ABC Album: “The Lexicon of Love”

Description :

ABC includes: Martin Fry (vocals); Mark White (guitar, keyboards); Stephen Singleton (alto & tenor saxophones); David Palmer (drums, percussion). Additional personnel includes: Gaynor Sadler (harp); Kim Wear (trumpet); Andy Gray (trombone); Anne Dudley (keyboards); Brad Lang, Mark Lickley (bass); Louis Jardin (percussion); J.J. Jeczalik (programming); Tessa Webb (background vocals). Producer: Trevor Horn. Compilation producers: Paul Reidy, Martin Fry. Recorded in 1982. Includes liner notes by Martin Fry and Giles Smith. All tracks have been digitally remastered. Easily one of the '80s' finest albums, THE LEXICON OF LOVE not only established singer Martin Fry and guitarist Mark White as two of the decade's smartest and most skillful cross-breeders of Motownish dance grooves, Beatlesque pop and Roxy Music-style art-rock urgency, it cemented ex-Buggle Trevor Horn's status as the era's defining producer. Throughout THE LEXICON OF LOVE, Horn's over-the-top blend of strings, horns, lush choirs and bizarre production tricks battles Fry's literate, witty lyrics and commanding voice and White's encyclopedic knowledge of pop hooks for the listener's attention. While the singles "Poison Arrow" and "The Look of Love"--aided by stylish, funny videos--garnered the most interest, there's not a single less-than-brilliant track, from the compelling opener "Show Me" to the near-desperate closer "4 Ever 2 Gether" and the lovely orchestral coda "The Look of Love (Part Four)." THE LEXICON OF LOVE is a classic.

When I found out the Deluxe Edition series was adding The Lexicon Of Love to their catalog, I was very excited. Since there was already a remaster, I was more interested in the bonus tracks. Well, both discs are brilliant. This time, The Lexicon Of Love was truly remastered - it sounds better than the first round - you can tell immediately on Show Me. It was a much better job from the master.

The bonus stuff is worth it's weight in gold. The demos are my favorite as the songs are stripped down an a little undeveloped. It's cool to hear the genesis of song without the added production

I have a live show from Germany (same tour) which is excellent. This one is from the Hammersmith 1982. If you have not heard the full live set from this tour - you are in for complete treat. Very classy.

OH - pretty important if you want to save some cash. I bought mine from Amazon UK. For everything, the price was under $30.00. For some reason, our Amazon could not get the price lower. So, go there and save $10.00

Yes, the original production was brilliant for its time. Great songs, superb production, an album that arrived just slightly before its time and remains timeless. What you really want to know however, is "Should I buy this version or upgrade my standard version to it?" The answer is an enthusiastic, "Yes!" The remastering makes this sound as if it were recorded yesterday, the bonuses (20 tracks!) are fantastic as they encompass not only b-sides and remixes, but live recordings from the era that have also been cleaned up to match the quality of the studio recordings. Not all remastered or deluxe editions are worth the price of upgrade, but this one truly shines.