Tag Archives: Elvis Costello

Off The Chart: 8 March 1980

Off The Chart: 8 March 1980

On the anniversary of the first episode of The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy, it’s appropriate that we’re going back 42 years on this week’s Off The Chart to look at the chart from today in 1980. We’ll have the usual selection of obscure, forgotten and neglected hits, plus tracks from three of the week’s new albums, a round-up of the day’s events and a look at the Canadian chart, but don’t panic, we’ll be back in time for the top five in full.

  • Which British act recorded a live album in Moscow two years before they had a hit at home?
  • Whose new album was just a repackaging of their previous album?
  • And which act in the chart became the subject of a musical by another act in the chart?

Tune in and find out!


Listen to Off The Chart on Noisebox Radio at 9pm every Tuesday! You can stream Noisebox Radio via their website, their apps for iOS or Android, or through TuneIn and MyTuner, or ask your smart speaker to “play Noisebox Radio” – and don’t forget to tweet along using the hashtag #OffTheChart. If you’re not around, you can hear the show again on Noisebox Radio at 10am on Friday, or catch up on Mixcloud after that.

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Spotify playlists

If you’ve missed a previous edition they’re all on our Mixcloud page, or for a taster of the music we play, listen to our Spotify playlist Way Off The Chart including one track from each show!

We also have a Spotify playlist for our #ICEOTWF feature, including all (well, most) of the international hits we’ve played since the feature began in March 2017. There are all sorts of oddities in here, all of which were hits somewhere in the world but not in the UK!

Off The Chart: 28 December 1980

Off The Chart: 28 December 1980

After the excitement of Christmas we’re back to normal on this week’s Off The Chart and, inconveniently, we’ve landed on 1980 where there was no chart published at all in the week after Christmas. Nevertheless we can still bring you … read more

Off The Chart: 16 November 1986

Off The Chart: 16 November 1986

Fasten your seatbelts, we’re heading back to this day in 1986 on this week’s Off The Chart! Join us for two hours of obscure, forgotten and vaguely familiar hits, plus three of the week’s new hit albums, a round-up of … read more

Off The Chart: 6 April 1982

Off The Chart: 6 April 1982

We’re safely back indoors this week for a standard edition of Off The Chart! Come back with us to this day in 1982 for the usual two hours of forgotten and half remembered hits, plus three of the week’s new … read more

Off The Chart: 2 March 1989

Off The Chart: 2 March 1989

We’re on our way back to this day in 1989 for this week’s Off The Chart, rounding up some of the hits you’d forgotten about or weren’t previously aware of, some of which you might even enjoy. As usual we’re … read more

Off The Chart: 18 February 1986

Off The Chart: 18 February 1986

It’s 1986 all over again on this week’s Off The Chart as we spend a couple of hours looking at the UK singles chart from 34 years ago. There’s the usual brace of forgotten and half-remembered hits, as well as … read more

Off The Chart: 8 October 1981

Off The Chart: 8 October 1981

We’d like to say it’s back to normal on this week’s Off The Chart but if you’re a regular listener you’ll know nothing is ever normal around here. All we can say as that there’ll be a host of hits … read more

Mixcloud Select: Now That’s What You Might, Hypothetically, Have Called Music

Now That's What You Might, Hypothetically, Have Called Music

This Virtual CD is actually a virtual double LP! As part of our celebrations of 100 Now That’s What I Call Music albums, we’ve come up with this hypothetical example of what the first Now of the 1980s might have … read more

Off The Chart: 18 June 1984

Off The Chart: 18 June 1984

Join us on a trip back to this day in 1984 on another edition of Off The Chart! We’ve got the usual mix of the week’s obscure and half-remembered hits, plus a flavour of the week’s album chart, a look … read more

Off The Chart: 16 April 1980

Off The Chart: 16 April 1980

Join us for another two hours of hits, headlines and horsefeathers as we journey all the way back to 1980 on this week’s Off The Chart! As usual we’ve got a host of forgotten and half-remembered hits, three tracks from … read more

Sound of the Crowd – a Discography of the ’80s: Fourth Edition available now!

Sound of the Crowd - 4th Edition cover

Sound Of The Crowd: a Discography of the ’80sΒ is the ultimate record collector’s guide to the 1980s. In the era of multi-formatting, picture discs, coloured vinyl, multiple remixes, funny shaped records and tiny CDs you could lose down the back … read more

Off The Chart: 28 July 1982

Off The Chart: 28 July 1982

Whether you’re driving in your car, taking the night train or even learning how to fly, make sure you join Steve and Julian for another two hours of hits, headlines and havoc from this day in 1982! As always there’s … read more