The Quietus
, April 28th, 2021 08:04
tQ contributors and friends of the site pick a multitude of Pet Shop Boys bangers that were never hit singles, from their finest B-sides to their top album tracks and more
Photos courtesy of Murray Chalmers
‘Always On My Mind / In My House’ from
Introspective (1989)
“Hang on, didn’t this go to number one?” Nope, that was the earlier, brash electro-pop take of their Elvis cover, which had its charm. But this nine-minute album version, interpolated with a mesmeric house jam, is in another league, another universe. Among
Introspective’s many triumphs, that LP somehow turned diffidence into euphoria, pushed introversion front and centre onto the dancefloor. This track soars rapturously, repeatedly, on a rising synth line, yet beneath the pleading affirmations the group’s trademark ambiguity is never far away. “Maybe I didn’t love you…” it ends – and transported, you are no more certain than before.