Forty years ago today, Frankie Goes to Hollywood released their second album, Liverpool. It failed to repeat the extraordinary success of their debut, and the band broke up not long afterwards. But was it a misfire or a lost classic?
The British band burst onto the music scene in 1983 with their debut single, Relax, which raced up the charts after the BBC banned the song. The group followed with three more huge hits: Two Tribes, The Power of Love, and Welcome to the Pleasuredome.
Their videos captured the attention of the MTV generation, while the album Welcome to the Pleasuredome presented a mix of original material and camp cover versions. Produced by Trevor Horn, whose work helped create hits for artists including ABC, Grace Jones, Seal, and Pet Shop Boys, it was an album that helped define the decade. The band also embraced remix culture, releasing numerous alternate versions of their key tracks.
For their second album, Horn stepped back into an executive producer role while Stephen Lipson took over day-to-day production duties, encouraging the band to play more of their own instruments. The resulting sound was noticeably more rock-oriented than their debut.
By the mid-1980s, many pop acts were exploring rock influences. Duran Duran had declared themselves to be “Wild Boys” before splitting into the rock-focused Power Station and the more art-pop Arcadia. By 1986 they had reunited, albeit in a changed form, and released the funk-influenced Notorious. Tina Turner headed to the Thunderdome, while Norwegian pop stars A-ha adopted a darker, rock-influenced style on their second album, Scoundrel Days.
During the recording of Liverpool, lead singer Holly Johnson reportedly became increasingly distant from the rest of the band. Unbeknownst to them, his partner Wolfgang Kuhle was seriously ill. According to reports from the period, the band even considered alternative singers before Johnson returned to complete the album.
As studio costs mounted and the album underwent an elaborate mixing process, production expenses reportedly reached £840,000. The band would need to sell more than a million copies before seeing any profit.
The first single, Rage Hard, reached the UK Top 10 but failed to crack Australia’s Top 40. Follow-up singles Warriors of the Wasteland and Watching the Wildlife also struggled commercially. Two years after its release, the album had sold only around 800,000 copies.
Listening to Liverpool today, it remains unmistakably a product of the 1980s. It lacks some of the urgency of the band’s debut and the sharp political commentary found in songs such as Two Tribes. It also avoids the camp cover versions that helped distinguish Welcome to the Pleasuredome, including interpretations of Bruce Springsteen’s Born to Run and Dionne Warwick’s Do You Know the Way to San Jose?
There are, however, highlights worth rediscovering. Rage Hard (The Young Person’s Guide to the Twelve Inch) remains an impressive remix, while the Twelve Wild Disciples Mix of Warriors of the Wasteland gives many of the song’s more unusual sonic textures room to breathe.
The band remained together long enough to tour but split in 1987. Johnson announced a solo career and became involved in a lengthy legal dispute with Trevor Horn and record label ZTT. In 1988, the High Court ruled in favour of the band members, releasing them from their recording contracts.
Johnson returned to the charts in 1989 when his debut solo album, Blast, reached number one in the UK. Its 1991 follow-up was less successful, and after being diagnosed with HIV he stepped away from music for a period. He later returned to recording and continues to enjoy a loyal fan following.
The band’s catalogue has been remixed and reissued many times. Producers and DJs including Brothers in Rhythm, Jam & Spoon, and 808 State have all reinterpreted Frankie Goes to Hollywood’s music. In 2014, German duo Blank & Jones were granted access to the original master recordings and created new extended versions of the band’s songs, some exceeding 10 minutes in length.
In 2023, as the Eurovision Song Contest came to Liverpool, Frankie Goes to Hollywood reunited for the first time since 1987 and performed Welcome to the Pleasuredome. The same year, plans for a biopic about the band were announced.
If you want a trip back to the 1980s, Liverpool is worth a listen, but it’s nowhere near as good as their debut.
