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Yesterday was very spontaneous. I had spent the afternoon watching 80s films, notably Pretty in Pink and The Breakfast Club. Within 20 minutes of the credits rolling and Don’t You Forget About Me blaring out of my Mac, I had packed a bag and was on the train back to Sheffield. I’d like to think it was the themes of the films about growing up and self-realisation that made me go home so suddenly, but in actual fact I had been pondering it for a couple of days and decided at 17:42 that it was perfect timing.


I think its difficult to chose a favourite 80s film. John Hughes is undoubtedly the master of teenage movies from that decade. There are different types of 80s film. You have your teen type with The Breakfast Club, The Lost Boys, Ferris Bueller and Some Kind of Wonderful but then there is the type you watch as a kid like The Goonies, Big, Stand By Me, Labyrinth, Back to the Future and Short Circuit. When you get older you come to appreciate other 80s film like Terminator, Alien and Top Gun. …

1. What's your favorite song by 14 (Weezer)?
Undone - The Sweater Song. Rivers' bowl haircut in the video was hilarious:
http://i43.tinypic.com/2ebspde.jpg
Even the glasses weren't doing him any favors ahahaha

2. How did you get into 20 (Snow Patrol)?
The beginning of Spitting Games played in the closing credits for some shitty MTV reality show, I couldn't get the tune out of my head until I found out the name of the band + song

3. Who is your favorite member in 8 (The Dandy Warhols)?
http://i44.tinypic.com/358ublt.jpg
Courtney Taylor-Taylor!

4. What's your favorite lyric bit by 29 (The Flaming Lips)?
I know a girl who thinks of ghosts
She'll make ya breakfast
She'll make ya toast
But she don't use butter
And she don't use cheese
She don't use jelly
Or any of these
She uses vaseline
Song: She Don't Use Jelly
5. Have you ever seen 22 (The Smashing Pumpkins) live?
Nope aaaannndd Billy Corgan is kinda dead to me now

…

When I think about my love of music and how my taste was shaped it always comes back to one year ... 1981. I was 15 and the chart music of that year turned a passing interest in music into a lifelong obsession.

To understand why you need to look at the upper reaches of the UK chart and in particular at how varied and sometimes brave the music was. Remember these were big hits and chosen by record companies to be singles.

I'm going to pull out some of my favourites from the year that all made the top 3.

We start with In The Air Tonight by Phil Collins - Probably the only decent song he ever did outside of Genesis and still a great song for anyone who can get past the fact that it's Phil Collins. (Number 2)

Next one of the earliest singles I remember raving about -
Vienna by Ultravox. Not only do I remember being obsessed with this epic piece of electronic music, but I remember being devastated that a dire novelty record could deny it the number 1 spot it so richly deserved…

PLAYLIST NAME: High On A Happy Vibe
Meaning: A playlist full of songs both new and old, which are bound to cheer you up. Perfect for Valentines day, this has a very eclectic mix of both Dance and Rock from back in the day to today.

1. The Buggles - Video Killed The Radio Star (1979)
2. Aqua - Back To The 80's (2009)
3. Ray & Anita - In Da Name Of Love (2010)
4. JX - There's Nothing I Won't Do (1996)
5. DJ Miko - What's Up (1994)
6. Gloworm - Carry Me Home (1994)
7. Interactive - Forever Young (1996)
8. Urban Cookie Collective - Feels Like Heaven (1993)
9. MC SAR & The Real McCoy - Another Night (1994)
10. M People - One Night In Heaven (1993)
11. Orchestral Manoevres In The Dark - Enola Gay (1980)
12. Rex The Dog - Bubblicious (2008)
13. Mike + The Mechanics - All I Need Is a Miracle '96 (1996)
14. Furniture - Brilliant Mind (1986)
15. Yello - Oh Yeah (1985)
16. Animotion - Obsession (1985)
17. Kajagoogoo - Big Apple (1983)
18. Kim Carnes - Bette Davis Eyes (1981)
19. Divinyls - I Touch Myself (1990)
…