I've touched on a couple albums from ABC, and even went into a little bit of their history while playing through their sophomore album, Beauty Stab. However, what I hadn't done up until today, was play through their highly successful debut, The Lexicon Of Love. So, it's time to jump in our Delorean, and head back to 1982.
The album entered the UK charts at number one, going platinum. It then exceeded expectations further by going gold in the US, led by Billboard Hot 100 singles, The Look Of Love (Part One), peaking at number seventeen, and Poison Arrow, peaking at number twenty-five. Since then, The Lexicon Of Love has been repeatedly listed as one of the best albums from the 80's.
Well, that excited me! Let's get into it!
Things kick off with Show Me, a song I'm unfamiliar with, but which definitely has found a new home in my shuffle list - you know, for the IPOD I still can't find. It's followed by the hit, Poison Arrow, a song which I admittedly didn't like back when it was first released, but which has grown on me considerably.
While I thought things would taper off with the slow starting, Many Happy Returns, the tempo quickly picked up, making it another solid entry for me. ABC, I found, was a solid rock group. I was really digging the drum and bass work, and the overall smooth vibe coming off of each track. The word, "groovy" kept coming to mind. Almost like a Kool & The Gang vibe, one that continues with Tears Are Not Enough.
Look, at this point I could keep going track by track, professing how great this album is, but that's just going to be sentence after sentence of me stating the same thing over and over. Basically, what we have here is another contender for the faux third row of wall albums. The Lexicon Of Love is a fantastic album from start to finish. No fillers. Just hit after hit of carefully crafted tracks. Granted, I'm not shocked considering the involvement of Trevor Horn (The Buggles) as producer. The man consistently delivers solid music.
An interesting after thought aspect about the album was the work contributed by Gary Langan, J. J. Jeczalik, Anne Dudley, Trevor Horn, who would all go on to create the band, Art Of Noise.
As for ABC, as noted above, I've already listened to a couple of their albums for a Retro Spin: Beauty Stab, and How To Be A...Zillionaire! So, my next stop for them is on the tail end of the 80's with 1987's Alphabet City, and 1989's Up. I'll be diving into those over the next couple days.
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Disclaimer: They Toy Box does not endorse or contribute to piracy. Retro Spins posts are intended for educational and entertainment purposes only. None of the music discussed here is available for sale, downloading or distribution.
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| THIS WEEK ON THE CHARTS December 26, 1981 |
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| THIS WEEK ON THE CHARTS December 26, 1987 |
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