Cheapness and Beauty
Encyclopedia
Cheapness and Beauty is an album
by Boy George
, released in 1995. It peaked at number 44 on the UK Albums Chart
.
of Iggy Pop
's "Funtime
", which was released as a single and reached #45 in the UK Singles Chart
. Another single was the ballad "Il Adore" (later featured on the soundtrack
album Taboo
) which peaked at #50, and "Same Thing in Reverse", which reached #56 in the UK
and #28 on the Billboard Dance Charts in the US
.
Having scored his biggest solo success in the US and Canada
with the theme song of the movie The Crying Game
in 1992, George decided to move away from an electronic sound and record some rock-oriented tracks with a glam-rock edge. One of the reasons he cited for this move was revisiting his teenage years while writing his autobiography, Take It Like a Man, which was released around the same time as the album. The album also marked the first time in which George didn't hide his gay sexuality in the lyrics.
This was George's last original studio album on Virgin.
Album
An album is a collection of recordings, released as a single package on gramophone record, cassette, compact disc, or via digital distribution. The word derives from the Latin word for list .Vinyl LP records have two sides, each comprising one half of the album...
by Boy George
Boy George
Boy George is a British singer-songwriter who was part of the English New Romantic movement which emerged in the early 1980s. He helped give androgyny an international stage with the success of Culture Club during the 1980s. His music is often classified as blue-eyed soul, which is influenced by...
, released in 1995. It peaked at number 44 on the UK Albums Chart
UK Albums Chart
The UK Albums Chart is a list of albums ranked by physical and digital sales in the United Kingdom. It is compiled every week by The Official Charts Company and broadcast on a Sunday on BBC Radio 1 , and published in Music Week magazine and on the OCC website .To qualify for the UK albums chart...
.
Overview
The album opens with a cover versionCover version
In popular music, a cover version or cover song, or simply cover, is a new performance or recording of a contemporary or previously recorded, commercially released song or popular song...
of Iggy Pop
Iggy Pop
Iggy Pop is an American singer, songwriter, musician, and actor. Though considered an innovator of punk rock, Pop's music has encompassed a number of styles over the years, including pop, metal, jazz and blues...
's "Funtime
Funtime (Iggy Pop song)
"Funtime" is a song written by David Bowie and Iggy Pop, first released by Pop on his 1977 album The Idiot.It has since been covered by multiple artists, including Blondie, Boy George, Bebe Buell, R.E.M. and The Cars.- Details :...
", which was released as a single and reached #45 in the UK Singles Chart
UK Singles Chart
The UK Singles Chart is compiled by The Official Charts Company on behalf of the British record-industry. The full chart contains the top selling 200 singles in the United Kingdom based upon combined record sales and download numbers, though some media outlets only list the Top 40 or the Top 75 ...
. Another single was the ballad "Il Adore" (later featured on the soundtrack
Soundtrack
A soundtrack can be recorded music accompanying and synchronized to the images of a motion picture, book, television program or video game; a commercially released soundtrack album of music as featured in the soundtrack of a film or TV show; or the physical area of a film that contains the...
album Taboo
Taboo (album)
Taboo is the name of two soundtrack albums for the Boy George hit stage musical, Taboo. The first, published in 2002, features the original West End cast, and a second album was published in 2004 featuring the original cast of the Broadway production....
) which peaked at #50, and "Same Thing in Reverse", which reached #56 in the UK
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
and #28 on the Billboard Dance Charts in the US
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
.
Having scored his biggest solo success in the US and Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
with the theme song of the movie The Crying Game
The Crying Game
The Crying Game is a 1992 psychological thriller drama film written and directed by Neil Jordan. The film explores themes of race, gender, nationality, and sexuality against the backdrop of the Irish Troubles...
in 1992, George decided to move away from an electronic sound and record some rock-oriented tracks with a glam-rock edge. One of the reasons he cited for this move was revisiting his teenage years while writing his autobiography, Take It Like a Man, which was released around the same time as the album. The album also marked the first time in which George didn't hide his gay sexuality in the lyrics.
This was George's last original studio album on Virgin.
Track listing
All tracks composed by George O'Dowd (Boy George) and John Themis; except where indicated- "FuntimeFuntime (Iggy Pop song)"Funtime" is a song written by David Bowie and Iggy Pop, first released by Pop on his 1977 album The Idiot.It has since been covered by multiple artists, including Blondie, Boy George, Bebe Buell, R.E.M. and The Cars.- Details :...
" - 3:05 (Iggy PopIggy PopIggy Pop is an American singer, songwriter, musician, and actor. Though considered an innovator of punk rock, Pop's music has encompassed a number of styles over the years, including pop, metal, jazz and blues...
, David BowieDavid BowieDavid Bowie is an English musician, actor, record producer and arranger. A major figure for over four decades in the world of popular music, Bowie is widely regarded as an innovator, particularly for his work in the 1970s...
) - "Satan's Butterfly Ball" - 3:03
- "Sad" - 3:52
- "God Don't Hold a Grudge" - 2:49
- "Genocide Peroxide" - 3:44
- "If I Could Fly" - 4:04
- "Same Thing in Reverse" - 3:33
- "Cheapness and Beauty" - 3:59
- "Evil Is So Civilised" - 3:32
- "Your Love Is What I Am" - 4:12
- "Blindman" - 4:42
- "Unfinished Business" - 3:33
- "Il Adore" - 6:12
Musicians/Staff/Production
- Boy GeorgeBoy GeorgeBoy George is a British singer-songwriter who was part of the English New Romantic movement which emerged in the early 1980s. He helped give androgyny an international stage with the success of Culture Club during the 1980s. His music is often classified as blue-eyed soul, which is influenced by...
: lead vocals - John Themis: guitarGuitarThe guitar is a plucked string instrument, usually played with fingers or a pick. The guitar consists of a body with a rigid neck to which the strings, generally six in number, are attached. Guitars are traditionally constructed of various woods and strung with animal gut or, more recently, with...
, vocalsSingingSinging is the act of producing musical sounds with the voice, and augments regular speech by the use of both tonality and rhythm. One who sings is called a singer or vocalist. Singers perform music known as songs that can be sung either with or without accompaniment by musical instruments...
& musical director - Winston Blisset: bassBass guitarThe bass guitar is a stringed instrument played primarily with the fingers or thumb , or by using a pick....
- Tansay Ibrahim: drumsDrum kitA drum kit is a collection of drums, cymbals and often other percussion instruments, such as cowbells, wood blocks, triangles, chimes, or tambourines, arranged for convenient playing by a single person ....
- Mike Timothy: keyboardsKeyboard instrumentA keyboard instrument is a musical instrument which is played using a musical keyboard. The most common of these is the piano. Other widely used keyboard instruments include organs of various types as well as other mechanical, electromechanical and electronic instruments...
- Lady Zee, Linda Duggan: other vocals
- Stefan Frank: percussionPercussion instrumentA percussion instrument is any object which produces a sound when hit with an implement or when it is shaken, rubbed, scraped, or otherwise acted upon in a way that sets the object into vibration...
- Luis JardimLuís JardimLuís Alberto Figueira Gonçalves Jardim is a Portuguese percussionist, born in the Madeira Island, best known for his work with producer Trevor Horn.-Family:Jardim is a cousin of Alberto João Jardim...
: ethnic percussion on 11 - Hossam Ramzy: mandolinMandolinA mandolin is a musical instrument in the lute family . It descends from the mandore, a soprano member of the lute family. The mandolin soundboard comes in many shapes—but generally round or teardrop-shaped, sometimes with scrolls or other projections. A mandolin may have f-holes, or a single...
- Martin Bell: extra drums
- Uli Webber: cover picture
- Jessica Corcoran: production
- John Themis: production on 5, 6 & 13