Now That's What I Call Stuart's Favourite Music 86 - Matthew Wilder - Break My Stride

There was a time when hearing this song was an extremely rare occurrence.  Now, it seems you can hear it everywhere, especially during television adverts.  

Break My Stride is probably Matthew Wilder's most famous track and was released as the lead single from his debut album "I Don't Speak the Language" on the 14th January 1984 (oooh, I was 7 years and 2 days old), entering the UK charts at 79.  It managed to peak at number 4 four weeks later.

Useless fact - Back in the late 90s, it seemed the only way to listen to this song was to find a dodgy MP3 on Napster, or whatever other dodgy website that was available at the time.  I remember feeling really chuffed with myself when I found a decent copy of it.  Mind you, it took me several hours to download it on my slow dial-up connection.  Essex FM used to broadcast a weekly 80s show every Sunday and one week I emailed them asking if they could play it. Not expecting they would, I was pleasantly surprised when a few weeks later they actually did play it.  It was probably the first time I had heard it played on the radio since the 80s.

Now, it's everywhere,  and can currently be heard during an advertisement for Screwfix of all things!

Anyway, I love it, so here it is on my list.

Now That's What I Call Stuart's Favourite Music 81 - Kim Wilde - Kids in America

There are a few songs that instantly take me way back to my very young childhood, and Kim Wilde's Kids in America is one of them.  Specifically, this one reminds me of a local club my parents were members of and frequented often as a family (The Bluehouse Club, in Laindon). I guess they must have played it during one of our visits and that moment has been stuck in my head ever since.

Released way back on the 26th of January 1981, it was the debut single from Kim Wilde, taken from her self-titled first album, and peaked at number 2 in the UK Charts for two weeks

A great track, and another reminder of how great the music was in the 1980s.

Now That's What I Call Stuart's Favourite Music 80 - Makoto Tomozawa - Still Dawn

One of my favourite gaming memories is playing the original 1996 Resident Evil on the PlayStation for the first time.  The game was unlike anything I had ever played before.  I'm not embarrassed to admit that it was probably the first game I played where I wouldn't turn off the lights.  Despite the (now dated) graphics, and the questionable voice acting, the game oozed atmosphere, with some genuinely creepy music in some places.

With that being said, when I eventually beat the game, and flew off in the helicopter just as the mansion and Umbrella laboratory exploded, I was (pleasantly) surprised with the rather happy, upbeat track that played as the credits rolled up the screen.

The song, called "Still Dawn", really gave me the satisfying relief of defeating the Tyrant and a sense of real accomplishment for completing the game, but at the same time, the song just felt...  well....  completely out of place and not suited for a horror game. 

Interestingly, Still Dawn is unique to the English version of Resident Evil in place of "Yume de owarasenai" which is featured in the Japanese version, which of course everybody knows as being called Biohazard.

So here it is...  Still Dawn by Makoto Tomozawa

Now That's What I Call Stuart's Favourite Music 74 - Dexy's Midnight Runners - Come On Eileen

A classic track from 1982 makes it to number 74 on my list of favourite music.  Come on Eileen was released on the 25th of June 1982 and was Dexy's Midnight Runners 2nd UK number one following Geno in 1980.  Released as a single from their second studio album Too-Rye-Ay, it did pretty well in America too, reaching number one on the Billboard Hot 100 charts.

Whenever I hear this song, it always takes me back to a childhood memory of visiting some sort of fate with my grandma and I vividly remember a stall that had a game where I had to place a toy car in a slot, and then let it roll down.  Whoever's car reached the bottom first won the game.

Happy memories from a simpler time.  Enjoy.

Now That's What I Call Stuart's Favourite Music 67 - Erasure - Fingers and Thumbs (Cold Summer's Day)

It's been a month since I last posted my previous favourite tune, so I've decided to go back to one of my all-time favourite bands.  Today's track is Erasure's Fingers and Thumbs (Cold Summer's Day), an absolute corker from their 1995 self-titled album "Erasure".

It only peaked at number 20 in the UK charts in December 1995 which is dreadful considering the amount of tat that was filling the charts at that time (yes, I'm talking about you Oasis, Boyzone and, East 17), but considering the band were not considered 'mainstream' at the time, it was still a respectable position.  Remember, this was before the internet and online streaming was a thing.

This is the single version, but the one featured on the album was a 6-minute and 44-second masterpiece, featuring an extended instrumental section between the second and third choruses.

An absolute classic of track.