Now That's What I Call Music! discography

This is a list of available actual and physical albums belonging to the official 1983 Now That's What I Call Music! UK series, comprising: compact discs (CD), magnetic audio cassettes (AC), vinyl (LP), VHS tape, DVD and on other short-lived formats. They are categorized by series (country), then ordered by date. All countries have discontinued their respective series, with the only exception being the United Kingdom.
The evolution of Now That's What I Call Music! in the UK reflects the changing landscape of music consumption formats. Starting from vinyl and magnetic audio cassettes, the series adapted to the rise of compact discs (CDs) and explored various formats like DVDs, MiniDiscs, and videos.
The initial releases of Now That's What I Call Music! in the UK were exclusively on vinyl and magnetic audio cassette formats.
The release dates mentioned pertain to the date of release in the United Kingdom. Until the release of Now That's What I Call Music! 90 on 30 March 2015, the release date in Ireland preceded the UK release by 3 days.
However, starting with Now That's What I Call Music! 91 on 24 July 2015, the release dates in the United Kingdom and Ireland have been simultaneous, aligning with the Global Release Day campaign by IFPI, effective from 10 July 2015.
For the 25th anniversary of Now in 2009 and the release of Now 100 in summer 2018, the first Now album was re-compiled and re-issued. From the release of Now 102 in 2019 to Now 118 in 2024, the corresponding Now album from 100 volumes prior would be re-compiled and re-issued on double-CD sets on the same day. Due to licensing issues, these re-compiled versions sometimes use alternative mixes such as album versions. Sometimes, tracks are missing where it has not been possible to license the song.
The original Now Dance series began in 1985 and has been released in a variety of titles, formats, and release frequency. Originally, the series captured extended 12" mixes of dance hits of the time, but from 1991 onwards, all Now Dance compilations featured 7" edits with only occasional extended versions or mixes included. The first two volumes were not released on compact disc, and all subsequent releases were either single, double, or triple disc sets. Unlike the main series, Now Dance were originally titled and numbered by their year of release (i.e. Now Dance '89). The frequency in which they were released also varied from year to year; initially, and most frequently across the series, there would be one Now Dance volume per year, but in 1994 for example, there were four volumes released, and in 1996, there weren't any Now Dance compilations released. Towards the end of the series, 3-CD digipak sets were issued, but in 2010, the long-running title was retired, and all subsequent dance-themed Now collections have been issued under the Special Editions series.
In 2021, the original concept of Now Dance was revived with a new series of compilations containing 12" remixes released under the title, Now That's What I Call 12" 80s.
In February 2023, 12" mixes all taken from the first three Now Dance compilations, originally released in 1985, 1986 and 1989, were collected on a special 4CD and 3LP set, Now Dance: The 80s, with artwork inspired by the original Now Dance 86. Fourteen mixes were taken from Now Dance, eighteen mixes were lifted from 86, and sixteen from 89.
The Special Editions series, a significant facet of the Now That's What I Call Music! legacy, encompasses a diverse array of collections marking Now anniversaries. These editions span various music genres, eras, and decades, featuring collaborations with entities such as Smash Hits, Disney, Eurovision, HMV, and the Official Chart Company.
To commemorate ten years since the release of the first Now That's What I Call Music! album, from June to August in 1993, a series of ten, 40-track yearly collections were released on CD and cassette (but not vinyl), covering the years 1983 to 1992. The 1993 volume was not originally part of the ten-year anniversary series. This, and two additional volumes were added in 1994 and 1995. These were all released on CD and magnetic cassette, but with the 1993 and 1994 volumes also being released on the vinyl format.
To commemorate the turn of the millennium, a series of twenty Now That's What I Call Music! collections were released in 1999 which all contained 36 tracks, and covered hits from the years 1980 through to 1999. These compilations are very similar to the anniversary series, however, they contain a lower amount of tracks and retailed much cheaper than the former series. The first sixteen volumes were all released on the same date, with the final four being issued four months later. They are also notable as being the first time a Now series had released a compilation of hits from the years 1980 to 1982. An earlier compilation tie-in with Smash Hits from 1987 did, however, include tracks from those years.
The 4-CD series follows the same general format of the original Special Editions series, with genre, era, and decade collections, but over four compact discs (there is also an abridged vinyl version of Punk and New Wave and Rock), meaning they contain more tracks than the original special editions, but fewer than the Now 100 Hits, which preceded this series. They are only issued in cardboard gatefold wallets, with a slot cut into each sleeve which stores the discs.
The Yearbook series are 4-CD and 3-LP vinyl sets, each representing a year of music, which launched in June 2021. Each release has a tie-in block of programming on Now 80s. Each release is issued as a limited edition mini-hardback book, with the CDs in sleeves forming the pages of the 'yearbook' which contains an introductory overview of the year, original 7" single artwork, trivia, chart positions and a quiz. The limited edition 3-LP version is released on bright coloured vinyl. A standard 4-CD version is also issued in a gatefold "wallet" design, which retails cheaper than the mini-hardback books. The first collection focuses on hits from 1983, the birth year of the Now That's What I Call Music! series. The year 1984 followed, but after this, the series rewound its year of focus, issuing collections that went from 1982 and backwards into the late 1970s. A triple-CD only release, Yearbook Extra: The Collectors Edition, is issued a few weeks later; these include lesser known tracks and more songs by big artists included on the main album and they are released only in standard gatefold wallet packaging. A further release, The Final Chapter, a deluxe 4-CD and 3-LP set, was issued in December 2022, rounding off the Yearbook years 1980 to 1984. The same month, a deluxe 5-LP boxset, Now Yearbook 1980-1984: Vinyl Extra, was released. This was the first time tracks from the Extra CD series had been issued on the vinyl format.
Another strand of the Now Yearbook series, in August 2022, is the somewhat experimental release of a limited edition, extended play, 7" vinyl single, containing 2 tracks each from the 1983 and 1984 Yearbooks. This is the first time the Now That's What I Call Music! brand has ever released music commercially on the 7" vinyl format.
The Now Yearbook series continues both forwards, with Now Yearbook 1985 issued in November 2022, and backwards, with the release of Now Yearbook 1979 in September 2022 (an Extra followed in October). The latter contains a new retro-70s Now logo design and artwork which complements its 80s sister Yearbook series. The series is then moved forward again, with the release of Now Yearbook 1992 in July 2023 (an Extra followed in August). The 1990s Yearbook series contains a new retro-90s logo design and artwork which also complements its sister decade series.
The tie-in television programmes are a month by month video playlist of tracks, from one year previously featured on a Now Yearbook album, with Bruno Brookes, Simon Bates and Jenny Powell presenting.
The Yearbook series was introduced to the Vault series, an album series with songs that are lesser known in the UK, but are way better known in the US and other countries (e.g. "Weird Al" Yankovic's "Eat It" peaked at #36 in the UK, but was a bigger hit in America (#12), Canada (#5), New Zealand (#6) and in Australia (where it reached #1)).
The 21st century vinyl revival inspired limited edition vinyl only Now collections. They are not issued on any other format, and are limited to a run of just 1200 copies worldwide. Some of them have unique track listings and are not related to similarly themed collections already issued on compact disc, however, more recent releases have been 'selections' taken from a larger CD collection (Rock, for example). Due to the higher cost of pressing vinyl and the limited time they are available, they are at least three times more expensive than their compact disc counterparts. They are mostly pressed on black vinyl as standard although some are released on coloured vinyl. The Now Yearbook series also releases a vinyl selection of its primary release, with an Extra round-up vinyl boxset featuring tracks from the CD-only series, released at the end of 2022.
The Now Millennium series are 4-CD and 2-LP vinyl sets, each representing two years of music, which launched in June 2023.
The Asian Now! series was a collaborative venture between EMI (Hong Kong) Limited/PolyGram Records (Hong Kong) Limited and EMI (Malaysia) Sendirian Berhad. Compilations were released for English-language markets in Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, and Hong Kong.