CULTURE CLUB

Kissing to Be Clever is the debut album by the English band Culture Club, fronted by the inimitable Boy George. Initially released in October 1982 in the UK, it has reportedly sold around five million copies worldwide, including over one million in the US where it was certified Platinum by the RIAA, spending 88 weeks on the Billboard chart. It includes the group’s international breakthrough hit single, ‘Do You Really Want to Hurt Me’, which reached number one in over a dozen countries and the top ten in many others (including number two in the USA) and was the first of three consecutive singles to go Top 10 in the USA. AllMusic’s Lindsay Planer noted that the album “was embraced by not only post-disco dance music enthusiasts, but also new wave listeners and pop fans as well.” She also stated that the singles “provide accurate thumbnail sketches of what Culture Club were capable of pulling off musically.” She concluded by saying: “From the light and buoyant Philly soul-inspired string arrangement to the effervescent and singalongable chorus, the melody foreshadowed a similar vibe that would carry over to their sophomore long-player, Colour by Numbers.” While there have been over 150 different physical versions of the album since first release, it hasn’t been pressed on vinyl since the ‘80s and this is the very first pressing on coloured vinyl, to be included as part of the National Album Day celebrations in the UK and in the Coloured Vinyl Campaign in other territories. This version uses the audio remastered in 2002/3. It will be followed in November by their second hit-laden long player, Colour By Numbers, also pressed on coloured wax for the first time as the band head out on a tour of UK arenas in December to celebrate both albums, a journey that will culminate in a headline show at London’s The O2 on Sunday 15 December.