Throwback Thursday 17.11.16

This week's throwback take us back to 1984...

Prince’s label NPG Records and his estate are suing Jay Z’s management firm Roc Nation over a disagreement about how much of the pop star’s back catalogue the Tidal streaming service made available to its customers. So this week we are journeying back to one of the late singer's musical peaks, Purple Rain.

Prince - Purple Rain

Purple Rain is a song by Prince and The Revolution. Prince once explained the meaning of Purple Rain to be: "When there's blood in the sky – red and blue = purple... purple rain pertains to the end of the world and being with the one you love and letting your faith/god guide you through the purple rain."

Wham! - Wake Me Up Before You Go Go

Songwriter, George Michael, when talking about the single, said: "I just wanted to make a really energetic pop record that had all the best elements of fifties and sixties records, combined with our attitude and our approach, which is obviously more uptempo and a lot younger than some of those records."

Madonna- Like a Virgin

Like a Virgin was written by Billy Steinberg, who in an interview said it was never written for Madonna. The song is about his own experiences, the end of a challenging relationship and finding someone new. They met with Michael Ostin of Warner Bros who happened to be meeting with Madonna the next day, and the rest is history.

Tina Turner- Private Dancer

Tina first came into the public eye with her husband, Ike. The two release hit singles A Fool in Love, River Deep, Mountain High (1966), Proud Mary (1971) and Nutbush City Limits (1973),

After several challenging years of going solo after divorcing, Private Dancer propelled Tina in becoming a viable solo star, as well as one of the most marketable crossover singers in the recording industry.

Frankie Goes To Hollywood - Relax

The group's debut single Relax was banned by the BBC in 1984 after Radio 1 disc jockey Mike Read expressed his distaste for both the record's suggestive sleeve and the lyrics, live on air. It topped the UK singles chart for five consecutive weeks, going on to enjoy prolonged chart success throughout that year and ultimately becoming the seventh best-selling UK single of all time.

Lionel Richie - Hello

Taken as the third single from Richie's multi-platinum album Can't Slow Down, the song was released in 1984 and reached number one on three Billboard music charts. Hello came just two years after Lionel left The Commodores and became a solo artist.

Cyndi Lauper - Girls Just Wanna Have Fun

The single was Lauper's breakthrough hit, reaching No. 2 on the Billboard Hot 100 and becoming a worldwide hit throughout late 1983 and early 1984. It remains one of Lauper's signature songs.