r/petshopboys

Released as the first single of their compilation “PopArt: The Hits” on November 2003. Written by Neil Tennant and Chris Lowe; co-written and produced by Adam F, DJ Fresh and Stuart Crichton.

In this synth-pop/electronic track with luscious orchestral arrangement, we find our narrator's perception of life being transformed before his very eyes as he meets someone who makes "miracles happen" whenever they're around. His exhilarating mood makes him believe in the impossible as he enlists things that may seem ridiculous for an ordinary person but to him it feels like his own reality, even if perhaps unconsciously he knows it's all a fantasy.

From 1 to 10 how would you rate this song? Do you have any favorite lyrics or production elements?

1-4: Not good/Skip

5-6: Average, but wouldn't skip

7-8: Good song, quite enjoyable

9: Amazing song

10: Masterpiece/Magnum opus

---

Single cover art

Video stills taken from the official music video of “Miracles”

Any thoughts or memories you have about the official music video?

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B-SIDE #1

WE'RE THE PET SHOP BOYS

Originally written by Howard Rigberg aka My Robot Friend. PSB and Robbie Williams' version produced by Neil Tennant, Chris Lowe and Chris Zippel.

This one's an oddity; a cover/rendition of a fan's experimental tribute to the Boys. Is he still a fan? Was he pleased by the Boys' version? I would hope so but I'm not sure there are any archives unveiling this information.

Either way, I'm sure the Boys were quite pleased and honored to be enough of an inspiration for someone to "summarize" their legacy so far, and it's been a remarkable one. Later on, UK's always beloved male soloist, Robbie Williams decided to cover the Boys' cover of this rendition. Color me confused but intrigued at the same time.

Geowayne has listed all the referenced songs, and even the less obvious ones, but I wonder if anyone else caught any new ones that no one seems to notice so far...

• Suburbia
• Heart
• It's a Sin
• Rent
• Shopping
• Being Boring
• It's Alright
• I'm Not Scared
• In Denial
• I Want a Dog
• I Want a Lover
• Can You Forgive Her?
• Do I Have To?
• What Have I Done to Deserve This?
• Paninaro
• Left to My Own Devices
• West End Girls

B-SIDE #2

TRANSPARENT

Written and produced by Neil Tennant and Chris Lowe.

Another one of those "Chris songs", mainly instrumental/dance with minimalistic lyrics, where he reveals just enough about his own thoughts and life mottos; this time around with vocals provided by Neil with some heavy vocoder effects.

Its lyrical content express a sentiment of wanting to be as transparent as possible with the one he loves so that this person can know everything about him, unafraid of hiding anything from them.

From 1 to 10 how would you rate these b-sides? Do you have any favorite lyrics or production elements?

---

“DISCO 3” + BONUS:

1. Time on My Hands - 7.3

2. Try It (I'm In Love with a Married Man) - 8.1

3. If Looks Could Kill - 7

4. Miracles -

5. Flamboyant -

6. Love Life -

7. Motoring -

8. The Night Is a Time to Explore Who You Are -

9. Reunion -

10. A Powerful Friend -

11. No Excuse -

12. Jack & Jill Party (with Pete Burns) -

B-SIDES:

1. We're the Pet Shop Boys -

2. Transparent -

3. I Didn't Get Where I Am Today -

Third track from their third installment of remixes Disco 3, released on February 2003. Written by Bobby Orlando and produced by Neil Tennant and Chris Lowe.

Originally released in 1983 by one of Bobby Orlando's musical ensembles called Oh Romeo as their debut single, which didn't achieve any significant success, this very 80s synth-pop hypnotic deliciousness tells the story of a female narrator who exposes her affair with a married man.

However, Neil puts an interesting spin on it by singing from a male perspective towards another man, seemingly bisexual although one can also assume is a closeted gay man victim of society's expectations and heteronormative rules. The lyrics turn quite shocking and contain some sexual undertones mixed with a bit of sadness when Neil sings "Do you ever long for me, as I get down on my knees?" and "Do you think about me darlin' as you make love to your wife?"

From 1 to 10 how would you rate this song? Do you have any favorite lyrics or production elements?

1-4: Not good/Skip

5-6: Average, but wouldn't skip

7-8: Good song, quite enjoyable

9: Amazing song

10: Masterpiece/Magnum opus

---

“DISCO 3” + BONUS:

1. Time on My Hands - 7.3

2. Try It (I'm In Love with a Married Man) -

3. If Looks Could Kill -

4. Miracles -

5. Flamboyant -

6. Love Life -

7. Motoring -

8. The Night Is a Time to Explore Who You Are -

9. Reunion -

10. A Powerful Friend -

11. No Excuse -

12. Jack & Jill Party (with Pete Burns) -

B-SIDES:

1. We're the Pet Shop Boys -

2. Transparent -

3. I Didn't Get Where I Am Today -

First track from their third installment of remixes Disco 3, released on February 2003. Written and produced by Neil Tennant and Chris Lowe.

Mostly an electronic/dance instrumental piece with a few repeated lyrical content by the Boys, its origins came from being bored and partying at the same time.

From 1 to 10 how would you rate this song? Do you have any favorite lyrics or production elements?

1-4: Not good/Skip

5-6: Average, but wouldn't skip

7-8: Good song, quite enjoyable

9: Amazing song

10: Masterpiece/Magnum opus

---

“DISCO 3” + BONUS:

1. Time on My Hands -

2. Try It (I'm In Love with a Married Man) -

3. If Looks Could Kill -

4. Miracles -

5. Flamboyant -

6. Love Life -

7. Motoring -

8. The Night Is a Time to Explore Who You Are -

9. Reunion -

10. A Powerful Friend -

11. No Excuse -

12. Jack & Jill Party (with Pete Burns) -

B-SIDES:

1. We're the Pet Shop Boys -

2. Transparent -

3. I Didn't Get Where I Am Today -

Released as the second single of their compilation “PopArt: The Hits” on March 2004. Written and produced by Neil Tennant and Chris Lowe with additional production by Tomcraft, Felix J. Gauder and Stuart Crichton.

With a very techno sound, Neil pays tribute to those "flamboyant" people/artists who are so devoted to their craft of being "attention whores", used as a term of endearment. Neil mentioned famous people like Oscar Wilde, Boy George, Marilyn Monroe and Elton John as main inspirations for this song.

Speaking of Elton John, the Boys have collaborated with him in multiple occasions. Which ones are your favorites? 🤩

From 1 to 10 how would you rate this song? Do you have any favorite lyrics or production elements?

1-4: Not good/Skip

5-6: Average, but wouldn't skip

7-8: Good song, quite enjoyable

9: Amazing song

10: Masterpiece/Magnum opus

---

Single cover art (CD1 + CD2)

Single cover art (Digital cover)

Video stills taken from the official music video of “Flamboyant”

Any thoughts or memories you have about the official music video?

---

B-SIDE #1

I DIDN'T GET WHERE I AM TODAY

Written and produced by Neil Tennant and Chris Lowe, with additional writing credits by Dave Lambert.

Hey-hey-hey!!

A very upbeat rock-ish sound for them, this semi-autobiographical song tells an exaggerated life story of Neil, with its ups and downs but always resilient against the brutal music industry. Allegedly, inspired by a Madonna quote: "Honey, I didn't get where I am today without being pushy". Sounds like something she would definitely say, even nowadays.

From 1 to 10 how would you rate this b-side? Do you have any favorite lyrics or production elements?

---

“DISCO 3” + BONUS:

1. Time on My Hands - 7.3

2. Try It (I'm In Love with a Married Man) - 8.1

3. If Looks Could Kill - 7

4. Miracles - 9

5. Flamboyant -

6. Love Life -

7. Motoring -

8. The Night Is a Time to Explore Who You Are -

9. Reunion -

10. A Powerful Friend -

11. No Excuse -

12. Jack & Jill Party (with Pete Burns) -

B-SIDES:

1. We're the Pet Shop Boys - 7.5

2. Transparent - 6

3. I Didn't Get Where I Am Today -

It's time! Here are the final results for Release and the B-Sides of each single.

Thanks for sharing your personal ratings, opinions and facts on each discussion post 🎵

If there's something that this album successfully achieved to do is to make Petheads pretty divisive on almost every song. Some fans were praising songs that the majority thought were sub-par and vice-versa!

The Samurai in Autumn takes the crown 👑 as the highest rated song, Sexy Northerner as the highest rated b-side and the lowest rated one would be The Night I Fell in Love.

Which song do you think deserved a higher rating?

---

1. Home and Dry - 8

2. I Get Along - 7.5

3. Birthday Boy - 6.7

4. London - 7.4

5. E-Mail - 6.4

6. The Samurai in Autumn - 8.3

7. Love Is a Catastrophe - 8.1

8. Here - 8

9. The Night I Fell in Love - 5.4

10. You Choose - 7.1

B-SIDES:

1. Sexy Northerner - 8.4

2. Always - 7.4

3. Break 4 Love - 6.6

4. Nightlife - 6

5. Between Two Islands - 6.6

6. Searching for the Face of Jesus - 6

7. Friendly Fire - 7.1

8. Positive Role Model - 7

Main album rating: 7.3

Main album + B-Sides rating: 7.1

Final rating: 7.2/10

---

- Small disclaimer! As with Nightlife, I decided to omit the bonus section from the main album's results. However, they will get their own discussion posts starting tomorrow!

“DISCO 3” + BONUS:

1. Time on My Hands -

2. Try It (I'm In Love with a Married Man) -

3. If Looks Could Kill -

4. Miracles -

5. Flamboyant -

6. Love Life -

7. Motoring -

8. The Night Is a Time to Explore Who You Are -

9. Reunion -

10. A Powerful Friend -

11. No Excuse -

12. Jack & Jill Party (with Pete Burns) -

---

ALBUMS:

1. Please - 8

2. Actually - 8.6

3. Introspective - 8.2

4. Behaviour - 8.7

5. Very - 8

6. Bilingual - 7.7

7. Nightlife - 7.1

8. Release - 7.2

Hi. Have I imagined this or was there a PSB single with a knitted doll version of Neil & Chris and maybe some knitted flowers on the sleeve too? A lot of white on the sleeve so it feels very Behaviour era?

Seventh track from their third installment of remixes Disco 3, released on February 2003. Written and produced by Neil Tennant and Chris Lowe.

Originally conceived by the Boys back in 1983, this futuristic/sci-fi-ish song let us into a very dramatic argument between the narrator and "a very bitchy person" as Neil would later reveal. At the same time, the lyrical content could be easily applied to any PSB's naysayers or even spiteful music critics who have this intense hatred for them for whatever reason.

From 1 to 10 how would you rate this song? Do you have any favorite lyrics or production elements?

1-4: Not good/Skip

5-6: Average, but wouldn't skip

7-8: Good song, quite enjoyable

9: Amazing song

10: Masterpiece/Magnum opus

---

“DISCO 3” + BONUS:

1. Time on My Hands - 7.3

2. Try It (I'm In Love with a Married Man) - 8.1

3. If Looks Could Kill -

4. Miracles -

5. Flamboyant -

6. Love Life -

7. Motoring -

8. The Night Is a Time to Explore Who You Are -

9. Reunion -

10. A Powerful Friend -

11. No Excuse -

12. Jack & Jill Party (with Pete Burns) -

B-SIDES:

1. We're the Pet Shop Boys -

2. Transparent -

3. I Didn't Get Where I Am Today -

Released by the Swedish band Alcazar as their fourth single from their second album “Alcazarized” on October 2003 and then by the Boys as part of Record Store Day in the form of a limited vinyl single in 2010. Written and produced by Neil Tennant and Chris Lowe.

Originally composed with the alternative title “Can I Be the One?”, this energetic disco track was deemed rubish by the Boys, yet I think it's a really fabulous song. Somehow it could work as a b-side or as part of Kylie Minogue's main “Light Years” album, which was released a couple of years before.

Its lyrical content works as a classified ad aimed at the narrator's romantic interest, offering to spend the rest of their lives together.

From 1 to 10 how would you rate this song? Do you have any favorite lyrics or production elements?

1-4: Not good/Skip

5-6: Average, but wouldn't skip

7-8: Good song, quite enjoyable

9: Amazing song

10: Masterpiece/Magnum opus

---

“DISCO 3” + BONUS:

1. Time on My Hands - 7.3

2. Try It (I'm In Love with a Married Man) - 8.1

3. If Looks Could Kill - 7

4. Miracles - 9

5. Flamboyant - 9.4

6. Love Life -

7. Motoring -

8. The Night Is a Time to Explore Who You Are -

9. Reunion -

10. A Powerful Friend -

11. No Excuse -

12. Jack & Jill Party (with Pete Burns) -

B-SIDES:

1. We're the Pet Shop Boys - 7.5

2. Transparent - 6

3. I Didn't Get Where I Am Today - 8

Previously unreleased until 2017 with the Further Listening edition of “Release”. Written and produced by Neil Tennant and Chris Lowe.

With a heavy dissonant rhythm that unfortunately reminds me of The Sound of the Atom Splitting, the Boys explore the pleasures of speeding on a freeway and the obvious consequences of generating pollution, having a very specific "masculine" and "aggressive" energy in mind that seeks to destroy everything.

From 1 to 10 how would you rate this song? Do you have any favorite lyrics or production elements?

1-4: Not good/Skip

5-6: Average, but wouldn't skip

7-8: Good song, quite enjoyable

9: Amazing song

10: Masterpiece/Magnum opus

---

“DISCO 3” + BONUS:

1. Time on My Hands - 7.3

2. Try It (I'm In Love with a Married Man) - 8.1

3. If Looks Could Kill - 7

4. Miracles - 9

5. Flamboyant - 9.4

6. Love Life - 7

7. Motoring -

8. The Night Is a Time to Explore Who You Are -

9. Reunion -

10. A Powerful Friend -

11. No Excuse -

12. Jack & Jill Party (with Pete Burns) -

B-SIDES:

1. We're the Pet Shop Boys - 7.5

2. Transparent - 6

3. I Didn't Get Where I Am Today - 8

Previously unreleased until 2017 with the Further Listening edition of “Release”. Written and produced by Neil Tennant and Chris Lowe.

A rather somber/atmospheric synth-pop track that reminds me of Kavinsky's "Nightcall", not only because of the vocoder effects but it has similar themes about romanticizing the night as it's the perfect time to reveal any truths about you or your surroundings; it's always been thought that the night gives people a fake sense of freedom the light tends to ironically "dim" in a way. Quite an interesting theme to cover, especially right after Nightlife.

From 1 to 10 how would you rate this song? Do you have any favorite lyrics or production elements?

1-4: Not good/Skip

5-6: Average, but wouldn't skip

7-8: Good song, quite enjoyable

9: Amazing song

10: Masterpiece/Magnum opus

---

“DISCO 3” + BONUS:

1. Time on My Hands - 7.3

2. Try It (I'm In Love with a Married Man) - 8.1

3. If Looks Could Kill - 7

4. Miracles - 9

5. Flamboyant - 9.4

6. Love Life - 7

7. Motoring - 5

8. The Night Is a Time to Explore Who You Are -

9. Reunion -

10. A Powerful Friend -

11. No Excuse -

12. Jack & Jill Party (with Pete Burns) -

B-SIDES:

1. We're the Pet Shop Boys - 7.5

2. Transparent - 6

3. I Didn't Get Where I Am Today - 8