NOW 23 - Autumn '92: Zoë Howe

It's Autumn 1992! Damn, Would I Lie To You?

What an interesting time for the UK singles charts. Is it fair to say the decade was at some sort of apex point?

Well, the tracklist for November’s NOW, That’s What I Call Music 23 album was certainly not giving us a clear a view of what the next big thing was going to be. Or was it?

Whilst the start of the 90s had exploded with a colourful wave (or should that be rave?) of indie & dance, and very soon Britpop would take a steely and sneering guitar grip across the nation, 1992 almost seemed to be in a fascinating holding pattern. Not exactly the annus horribilus that some were calling it, and as always the NOW team were on hand to serve up a suitably compiled snapshot of musical delights (and Billy Ray Cyrus) for us to feast upon.

Tasmin Archer, Sophie B Hawkins and Betty Boo led the way for some great female fronted pop moments, Arrested Development were providing an RnB laidback groove for the 90s, the Freddie Mercury tribute concert was still impacting across the charts and The Shamen were being, naughty, naughty, very naughty.

But there was also a fair degree of retro feel to this edition of NOW. Was it the 80s (Simple Minds), 70s (ABBA) or 60s (Vanessa Paradis!)? TV advert songs - which brand of jeans were you buying? And don’t even mention waistcoats! Just too funky for me...

But even when things don’t seem to be happening, there’s always something happening. And there’s no doubt that the 90s had plenty of excitement waiting around the corner!

Joining me for this episode is author, visual artist and sometime musician Zoë Howe.

Zoe has produced acclaimed biographies including The Slits, the Jesus & Mary Chain, Wilko Johnson, Stevie Nicks, Florence + The Machine, Lee Brilleaux and Poly Styrene and in 2021 was part of the team behind the award-winning documentary Poly Styrene: I Am A Cliché.

She has made radio programmes for Absolute Radio, Resonance FM and currently presents the Rock ’n’ Roll Witch show on Soho Radio. Zoë’s forthcoming book Witchful Thinking (a handbook for the modern Wise Woman) is to be published by Llewellyn in May 2022. And later this year will also see her revision of the book The Art of Punk released, and the launch of The Jam 1982, a collaboration with The Jam’s Rick Buckler.

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