Kim Wilde – Love Blonde: The RAK Years 1981 – 1983

Cast your minds back just over four decades, the shockwaves from the initial punk explosion were now ripples, although they were still being felt, and punk had spread it wings. Whilst many of the original bands were still active there were also the dark rumblings of post punk, the upbeat energy of two tone was laying the foundations for ska punk, the UK82 scene was making itself felt and new wave was delivering a poppier version of punk’s fury with a diverse range of acts populating the playlists of mainstream radio. And this is where we find ourselves with Kim Wilde as Cherry Red Records are issuing the Love Blonde: The RAK Years 1981 – 1983 box set of her early albums, 1981’s Kim Wilde, 1982’s Select and 1983’s Catch As Catch Can, that were released on the RAK Records imprint along with a bonus disc of remixes, whether this could be considered a bonus depends on your view of 80s remixes.

Lets start at the beginning with Kim Wilde’s 1981 self titled debut album which kicks off with Water On Glass, a song written about tinnitus, which is a classic hit of new wave poppy punk decades before the term pop punk became celebrated / reviled. Couple that with a pair of classic singles, Chequered Love and Kids In America, and that alone makes this album a worthy investment. Her self titled debut full length is mostly straight up new wave pop, but there are exceptions, such as the reggae infused Everything We Know and 2-6-5-8-0 and the downbeat Tuning On Turning On bringing contrast. The album is completed with a trio of bonus tracks culled from the b-side of the singles it spawned. Comparisons to Blondie were made with the blend of new wave, reggae and rock present in both of their sounds and both veered into pop territory as record sales soared, albeit Blondie were an established band and Kim Wilde was essentially a solo artist backed by The Enid on her debut album, with the formidable familial writing team of Ricky & Marty Wilde behind her. 

Select followed a year later and included the hit single Cambodia, which was the first single I bought with my own money as opposed to nicking my brother’s records, and shows a change of style from her celebrated debut. Whilst the new wave energy is still present across much of the album this is tempered with an even slicker poppier sound than her impressive debut album. As you’d expect Select is also extended with bonus tracks, including the superb Japanese single Bitter Is Better, that is closer to her debut album’s sound and was also used in a soft drink commercial, and the Child Come Away b-side, Just Another Guy, that surpasses it’s better known counterpart. Catch As Catch Can followed another year later and by this time this was almost pure pop that followed the way things went for many bands and artists as the excess of the mid 80s approached. The inclusion of the b-side to Dancing In The Dark, Back Seat Driver, harks back to Kim’s earlier days giving the whole collection of feeling that you’ve come full circle

The box set also contains a remix album that, as those alive during the 80’s will be well aware, recalls the horrors of some of the remixes of popular singles from much loved outfits who gained major label deals, and I’m looking at the likes of The Stranglers and The Damned here. This was usually beyond the artists control but there were exceptions where the remix added something new to the song, rather than a seemingly eternal rehash of the original song. Personally I would have preferred the single versions of songs and alternate versions, rather than updated remixes that for me don’t do anything to improve on the originals. But if you’re tastes veer towards hearing drastically altered versions of songs then the bonus disc may be worth your time and energy, but I’ll just say it’s not for me and leave it at that.

If you doubt the influence of Kim Wilde’s early recordings then look at the names who have covered her songs over the years, including Hayley And The Crushers, Foo Fighters, Billie Joe Armstrong (Green Day), The Spangles, The Bouncing Souls, The Muffs, The Bloodhound Gang, Fourth Grade Nothing, The Bam Bams, The Bus Station Loonies, The Donnas and even Lawnmower Deth, who apparently recorded Kim’s favourite version of Kids In America and who she occasionally performs the song live with, something we witnessed one Xmas at Manchester, UK’s The Ritz, you can read about that night here.

Love Blonde: The RAK Years 1981 – 1983 box set takes you back just over forty years and charts the change in Kim Wilde’s sound from new wave to pop, the merits of whatever came later are not to be discussed now, but for a brief period of time she dominated the charts, adorned millions of bedroom walls and left a lasting legacy of songs that continue to resonate to this day. It’s worth noting that Kim Wilde still records and tours regularly, many of the singles from these early albums are still present in her set such is their enduring appeal and this box set captures a moment in time for an artist who defies the decades. And if you need any gardening tips she is also an expert in this field and has published two books on the subject.