39 years ago, Soft Cell's version of ‘Tainted Love’ reached the number one position in the British hit parade!
Today, 39 years ago, Soft Cell's version of ‘Tainted Love’ reached the number one position in the British hit parade while it also became the best-selling single of 1981 within the UK. The song also pushed through to the eighth position in the American Billboard Top 100, in which it lasted no less than 43 weeks. It became also a (number 1) hit in most European countries. Although Soft Cell's version was substantially different from the original version, the original version from 1964 performed by the American Gloria Jones, was re-released in the footsteps of Soft Cell’s success. The song was composed by producer Ed Cobb and originally released as a b-side which did not reach the hit parades.
Soft Cell brought the tempo down and replaced all acoustic instruments and electric guitars with synthesizers and drum computers. The song is said to have been recorded in a day and a half, with Soft Cell singer Marc Almond’s first vocal take being used as the definitive vocal track for the single release.
On the 12” release, the song changes halfway to a medley with ‘Where Did Our Love Go’ originally by The Supremes.
The single also announced the release of the Soft Cell debut album Non-Stop Erotic Cabaret. An album that was also released as a video album with the title "Non-Stop Exotic Video Show”, hence the original video clip below. Later, in 1991, a new version was recorded with a video directed by musician / director Peter Christopherson (RIP). The latter also covered "Tainted Love" in 1985 with his cult band Coil. Marc Almond can also be seen in Coil’s video clip.
In 2001, Marilyn Manson also successfully ventured into a cover version of Tainted Love. His version managed to penetrate hit parades almost all over the world, in some countries even up to the top 10.
Meanwhile, more than 1.35 million units of Soft Cell’s "Tainted Love" have been sold!
Tainted Love
Sometimes I feel I've got to
Run away I've got to
Get away from the pain that you drive into the heart of me
The love we share
Seems to go nowhere
And I've lost my light
For I toss and turn I can't sleep at night
Once I ran to you (I ran)
Now I'll run from you
This tainted love you've given
I give you all a boy could give you
Take my tears and that's not nearly all
Oh tainted love
Tainted love
Now I know I've got to
Run away I've got to
Get away
You don't really want it any more from me
To make things right
You need someone to hold you tight
And you'll think love is to pray
But I'm sorry I don't pray that way
Once I ran to you (I ran)
Now I'll run from you
This tainted love you've given
I give you all a boy could give you
Take my tears and that's not nearly all
Oh tainted love
Tainted love
Don't touch me please
I cannot stand the way you tease
I love you though you hurt me so
Now I'm going to pack my things and go
Tainted love, tainted love
Tainted love, tainted love
Touch me baby, tainted love
Touch me baby, tainted love
Tainted love
Tainted love
Tainted love
Vandaag 38 jaar geleden bereikte Soft Cell’s versie van Tainted Love de nummer één positie van de Britse hitparade en werd het de best verkopende single van 1981 in de UK. Het nummer stootte ook door tot de achtste plaats in de Amerikaanse Billboard Top 100, waar het maar liefst 43 weken stand hield. In de meeste Europese landen werd het een (nummer 1) hit. Hoewel Soft Cell’s versie wezenlijk verschilde van de originele versie werd in de voetsporen van hun succes ook de originele versie uit 1964, uitgevoerd door de Amerikaanse Gloria Jones, opnieuw uitgebracht. Het door producer Ed Cobb gecomponeerde nummer werd oorspronkelijk als b-kant uitgebracht en kwam nooit in de hitparades.
Soft Cell bracht het tempo naar beneden en verving alle akoestische instrumenten en elektrische gitaren door synthesizers en drumcomputers. Het nummer werd opgenomen op anderhalve dag tijd en Soft Cell zanger Marc Almond’s eerste ‘take’ werd als definitieve vocal track gebruikt voor deze single release.
Op de 12” release gaat het nummer halverwege over naar een medley met ‘Where Did Our Love Go’, oorspronkelijk een nummer van The Supremes.
De single kondigde meteen ook de release van het Soft Cell debuutalbum Non-Stop Erotic Cabaret aan. Een album dat eveneens als videoalbum werd uitgegeven onder de titel ‘Non-Stop Exotic Video Show’.
Het was naar aanleiding van deze videorelease dat onderstaande originele videoclip werd opgenomen. Later, in 1991, werd een nieuwe versie opgenomen met een video geregisseerd door muzikant/regisseur Peter Christopherson (RIP). Deze laatste coverde ‘Tainted Love’ ook al in 1985 met zijn cultband Coil. In Coil’s videoclip is Marc Almond trouwens ook te zien.
In 2001 waagde ook Marilyn Manson zich aan een coverversie van Tainted Love en mét succes. Ook zijn versie wist over bijna heel de wereld in de hitparades te penetreren, in sommige landen tot zelfs hoog in de top 10.
Ondertussen zijn er al meer dan 1,35 miljoen stuks van Soft Cell’s ‘Tainted Love’ verkocht!
Tainted Love
Sometimes I feel I've got to
Run away I've got to
Get away from the pain that you drive into the heart of me
The love we share
Seems to go nowhere
And I've lost my light
For I toss and turn I can't sleep at night
Once I ran to you (I ran)
Now I'll run from you
This tainted love you've given
I give you all a boy could give you
Take my tears and that's not nearly all
Oh tainted love
Tainted love
Now I know I've got to
Run away I've got to
Get away
You don't really want it any more from me
To make things right
You need someone to hold you tight
And you'll think love is to pray
But I'm sorry I don't pray that way
Once I ran to you (I ran)
Now I'll run from you
This tainted love you've given
I give you all a boy could give you
Take my tears and that's not nearly all
Oh tainted love
Tainted love
Don't touch me please
I cannot stand the way you tease
I love you though you hurt me so
Now I'm going to pack my things and go
Tainted love, tainted love
Tainted love, tainted love
Touch me baby, tainted love
Touch me baby, tainted love
Tainted love
Tainted love
Tainted love
[NL]
Vandaag 38 jaar geleden bereikte Soft Cell’s versie van Tainted Love de nummer één positie van de Britse hitparade en werd het de best verkopende single van 1981 in de UK. Het nummer stootte ook door tot de achtste plaats in de Amerikaanse Billboard Top 100, waar het maar liefst 43 weken stand hield. In de meeste Europese landen werd het een (nummer 1) hit. Hoewel Soft Cell’s versie wezenlijk verschilde van de originele versie werd in de voetsporen van hun succes ook de originele versie uit 1964, uitgevoerd door de Amerikaanse Gloria Jones, opnieuw uitgebracht. Het door producer Ed Cobb gecomponeerde nummer werd oorspronkelijk als b-kant uitgebracht en kwam nooit in de hitparades.
Soft Cell bracht het tempo naar beneden en verving alle akoestische instrumenten en elektrische gitaren door synthesizers en drumcomputers. Het nummer werd opgenomen op anderhalve dag tijd en Soft Cell zanger Marc Almond’s eerste ‘take’ werd als definitieve vocal track gebruikt voor deze single release.
Op de 12” release gaat het nummer halverwege over naar een medley met ‘Where Did Our Love Go’, oorspronkelijk een nummer van The Supremes.
De single kondigde meteen ook de release van het Soft Cell debuutalbum Non-Stop Erotic Cabaret aan. Een album dat eveneens als videoalbum werd uitgegeven onder de titel ‘Non-Stop Exotic Video Show’.
Het was naar aanleiding van deze videorelease dat onderstaande originele videoclip werd opgenomen. Later, in 1991, werd een nieuwe versie opgenomen met een video geregisseerd door muzikant/regisseur Peter Christopherson (RIP). Deze laatste coverde ‘Tainted Love’ ook al in 1985 met zijn cultband Coil. In Coil’s videoclip is Marc Almond trouwens ook te zien.
In 2001 waagde ook Marilyn Manson zich aan een coverversie van Tainted Love en mét succes. Ook zijn versie wist over bijna heel de wereld in de hitparades te penetreren, in sommige landen tot zelfs hoog in de top 10.
Ondertussen zijn er al meer dan 1,35 miljoen stuks van Soft Cell’s ‘Tainted Love’ verkocht!
ORIGINAL 1982 ORIGINAL 1991 COIL MARILYN MANSON
Today it’s exactly 42 years ago that Iggy Pop released Lust for Life (29th August 1977). It was his second solo studio album and also his second collaboration with David Bowie, following The Idiot that was released earlier in the same year. As well as achieving critical success, it was Iggy Pop's most commercially popular album to date, and remains his only Gold-certified release in the UK. The recording sessions for this album took place at the Hansa Studio by the Wall (Berlin) between April and June ’77, almost immediately after the The Idiot promotion tour which ended on 16th April.
Pop has stated, "David and I had determined that we would record that album very quickly, which we wrote, recorded and mixed in eight days and because we had done it so quickly, we had a lot of money left over from the advance, which we split.”
Lust for Life reached number 28 in the UK Album Chart and is his second highest-performing release in that country after 2016's Post Pop Depression. Initially the album did well in the US too but the sudden death of Elvis Presley (16th August 1977) caused record label RCA to quickly reissue Presley's catalogue and any promotional focus for Pop's album was lost.
Bowie, Pop and engineer Colin Thurston produced the album under the pseudonym "Bewlay Bros”, a name retrieved from a track on Bowie’s album Hunky Dory.
Besides probably the most popular track Lust For Life, The Passenger also found its way to alternative clubs and dance floors all over the world. Even if it was initially released as the b-side track of the 7” single Success.
Siouxsie and The Banshees made a cover of The Passenger in 1987 for their all-cover-versions album Though The Looking Glass. Iggy Pop praised their version and stated: "That's good. She sings it well and she threw a little note in when she sings it, that I wish I had thought of, it's kind of improved it … The horn thing is good."
David Bowie covered Tonight (minus the opening lines referencing drugs) with Tina Turner, along with Neighborhood Threat, on his 1984 release Tonight.
Lust For Life (tracklist)
A1. Lust For Life
A2. Sixteen
A3. Some Weird Sin
A4. The Passenger
A5. Tonight
B1. Succes
B2. Turn Blue
B3. Neighborhood Threat
B4. Fall In Love With Me
kaRIN FROM COLLIDE AND SHIKHEE FROM ANDROID LUST RELEASE NEW SINGLE ''ARE YOU LISTENING?''
Long term friends kaRIN from Collide and Shikhee from Android Lust have got together and collaborated on a new single. They last saw each other before the C19 crisis took us all into lockdown and at that last meeting kaRIn told Shikhee to send her a piece of music to mess about with whilst her partner in Collide, Statik, worked on rereleasing material. ''Are You Listening?'' is the result. The accompanying video was put together by Tas Limur. He did his own visual interpretation of the song which is dark but tinged with hope.
The single was released on August 7th on Synthellec Music.
Today, it’s exactly 32 years ago that Nitzer Ebb released Join In The Chant (12mute64 / 10th August 1987).
It was the 3rd and last single to be taken from their debut album That Total Age. Like the album this 7” / 12” was released by the renowned British label Mute Records. The song hit #9 on the US dance chart in 1987 and became a Balearic Beat anthem in clubs around the world. Even to this day this track is still a dance floor filler.
Tracklist 12"
A1. Join In The Chant (Burn!) - Remix by Phil Harding
B1. Join In The Chant (Gold!) - Remix by Miller*, Flood
B2. Join In The Chant (Lies! - Instrumental)
Lyrics
Lies, lies, lies, lies
Gold, gold, gold, gold
Guns, guns, guns, guns
Fire, fire, fire
Gold, gold, gold, gold
Church, church, church, church
Guns, guns, guns, guns
Fire, fire, fire
Muscle and hate
Muscle and hate
Muscle, muscle, muscle, muscle
Lies, lies, lies, lies
Books, books, books, books
Burn, burn, burn, burn
Fire, fire, fire
Post-Punk Band THE FUNHOUSE COLLECTIVE Unleashes Cover Of GOLDEN EARRING's 'Twilight Zone'
Former NEW CREATURES/JOHNATHAN CHRISTIAN co-founder Johnathan Mooney and MACHINERY OF DESIRE’s Adrian Auchrome have teamed up to form the new project THE FUNHOUSE COLLECTIVE. The duo has announced the release of their cover of Golden Earring's classic song, "Twilight Zone." The original song was written by Golden Earring guitarist George Kooymans who got inspiration from Robert Ludlum book, "The Bourne Identity."
Produced by Johnathan Mooney and Michael Bann, this new darker, post-punk version aptly arrives at a very poignant time in the world.
“Growing up during the Cold War and coming of age when the original came out left me with indelible memories of that era. Add the events past few months to the mix and it seemed this could have new relevance” says Adrian Auchrome.
For fans of: THE MISSION & SISTERS OF MERCY
