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I Wouldn't Normally Do This Kind of Thing
1993 single by Pet Shop Boys From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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"I Wouldn't Normally Do This Kind of Thing" is a song by English synth-pop duo Pet Shop Boys from their fifth studio album, Very (1993). The song, both written and produced by the duo, describes a person normally hesitant to unwind and show his feelings, who—because of some event in his life—suddenly becomes willing to loosen up. It was released in the United Kingdom on 29 November 1993 by Parlophone as the album's third single, reaching number 13 on the UK Singles Chart. In the United States, where it was released in January 1994, it reached number two on the Billboard Hot Dance Club Play chart. The song's accompanying music video was directed by Howard Greenhalgh.
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Background and composition
In a 1993 interview with NME, Neil Tennant described "I Wouldn't Normally Do This Kind of Thing" as having "no dark underbelly whatsoever". He commented, "It's just a happy song, it's just meant to be a love song. Actually, it is from an unusual point of view. We always get this thing where people go on about how English and reserved we are, so it's meant to be a reserved person falling in love. There's something rather middle-aged about it, like some kind of librarian falling in love and going mad."[4]
The title phrase, "I wouldn't normally do this kind of thing", occurred to Tennant when he flew round-trip from London to Edinburgh in one day to view a James Pryde painting at the National Gallery of Scotland.[5] The imagery of someone spontaneously dancing to The Rite of Spring was inspired by the cartoons of Jules Feiffer.[6] Tennant and Chris Lowe wrote a demo of the song the day after his trip. Stephen Hague did additional production on the track and added a guitar riff to the piano intro for the album version.[5]
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Release
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The song was extensively remixed by the Beatmasters for release as a single.[7] They added brass and string parts[8] and expanded the guitar riff in the intro, giving the song a more Sixties sound. Tennant stated that at the time, he preferred the Beatmasters version but has since come to appreciate the album version.[5] The duo played the song with the new intro on their 2013–2015 Electric Tour[9] and included a version of the song with it on their 2003 PopArt: The Hits compilation.
The single release was bolstered by a large amount of bonus material available across a wide range of formats. Multiple remixes of the song were commissioned, including a set by DJ Pierre.[8] The main B-side is "Too Many People", but the single also featured new versions of two tracks from the 1986 album Please: "West End Girls" remixed by Sasha[8] and "Violence" reworked by the duo for a performance at The Haçienda in Manchester in 1992.[10]
Artwork and packaging
As with the previous singles from Very, the duo donned new outfits for the promotional campaign. Lowe wore a blonde wig with a pink and white costume, while Tennant was dressed in pink and black clothing with a brunette wig.[7] The CD2 single (pictured) featured Tennant with repeated images of Lowe dancing around him, and CD1 had the reverse with Lowe in the center surrounded by dancing Tennants. In the UK, CD2 came in a rubber sleeve that could hold both CD singles. This was similar to the packaging for Very Relentless.[11]
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Critical reception
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Larry Flick from Billboard wrote, "PSB's lauded Very project spawns another club winner as they combine their patented pop/disco electro-grooves with sharp, clever lyrics. The hook is quite memorable, while a plethora of trance-ish remixes is right in the pocket of current dance trends. Lively album version also is a total joy, and deserves more than a just cursory push from EMI's pop promotion department."[2] Dave Sholin from the Gavin Report said, "It's impossible to hear Chris Lowe and Neil Tennant's trademark sound and not believe this pair has great fun making their music." He added that the music video "recalls the days when Twiggy set fashion trends."[12]
In his weekly UK chart commentary, James Masterton praised the track, stating that the duo "have picked the other standout track" from the album after "Go West", adding that it "is far and away the happiest, most barking mad pop single they have released in their seven year career and is all the better for it." He concluded, "Alright, so I like it, but it deserves to be big."[13] Alan Jones from Music Week gave it four out of five, naming it one of the "standout tracks" of the album. He felt that it "is tweaked into even better shape by the Beatmasters and DJ Pierre, and judging from the artwork, the video should be a hoot." He also complimented it as "one of the hottest records of the winter."[14] James Hamilton from the Record Mirror Dance Update described it as "swirling pure disco".[1]
Jim Arundel of Melody Maker considered the song to be another of the duo's "cinemascopic frug anthems". He considered it to be "as cheesy and boisterous as a good night out in Staines" and added that the Beatmasters' 7-inch mix was "bouncier than the LP version".[15] Barbara Ellen of NME picked it as a "single of the week" and called it "another triumph".[16] Jonathan Bernstein from Spin commented, "I feel like taking all my clothes off dancing to the rite of spring, exults Neil Tennant on "I Wouldn't Normally Do This Kind of Thing", and you know he ain't giving a shout-out to the Dischord noisemakers."[17]
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Music video
A music video was produced to promote the single, directed by British director Howard Greenhalgh. It featured Tennant and Lowe, dressed in the same Sixties-style wigs and costumes as on the cover art. The computer-generated background of black-and-white tunnels and vortexes was inspired by the op art of Bridget Riley and Sega computer games. The duo use joysticks to control avatars of themselves dancing and kickboxing. Another dancer takes his clothes off, in accordance with the lyrics.[11]
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Live performances
Pet Shop Boys performed "I Wouldn't Normally Do This Kind of Thing" on the Discovery Tour in 1994, wearing the wigs from the music video.[19] On the Electric Tour (2013–15), the song was preceded by an excerpt from The Rite of Spring by Igor Stravinsky, referenced in the lyrics.[20]
Track listings
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Personnel
Credits adapted from the liner notes of Very: Further Listening 1992–1994 and "I Wouldn't Normally Do This Kind of Thing".[5][21]
Pet Shop Boys
Technical personnel
- Pet Shop Boys – production
- Stephen Hague – additional production, mixing (album version)
- Mike "Spike" Drake – mixing (album version), mix engineering (single version)
- Bob Kraushaar – engineering (album version)
- Pete Gleadall – engineering (album version)
- Beatmasters – remix, additional production (single version)
Artwork
- Farrow/PSB – design
- Andy Earle – photography
- David Fielding – costume design
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Charts
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Release history
External links
References
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