Chichester author explores 1984 - a pivotal year in pop culture

Chichester writer David Elliott plunges back into the 1980s for 1984: British Pop’s Dividing Year, published by York House Books at £20 and available from Amazon and directly from David at www.davidelliott.org/1984.
David ElliottDavid Elliott
David Elliott

David, aged 59, said: “The book will appeal to those who lived through the decade and still love its music, as well as younger music obsessives who are delving back into the past.

“The decade continues to be reassessed, reissued and occasionally reviled; the vinyl revival and 80s festivals continue unabated; many current bands ape 80s sounds and production techniques; and the deaths of 80s music icons like David Bowie, George Michael, Michael Jackson and Prince have prompted many to look back and reflect on their own formative relationship with music.

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“I’ve always been into music, edited a fanzine in the early 80s and freelanced for various music papers and magazines after that. I was in a band, of sorts, and ran a small label. And in my career I started off producing exhibitions, a couple of which were music-related. It’s never been just about listening or collecting. I’ve always sought outlets to express my feelings about music and where it sits in the broader cultural landscape.

“1984 was the year I moved to London and started writing for Sounds and also started working for an arts organisation which I’m still working for! Musically, it was a special year in that, aside from all the big pop hits (Frankie Goes To Hollywood, Wham!, Duran and so on), it felt like the end of an era and the beginning of another.

“Post-punk and synthpop were on their way out and indie and dance were on their way in. It was an incredibly politicised year too as artists responded to the Cold War, Apartheid, Thatcherism and the miners’ strike, with George Orwell’s novel providing a suitably paranoid backdrop. There was also the shift from analogue to digital, CDs having just been introduced; the last British invasion of the US charts; and, with Band Aid, the beginning of pop’s obsession with global causes.

“There have been books about 80s music before but not one particular year. And 1984 was kind of the whole of the 80s rolled into one year. It was a highpoint for indie labels like 4AD and Mute, the first single by Pet Shop Boys, debut albums by The Smiths and Sade, it goes on.

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“What I really wanted to do was cover not just the usual suspects, but also the peripheral, often more interesting sub-genres. The title says ‘pop’ but I’ve used it in its very broadest sense. And not just London, or the arc of Liverpool, Manchester and Sheffield, but also Scotland, Wales and Ireland.

“I also wanted to set it in the context of the burgeoning music video industry, music and style press, sleeve design, the growth of pirate radio and a boom in music on TV. Also producers, studios and the introduction of the CD. And although this is not a book about American rock and pop, it’s impossible not to refer to the huge influence it had on the UK scene and vice versa, so there’s a chapter each on US mainstream and underground.

“So it’s a bit of a tome, perhaps nerdy, certainly comprehensive.

“I wrote the catalogue for an exhibition I curated called Rockarchive: 50 Years of British Rock Photography which toured China, but aside from that, this is my first book.

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“I started researching and writing it five years ago, in between the day job, family, life and so on, followed by a year or two of pitching it to traditional publishers. I got very close on two occasions, but ultimately I think Covid-19 might have had an impact on their willingness to take a risk. So I decided to do it myself.

“I have to say it was a very positive experience. I liked having control over the schedule, extent, editing, design and production.”