Femme synth-pop with high emphasis on the "pop" element
Label: Precious
Year of Release: 1981
As eighties mania builds in collectors circles, this rather obscure disc has been attracting more attention of late and it's easy to hear why. While it's not a lost classic or a pioneering example of the synth pop which gripped the public imagination at the start of the decade, it's nonetheless hooky, cold, marginally threatening, and topped off with the kind of softly sung female vocals which suggest trouble is close at hand.
The duo - presumably not actually a mother and son duo a la Lieutenant Pigeon - are a bit more of a mystery, though. This was their only release and the only hints we have are the other credits on the label. The publisher Trisha O'Keefe had previously been the singer in the group Precious Little who we've already documented here, and the fact this release is credited to "Precious Little Productions" suggests a high amount of involvement on her part, though I wouldn't necessarily swear to her being the lead singer of this record (it sounds and seems pretty likely, though).
Whatever the facts behind this, it's an interesting and in some ways prescient pop single. The added flourish of those occasional Spanish guitar licks predates the habit for including them in synth-pop music by a fair few years, and the record has enough atmosphere and insistent, nagging melodies to sound like a possible hit for the period, but clearly being tucked away on a tiny indie did it no favours, and it fell below the waves.
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1 comment:
According to the bespoke 45cat website, Precious Records released three singles, all of which had at least one side either written or produced by Trisha O'Keefe. The final single's A-side was co-written by Sue Wilkinson to boot.
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