West End Girls

 Formed by ex-Smash Hits hack Neil Tennant and keyboardist Chris Lowe, the Pet Shop Boys initially recorded a version of West End Girls with producer Bobby ‘O’ Orlando, who Tennant had recently interviewed.

This version was released in America, becoming a minor underground dance hit, but was only available in the UK as a 12 inch import. Signing to EMI, they re-recorded it with producer Stephen Hague, who added a shimmering major label gloss to their previously sparse beats and minimalist keyboard lines. 

Lowe’s music came first, with Tennant adding his lyrics later. Unusually for a white pop act at the time, Tennant raps the verses, making a virtue of the limitations of his thin voice. The lyrics were inspired by TS Elliot’s The Waste Land, particularly in the use of different narrative voices and arcane references. Their socially conscious streak also derives from Grand Master Flash’s protest rap classic The Message, which also boasts a similarly propulsive bass line.

The song gave the Boys their first number one, helped by a video in which Tenant and Lowe mooned around looking moody, further enhancing their detached personas. The NME reckoned it sounded like ‘Marc Almond overdosing on mean streets and clublands.’ We’ll let you decide whether this is a good or bad thing.

Interview with Chris Lowe, Apr 2000