Welcome to the Pleasuredome

by Frankie Goes to Hollywood

Overview

Strip away all the hype, controversy, and attendant craziness surrounding Frankie -- most of which never reached American shores, though the equally bombastic "Relax" and "Two Tribes" both charted well -- and Welcome to the Pleasuredome holds up as an outrageously over-the-top, bizarre, but fun release. Less well known but worthwhile cuts include by-definition-camp "Krisco Kisses" and "The Only Star in Heaven," while U.K. smash "The Power of Love" is a gloriously insincere but still great hyper-ballad with strings from Anne Dudley. In truth, the album's more a testament to Trevor Horn's production skills than anything else. To help out, he roped in a slew of Ian Dury's backing musicians to provide the music, along with a guest appearance from his fellow Yes veteran Steve Howe on acoustic guitar that probably had prog rock fanatics collapsing in apoplexy. The end result was catchy, consciously modern -- almost to a fault -- arena-level synth rock of the early '80s that holds up just fine today, as much an endlessly listenable product of its times as the Chinn/Chapman string of glam rock hits from the early '70s. Certainly the endless series of pronouncements from a Ronald Reagan impersonator throughout automatically date the album while lending it a giddy extra layer of appeal. Even the series of covers on the album at once make no sense and plenty of it all at once. While Edwin Starr's "War" didn't need redoing, Bruce Springsteen's "Born to Run" becomes a ridiculously over-the-top explosion that even outrocks the Boss. As the only member of the band actually doing anything the whole time (Paul Rutherford pipes up on backing vocals here and there), Holly Johnson needs to make a mark and does so with appropriately leering passion. He didn't quite turn out to be the new Freddie Mercury, but he makes a much better claim than most, combining a punk sneer with an ear for hyper-dramatic yelps. ~ Ned Raggett

Product Details

Release Date:	12/18/2020
Label:	Universal / Ztt
UPC:	0602508242199

Tracks

1. Well...
2. The World Is My Oyster
3. Snatch of Fury (Stay)
4. Welcome to the Pleasuredome
5. Relax (Come Fighting)
6. War (And Hide)
7. Two Tribes (For the Victims of Ravishment)
8. Ferry (Go)
9. Born to Run
10. Happy Hi
11. Wish (The Lads Were Here)
12. Including the Ballad of 32
13. Krisco Kisses
14. Black Night White Light
15. The Only Star in Heaven
16. The Power of Love
17. Bang

Album Credits

Performance Credits

Frankie Goes to Hollywood   Primary Artist
Brian Nash   Guitar
Peter Gill   Drums
Mark O'Toole   Bass,Vocals
Holly Johnson   Vocals
Paul Rutherford   Vocals

Technical Credits

Stephen Lipson   Production Assistant,Engineer
Andy Richards   Composer
Bob Kraushaar   Engineer
Barrett Strong   Composer
Frankie Goes to Hollywood   Composer
Trevor Horn   Producer
Stuart "Blushing" Bruce   Engineer
Paul Rutherford   Composer,Group Member
Philip Nash   Lyricist
Paul Wright   Assistant
Brian Nash   Group Member,Composer
Norman Whitfield   Composer
O'Toole   Composer
Peter Gill   Group Member,Lyricist,Composer
Hal David   Composer
Mark O'Toole   Composer,Lyricist,Group Member
Marsden   Composer
Bruce Springsteen   Composer
Morley   Composer
Burt Bacharach   Composer
Gerry Marsden   Composer
Marc Bolan   Composer
Holly Johnson   Composer,Lyricist,Group Member