Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark – Enola Gay
OMD’s Enola Gay (Organisation, 1980): McCluskey, Mike Howlett, Ridge Farm, UK No. 8.
Elton John – Piano, spectacles, and chart arithmetic
Reg Dwight became Elton John with Bernie Taupin lyrics, a grand piano, and a run of singles that treated pop craft as serious work.
Genesis – No Son Of Mine
In October 1991 Genesis released No Son Of Mine as the lead single from We Can't Dance: a six-minute family argument cut at The Farm with Collins still on studio vocals.
Blur – Essex satire that went widescreen
Four Colchester-area players turned English observation into chart weapons, then tore up the costume before it hardened.
Afterlife Interview with Otis Redding
Riffs and Beats finds Otis Redding on a wooden pier at sunset, suit jacket open, watching the bay the way other men watch a clock.
The Human League – Don’t You Want Me
The Human League’s Don’t You Want Me (Dare, 1981): Oakey/Sulley, Rushent, Genetic, UK Christmas No. 1.
Around the World in a Day – Psychedelic morning after Purple Rain
On 22 April 1985 Paisley Park and Warner Bros. released Around the World in a Day, Prince and the Revolution’s deliberate pivot away from the Purple Rain sound while that film still filled cinemas.
5 things you didn’t know about The Cure
Robert Smith nearly taught English, The Cure were banned over orange juice, and "A Forest" grew from a wrong-key keyboard part.
Sade – Nothing Can Come Between Us
Released on 15 August 1988, Nothing Can Come Between Us reached number 3 on Billboard's R&B chart and number 92 in Britain.
Initials B.B. – Orchestral pop between London and Paris
In June 1968 Serge Gainsbourg released Initials B.B. on Philips, an orchestral-pop set cut between London and Paris with Brigitte Bardot on Bonnie and Clyde.