Neil Tennant and Chris Lowe meet in an electronics shop. As the two have to wait for a long time, they start talking and the musical connection is quickly found. Neil and Lowe form the Pet Shop Boys in 1981. Before that, Tennant was known in England as a journalist for Smash Hits Magazine.
Smash Hits
In 1984, when Neil is sent to the US for his work as a journalist at Smash Hits to interview The Police, he is determined to meet producer Bobby Orlando. He succeeds, and the Pet Shop Boys record several songs with him. After a dispute over the rights to the songs, Orlando leaves, taking the rights with him. This explains why old Pet Shop Boys songs sometimes appear in completely different versions.
Record contract
In 1985, Neil and Chris meet manager Tom Watkins, who secures them a record contract with EMI's Parlophone label. That same year, the single 'Opportunities' is released. It is not a success. The previously released 'West End Girls' is reissued and reaches number 1 in, among others, England and America. With producer Stephen Hague, they record the debut album Please. The second album Actually is released in 1987. 'It's A Sin' becomes a worldwide hit. In the Netherlands, this song reaches number 2 in the Top 40. For this album, the men collaborated with Dusty Springfield. The Pet Shop Boys found her voice perfect for the song 'What Have I Done To Deserve This'. Around the same time, they cover an Elvis Presley song: 'Always On My Mind'. This was recorded for a special about Elvis Presley on British TV. Due to the many positive responses, they release the song as a single. This gives them the UK Christmas number 1 hit of 1987.
Introperspective
Then they start recording their third studio album. The new record is called Introperspective and is released in the second half of 1988. With this album, the Pet Shop Boys take a different direction, as clear house and Latin influences can be heard. After Introperspective, a period of collaborations begins. The men work with, among others, Liza Minelli and Dusty Springfield. They also collaborate with New Order singer Bernard Sumner and The Smiths guitarist Johnny Marr. A year later, they return to the studio to record material for themselves. This results in the album Behaviour. In 1991, it's time for a compilation album with the first sixteen singles.
Very
Very is released in 1993. Alongside it, a double CD called Very Relentless is released, mainly featuring instrumental dance tracks. A year later, the men go on a world tour. One of these concerts is recorded on Discovery - Live in Rio. In 1995, the double CD Alternative is released, containing all the B-sides from the past ten years. In 1996, the Pet Shop Boys collaborate with David Bowie. With 'Hallo Spaceboy' they score a hit. The original version of this song is on David Bowie's album 1 Outside. The album Bilingual is released in 1996. The popularity of the Pet Shop Boys declines, and they remain very popular only in the United Kingdom, Italy and Germany. Occasionally, they reach the charts in the rest of Europe.
Nightlife
After the Latin influences, the band returns to the synthesiser sound in 1999 with the album Nightlife. They also collaborate with Kylie Minogue on the song 'In Denial'. This song, like several tracks on the album Nightlife, was intended for the musical 'Closer To Heaven', which received mixed reviews. The soundtrack, sung by the cast of the musical, was also released on CD.
Release
On the album Release, which came out in 2002, new sounds can be heard, namely those of the guitar. This is thanks to the collaboration with The Smiths guitarist Johnny Marr.
Battleship Potemkin
In 2004, the gentlemen, together with Dresdner Sinfoniker, give a concert of a self-written soundtrack for the film Battleship Potemkin. They are accompanied by the original film footage. The concert takes place on 12 September at Trafalgar Square in London. Admission is free and the square is therefore quite full. Later, this show can also be admired in Germany. The album of this is released under the name Tennant and Lowe.
Yes
After collaborations with Madonna, Elton John, Robbie Williams, the album Fundamental and a world tour, it is time in 2009 for the album Yes, with the single 'Love Etc'. In June of that year, they perform at the Heineken Music Hall in Amsterdam.
Top 2000
In the 23rd edition of the Top 2000 from 2021, the Pet Shop Boys have two entries:
Sunday Morning Classics: Actually
On Sunday 2 January 2022, the Pet Shop Boys are the focus as Sunday Morning Classic with the album Actually.
Actually is the second studio album by the Pet Shop Boys from 1987. Musically, Actually is an evolution of the first album, Please. The album partly consists of songs that were already written before the Pet Shop Boys broke through. For example, the song One More Chance was co-written by Bobby Orlando. The album's title was based on the story around the title of the previous album. Now customers in the record shop could say "I'd like the new album from the Pet Shop Boys, Actually". For the song What Have I Done To Deserve This?, the Pet Shop Boys insisted on having Dusty Springfield as the singer. Dusty had not recorded any records for years and had fallen on hard times. After some persuasion, Dusty agreed, and it would mean a revival of her career. The Pet Shop Boys would later produce part of her album Reputation. The song Rent was later covered by numerous artists, including Liza Minnelli. Her version is on the album Results, produced by the Pet Shop Boys. Two months after the album's release, the King's Cross fire occurred, in which 31 people died. The song Kings Cross was used to raise money for the victims via paid phone lines.
In 2001, the album was remastered and re-released on 4 June that year as a double CD. The first CD is the original album. The second, titled Further Listening 1987-1988, contains songs and mixes from the same period as the album, some of which appeared on CD for the first time or had never been released before. The artwork on the front of the album is based on the original LP release. The original CD release had a slightly different composition. The back cover was completely redesigned. On 13 February 2009, the original album was re-released again as a budget release. This edition consists of the first CD of the remastered 2001 release. The artwork was restored to the original CD artwork, including the back cover.
source: NPO and Wikipedia photo: livepict.com and Sven Mandel
