Product Description

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 skilful 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'sliterate, witty lyrics and commanding voice and White's encyclopaedic 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.

Track Listing

Disc 1:

1. Show Me
2. Poison Arrow
3. Many Happy Returns
4. Tears Are Not Enough
5. Valentine's Day
6. The Look Of Love (Part 1)
7. Date Stamp
8. All Of My Heart
9. 4 Ever 2 Gether
10. The Look Of Love (Part 4)
11. Overture
12. Tears Are Not Enough
13. Alphabet Soup
14. Theme From "Mantrap"
15. Poison Arrow
16. Into The Valley Of The Heathen Go
17. Alphabet Soup

Disc 2:

1. Tears Are Not Enough
2. Show Me (Phonogram Demo)
3. Surrender
4. Overture
5. Show Me
6. Many Happy Returns
7. Tears Are Not Enough
8. Date Stamp
9. The Look Of Love
10. All Of My Heart
11. Valentine's Day
12. 4 Ever 2 Gether
13. Interlude: I Wish I Was In Love Again/Man Trap
14. Poison Arrow

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #23578 in Music
• Released on: 2004-11-15
• Number of discs: 2
• Format: Deluxe Edition
• Running time: 146 minutes

Customer Reviews

Great release
One of the best album from the 80s; many of the modern crappers should learn from Martin Fry, Mark White and Trevor Horn.
Strongly reccomended.

5 stars ,,, but it could have been so much better
one of the greatest albums ever made .. and i should know . i helped make it .. the guy who compiled this deluxe edition of lexicon contacted me and asked for my help , which i offered .(being a founder member of the band ). i heard nothing until the version you see here became available .the live tracks , rare mixes ,out takes and photographs /memorabilia i have in my collection are far superior to what ended up on this "deluxe" vesion . so unfortunately you won't get to hear the working demos .or the original demos that we recorded before signing our recording deal with phonogram . "do as i say " "boomerang " "surrender " or my rough mixes that are ten times more enlightening then the awful phonogram demos of "tears" , "show me" and "surrender" .mixes such as the original mix of "poison arrow" . "all of my heart" pre strings . "4ever - 2gether" pre voice .. the oddity "into the valley of the heathen go" is fun i played it once and had a laugh . we often recorded songs made up on the spot . martin was brilliant when it came to add libbing and finding the words as if from air .. we would record country and western tunes , "dependent on the mule" , "hard drivin man" being a couple that spring to mind . and 1960's take offs such as "man i go wig ! (when i see those girls )" we recorded a concert in boston usa in a small club in december 1982 .. and the band were on fire that night, definately the best live recording we did . . i find the hammersmith reditions rather tame .i felt the band and martin were much better in a smaller more intimate surrounding . plus the hammersmith show was being filmed for the movie mantrap so we were limited in just what we could do that night ... it would have been nice to include the look of love parts 2 and 3 , found on the 12"maxi single . and the look of love part 5 a remix especially for clubs . one of the first remixes to use sampling as a basis for a remix .. and don't you think ? it would have been really nice if i'd been sent a copy of the album by phonogram , i did ask on release , but so far it's not arrived ... that's show biz..

finally vh1 made a programme bands reunited with 1/2 of the original lexicon line up . i wasn't there . i hate to be lumped in with band such as the thompson twins . flock of seagulls kagagoogoo . i mean ...

i recommend the documentary made by sheffield film maker eve wood "made in sheffield " for a true picture of the way it was back then ...

Lexicon of Love [Deluxe Edition]
There was little proper pop in the 80s that was any good and that awful glossy Trevor Horn production only made things worse. But the pop Immaculate Conception occurred in 1982 with this apotheosis of pop from the briefly marvellous ABC.
You know the hits and most of these were chart singles, but they went beyond that: transcendental songwriting that is witty, clever, full of pathos and resignation yet in the end full of hope and joy. It set a benchmark that has never been equalled (except perhaps by Dexy's Midnight Runners) and it sounds as fresh today as when I first heard (bits of) it on the jukebox in a pub.
This is the only example I can think of that justifies the existence of Trevor Horn. He did a brilliant job of putting the final polish on a set that is singularly beautiful and without peer.
I play this often and now it is full of loads of other stuff too.
They must have been great live.
I can't help feeling that the extras only serve to diminish the startling brilliance of the original LP, a common problem with CD releases. However you can just play the album if you want and save the geeky bits for when you feel geeky about it (usually at the end of the LP set and a bottle or two of wine).
I can't sell my old "extended remastered" version because the tracks are not completely duplicated.
I have the 12"s though. Ha Ha!
Buy.
Enjoy.