Behaviour (Pet Shop Boys album)

History

Harold Faltermeyer produced Behaviour. at his "Red Deer" studio in Munich, Germany. Because they were dissatisfied with the available digital synthesisers and samples, Pet Shop Boys wanted to use analogue synthesisers. Faltermeyer was a good choice for producer as he happened to be an expert on analogue equipment. The result was a Pet Shop Boys album different from both the previous album, Introspective and the 1993 follow-up, Very. In places, the album expands upon the synthpop genre with flavours of guitar pop ballads, as with "This Must Be the Place I Waited Years to Leave" and "My October Symphony" featuring guitarist, Johnny Marr. Later, singer Neil Tennant would reflect on the different style of Behaviour., "It was more reflective and more musical-sounding, and also it probably didn't have irritatingly crass ideas in it, like our songs often do". Tennant later reflected the album was inspired by fellow synthpop group Depeche Mode's album Violator, which was also released in 1990. The album was certified Gold in Spain.

Along with the others of the group's first six studio albums, in 2001, Behaviour. was re-released as Behaviour./Further Listening: 1990–1991. The re-released version was digitally remastered, and accompanied with a second disc of B-sides, and some previously unreleased songs, recorded since the year 1990 to the year 1991. Notable songs on the second disc include "Miserablism", "DJ Culture", "Was It Worth It?", and the Ambient Mix of "Music for Boys". "Miserablism", a poignant satire of Morrissey, was intended for inclusion on Behaviour. up until the day it was sent for mastering. It later became the b-side for "Was It Worth It?" and was remixed by Moby for the single of 12"; it was also featured on the limited edition version of the 2003's compilation album, PopArt: Pet Shop Boys – The Hits. "DJ Culture" and "Was It Worth It?" were the two singles recorded for the Pet Shop Boys' 1991's compilation album, Discography: The Complete Singles Collection. "Music for Boys" was originally credited as "Music for Boys Part 2" and was the b-side to "DJ Culture". The original B-side version can also be found on the 1995 compilation album Alternative.

Yet another re-release followed on 9 February 2009, under the title of Behaviour.: Remastered. This version contains only the 10 tracks on the original. With the 2009 re-release, the 2001 2CD re-release was discontinued.

Singles

The video was directed by Eric Watson. The b-side was "It Must Be Obvious", with the USA release also featuring the Italian Mix of "Paninaro", which was originally released on Disco. Remixes were by the Pet Shop Boys themselves, the KLF and David Morales. The KLF also remixed "It Must Be Obvious", which was only available on The KLF versus Pet Shop Boys CD and 12" of the single.

The video was directed by Bruce Weber. The b-side was "We All Feel Better in the Dark". There were Pet Shop Boys Extended Mixes of both a-side and b-side, and there was a remix of "Being Boring" by Marshall Jefferson and two remixes of the b-side by Brothers in Rhythm on a limited edition 12" and CD of the single.

The video was directed by Liam Kan. The single was radically remixed from the album version by Brothers in Rhythm, and this become the version on the double a-side released in the UK with "Where the Streets Have No Name (I Can't Take My Eyes off You)". This US release featured the Techno Funk mix of "I Want a Dog", the Marshall Jefferson remix of "Being Boring" and the Trevor Horn 7" mix of "It's Alright". There were also remixes by David Morales, which were released on a limited edition 12" and CD. The single mix was not featured on either of the Pet Shop Boys' greatest hits albums (Discography: The Complete Singles Collection and Pop Art: Pet Shop Boys – The Hits), although the video was featured on the Pop Art DVD and Videography.

The videos for both songs were directed by Liam Kan, which drew on iconography from the Pet Shop Boys' then current tour and featured Neil Tennant spoofing several 'rock' stars including U2, Bruce Springsteen, Elvis Presley and George Michael. There was an additional b-side, "Bet She's Not Your Girlfriend", and in addition to some extended mixes of both singles, there were additional remixes of both songs by David Morales.

The video was directed by Eric Watson. The b-side was the Pet Shop Boys' tidied up demo version of "Losing My Mind", which they produced for Liza Minnelli in 1989 for her album Results. The single mix was more electronic than the version on the album, and there was an extended mix of Jealousy which featured Neil Tennant reading excerpts of Shakespeare's Othello, which is a play about jealousy. There was also a Disco Mix of "Losing My Mind". On the limited edition CD, an edit of the Extended Mix of "This Must Be the Place I Waited Years to Leave" (which was originally available with the Japanese version of Behaviour.) was included along with David Morales' Red Zone mix of "So Hard". Jealousy was later covered by Dubstar. It is known to be one of Robbie Williams' favourite Pet Shop Boys song, and he sang it with the band for their 2006 Radio 2 concert, which was later released on the 2006 Pet Shop Boys' live album Concrete.

Critical reception

In a contemporary review of Behaviour, Jim Farber of Entertainment Weekly wrote that the album contained the Pet Shop Boys' "best tunes yet" and "their most consistently beautiful melodies to date", noting "an easier way with the beats and greater vulnerability in the lyrics" compared to the group's prior work. Greg Kot of the Chicago Tribune stated that Behaviour "may strike some listeners as even wimpier and blander than earlier releases, but its subtle brilliance emerges with repeated plays", calling it "a record that'll seduce dance clubs for a few months, and haunt the stay-at-home crowd for long after." In a mixed review, Robert Hilburn of the Los Angeles Times felt that the album's highlights leave "the occasional lapses and the forays into slower tempos" feeling "flat by comparison". Q included Behaviour in its list of the 50 best albums of 1990 and wrote: "Some of their dance fans may be a trifle disappointed ... but the best ballads here are as wry and touching as vintage Broadway. Frank Sinatra should be calling shortly."

Robert Christgau cited "Being Boring" and "My October Symphony" as highlights and later assigned the album a two-star honourable mention rating, indicating a "likable effort consumers attuned to its overriding aesthetic or individual vision may well enjoy." Q included Behaviour in its list of the 90 best albums of the 1990s, while critic Ned Raggett ranked the album at number nine in his 1999 list of "The Top 136 or So Albums of the Nineties". Behaviour is featured in the book 1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die.

Track listing

All the songs were written by Neil Tennant and Chris Lowe

Original album

1. "Being Boring" – 6:49
2. "This Must Be the Place I Waited Years to Leave" – 5:30
3. "To Face the Truth" – 5:33
4. "How Can You Expect to Be Taken Seriously?" – 3:56
5. "Only the Wind" – 4:20
6. "My October Symphony" – 5:18
7. "So Hard" – 3:58
8. "Nervously" – 4:06
9. "The End of the World" – 4:43
10. "Jealousy" – 4:48

Japanese bonus disc

1. "Miserablism" – 4:11
2. "Bet She's Not Your Girlfriend" – 4:26
3. "This Must Be the Place I Waited Years to Leave (Extended mix)" – 9:30

Further Listening: 1990–1991

1. "It Must Be Obvious" – 4:26
2. "So Hard" (Extended dance mix) – 6:38
3. "Miserablism" – 4:07
4. "Being Boring" (extended mix) – 10:40
5. "Bet She's Not Your Girlfriend" – 4:30
6. "We All Feel Better in the Dark" (extended mix) – 6:48
7. "Where the Streets Have No Name (I Can't Take My Eyes off You)" (extended mix) – 6:46
8. "Jealousy" (extended version) – 7:58
9. "Generic Jingle" – 0:14 *
10. "DJ Culture" (Extended mix) – 6:53
11. "Was It Worth It?" (twelve-inch mix) – 7:15
12. "Music for Boys" (part 2) – 6:13 [incorrectly labelled as "Music for Boys" (Ambient mix)]
13. "DJ Culture" (seven-inch mix) – 4:26

Note

Behavior.

Pet Shop Boys

Guest musicians

Production

Further Listening 1990–1991

Guest musicians

Production