NewsNow That’s What I Call Music 10
1987 compilation issued as a 2CD set
The NOW team continue to re-release the original compilations and have announced that Now That’s What I Call Music 10 is to be reissued across two CDs, next month.
Originally put out in November 1987, the 30-track various artists collection was actually the first in the series to be issued, in full, as a two-CD set (in the old style ‘fatbox’). This undeniably makes the reissue a little less exciting than previous NOWs and the problem is compounded by the fact that two songs (good ones: Heart‘s ‘Alone’ and Whitesnake‘s ‘Here I Go Again’) have not ‘cleared’ for licensing on the 2021 edition, giving the compilers little choice other than to cut it down to 28 tracks. So in this instance, the reissue actually offers less than the original CD version.
The compilation still offers plenty of great songs, like the Pet Shop Boys‘ ‘Rent’ or Hue and Cry‘s ‘Labour of Love’ and while bands like Wet Wet Wet, Johnny Hates Jazz and Curiosity Killed The Cat may feel a tad more lightweight than their early eighties contemporaries, at this point they’re still delivering strong tracks from debut albums (‘Sweet Little Mystery’, ‘I Don’t Want To Be A Hero’, and ‘Misfit’, respectively).
Meanwhile, Bananarama have sold out to SAW (Stock Aitken Waterman), ABC and Squeeze enjoy their last outing in the UK top 20 (with ‘When Smokey Sings’ and ‘Hourglass’) and T’Pau‘s ‘China in Your Hand’ is an enormous hit, staying at number one for five weeks in late autumn 1987. The latter kept George Harrison‘s ‘Got My Mind Set On You’ off the top spot, although the ex-Beatle’s single was nowhere to be found on Now That’s What I Call Music 10 nor in fact on Hits 7, the rival compilation supported by WEA/CBS/BMG which denied the NOW team access to big hits such as the Bee Gees ‘You Win Again’, Rick Astley‘s ‘Never Gonna Give You Up’, Fleetwood Mac‘s ‘Little Lies’, Prince (and Sheena Easton)’s ‘U Got The Look’ and, er, Spagna’s ‘Call Me’.
Now That’s What I Call Music 10 is reissued as a two-CD set on 19 November 2021.
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Various Artists
Now 10 - 2CD set
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I’ve gone through this NOW 10 reissue, and compared all the tracks to my own music archive (over 157,000 tracks) and the original releases on Discogs.
The track listing on the cover does not denote the specific mixes for the following tracks:
1-02, 1-03, 1-04, 1-05, 1-06, 1-09, 1-11, 1-12, 2-01, 2-04, 2-10, 2-12 and 2-13
Below is the track listing that I have found to be correct:
CD1:
Freddie Mercury & Montserrat Caballé – Barcelona
Pet Shop Boys – Rent (7″ Version)
The Communards – Never Can Say Goodbye (7″ Mix By Shep Pettibone)
M|A|R|R|S – Pump Up The Volume (7″ Version)
Hue & Cry – Labour Of Love (7″ Version)
Jellybean – The Real Thing (7″ Version) (Feat. Steven Dante)
Johnny Hates Jazz – I Don’t Want To Be A Hero
The Style Council – Wanted
T’Pau – China In Your Hand (Single Version)
KISS – Crazy Crazy Nights
Billy Idol – Mony Mony (Live)
The Alarm – Rain In The Summertime (7″ Version)
Marillion – Sugar Mice
CD2:
Wet Wet Wet – Sweet Little Mystery (Single Version) [WITH CHANGES TO SECOND VERSE]
Curiosity Killed The Cat – Misfit
Los Lobos – La Bamba
Fat Boys & The Beach Boys – Wipeout! (7″ Version)
Bananarama – Love In The First Degree
Cliff Richard – My Pretty One
Karel Fialka – Hey Matthew
Jan Hammer – Crockett’s Theme
Nina Simone – My Baby Just Cares For Me
Erasure – The Circus (Remix By Flood)
The Housemartins – Build
Level 42 – It’s Over (Remix)
ABC – When Smokey Sings (7″ Version) [WITH THE VERBAL COUNT-IN]
Squeeze – Hourglass
The Pogues – Fairytale Of New York (Feat. Kirsty MacColl)
How come there is a licencing issue with two songs on what is essentially a reissue of a release that already had the permissions granted?
Licenses only last for a few years, not 34 years!
I think i’d rather they stopped with the early Now reissues now they’ve reached the full CD era of the Nows. I’d much rather they’d ramp up the release rate of the Now Yearbooks instead.
I suppose it’s good that they’re reissuing 10 onwards but it’s likely to mean gaps on Now 11 (Whitesnake) and 12 (Heart) are already on the cards.
As a boring aside, Now 10 was the first numbered double CD. Now Smash Hits was the first double CD, oddly enough with 1 song missing compared to the LP.
Still have the cassette. One of the best things about this time was there could still be a strange unexpected hit- see Karel Fialka Hey Matthew. Surely one of the oddest Top 10 hits ever.
What inspired lunacy it was! And surely one of the most prophetic songs of the past 40 years?
Had forgotten all about this song, until listening to it recently on the re-release. Crazy, but brilliant.
“Here I go again on my own” was my anthem in 1987.
I left my home country The Netherlands for the first time in my life to go on a work/vacation for 3 months in the USA all by myself. I worked 2 months in a children vacation camp and topped it of with 1 month of vacation. There where a ton of hurdles as not being on the list to get from London to New York, working with kids (first time for me), sleeping in Port Authority bus station between thousands of homeless people. getting kicked awake by a police officer, and on and on. The song was my year, a shame it isn’t on there.
I saw an interview Norm did with Lorne where they were talking about different eras of SNL and Lorne said “a person’s favorite version of SNL usually corresponds to the time they were in high school.”
No mention of the Bryan Adams new album or the Judas Priest box set?
Do we really have to be stuck in the eighties
You can be stuck wherever you wish to be Michael :)
I not mentioning the Adele album either. Sorry to disappoint.
Thank you for that, Paul!
I’m not so lucky. There is still one tube station that is still advertising Adele’s 25 album.
You just did though. All is forgiven.
Quite right too! The tagline of the blog isn’t “For those who like to hold the Muzak in their hands” after all.
I really wanted to publish my review of Adele 80 somewhere. The first single “Thinking Back To When We Turned 65,” a piano pop masterpiece of the singer reflecting on when she was 65 going through divorce proceedings with her 17th husband. Ok, not that funny. I’ll get back to work.
Is that stuck in the eighties with Bob Dylan? Or stuck in the 80s with the Beatles? Or that well known 80s walking haircut Cat Stevens?
What a let down after the last two compilations and this being the one that was first released on CD in full back in 1987, you would have thought it would have been released intact. To miss out two great power ballads ALONE and HERE I GO AGAIN leaves a big hole this time round. A scroogly compiled version for Christmas 2021!
It’s a bit of a dog’s dinner,with the Nina Simone oldie (reissued at the time don’t forget) rubbing shoulders with the still fab sounding ‘Pump Up The Volume’
Always loved Bananramma though and looked forward to their highly choreographed performances on TOTP.
The Nina Simone track was re-issued because of a commercial at the time. This was the period of oldies being used to advertise products on tv which in turn sent them back into the charts!
It wasn’t an oldie for me, because I didn’t hear it first time around. I very much associate tracks like this and Reet Petite with the 80s.
That’s what is always so good about a compilation album … I bought this, even though I have the original (sad I know) have it on in the car all the time, just like I listened to this as a kid … my 4 and 9 year olds love, and sing along to all the songs, their favourite is the NinaSimone track
I have the original fatbox edition. And just pre-ordered the re-issue.
What’s wrong with me?!?!
I think we’d all agree there’s absolutely nothing wrong with that or you (!).
See The Communards are included here. Their first album is getting an anniversary rerelease in December, also on deluxe CD.
I was sixteen so you’d think this would be right up my street… but it’s well naff in places :)
The latter half of the 80s was not a great time for the charts in my opinion. Some great songs but a lot if naff pop.
This is where ‘Now’ becomes a dilemma. I have all the original ‘Now’ from 10 onwards. Do I really need another copy of these compilations now that the reissues of 1-9 has filled the missing gaps?
For sure the mastering of CD’s in 1987 was completely different and the volume levels were much lower. On the other hand the original CD hasn’t any missing tracks like the new reissue. I may have to pass on this one and save my money for some other SDE. Considering it’s 34 years ago, I’m sure there’s some younger folk who haven’t got these in their collection and will want to buy them so hopefully there’s still a market for the reissues.
This doesn’t seem to have that many enduring classics and maybe because of that it may be much more listenable.
Love Jellybean, Fialka, and Marrs which used to be overplayed but not anymore :)
Are the original 7 inch single mixes being used for this reissue series? For example, the single mix of Watchdoggs by UB40 featured different instrumentation on the single compared to the album version.
The answer is, it’s very hit and miss leaning more towards ‘miss’.
There’s been a lot of conversation on the relevant SDE posts about wrong versions being included but this site gives a very good summary of all the differences:
https://apopfansdream.wordpress.com/words/now-cd-errors/
I have read it and i know enough. Loads of album versions used instead of the original 7 inch single mixes which were on the original NOW compilations. A no buy for me.
One of the best early NOWs and great music but I am lucky to have the originals from now on. Quite bizarre concerning the two omissions as the reason isn’t obvious for two very well known and much compiled tracks.
Good lord, 1987 ! I know you all really love the 80’s here, and I have no problem with that. But I’m sorry, for me it’s the lowest point in musical history. I know I’m on the wrong site…
You aren’t on the wrong site since this is not an eighties website (hello, The Beatles, Let It Be). But feel free *not* to to tell everyone what you hate.
I don’ hate, I dislike. But yes, you’re right, next time I’ll concentrate on what I love.
I hate tuna!!
But I like fish in general,,
87 is a big year for me ,I left house and moved down the Torquay,I was 19, lived in torwood street just up from a club called Clair’s!!!
I remember as if it was yesterday walking home and China in your hand would be playing every time I walked passed the place!!!!
Unfortunately Remi I’m with you on this one. Despite coverage of The Beatles I certainly feel there is an 80s pop slant to SDE of late. Recently we’ve had Olivia Newton John, Sheena Easton, Now compilations, Duran Duran to the back teeth, even a Kate Bush coloured vinyl reissue unwrapping. All well and good and all have their fans, but Judas Priest who also had an 80s heyday of sorts, are about to release their 50th anniversary box set. It contains 42 discs, a number of previously unreleased tracks and live recordings and SDE have barely mentioned it. Compared to what has been covered as ‘news’ by SDE it leaves me somewhat confused as to what SDE considers to be a ‘super deluxe edition’!
SDE has had four things from the 1990s in the last week, before that Uriah Heep and Deep Purple. Before THAT, Charlatans, Beach Boys, Bowie, Popol Vuh, Air, Springsteen. Obsessed with the 80s, I know…
Let’s not pretend that some eras were better than others. It’s a matter of taste. But generally speaking, speaking ill of what you don’t like in a thear about that very thing you don’t like is… best done if you can take it ;)
When I rip these new CDs, I always add in the missing tracks. Its annoying but not the end of the world. I always find it weird why they cant access some tracks. I mean, who would turn down a revenue stream?
Not everyone ‘rips’ CDs though. I more or less never do. I just play them on my CD player (call me old fashioned, etc.)
Paul.
I have to rip the CDs. I put them on an ITouch solely for the car which doesn’t have a CD player. Streaming through the car, so many hoops and hurdles to overcome.
Also having to use a Hire Car for work, much easier.
Agree, at home CD Player
Fair enough. I’m lucky enough to have an old car that still has a CD player in it!
You may be old fashioned but we love you…just…the…way….you…are.
Yes, the best pop years for us old fashioned folk must be 80-84.
The best thing going for this compilation is the price….not saying it is bad, in fact it has a good selection. The weakest one is cliff richard. The most obscure might be Karel fialka …”I see the a-team , the a-team” hahaha I remember that as a wee nipper.
The monster rat song with Freddie is good too, but a strange one to set the whole compilation off with…does the “queen must be first, except on now 7” rule apply here?
I’m going to have to buy the compilation for Hey Matthew alone – love the track back in the day and it’s proved elusive to get hold of in the digital age.
It’s available as an MP3 and streaming on Amazon, but it’s hard to get on CD.
It’s on Apple Music.