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Frankie Goes to Hollywood |
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Frankie Goes to Hollywood Album: “Welcome to the Pleasuredome”
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Welcome to the Pleasuredome |
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Release Date:2000-02-06
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Type:Unknown
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Genre:Pop, Rock, Alternative Rock
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Label:ZTT
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Explicit Lyrics:No
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UPC:5030094023024
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Review - :
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, All Music Guide
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