Music For New Romantics

3 CD set celebrating the music played at legendary late 70s and early 80s clubs such as the Wag in London, Pips in Manchester, and the Rum Runner in Birmingham – a night-time culture centered around fashion-obsessed individuals, which inspired a youth movement, the new romantics.

In the aftermath of punk rock, and inspired by the glamour of the likes of David Bowie, young elites in England’s major cities threw off the shackles of grey, damp, and dreary turn-of-the-80s Britain and sought something more refined and cultured than punk’s primal howl.

Armed with wardrobes full of colorful and outrageous second-hand clothes, cheap make-up, extensive record collections, their own extroverted imaginations, and an urge to dance (not pogo), a collection of DJs, dancers, and junk shop fashionistas would frequent clubs such as The Wag in London, Pips in Manchester, and The Rum Runner in Birmingham.

The resulting scene would famously go on to spawn countless 80s pop scene faces and trigger what became the New Romantic movement.

Curated with help from London boy-about-town and DJ Chris Sullivan (of Blue Rondo A La Turk), and featuring a smorgasbord of glam rock, proto-punk, electronica, disco, funk, and camp 60s curios, ‘Music For New Romantics’ captures something of the spirit of a night out at that remarkable, unique nightspot.

From the pre-punk rock of Alice Cooper, Iggy, and Lou Reed, through the futuristic sound of The Normal, John Foxx, New Order, and Visage, and into the imported New York cool of Tom Tom Club, Coati Mundi, and co, this is a deep dive into the eclectic and eccentric listening habits of a group of people determined not to be swallowed by punk’s gloomy reflections of British society, and to create a fantastical and improbable world all of their own.

Track Listing:

DISC ONE

1. MOTT THE HOOPLE - "All The Young Dudes"

2. THE LOUNGE LIZARDS - "Harlem Nocturne"

3. ALICE COOPER - "I’m Eighteen"

4. NEW YORK DOLLS - "Personality Crisis"

5. ZAGER & EVANS - "In The Year 2525"

6. IGGY POP - "Nightclubbing"

7. ROXY MUSIC - "Do The Strand"

8. KIM FOWLEY - "Motorboat"

9. LOU REED - "Vicious"

10. WAYNE COUNTY & THE ELECTRIC CHAIRS - "Berlin"

11. NINA HAGEN - "TV-Glotzer (White Punks On Dope)"

12. LA DÜSSELDORF - "Viva"

13. MICK RONSON - "Only After Dark"

14. RAH BAND - "The Crunch"

15. FOX - "S-S-S-Single Bed"

16. THE WARLORD - "The Ultimate Warlord"

17. DONNA SUMMER - "Love To Love You Baby"

18. GRACE JONES - "La Vie En Rose"

19. GIORGIO MORODER - "Chase"

20. THE SWEET - "The Ballroom Blitz"

21. GARY MILLER With THE BARRY GRAY ORCHESTRA - "Stingray"

DISC TWO

1. TUBEWAY ARMY - "Down In The Park"

2. THE CURE - "A Forest"

3. THE HUMAN LEAGUE - "Being Boiled"

4. THE NORMAL - "Warm Leatherette"

5. SUICIDE - "Ghost Rider"

6. ORCHESTRAL MANOEUVRES IN THE DARK - "Electricity"

7. JOHN FOXX - "Underpass"

8. THOMAS DOLBY - "She Blinded Me With Science"

9. VISAGE - "Visage"

10. SIMPLE MINDS - "Changeling"

11. LANDSCAPE - "Einstein A Go-Go"

12. THE FLYING LIZARDS - "Money"

13. TELEX - "Moskow Diskow"

14. THROBBING GRISTLE - "Hot On The Heels Of Love"

15. JAPAN - "Life In Tokyo"

16. YELLO - "Bostich"

17. NIGHTMARES IN WAX - "Black Leather"

18. HEAVEN 17 - "(We Don’t Need This) Fascist Groove Thang"

19. SPANDAU BALLET - "To Cut a Long Story Short"

20. MAGAZINE - "Shot By Both Sides"

21. SIOUXS