Noodle Doodles were a canned pasta snack made by Heinz. In 1987 they had promotion which you could send off for a free music cassette tape.

So, if this journal was about what I was listening to in the years selected I'd have to include Party Time with Noodle Doodles for the late 80s and early 90s.

That tape contained some very bad music, by Black Lace. However, I did have an antidote. "Don't Leave Me This Way" by The Communards. Which I listened to in equal amounts.

Don't Leave Me This Way by The Communards

The magic of "Don't Leave Me This Way", a cover, relies heavily on guest vocalist Sarah Jane Morris. The track perfectly contrasted Morris's deep, rich contralto voice with Somerville's soaring, trademark falsetto.

And the fact it goes ahhhhh baby. Not just ah baby. Ahhhhhhhn baby. Also a key changed ahhhhhh baby.

During a Top of the Pops performance, the band decided to have a bit of fun with the mandatory miming. Somerville and Morris swapped roles on stage, so Jimmy mimed the booming deep notes while Sarah Jane lip-synced to Jimmy's bit.

But Jimmy is a truly great vocalist. As probably the more high profile partner in the Communards Richard Coles attests to.

I also included "Never Can Say Goodbye" on the list, which is a cover of the Jackson 5 classic.

Never Can Say Goodbye by The Communards

That 1987 album also features "For a Friend". Written in memory of their close friend Mark Ashton, a prominent gay rights activist whose story was later immortalized in the film Pride. The soundtrack of that film has overlaps with 1000 Songs.

The Communards were a brilliant alt pop band and probably don't get the recognition they deserve. Even if some of us did discover them while consuming tins of pasta full of dangerously high preservative!