oblivious is a minor forgotten little gem 8/10. A Solid Bond In Your Heart, solid effort, but not top-notch Style Council 7/10. Calling Your Name is pleasant enough but the Monroe visuals made it bigger than it deserved 7/10.

ABC's new musical direction, less strings and polish and romance, didn't really gel without Trevor Horn, but still good 7/10. Sun And The Rain not Madness' best single, they still have one more diamond to come though 7/10. Guns For Hire I have no memory of, as per usual for post-Bon Scott AC/DC formulaic singles. Musical Youth tackle the first reggae hit (if we don't call My Boy Lollipop ska) so it was nice for Desmond Dekker getting a call back 6/10.

Only For Love better than the Kaja singles, but nothing that special 7/10. Cry Just A Little Bit one of Shaky's best singles, a pretty decent song as a non-cover 7/10. Lick It Up I vaguely recall not liking but not much more than that, as per usual for Kiss' brand of bland Glam Rock. Quo chucking out formulaic covers by this time, and if one was going to cover Elvis there are about 50 better songs to choose from 4/10.

Funny I should mention giving the Flashdance movie a go in my previous post as I got an email about a week later saying it's been added to Neflix! Soon...

The vibrant 'Karma Chameleon' is my favourite of its relevant batch but can totally understand why overplay has soured it for many. I visited my grandparents a couple of weeks ago and they showed me some old family photos from the '80s for the first time and you can see a massive Culture Club poster in my aunt's childhood bedroom! We got on to the subject of concerts and she went to see them at Wembley (with King as support) too. Elsewhere, from that same section, I also found out my nan saw Bowie live in Soho in around 1964 so even pre-'Laughing Gnome', how cool!!

There are many great Beatles covers out there and that certainly includes Siouxsie and the Banshees' take on 'Dear Prudence', fits them like a glove.

Speaking of The Beatles... 'Say Say Say' is probably my favourite of the next batch. I first came across it when sampled in 'Say Say Say (Waiting 4 U)' by Hi_Tack, so I needed some time to get used to the slower tempo of the original - but really appreciate it now, especially the star power of MJ during the chorus. Much better than their previous collab indeed.

'The Lovecats' feels like quite a swerve in mood from The Cure but they still pulled it off. Last year I sent an obscure version by The Breath of Life to the 'covers' edition of the Retro song contest and it sounded more like what you'd expect from The Cure than the original 'The Safety Dance' is a fabulous, synth-tastic runner-up in that section as well.

'Thriller' would top that latest group for me too! My brother was an MJ super fan growing up, so he would often info dump on me (not a problem, was always happy to talk music <3) and I remember him showing me an earlier demo called 'Starlight' - the foundations were there, but the spooky makeover did wonders for the song. Pretty much everything about the music video is iconic too - the werewolf/cat transformation, zombie choreography, certified platinum reaction GIF when he's eating the popcorn - no notes.

'Never Never' is my favourite of the latest batch - Vince Clarke's music and Feargal Sharkey's vocals are unmistakeable. It's a shame this project didn't lead to any more hits, but they would both be back separately of course. 'Oblivious' I also like, but my favourite Aztec Camera single came between its two releases and that's the #64 peaking 'Walk Out To Winter', especially the near 8 minute extended version.