40. Electronic - "Getting Away With It"
Other Contenders: This is Electronic's one and only single in the 1980s. It just got in under the wire.
Chart Entry: Dec. 16, 1989
Peak Position: No. 1
Comment: This was such a smash it's difficult to recall it as "indie," but I'm sure the folks at Factory were quite pleased when they balanced the check book in 1990. For you trivia buffs out there, this is the first of three singles on my list that miraculously cracked the top 40 of the Billboard Hot 100 singles chart here in America. I'm not talkin' Heatseekers, Modern Rock or any of those minor-league charts... that's the big one! On paper, this is one of the all-time great collaborations, and I don't just mean the A-listers Bernard Sumner, Johnny Marr and Neil Tennant, either. For this debut single, let's not forget ABC's David Palmer played drums while Anne Dudley (she of 'Lexicon of Love' fame) arranged and conducted the strings. There would be future singles worthy of a listen, especially "Get the Message" and "Disappointed," but I don't think the all-star outfit ever grabbed me quite like the debut single.
Buy "Getting Away With It" on the reissue of 'Electronic.'
2 comments:
The last great pop song of the 1980s and it came after about 5 years of pop music desperation. Too bad the 90's didn't really take off from this point. IMHO...
So right, Echorich. There were a handful of UK singles during this time period, and I did like that Ocean Blue album in late '89 from this side of the pond, but things were rough for a long while there.
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