I think the theme for any of the albums I hear for the first time in this challenge across the years 1980-84 is going to be that I know about the artist, even quite like the artist, but given my age I’m familiar with the radio hits and I only ever explored further by following later material or getting a career-covering compilation.
That’s certainly the case here. I know Soft Cell and even people that don’t know Soft Cell know their extraordinary reinvention of Tainted Love; well, some may still not know it’s a cover. But they know the song at least.
Some even know that David Gray, perhaps oddly, covered a Soft Cell song.
Well, I know Soft Cell only via a greatest hits comp of singles. Bloody good it is too – but I didn’t listen further. I’ve continued to check in on Marc Almond but I hadn’t ever heard this, the group’s debut album.
And it’s a masterpiece of the synth-pop movement/era. An all-killer/no-filler classic.
So I’m glad I got to it. Just a few years late…