I'm old enough to remember the first, when it didn't even have a number. I also owned one of the single-digit ones. God I'm old
this post was submitted on 06 May 2026
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Hello fellow old. I too got the first one. For my kids.
It's ok we're wise now
I remember the first one and didn’t buy that one either. By then I had already been a metal head for good several years.
I remember them being in the single digits.
My back hurts.
Same. When I saw it had reached triple digits I spontaneously cremated.
I didn't even know they made it past 20 or so.
I'm young!! I'm finally young!! I don't remember anything before 40 something!
Me too. I was shocked when I saw one in the teens, like how did this last that long?
I was there when they started these.
I also remember Kidz Bop. Basically the same thing, but the songs were sung by children and way worse.
I loved spamming these two bars with kidz bop on the AMI app because one was a club that lost their remote to skip, and the other was an old timers towny bar, I suspect they just didn't know how to do it. Just the immediate hate and anger out of the towny bar, omg. It's like I can still taste it.
The original “Now that’s what I call music!”
I still have "Now That's What I Call Music volume 2" starts with Radio Gaga. A double cassette.
I've got volume 1 and it's just two rocks you hit together
Oh now that is a TUNE
Well that is a bit shocking.
I didn't realise they got past 10....
I remember the first two quite well...
Fucking hell it got this far? Probably like 20-30!
Now 31, released July 1995 apparently. Very strong memories of this specific cover art. Some good songs on there!
I had 26 on cassette. It had some bangers.
Lol new ways to feel old.
37 to about 45 was my era.
However, the first ones Insaw were 8 and 11 in my parents vinyl collection. I may have them at my house now, not sure.
Depends if you're american or british. America's volume one didnt appear until 1998, 15 years after volume 1 in the UK.
I had no idea!
NOW you do
"Now that's what I call music" was in the house, along with some number of its single-digit brethren - though they weren't brand new at the time. The oldest one I have any memory of seeing advertised on TV etc was "Now 13".
Can't remember the exact number but I remember first discovered them on an ad break and they said it has Starships by Nicki Minaj. She is full of shit but that song feels nostalgic to me still.
I think I had Now 54 on CD. 2003 apparently!
Maybe 20 or 27, some of the 40s look familiar too.
How did they get up to 120??!
I owned 43 as one of my first CDs
I think we had Now 40 on cassette tape in the car
Edit: I also got Now Dance '97 around the same time, which may actually be older than 43, but it wasn't a mainline Now compilation (regardless of it being pure fire)
I was going to say 43! That was my favourite one, too.
Now 4 - still got the vinyl I think 😁
I used to own volume 8 somewhere...
Earliest I can remember is a television commercial for Volume 5. I can even remember what songs they played, in order, and whenever I hear those song segments out in the wild it's like a fucking MK Ultra activation phrase for me.
I definitely remember one with Bros on it. Already in two digits by then!
Now 60
The earliest number I remember seeing was 2, but thats because the first one was simply named “NOW that’s what I call music!”
Found these in my aunt's vinyl collection from when she was younger. Best as I can tell they're entirely unrelated, but my headcanon likes to think these were proto-NTWICM albums. Like how the early Guitar Hero games used covers because they couldn't get the rights to the real songs until the series got big.
