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NOW Yearbook: The Vault 1985

Lesser compiled tracks from ’85 get their moment in the sun

By Paul Sinclair

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NOW Yearbook Vault 85

NOW That’s What I Call Music continue with their Yearbook Vault releases of ‘lesser compiled’ tracks with a look at 1985.

4CD and 3LP coloured vinyl collections dig deep into the year’s musical landscape – with 78 tracks on the CD editions and 45 songs across three coloured (green) vinyl LPs.

The 4CD set – which comes in the usual deluxe hardcover book and card sleeve editions opens with Bruce Springsteen’s ‘My Hometown’ – the last single from the mega-selling Born in the USA before moving on to Bryan Ferry and Sting with ‘Windswept’ and ‘Love is the Seventh Wave’. Both of those songs are classic Vault tracks: great tracks off classic albums (Boys and Girls and The Dream of the Blue Turtles, respectively) that peaked WAY short of where many assume they did (neither cracked the UK top 40). Go West’s ‘Eye to Eye’ was only a single in the US, while ABC’s ‘Be Near Me’ was released both sides of the Atlantic, but fared much better Stateside. This disc continues with offerings from Fine Young Cannibals, China Crisis, Simply Red, Thompson Twins and the Art of Noise.

Deluxe hardcover book 4CD set

The second disc has an ‘alternative’ flavour, at least initially, with songs from Cocteau Twins, The Jesus and Mary Chain, The Dream Academy and New Model Army before widening it’s net and scoping up minor hits from the likes of Tina Turner, Matt Bianco, Chris Rea and Squeeze.

CD3 has a dance floor slant with tracks including Cameo’s brilliant ‘She’s Strange’, Sheryl Lee Ralph’s ‘In The Evening’, the Stock Aitken Waterman produced ‘The Heaven I Need’ by The Three Degrees and Divine’s cover of ‘Twisting The Night Away’. Elton John & Millie Jackson’s ‘Act of War’ is a very popular 12-inch at Den Bosch record fair (I’m always seeing it) but it was a minor hit a few years before ‘Nikita’ revived Reg’s commercial fortunes here in the UK.

CD 4 has the kind of artists you’d find on a compilation called ‘American Highway Dreams’ (Pat Benetar, Bon Jovi, John Mellencamp, Kim Carnes, Dio, The Cars, Rick Springfield etc.), but since this is a Vault compilation it’s not all the usual big hits which at least means it’s not predictable

NOW Yearbook Vault ’85 will be released on 15 May 2026.

Tracklisting

NOW Yearbook Vault 85

NOW Yearbook The Vault ’85 Various Artists /

    • CD 1
      1. Bruce Springsteen – My Hometown
      2. Bryan Ferry – Windswept
      3. Sting – Love Is The Seventh Wave
      4. Go West – Eye To Eye
      5. Scritti Politti – Perfect Way
      6. ABC – Be Near Me
      7. Fine Young Cannibals – Blue
      8. The Colourfield – Castles In The Air
      9. China Crisis – You Did Cut Me
      10. Orchestral Manoeuvres In The Dark – La Femme Accident
      11. Midge Ure – That Certain Smile
      12. Blancmange – What’s Your Problem
      13. Philip Oakey & Giorgio Moroder – Good-Bye Bad Times
      14. Heaven 17 – …(And That’s No Lie)
      15. Simply Red- Come To My Aid
      16. The Style Council – Come To Milton Keynes
      17. The Power Station- Communication
      18. Adam Ant – Vive Le Rock
      19. Thompson Twins – Revolution
      20. TheArt Of Noise- Legs
    • CD 2
      1. Cocteau Twins – Aikea-Guinea
      2. The Jesus And Mary Chain- Just Like Honey
      3. The Dream Academy-The Love Parade
      4. Elvis Costello & The Attractions – Green Shirt
      5. The Clash – This Is England
      6. The Stranglers – Let Me Down Easy
      7. The Damned – The Shadow Of Love
      8. Sisters Of Mercy- No Time To Cry
      9. New Model Army-No Rest
      10. This Island Earth – See That Glow
      11. Marillion- Heart Of Lothian
      12. Bonnie Tyler with Todd Rundgren – Loving You’s A Dirty Job (But Somebody’s Gotta Do It)
      13. Tina Turner – Show Some Respect
      14. Princess – After The Love Has Gone
      15. Loose Ends – Golden Years
      16. Brilliant- It’s A Man’s Man’s Man’s World
      17. Matt Bianco-More Than I Can Bear
      18. Daryl Hall & John Oates – Method Of Modern Love
      19. Chris Rea- Stainsby Girls
      20. Squeeze – Last Time Forever
    • CD 3
      1. Sheryl Lee Ralph – In The Evening
      2. Barbara Pennington – On A Crowded Street
      3. Miquel Brown – Close To Perfection
      4. The Three Degrees – The Heaven I Need
      5. Hazell Dean- They Say It’s Gonna Rain
      6. Laura Branigan-Spanish Eddie
      7. Divine – Twistin’ The Night Away
      8. Eddie Murphy – Party All The Time
      9. Patti LaBelle – New Attitude
      10. Elton John & Millie Jackson – Act Of War (Part 1)
      11. The Pointer Sisters – Baby Come And Get It
      12. Ready For The World – Oh Sheila
      13. The Limit – Say Yeah
      14. Mary Jane Girls – In My House
      15. Steve Arrington – Dancing In The Key Of Life
      16. Cameo – She’s Strange
      17. Sister Sledge- Dancing On The Jagged Edge
      18. Five Star – R.S.V.P.
      19. Eighth Wonder – Stay With Me
      20. Marilyn – Baby U Left Me (In The Cold)
    • CD 4
      1. Billy Joel – You’re Only Human (Second Wind)
      2. David Lee Roth- California Girls
      3. John Mellencamp – Small Town
      4. Bon Jovi – In And Out Of Love
      5. Dio – Rock ‘N’ Roll Children
      6. Pat Benatar – Invincible
      7. Kim Carnes – Crazy In The Night (Barking At Airplanes)
      8. Oingo Boingo – Weird Science (From “Weird Science” Soundtrack)
      9. Animotion – Let Him Go
      10. The Cars – Tonight She Comes
      11. ‘Til Tuesday – Voices Carry
      12. Foreigner- That Was Yesterday
      13. Journey – Only The Young
      14. Rick Springfield – State Of The Heart
      15. Michael McDonald- No Lookin’ Back
      16. Philip Bailey – Walking On The Chinese Wall
      17. Chaka Khan- Through The Fire
      18. Whitney Houston – You Give Good Love

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