"Now Yearbook '79" by VARIOUS ARTISTS – Eighty-Five Single and Album Tracks by Queen, The Police, The Boomtown Rats, Kate Bush, Ian Dury & The Blockheads, Blondie, ABBA, Gerry Rafferty, Madness, The Specials, The Selecter, Gary Moore & Phil Lynott, The Knack, Chic, Sister Sledge, Earth Wind & Fire, Gloria Gaynor, ELO, Pretenders, Dave Edmunds, Elvis Costello, Squeeze, The Clash, The Skids, Kool & The Gang, Dynasty, The Sugarhill Gang, Tubeway Army, The Crusaders, Donna Summer, BA Robertson, Sex Pistols, XTC, The Cure, The B-52s, The Jam, Siouxsie & The Banshees, Wings, The Real Thing, Sad Café, Flying Lizards, M and more (September 2022 UK Sony Music/EMI 4CD Compilation in a Four-Panel Foldout Card Sleeve with Varying Remasters) - A Review by Mark Barry...

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RATING: Content *** to ***** / Audio **** to *****

 

"…One Step Beyond…"

I found the 4CD Now Yearbook compilation for 1978 to be something of a disappointment. What a difference a year makes because 1979 is so much better even if (like 1978) – Discs 3 and 4 contain some serious dogs. 

Most (not all) of these 4CD sets are later accompanied by a further Yearbook Extra release of 3CDs - bringing the year haul to well over 130 songs. And for 1979 and its 4CD Yearbook big-daddy you get a damn cool haul - Eighty-Five Single and Album Tracks by the likes of Queen, The Police, The Boomtown Rats, Kate Bush, Ian Dury & The Blockheads, Blondie, ABBA, Gerry Rafferty, Madness, The Specials, The Selecter, Gary Moore & Phil Lynott, The Knack, Chic, Sister Sledge, Earth Wind & Fire, Gloria Gaynor, ELO, Pretenders, Dave Edmunds, Elvis Costello, Squeeze, The Clash, The Skids, Kool & The Gang, Lene Lovich, The Sugarhill Gang, Tubeway Army, The Crusaders, Donna Summer, BA Robertson, Sex Pistols, XTC, The Cure, The B-52s, The Jam, Siouxsie & The Banshees, Wings, The Real Thing, Sad Café, The Tourists, Flying Lizards, M, Billy Joel and many more. It is a diverse list and even if you have Boney M and The Buggles on CD4 (abominations ahoy) – there is more good than bad. 

The fold-out four-panel card sleeve is barely functional as packaging – giving some info but not a lot else. Upsides – because these sets are Sony Music/EMI – the audio is uniformly top notch (most are in fact highlighted as Remasters from the 2000s onwards in the small print inside). And now that 2022 is receding into two years ago in 2024 – this set is normally reduced to six or seven quid including P&P - which frankly represents serious value for money. You may not be getting anything packaging-wise, but at least 40 to 50% of the choices will please and the audio is crackerlackin'. Here be the details for the have-a-good-time seventy-nine…

UK released 9 September 2022 - "Now Yearbook '79" by VARIOUS ARTISTS on Sony Music/EMI CDYBNOW79 / 0196587150228 (Barcode 196587150228) is a 4CD Compilation in a Four-Panel Foldout Card Sleeve with Eighty-Five Single Edits, Album Versions and Various Remasters that play out as follows:

CD1 (79:17 minutes):
1. Don't Stop Me Now (2011 Remaster) – QUEEN
2. Walking On The Moon – THE POLICE
3. I Don't Like Mondays (Album Version) – THE BOOMTOWN RATS
4. Wow – KATE BUSH
5. Hit Me With A Rhythm Stick – IAN DURY & THE BLOCKHEADS
6. Heart Of Glass (Original Single Version) – BLONDIE
7. Gimme! Gimme! Gimme! (A Man After Midnight) – ABBA
8. Good Times (7" Edit, 2018 Remaster) – CHIC
9. We Are Family (Single Version) – SISTER SLEDGE
10. September – EARTH WIND & FIRE
11. I Will Survive (Single Version) – GLORIA GAYNOR
12. YMCA – VILLAGE PEOPLE
13. Hot Stuff (Single Version) – DONNA SUMMER
14. Beat The Clock – SPARKS
15. Cars – GARY NUMAN
16. Money (Edit) – THE FLYING LIZARDS
17. Stob Your Sobbing – PRETENDERS
18. Girls Talk – DAVE EDMUNDS
19. Night Owl (Edit) – GERRY RAFFERTY
20. My Life – BILLY JOEL
21. Dance Away (Single Version, 2012 Remaster) – ROXY MUSIC

CD2 (76:28 minutes): 
1. One Step Beyond (7" Single Version) – MADNESS
2. On My Radio – THE SELECTER
3. Gangsters – THE SPECIALS
4. Silly Games – JANET KAY
5. Parisienne Walkways – GARY MOORE & PHIL LYNOTT
6. Bat Out Of Hell (Single Edit, 4:44 minutes) - MEATLOAF
7. Don't Bring Me Down – ELECTRIC LIGHT ORCHESTRA
8. Since You Been Gone – RAINBOW
9.  The Devil Went Down To Georgia – THE CHARLIE DANIELS BAND
10. My Sharona – THE KNACK
11. I Only Want To Be With You – THE TOURISTS
12. Cool For Cats (Single Edit) – SQUEEZE
13. Into The Valley - SKIDS
14. Something Else (2012 Remaster) – SEX PISTOLS
15. I Fought The Law – THE CLASH
16. The Eton Rifles (Single Edit) – THE JAM
17. Accidents Will Happen (2020 Remaster) – ELVIS COSTELLO & THE ATTRACTIONS
18. Making Plans For Nigel - XTC
19. Is She Really Going Out With Him? (Album Version) – JOE JACKSON
20. Boys Don't Cry – THE CURE
21. The Staircase (Mystery) – SIOUXSIE & THE BANSHEES
22. Lucky Number – LENE LOVICH
23. Rock Lobster – THE B-52's

CD3 (77:52 minutes): 
1. Chiquitata – ABBA 
2. Bright Eyes – ART GARFUNKLE
3. Song For Guy (Single Edit, 2017 Remaster) – ELTON JOHN
4. Every Day Hurts – SAD CAFE
5. One Way Ticket - ERUPTION
6. Knock On Wood (7" Edit) – AMII STEWART
7. I Want Your Love (7" Edit, 2018 Remaster) - CHIC
8. He's The Greatest Dancer (Edit Version) – SISTER SLEDGE
9. Bad Girls – DONNA SUMMER
10. Street Life (Edit) – THE CRUSADERS
11. Boogie Wonderland – EARTH WIND & FIRE with THE EMOTIONS
12. Ain't No Stoppin' Us Now (Single Version) – McFADDEN & WHITEHEAD
13. Ladies Night (Edit) – KOOL & THE GANG
14. Can You Feel The Force – THE REAL THING
15. Contact (UK 7" Single Version) – EDWIN STARR
16. I Was Made For Dancin' – LEE GARRETT
17. Wanted – THE DOOLEYS
18. Strutt Your Funky Stuff (Single Version) – FRANTIQUE
19. I Don't Want To Be A Freak (But I Can't Help Myself) (Radio Version) – DYNASTY
20. Rapper's Delight – THE SUGARHILL GANG

CD4 (78:23 minutes): 
1. We Don't Talk Anymore – CLIFF RICHARD
2. Forever In Blue Jeans (Single Version) – NEIL DIAMOND
3. Goodnight Tonight (2016 Remaster, 4:20 minutes) – WINGS (Paul McCartney)
4. Shine A Little Love – ELECTRIC LIGHT ORCHESTRA
5. A Little More Love – OLIVIA NEWTON-JOHN
6. Dreaming – BLONDIE
7. She's In Love With You (2017 Remaster) – SUZI QUATRO
8. When You're In Love With A Beautiful Woman – DR. HOOK
9. If I Had You – THE KORGIS
10. Love's Gotta Hold On Me - DOLLAR
11. Hallelujah – MILK & HONEY
12. Woman In Love – THE THREE DEGREES
13. Reunited (Single Version) – PEACHES & HERB
14. Still (Single Version) - COMMODORES
15. Lay Your Love On Me – RACEY
16. Bang Bang – B.A. ROBERTSON
17. In The Navy – VILLAGE PEOPLE
18. Hooray! Hooray! It's A Holi-Holiday (7" Version) – BONEY M.
19. Pop Muzik - M
20. Are 'Friends' Electric – TUBEWAY ARMY
21. Video Killed The Radio Star (Single Version) – THE BUGGLES

The basic edition has a four-panel foldout card sleeve with each CD in a printed-info pouch on the inside (see photos). There is a Limited Edition Hardback DigiBook version that has 28-pages of liner notes on all the songs – Sony Music/EMI CDYBXNOW79 (Barcode 196587150327) – and even a truncated 3LP VINYL variant on Sony Music/EMI LPYBNOW79 (Barcode  0196587150419) in ORANGE VINYL – both also released 9 September 2022.

The fun of these sets is the rediscoveries – the strangely contagious Pop-Funk of McCartney giving it some "Goodnight Tonight" – the last great hurrah from his band Wings – the infectious dancefloor groove of "Rapper's Delight" from The Sugarhill Gang and the irresistible sexiness of Debbie Harry doing some restaurant "Dreaming" (if ever there was hit machine surely it was Blondie). The neck-jerker XTC getting all University knowing with their fab "Making Plans For Nigel" while American Frat Boys The Knack get it up for the kick-ass Power Pop of "My Sharona". And across CDs 1 and 2 especially comes the shadow of 2-Tone, Go Feet, Chrysalis and Stiff – stunning singles like "Gangsters" from The Specials, the heavy-heavy monster sound of Madness wanting to go "One Step Beyond" with a Saxophone and a Porkpie Hat. 

Not to be outdone the Funk and Soul machines that were Chic, Earth Wind & Fire and Sister Sledge still thrill the old bottom-wiggler in me and Popsters like Roxy Music and Queen show how to write a hit single - while British New Wave acts like The Cure, Siouxsie and The Banshees and Joe Jackson still sound so young to me. And then of course is The Clash absolutely smashing it their cover of The Bobby Fuller Four 60ts song "I Fought The Law" followed rather cleverly by The Jam getting angry on "Eton Rifles" (what great bands they were). But you also forget The Skids doing "Into The Valley" while The Pistols took on Eddie Cochran rebel yells in "Something Else". And you gotta love quirky – Lene Lovich, Sparks and The B52's. 

CD3 is overtly Soul, Funk and Disco with dancefloor faves like "Can You Feel The Force" and Donna getting down with the "Bad Girls". Earth Wind & Fire on Columbia Records and McFadden & White on Philadelphia International still impress too. But as you move over to the last disc, you will undoubtedly want to give a wide berth to the truly garish Dr. Hook song "When You're In Love With A Beautiful Woman" while The Korgis tune is so deliberately saccharine it might well drip sugar. Disco schlock like The Three Degrees is not a whole lot better, but I dig the "Pop Musik" of M and it will be a hard heart indeed that resists old Lionel giving it some "Still" when he was fronting the Commodores. Fun Wham-like Pop comes in the form of Racey doing "Lay Your Love On Me" followed by the smarmy yet clever Houdini lyrics of BA Robertson doing "Bang Bang". Heavy synth still gives Gary Numan and his Electric Friends a huge wallop - but the rest of CD4 is second rate Pop Soul like Village People and Boney M – awful. 

Better than 1978 - the 4CD compilation "Now Yearbook '79" offers the same deal - a whole lotta hotcha fun-listens and remembrances at a cheap stack-em-high price - but with the caveat that you taper those expectations once you get in deep...