In an article entitled 'Burn It' in the UK's New Musical Express, Pet Shop Boy's Neil Tennant discusses tracks he would pick to listen to over the festive season. 1st on the list is Prince's If I Was Your Girlfriend. Tennant comments:

'I think it's very brave for such a heterosexual man as Prince to imagine he's a woman. Musically it's very murky and mysterious. Where Prince went wrong was when he stopped usind drum machines. Before that, he was amazing. I like the way he's not scared to approach a completely unusual subject, like this one or the brilliant imagery of 'When Doves Cry'. I like his obsession with psychadelia, but he's got a real pop sensibility at the same time'.

Also interestingly enough, the New Musical Express cites www.prince.org as a source of further information as opposed to www.npgmusicclub.com! Maybe I should have sent this as a news item to Ben and the team I dont know?

Just as a matter of interest to those who want to know what else Neil Tennant picked, the songs are as follows..

Golden Boy with Miss Kittin
'Rippin Kittin'

Grace Jones
'Slave To The Rhythm'

Joni Mitchell
'Coyote'

Bobby "O"
'Im So Hot 4 U'

Colin Blustone
'Misty Roses'

Harold Budd/Brian Eno
'Late October'

Propoganda
'A Dream Within A Dream'

Rufus Wainwright
'Poses'

Kraftwerk
'Computer Love'

With a list like that, it's no wonder the new Pet Shop Boys single is the best thing they've done since the 'Very' album. I've been a fan since the beginning but the last 3 albums have all pissed me off.

JDINTERACTIVE said:

Interesting. I can see what he's trying to say, but I don't really agree. Prince has been using drum machines all his career - even his last song "What Do U Want Me 2 Do" uses it. I hate the way people are always trying to figure out "what went wrong" when if they used their ears they would realise that nothing ever did "go wrong". Prince is 45 and is still the greatest musician on the planet. I just get pissed off when I hear this stuff from other so called artists.

Yep, it's curious the story about drum machines. And not only because Prince still uses them. There are a lot of people who is always saying Prince must play drums, or it's incredible he got drummers as Sheila E., Michael B. or John Blackwell (I'm in that group).
And now Tennant thinks the contrary. Well, but he's a techno musician, at last everyone has his personal tastes, don't you think?

I love PSBs.

I liked most of his other choices too, especially Bobby O'

JDINTERACTIVE said:

Right. And where the Pet Shop Boys went wrong was when they only recorded one song with Dusty Springfield.

Hi Supernova - are you referring to 'What Have I Done To Deserve This?'? (GREAT song!).

They actually recorded quite a few tracks with her; the last half of her 'Reputation' album is penned and produced by the PSB's. Weirdly, I was listening to it yesterday for the first time in ages.

And it also includes one of my ALL-time favourite songs -'Nothing Has Been Proved'. God, I absolutely LOVE that song! Fantastic lyrics and a wonderfully dreamy song. Get it!

(I also like Dusty's 'rap' on 'Daydreaming' *cringe*).

He did stop using synthetic drums for a while. I wouldn't necessarily say Prince "went wrong" anywhere, but as a huge synth-music fan, I can see what the Pet Shop Boys guy is talking about. Prince's best album was very synth heavy (Sign O The Times). Yea, he can play drums well... but he can program them better.

onenitealone said:

Great song, indeed.


Actually, my comment was PARTLY tongue in cheek. Although I haven't heard the songs, I thought for sure that I heard they produced some material for her, but I was specifically talking about her singing on their songs. If not for her presence on "What Have I Done To Deserve This?" it would have been less than stellar. She made everything else about it sound good. Dusty's vocals always sounded so effortless.

But it's predictable for a guy like Tennant to say such a dumb thing. If Prince had never veered from drum machines at all after all these years everybody would complain about that too. And it would have been valid. Who the bloody hell wants to listen to a drum machine on every song for as long as Prince has been releasing music? He can't win.

toejam said:

AMEN