By the time November 1984 rolled around, Now That's What I Call Music suddenly had a serious competitor in the form of the Hits series. Indeed, The Hits Album would stroll to number one in the album charts, leaving Now 4 floundering in second spot and the only Now not to reach number one on either the album or the compilation charts. It's easy to see why too; Now 4 is all over the place and comfortably the worst in the series until Now 15.
Big hitters Paul McCartney and Queen had sweetheart arrangements with EMI and Virgin that guaranteed them top billing on the Now albums. Now 4 is no exception, with Queen starting off disc 2 and McCartney grabbing the lead track on the whole album. Unfortunately, No More Lonely Nights - which kicks off side 1 - is the Special Dance Mix by Arthur Baker (I'd never heard of him either). It's not great and feels unnecessary when it was the original version that made #2 in October. Further evidence of McCartney's cushy arrangement is provided by the unusual mention of the album the song was pulled from - in this case the Give My Regards to Broad Street soundtrack - immediately underneath the song title on the rear cover. Presumably, it was just a blatant cash grab from McCartney's team who insisted the movie be mentioned in an effort to persuade the public it might actually be any good (it isn't).
The wonderful Together in Electric Dreams by Giorgio Moroder with Philip Oakey of The Human League quickly brings us some relief. It's a top synthpop track, a bit of a classic, and gets us back on track after the McCartney debacle. It had made #3 shortly before Now 4's release so was nice and fresh at the time. It's followed by more synthpop greatness and Bronski Beat's Why? Good question. No, it's not as good as Smalltown Boy found on Now 3 but it's still easily one of the better songs on here.
Guilty pleasure The Never Ending Story from Limahl keeps the synthpop vibe going. It's fantastically over-produced, the soundtrack to many a childhood from the movie of the same name. Slightly less pleasurable is Nick Heyward's Warning Sign. Heyward's post-Haircut 100 solo career would be brief and this catches him firmly on the way down. The track really isn't that bad but it's utterly forgettable, particularly after the brilliance of Messrs. Moroder, Oakey, Somerville, etc. that preceded it. Warning Sign was a new release at the time (it hadn't even yet cracked the top 40 when Now 4's sleeve notes were written) but would only climb as high as #25.
John Waite, formerly of Bad English and The Babys, was a one hit wonder in the UK. While Missing You charted at #9, it would be his only UK top 40 single. The song has probably become better known since, included on numerous 80's compilation albums. Ironically, Waite - despite being English - would experience far greater success in the US where Missing You was a #1 smash. He also charted stateside with more than half a dozen other songs.
It's now barrel bottom scraping time with the inclusion of the dreary Farewell My Summer Love by Michael Jackson. It had been released on Motown in 1973 originally. Jackson was, by this time, signed to Epic and had experienced massive success with Off the Wall and Thriller. Desperate to jump on the Jackson bandwagon, Motown had put out a compilation album (also titled Farewell My Summer Love) and released the title track as a single. It did make #7 in the UK but, God, is it a painful listen. Even more so when Now 4's main rival, The Hits Album, snagged Thriller. Yes, it was a butchered, horribly edited version but it was still Thriller.
Side 1 finishes with the only chart topper on Now 4 and it's Lionel Richie's ballad Hello. This has been released in early 1984 so could have comfortably been included on Now 3 but we find it here instead. I have to confess to liking Hello; it's a lovely melody and Richie's vocals are like silk. Yes, it was massively overplayed on the radio but that was understandable. It was a number one hit, after all... those tend to get played quite a bit, right?
Side 2 is a mixed bag, starting off with Culture Club and The War Song. The anti-war sentiment may be well meaning but the lyrics are childish and condescending. Boy George would later joke that this was the song that ruined his career, perhaps with some justification as it would be Culture Club's last top 5 hit of the 80's. It did make #2 and Clare Torry (of The Great Gig in the Sky fame) is on backing vocals so all is not lost; it's just quite a ways from vintage Culture Club.
Things take a bigger turn for the worse with Elton John's dreadful Passengers. It did make #5 but it's a poor effort. Even Elton apparently thinks the song is crap because it's only ever been on one of his compilations that I'm aware of. He is followed by Julian Lennon and Too Late for Goodbyes. I never understood the dislike for this song. It's catchy, sung competently, made #6...and my God, does Julian sound like his dad. No bad thing there. Perhaps some were unfairly comparing Julian to Lennon Senior, thinking that John would have never put out a song as fluffy as this. Seriously? Have they listened to Double Fantasy?
The Style Council are next with Shout to the Top, a #7 hit from October '84. I'd argue it's not their best but it's still decent. Paul Weller could really do no wrong in the 80's. Or the 90's, come to think of it. This leads us into the best song on side 2 and one of the best on Now 4. Doctor! Doctor! from the Thompson Twins is part synthpop, part new wave and it's simply glorious. Who cares if Tom Bailey couldn't sing live to save his life, he nailed it in the studio. This, however, is a slightly strange inclusion. Doctor! Doctor! had made #3 but way back in February. It could have easily been included on Now 3 were it not for the fact that You Take Me Up was already on there. Curiously, You Take Me Up was actually released after Doctor! Doctor! but included on an earlier Now album. A bit ass about backwards but there you go and I'm still glad of it being on here, albeit nine months after the fact.
By mid-1984, Heaven 17 were dying a bit of a slow death and Sunset Now would be their penultimate top 40 single until Temptation was pointlessly remixed in 1992. Sunset Now is far more pop oriented than their earlier stuff and it's instantly forgettable, blander than Granny's Sunday roast. Slightly better is Respect Yourself from The Kane Gang, a cover of The Staple Singers 1971 hit. It's not going to make anyone's Best of the 80's lists but it's got a good beat and some nice horns going on. It was a new chart entry when Now 4 was released and would go on to reach #12.
We save the best till last (well, almost... see Thompson Twins above) as Tina Turner shits all over the competition with the storming Private Dancer. It's one of her signature songs, an all time classic, and Tina's vocal blows away everything else on Now 4. This was also a new entry on Now 4's release but, criminally, it would only make #26. Honestly, I think Private Dancer was ahead of its time and the suggestive lyrics made the record buying public uncomfortable back in '84. No sex please, we're British.
Side 3 is a bit of a shocker, let's put it out there right now. We lead off with Queen and their own sweetheart arrangement with EMI/Virgin, guaranteeing a plum position on any Now album. Unfortunately, it's the so-so It's a Hard Life, not a patch on their previous couple of singles. The only alternative would have been the vastly superior Hammer to Fall. That had been released in September and made #13, but It's a Hard Life had reached #6 so was the obvious choice from a standpoint of chart success.
Things go further downhill with the abysmal The Wanderer from Status Quo. A cover of the Dion classic, it has regrettably gone on to be one of their better known hits. A #6 hit right around the time of Now 4's release, this would not be the last time we'd see a dodgy Status Quo track fouling up a Now album. There's then a slight improvement courtesy of Big Country and East of Eden. It's not their best work but it's passable. It's definitely better than the two tracks that precede it, though it would be hard to be worse.
Salvation comes from U2 and the monster Pride (In the Name of Love). This was their first truly big hit, reaching #3 in September and is arguably their signature song. It's still a fantastic listen to this day, the soaring chorus showing off Bono's vocals. It's followed by the slightly quirky Listen to Your Father by Feargal Sharkey. Written by Carl Smyth of Madness fame, it's a song that could have easily been a Madness track. It's really quite good, better than I remembered, and was Sharkey's first solo hit after his departure from The Undertones and The Assembly.
O.M.D. had a bit of a mid-80's slump, no better represented here by Tesla Girls. It's decent enough synthpop, despite the intro apparently featuring a bad Sinitta soundalike, but it's just... forgettable. Little wonder it stalled at #21. Better is Kim Wilde and the underrated The Second Time. It only made #29 but it's a bit of a sleeper and should have charted higher. Side 3 closes out with Human Racing from Nik Kershaw. The title track from his album of the same name, it only got to #19 and is a bit crap. The song just never seems to go anywhere and Kershaw sounds uncomfortable. Apparently, it's the same 97 BPM as Wouldn't It Be Good but I wouldn't have known it just from listening. A disappointing way to finish side 3.
For the most part, the Now and Hits series had exclusive tracks to one another and, usually, exclusive artists too. It was unusual - though not unheard of - for a song to be featured on both. One notable exception is the theme song from Ghostbusters by Ray Parker Jr. It's found both here on Now 4 and also on the first installment of The Hits Album, the aforementioned new kid on the block at the time. What can I say, it's a great track that has dated horribly but that only adds to its charm. One of my favorite films of the 80's and the soundtrack is a big part of the reason.
I've never understood the attraction of UB40. For every good song there's five or six rank average. Unfortunately, it's one of the rank average that shows up here in the form of If It Happens Again. This track made #9 in early October. Number nine, really?! Must have been slim pickings that month on the chart front. There's some brief redemption from the Pointer Sisters and the glorious Jump (For My Love). A #6 hit in the summer of '84, it's manic, over-the-top dance pop that is hard to beat. The biggest selling dance single of the year in the US.
We then get a slightly disappointing sequence of Level 42's Hot Water and Sexcrime (Nineteen Eighty-Four) by the Eurythmics. I'm one of those people who quite likes Level 42's brand of adult oriented pop. Hot Water is passable but not one of their better tracks. Sexcrime was a brand new release at the time and, given how big the Eurythmics now were, it's an understandable inclusion. There was much controversy over the movie 1984 for which this song was written, with the Eurythmics' synthpop offerings replacing much of Dominic Muldowney orchestral score. I don't know what all the fuss was about; the original Muldowney soundtrack is miles better.
Next up is a minor classic and it's Rockwell with Somebody's Watching Me. Rockwell, a.k.a. Kennedy William Gordy, a.k.a. Berry "Motown Founder" Gordy's son, had scored big with this 80's mainstay in February 1984. Somebody's Watching Me had hit #3 hit in the UK and #2 in the US. Featuring Michael and Jermaine Jackson on backing vocals, it's an essential inclusion on any self-respecting 80's compilation.
We close out Now 4 on a bit of a whimper. Madam Butterfly from Malcolm McLaren is a bizarre attempt at blending opera with electronic music. It's a mess of a song, trying to be some enlightened combination of Kate Bush and Montserrat Caballé, but it doesn't work at all. Not surprisingly, it stalled at #13 in September. Finally, it's the act we've all been waiting for... yes, it's Eugene Wilde. Wait, who? I'd never heard of him but R&B flavored Gotta Get You Home Tonight was a new-ish release at the time and did reach #18 in the charts. It's a passable song, probably great to have sex to when your mind is on something else other than the music, but a really lackluster way to finish. Pun intended.
The Hip
Giorgio Moroder with Philip Oakey - Together in Electric Dreams
Limahl - The Never Ending Story
Thompson Twins - Doctor! Doctor!
Tina Turner - Private Dancer
U2 - Pride (In the Name of Love)
The Tragic
Paul McCartney - No More Lonely Nights (Special Dance Mix)
Michael Jackson - Farewell My Summer Love
Elton John - Passengers
Status Quo - The Wanderer
Malcolm McLaren - Madam Butterfly
The Missing
Stevie Wonder - I Just Called to Say I Love You
Huge number one hit in the summer. Some may find it a bit too Eurovision for their liking but, come on, it's Stevie Wonder. If Now could license Michael Jackson from Motown then surely they could nab Stevie too.
David Bowie - Blue Jean
Had made #6 in September. Bowie would be on other Now albums and was contracted to EMI so his inclusion should have been a no brainer.
Freddie Mercury - Love Kills
Another Now mainstay was Freddie Mercury (along with Queen). Love Kills had made #10 in September and it's a cracking track.
Iron Maiden - 2 Minutes to Midnight
If Ashley Abram had wanted to be really daring, then throwing Iron Maiden into the proverbial Now fire would have been amazing. He would finally pluck up the courage to feature them but not until 1988 and Now 12.
Blancmange - The Day Before You Came
Cover of the classic ABBA song, Blancmange's synthpop infused version is terrific. Only made #22 in July but it's better than many other tracks on Now 4.
Review Breakdown
Music - 5/10 Comfortably the worst Now in the series up to this point, I'd argue it wouldn't get any worse than this for at least several years. Epitomized by the fact it's the only Now album not to make #1 on either the album or compilation charts. Even more galling was that it's new rival, The Hits Album, did top the album charts.
Cover Art - 8/10 The cover art is another story and it's very good. Whether you like the pig or not, he was here to stay (or so it seemed at the time) and he is thrust into the center of the front cover above the now familiar Now logo. There are striking diagonal pink lines against a green background and it's great at grabbing your attention. I like the idea of picturing four of the artists, each photo surrounds by jagged lines and cartoonish scribbles. Unfortunately, the McCartney/Queen sweetheart arrangement strikes again with the two of them apparently guaranteed to have their faces splashed all over the cover. The McCartney photo in particular is horrific, showing him wearing a tux and strumming an acoustic guitar. It feels like they didn't quite know who their target audience was yet because it reeks of Pat Boone.
Sequencing - 6/10 The sequencing is average. Not terrible but nothing to write home about, hence the passing grade only. Ultimately, the material on offer here is so much weaker than the first three Now albums that no amount of clever sequencing was going to fully compensate.
Overall Score - 6/10