Forgotten 80s: April 2023

Sunday, 30 April 2023

SHOW #514 - "One touch of your greatness is what I need, my circle of fantasy would be complete..."

Donna Summer "Dinner With Gershwin"
Cult "Love Removal Machine"

Johnny Hates Jazz "I Don’t Want To Be A Hero"
Rick Astley "My Arms Keep Missing You"

Sly and Robbie "Boops (Here To Go)"
Christians "Hooverville (And They Promised Us The World)"

FLAUNT THE IMPERFECTION:
Whitney Houston "Love Is A Contact Sport"

Rosie Vela "Magic Smile"
George Michael "I Want Your Sex"

Erasure "It Doesn't Have To Be"

Karel Fialka "Hey Matthew"
Bangles "Walking Down Your Street"

Scarlet Fantastic "No Memory"
Whitesnake "Still Of The Night"

Donna Allen "Serious"
Simply Red "Infidelity"

Rainmakers "Let My People Go-Go"
Mel & Kim "F.L.M"

FLAUNT THE IMPERFECTION:
Terence Trent D'Arby "Seven More Days"

Then Jerico "The Motive (Living Without You)"
LL Cool J "I Need Love"

THE EDGE OF HEAVEN:
Bruce Springsteen "Tunnel Of Love"

Fleetwood Mac "Seven Wonders"
Black "Everything's Coming Up Roses"

The music in this edition of Forgotten 80s was all from 1987 and was the sixth of ten special episodes, all of which featured exclusively music from one year of the 80s, building up to the show's tenth birthday.

Sunday, 23 April 2023

SHOW #513 - "Face to face, sightless solitude, and it's finger popping, twenty four hour shopping..."

Blondie "Rapture"
Rainbow "I Surrender"

Duran Duran "Careless Memories"
Shalamar "Make That Move"

Shakin' Stevens "You Drive Me Crazy"
U2 "Fire"

FLAUNT THE IMPERFECTION:
Pretenders "Louie Louie"

Passions "I'm In Love With A German Film Star"
Level 42 "Love Games"

ABC "Tears Are Not Enough"

Yoko Ono "Walking On Thin Ice"
Freeez "Southern Freeez"

Kim Wilde "Cambodia"
Modern Romance "Everybody Salsa"

Yarbrough & Peoples "Don't Stop The Music"
Police "Invisible Sun"

Undertones "It's Going To Happen!"
Imagination "Flashback"

FLAUNT THE IMPERFECTION:
Rolling Stones "Hang Fire"

Human League "Open Your Heart"
Stevie Wonder "Lately"

THE EDGE OF HEAVEN:
Steve Winwood "While You See A Chance"

Adam and the Ants "Zerox"
Juice Newton "Angel Of The Morning"

The music in this edition of Forgotten 80s was all from 1981 and was the fifth of ten special episodes, all of which featured exclusively music from one year of the 80s, building up to the show's tenth birthday.

Sunday, 16 April 2023

SHOW #512 - "I said three two one go, we quit the party, let the fire glow..."

London Boys "Requiem"
Swing Out Sister "You On My Mind"

Beloved "The Sun Rising"
Jason Donovan "Every Day (I Love You More)"

Wendy & Lisa "Satisfaction"
Quireboys "7 O'Clock"

FLAUNT THE IMPERFECTION:
De La Soul "Change In Speak"

Boy Meets Girl "Waiting For A Star To Fall"
Deacon Blue "Love And Regret"

Transvision Vamp "Landslide Of Love"

A Guy Called Gerald "Voodoo Ray"
Fine Young Cannibals "Don't Look Back"

Goodbye Mr Mackenzie "The Rattler"
Gloria Estefan "Oye Mi Canto (Hear My Voice)"

Vixen "Cryin"
Double Trouble and the Rebel MC "Just Keep Rockin'"

Big Fun "Can't Shake The Feeling"
Beautiful South "I'll Sail This Ship Alone"

FLAUNT THE IMPERFECTION:
Soul II Soul "Happiness"

Fuzzbox "International Rescue"
Wet Wet Wet "Broke Away"

THE EDGE OF HEAVEN:
REM "Stand"

The Call "Let The Day Begin"
Don Henley "New York Minute"

The music in this edition of Forgotten 80s was all from 1989 and was the fourth of ten special episodes, all of which featured exclusively music from one year of the 80s, building up to the show's tenth birthday.

Sunday, 9 April 2023

SHOW #511 - "Like a butterfly, a wild butterfly, I will collect you and capture you..."

Animotion "Obsession"
Style Council "Come To Milton Keynes"

Madonna "Angel"
King "Won't You Hold My Hand Now"

Godley & Creme "Cry"
Steve Arrington "Dancin' In The Key Of Life"

FLAUNT THE IMPERFECTION:
Strawberry Switchblade "Deep Water"

Loose Ends "Hangin' On A String (Contemplating)"
UB40 "Don't Break My Heart"

Sheila E "The Belle Of St Mark"

Sharpe and Numan "Change Your Mind"
Nik Kershaw "Wide Boy"

Power Station "Some Like It Hot"
Lisa Lisa and Cult Jam with Full Force "I Wonder If I Take You Home"

Phil Collins "Take Me Home"
Trans X "Living On Video"

Pat Benatar "We Belong"
Killing Joke "Love Like Blood"

FLAUNT THE IMPERFECTION:
Propaganda "The Murder Of Love"

Cameo "Single Life"
REO Speedwagon "Can't Fight This Feeling"

THE EDGE OF HEAVEN:
Prefab Sprout "Faron Young"

XTC "Wake Up"
New Order "The Perfect Kiss"

The music in this edition of Forgotten 80s was all from 1985 and was the third of ten special episodes, all of which featured exclusively music from one year of the 80s, building up to the show's tenth birthday.

Sunday, 2 April 2023

SHOW #510 - "Happiness can often bleed, beggars lay among the sheep..."

Talk Talk "Today"
Shakatak "Night Birds"

Kid Creole and the Coconuts "I'm A Wonderful Thing, Baby"
Iron Maiden "The Number Of The Beast"

Trio "Da Da Da"
Culture Club "Time (Clock Of The Heart)"

FLAUNT THE IMPERFECTION:
Visage "Anvil Night Club School"

Alton Edwards "I Just Wanna (Spend Some Time With You)"
Japan "Ghosts"

The Jam "Just Who Is The Five O'Clock Hero"

Raw Silk "Do It To The Music"
Haircut 100 "Nobody's Fool"

Associates "Party Fears Two"
Junior "Too Late"

Simple Minds "Someone Somewhere (In Summertime)"
Haysi Fantayzee "John Wayne Is Big Leggy"

Musical Youth "The Youth Of Today"
Spandau Ballet "Instinction"

FLAUNT THE IMPERFECTION:
Dollar "Guessing Games"

Mari Wilson "Just What I Always Wanted"
Roxy Music "Take A Chance With Me"

THE EDGE OF HEAVEN:
A Flock Of Seagulls "I Ran"

America "You Can Do Magic"
Thomas Dolby "She Blinded Me With Science"

The music in this edition of Forgotten 80s was all from 1982 and was the second of ten special episodes, all of which featured exclusively music from one year of the 80s, building up to the show's tenth birthday.

Forgotten 80s

This show is the successor to Q The 80s, which was a cult programme I was privileged to host on Q Radio across the UK from September 2010 to May 2013. When the radio station was discontinued by its parent company, I was delighted to be offered the opportunity to continue the programme as Forgotten 80s by Absolute 80s, and the first edition aired on Sunday 26th May 2013. It's a two-hour show and we start at 9pm.

The show features the underplayed and the almost completely forgotten hits of the 80s, with the intention of rehabilitating the music of a decade that too many people are quick to scorn. Naturally, on a radio station that plays 80s music 24 hours a day, one is preaching somewhat to the converted, but nevertheless we do like to go that little step further. At least half of the songs on each edition of the show are requested by the audience.

The purpose of this blog is to act as a no-frills archive for the show's weekly setlists for people to visit after broadcast. No other material will appear on it. Below you will also find links to archives on Spotify of Flaunt The Imperfection, Calling America, Journeys To Glory, Didn't We Almost Have It All, When Will I Be Famous and The Nobody's Diary; the six features we have run on the show that have allowed us to play thousands of songs from outside the UK Top 40, as well as album tracks. A feature began in 2024 called Song For Whoever, focusing on cover versions of the 1980s, and there is an active archive running on Spotify.

In October 2017, we introduced the Last Orders Sequence to end the programme each week, which featured three tracks that hold some kind of connection, and were always taken from audience submissions. This ended in December 2021 and was replaced in January 2022 by The Edge Of Heaven, which features three singles that peaked on the chart outside the UK Top 40, all chosen by the audience.

Absolute 80s is available on DAB+ nationwide in stereo; on the Rayo app downloadable for free from your app store; on your smart speaker ("play Absolute 80s"); and via the Listen Live button on the official website. It has 1,700,000 listeners a week (RAJAR Q3 2024).

From Sunday 5th February 2017, we introduced a Listen Again facility for the show via a Forgotten 80s section on the free Absolute Radio app for smartphone and tablet. New editions of the show will appear on the app shortly after broadcast.

On Sunday 13th September 2015, during the 121st edition of the show, our hashtag - #forgotten80s - trended on Twitter for the first time at a ranking of 8. On Sunday 15th January 2017, during the 190th edition of the show, the hashtag was at number 1 in the trending charts across the UK for the first time. It went on to trend at number 1 for four consecutive weeks. The show trends in at least the Top 20 on Twitter every Sunday evening.

In December 2019, a special edition of the show helped commemorate Absolute 80s' tenth birthday.

On the 5th April 2020, following the imposition of Covid restrictions, the show deviated from its "one request per two songs" format to become an All Request show, and remained so even after Covid restrictions were eased.

In January 2023 the show reached its 500th edition, and the show celebrated its 10th anniversary on 28th May 2023, building up to the occasion with ten special shows that each featured music from just one different year of the 80s.

On August 1st 2023, a non-stop Forgotten 80s radio station was launched by Absolute Radio as part of its Premium portfolio, allowing subscribers to listen 24 hours a day commercial-free, and with the facility to skip songs. All information is on the Absolute 80s website (link further down this column), including terms and conditions.

I am 51 and have been on the radio since 1990. You can email me via the Absolute 80s website and follow me on Twitter.

Thanks for visiting the blog!
Matthew Rudd
#forgotten80s

Forgotten 80s on Spotify!

There are seven principal archives on Spotify which all feature music played on Forgotten 80s. Song For Whoever is a feature which we ran on Forgotten 80s from January to December 2024. Here we played cover versions, released in the 1980s, of high profile songs. Both tracks were selected by an individual listener each week. The archive for Song For Whoever is on Spotify. We endeavoured to add both featured tracks each week, subject to availability. Flaunt The Imperfection is a feature which ran on Forgotten 80s from January 2022 to December 2023. Here we played album tracks of studio or soundtrack albums of the 1980s that were not released as singles in the UK. Both tracks were selected by an individual listener each week. The archive for Flaunt The Imperfection is on Spotify. We endeavoured to add both featured tracks each week, subject to availability. Two album tracks by Freeez in succession were featured when founder and lead singer John Rocca appeared as a guest contributor. The Blogger widget will only display a maximum of 100 songs; further songs are being added to the archive on Spotify itself after this limit was reached in January 2023. Calling America was a feature which we ran on Forgotten 80s from January 2020 to December 2021. Here we played tracks which were entering or climbing the Billboard Hot 100 singles chart in the USA in the week of broadcast from two different years of the 1980s. We pledged to not play any track that made the Top 40 in the UK, nor any which has been on the show previously in any preceding feature below. The archive for Calling America is on Spotify. We endeavoured to add both featured tracks each week, subject to availability. The Blogger widget will only display a maximum of 100 songs; further songs were added to the archive on Spotify itself once this limit was reached in December 2020. Journeys To Glory was a feature that ran on Forgotten 80s from January 2018 to December 2019. Here we played tracks from albums of the 1980s on the anniversary of their entering the UK album chart. We considered studio and soundtrack albums only, as they contained material original at the time. We played either non-Top 40 single releases or tracks only released as part of the album. The archive for Journeys To Glory, is also on Spotify. We endeavoured to add both featured tracks each week, subject to availability. The Blogger widget will only display a maximum of 100 songs; further songs were added each week once this limit was reached in January 2019. Didn't We Almost Have It All? was a feature that ran on Forgotten 80s from May 2015 to December 2017. Here we featured songs from the charts counted down on the show prior to Forgotten 80s, the Absolute 80s Chart, which would never get higher than 41. Every song played was chosen by the audience. The archive for Didn't We Almost Have It All?, is also on Spotify. The Blogger widget will only display a maximum of 100 songs; further songs were added to the archive on Spotify itself since this limit was reached in the summer of 2017. When Will I Be Famous? was a feature that ran on Forgotten 80s from August 2014 to May 2015. Here we featured unsuccessful early releases by artists who would later go on to stardom. Every song played was chosen by the audience. The archive for When Will I Be Famous?, is also on Spotify. The Nobody's Diary was a feature of Forgotten 80s from the show's inception in May 2013 to August 2014. Here we featured artists who would never make the UK Top 40, despite attaining a lower position in the charts at least once. Every song played was chosen by the audience. The archive for The Nobody's Diary, is also on Spotify. Via these seven features, we have played on the show more than 1,500 tracks that were not Top 40 hits in the UK. We have further associate archive playlists, collating as many of the songs as possible that reached a certain chart position in the 80s, relating to birthday editions of either the show or the radio station. To explore these archived lists further, search for matthewjrudd on Spotify.

Forgotten 80s requests

Requests can be sent via the official Absolute 80s Facebook page, using the thread opened shortly before the beginning of each show; using the hashtag #forgotten80s via Bluesky and/or the social media formerly called Twitter; or via matthew.rudd@absoluteradio.co.uk. Messages via the website or Rayo app will also appear in my email inbox.
Guidelines for your requests:

- no act from the previous week can be repeated (but a solo artist from a featured group can - eg, if Ultravox were on last week, a Midge Ure solo record is eligible for the next week) - this rule is often relaxed for special editions

- a track must have had a 30-show gap before it can be played again (you can use the search function on this blog to assist you) - this rule is often relaxed for special editions

- all regular requests must be for Top 40 hits of the 80s, with a peak chart position attained between January 1st 1980 and December 31st 1989 (the link above for the Official Chart Archive can assist you with this)

To request for Song For Whoever, you must send by email four choices of cover versions recorded in the 80s, from which two will be selected, and to request for The Edge Of Heaven, you must send by email four choices of singles of the 80s that peaked on the chart outside the Top 40, from which three will be selected (the link above for the Official Chart Archive can assist you with this). Only emailed submissions will be considered