Pet Shop Boys Rate. Part 1: 1985-1991. Winner.
- Thread starter Ray
- Start date
I think this was the very first one: https://rateyourmusic.com/list/rtfm/1001_albums_you_must_hear_before_you_die___chronological/1/
The inevitable top three includes the Beatles and Pet Sounds, though. And that's quite poppy.
I think modern pop is actually quite an undeservedly maligned genre. Here, there are good number of pop albums, and by females, that made it. I'm not entirely sure why Britney's debut made it, mostly to your detriment, but work. I guess they tried to include a whole bunch of things here and they choose that because the title track is the greatest teen-pop song of all time (in my opinion) and Britney is maybe the most famous teen-pop star of all time.
Oh, by the way, after a brief cursory, Tori, Suzanne and Madonna all made it here. Kylie didn't, but that's not entirely too surprising. Madonna actually does rather well in these sort of extended lists (Like a Prayer and Ray of Light usually makes these sort of lists, and it did here alongside Music). I do get why it's frustrating to see only those revered female albums only make it (Patti Smith's Horses, Joni Mitchell's Blue, Carole King's Tapestry, Aretha Franklin's I Never Loved a Man the Way I Loved You and Lady Soul and Dusty Springfield's Dusty in Memphis are the ones I see pop up the most) and nothing else, and I hope that will change in the future.
I think the collaboration between PSB and Xenomania worked out damn fine.
That being said, I just can't take "Pandemonium" seriously.
That being said, I just can't take "Pandemonium" seriously.
They/them, he/him
Am I right in thinking that Neil and Chris found the collaboration to be very difficult?
I've just read the Yes Further Listening book yesterday and they don't seem to be too bitter about the experience. They actually said that Brian's ring-leader approach to his worker-bees made them (mostly Chris) try a lot harder, and they included a bunch of bits about how Brian was actually shocked how fast Chris came up with melodies and hooks. Neil only did lyrics for the majority of the album. They're also really complimentary of Miranda. Mostly it just sounds like they were not used to their approach to songwriting, but that it really invigorated them. They seem to really love The Way It Used to Be, Pandemonium, and Vulnerable. Neil particularly loves Legacy but laughed about how it is one of their most hated songs by fans.
I love "Legacy", but then as @Heaven on Earth would confirm I am the King of Rometroversial Pop Opinions...
30.
Should have been a single
I don’t have time for that
30. I Get Excited (You Get Excited Too)
7.7263888889
B-side to "Heart", therefore practically a #1
Highest score: 10 (@slurmjunkie, @idratherjack, @chris4862, @Bleu Noir, @SmashHitter, @etienne, @Jóga, @Ray)
Lowest score: 2 (@JakeMagnus and NOT @Peer_Gynt10... because Peer_Gynt10 gave it 2.5)
Neil: This song is very old; in those days we used to like long song titles. I think one can get too ironic [deadpan and detached – Ray] about those things. Nowadays I find that kind of thing really tedious. [This was said before the release of "I Don't Know What You Want But I Can't Give It Anymore" and "You Only Tell Me You Love Me When You're Drunk". Just saying. – Ray] All those brackets. We recorded it with Bobby 'O' and he had a Puerto Rican DJ remix it. It was meant to be our Bobby 'O' single after 'One More Chance', but it never came out. Then we re-recorded the whole thing. It was one of the first tracks recorded for Introspective. We wanted to have a guitar on it and we phoned up Eric Clapton's manager to see if Eric Clapton would play on it. Amazingly that was where our heads were at the time. They said no but they were very nice about it. When we recorded it, we did the whole thing as we had done it on the demo, and then I went to the loo – if I go out of the room Chris often gets wickedly creative – and Chris turned it into a house track. The basis of the song is the famous Oscar Wilde quote, 'we are all in the gutter but some of us are looking at the stars'. It's about being in New York. Being me, I don't think it ever occurred to me that it sounded rude. It's never entered my head that it had any sexual connotation at all.
Chris: I think we can safely say that Neil's subconscious is very active. [It feels better in the dark, especially later tonight – Ray]
Neil: I just like the idea of irrational excitement.
Ray: There really isn't anything I wouldn't love about it. It shares the ah-ah-ah sample used as instrument with its a-side. The Oscar Wilde quote is great and used amazingly here. Although it beats me how anybody could NOT think it might perhaps have a tad of sexual connotation. I am also fascinated by how many Pet Shop Boys songs are actually about America, in particular New York, as they are thought of (by me, as well) as this quintessentially British band. I think if I based my idea of New York on Pet Shop Boys songs about it I would end up being very disappointed.
@TrendyMüller: „Lying in the gutter but looking at the stars“ sounds like a direct lift from Marc Almond. [Almost. Marc Almond fancies himself Oscar Wilde II really.]
@Jóga: A tune and a half. I would have loved to have an extended version as an album track. [To think we were pretty close to it...]
@One Stop Candy Shop: It does sound like a mixture of their album tracks of those days, but it's a psbop.
@etienne: This really needs a set list appearance soon.
@DominoDancing: Fun, but I have the feeling I don't rate this as high as some of the others will. It was always an obvious b-side to me, being less catchy than lots of their other material and...not quite as exciting as the title would lead you to believe. [I think it's furiously catchy, but we are still in Introspective era and if we pretend that this is their latest release I totally see what you mean.]
@Bleu Noir: 'my body moves to your control' is such a perfect description of those early crushes and it gallops like a mother. Was my 11 for a while.
@chris4862: Should have been a single!
@Mikey1701: Another one of my favourite PSB B-Sides, up there with In The Night and Shameless. It works brilliantly alongside the stellar Heart. Strangely, I sometimes get this confused with Too Many People from the I Wouldn’t Normally Do This Kind Of Thing. Considering it was written during the Introspective sessions, I would not have minded an 8 minute version on it. [HOW do you confuse this with "Too Many People"?!? Also I like how we generally totally agree on everything except when we totally disagree.]
@Sally_Harper: This does not need an intro that’s over a minute long. I don’t have time for that. Aside from that, it’s decent but, ironically, nothing to get excited about.
Bobby 'O' demo:
Later Bobby 'O' demo: (probably the Puerto Rican DJ remix – makes me think of Scissor Sisters' "Invisible Light)
Hearing this in concert ENDED me – only Stuart Price seems to understand how fans feel hearing a demo of a b-side during a live show:
I have no idea how to describe this one so look up the full YouTube description but it is AWESOME and PSB should ask the people who did it to allow for it to be used for upcoming tour, reissue of a reissue, AA-side collection, whatever. Might be my favourite version of the song and I need vocals on top of it.
The next song sort surprises me by not being in top 15.
30.
Should have been a single
I don’t have time for that
30. I Get Excited (You Get Excited Too)
7.7263888889
B-side to "Heart", therefore practically a #1
Highest score: 10 (@slurmjunkie, @idratherjack, @chris4862, @Bleu Noir, @SmashHitter, @etienne, @Jóga, @Ray)
Lowest score: 2 (@JakeMagnus and NOT @Peer_Gynt10... because Peer_Gynt10 gave it 2.5)
Neil: This song is very old; in those days we used to like long song titles. I think one can get too ironic [deadpan and detached – Ray] about those things. Nowadays I find that kind of thing really tedious. [This was said before the release of "I Don't Know What You Want But I Can't Give It Anymore" and "You Only Tell Me You Love Me When You're Drunk". Just saying. – Ray] All those brackets. We recorded it with Bobby 'O' and he had a Puerto Rican DJ remix it. It was meant to be our Bobby 'O' single after 'One More Chance', but it never came out. Then we re-recorded the whole thing. It was one of the first tracks recorded for Introspective. We wanted to have a guitar on it and we phoned up Eric Clapton's manager to see if Eric Clapton would play on it. Amazingly that was where our heads were at the time. They said no but they were very nice about it. When we recorded it, we did the whole thing as we had done it on the demo, and then I went to the loo – if I go out of the room Chris often gets wickedly creative – and Chris turned it into a house track. The basis of the song is the famous Oscar Wilde quote, 'we are all in the gutter but some of us are looking at the stars'. It's about being in New York. Being me, I don't think it ever occurred to me that it sounded rude. It's never entered my head that it had any sexual connotation at all.
Chris: I think we can safely say that Neil's subconscious is very active. [It feels better in the dark, especially later tonight – Ray]
Neil: I just like the idea of irrational excitement.
Ray: There really isn't anything I wouldn't love about it. It shares the ah-ah-ah sample used as instrument with its a-side. The Oscar Wilde quote is great and used amazingly here. Although it beats me how anybody could NOT think it might perhaps have a tad of sexual connotation. I am also fascinated by how many Pet Shop Boys songs are actually about America, in particular New York, as they are thought of (by me, as well) as this quintessentially British band. I think if I based my idea of New York on Pet Shop Boys songs about it I would end up being very disappointed.
@TrendyMüller: „Lying in the gutter but looking at the stars“ sounds like a direct lift from Marc Almond. [Almost. Marc Almond fancies himself Oscar Wilde II really.]
@Jóga: A tune and a half. I would have loved to have an extended version as an album track. [To think we were pretty close to it...]
@One Stop Candy Shop: It does sound like a mixture of their album tracks of those days, but it's a psbop.
@etienne: This really needs a set list appearance soon.
@DominoDancing: Fun, but I have the feeling I don't rate this as high as some of the others will. It was always an obvious b-side to me, being less catchy than lots of their other material and...not quite as exciting as the title would lead you to believe. [I think it's furiously catchy, but we are still in Introspective era and if we pretend that this is their latest release I totally see what you mean.]
@Bleu Noir: 'my body moves to your control' is such a perfect description of those early crushes and it gallops like a mother. Was my 11 for a while.
@chris4862: Should have been a single!
@Mikey1701: Another one of my favourite PSB B-Sides, up there with In The Night and Shameless. It works brilliantly alongside the stellar Heart. Strangely, I sometimes get this confused with Too Many People from the I Wouldn’t Normally Do This Kind Of Thing. Considering it was written during the Introspective sessions, I would not have minded an 8 minute version on it. [HOW do you confuse this with "Too Many People"?!? Also I like how we generally totally agree on everything except when we totally disagree.]
@Sally_Harper: This does not need an intro that’s over a minute long. I don’t have time for that. Aside from that, it’s decent but, ironically, nothing to get excited about.
Bobby 'O' demo:
Later Bobby 'O' demo: (probably the Puerto Rican DJ remix – makes me think of Scissor Sisters' "Invisible Light)
Hearing this in concert ENDED me – only Stuart Price seems to understand how fans feel hearing a demo of a b-side during a live show:
I have no idea how to describe this one so look up the full YouTube description but it is AWESOME and PSB should ask the people who did it to allow for it to be used for upcoming tour, reissue of a reissue, AA-side collection, whatever. Might be my favourite version of the song and I need vocals on top of it.
The next song sort surprises me by not being in top 15.
D
Deleted member 16293
The top 30 (now top 29) is Very Fundamentally Essential PSB.
They/them, he/him
That is a Super Top 30. A fabulous set of Results!
We are halfway through the rate – and averages are over 7.7. And I agree, not only is everything left essential except for "Opportunities", "The End Of The World" and "Suburbia" but also, well, brilliant and deserving the high averages. Speaking of which, from #27 onwards we'll be in 8+ average score territory.
Any ideas for the biggest shocker of 21-29? As in "oh no she di'n't" elimination? I'd say there are two (in my opinion).
Any ideas for the biggest shocker of 21-29? As in "oh no she di'n't" elimination? I'd say there are two (in my opinion).
I love the lyrics for It Must Be Obvious, or not just the lyrics - the whole song is great.
I remember listening to I Get Excited (You Get Excited Too) so often when I first got the Heart single. Still a good song.
Don't know what will be out next obviously, but isn't it time It's Alright left?
I remember listening to I Get Excited (You Get Excited Too) so often when I first got the Heart single. Still a good song.
Don't know what will be out next obviously, but isn't it time It's Alright left?
I Get Excited was my first forray into PSB b-sides via a 79p ‘black sleeve’ Heart 7” from Woolies bargain bin ... What an introduction (there’s an essay on this in the Generally thread) … Probably the most hi-nrg of the PSB tracks I’d heard to that point, there is never a dull moment in the 5 minutes on offer ... At that moment it was my favourite PSB track ... Perspective and middle age now makes it a slightly less than perfect 9 … (but given I only rated 4 b-sides 9 or above, it is not faint praise) …
Paninaro can go to the big sandwich shop in the sky, for all I care.
Also Opportunities ´presence is a joke compared to some of the stunning songs that is not with us anymore.
Also Opportunities ´presence is a joke compared to some of the stunning songs that is not with us anymore.
I'm SO GLAD it's not just me!
That song should've been out within the first ten and the fact that it's currently leaving in the top thirty is ludicrous.
Not you guys bashing two of my tens!
How is End Of The World still in this?
Maybe it has that obvious ‘mild-bop’ (PJ Culture) quality that those not familiar with certain tracks might like (after all, folks thought Losing My Mind was a PSB composition) …