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Throughout their career, Pet Shop Boys have written songs for, produced and performed with artists such as Eight Wonder, Liza Minnelli, Dusty Springfield, Cicero, Peter Rauhofer and more recently Atomizer. The first collaboration is with the late Dusty Springfield in August 1987 on 'What have I done to deserve this?'. "She sounds right because her voice has got that world-weary quality" said Neil. Pet Shop Boys continue to work with Dusty Springfield in the next few years. In January 1988, Pet Shop Boys wrote and produced 'I'm not scared' for Patsy Kensit's group Eighth Wonder. 'I'm not scared' becomes Eight Wonder's first hit. 'Nothing Has Been Proved' is released as a single in February 1989 for Dusty Springfield, which is written by Pet Shop Boys and co-produced with Julian Mendelsohn. 'Nothing has been proved' is taken from the film Scandal. During this time they are busy working on an album for Liza Minnelli. In November 1989 the second single released for Dusty Springfield written by Pet Shop Boys is 'In private'. "It's about someone having an affair with a politician and being found out. The politician is saying different things in public and in private" explains Neil. August 1989 saw the release of the first single from the Pet Shop Boys / Liza Minnelli 'Results' album is 'Losing my mind'. "I just put it completely in their hands, the ultimate trust", said Liza. "It's weird, because I've been working for 30 years and to find somebody who you like enough and trust enough and respect enough to say forget it, I'll do whatever you want is quite amazing". Electronic, formed by Bernard Sumner (New Order) and Johnny Marr (The Smiths) release 'Getting away with it' in December 1989. The lyrics are co-written by Neil Tennant, who sings on the track and appears in the video. Neil and Chris also head up to Manchester to work with Electronic on 'The patience of a saint'. This is included on Electronic's first album 'Electronic' and 'The patience of a saint' is released in May 1991. In September 1991, Pet Shop Boys mark the launch of their own record label called Spaghetti with the release of 'Heaven must have sent you back to me' by Cicero - a Scottish singer and songwriter. The new Electronic single 'Disappointed' is released in June 1992 and is another song co-written by Neil, who said "'Disappointed' is sort of a love song, about not being disappointed". Chris Lowe produces and co-writes 'Do the right thing' for Arsenal legend Ian Wright in 1993. Unfortunately the track didn't do great in the charts. To this day Ian Wright still states that he will always be thankful to Chris for giving him the opportunity. The single 'Absolutely Fabulous' is released in May 1994 (It is not released as a Pet Shop Boys single, but as the artist name Absolutely Fabulous). It features dialogue by Ab Fab stars Joanna Lumley and Jennifer Saunders. Profits from the record went towards the Comic Relief charity. "We had the idea because we liked the programme so much. We thought it would make a funny record, and we quite fancied meeting them. I know some people are horrified that we did a charity record but it just seemed a way of dealing with it. It made it simple, because we did the record for fun, not as a major artistic statement". Pet Shop Boys produce 'Hallo Spaceboy' for David Bowie and is released 19th February 1996 - the same day they perform the song with David Bowie at the Brit Awards. In April 1996, Tina Turner's album 'Wildest Dreams' is released. It features 'Confidential' - written and co-produced by Neil and Chris. In December 1996, Neil appeared on stage with Suede at the London Roundhouse. Neil sang 'Saturday night' as a duet with Suede front man Brett Anderson and then sang 'Rent' backed by the rest of Suede. 'An audience with Elton John' is aired on the UK TV channel ITV in September 1997 and features Pet Shop Boys and Elton John performing 'Believe' and 'Song for Guy'. Twentieth Century Blues: The Songs of Noel Coward is released in April 1998 that was co-arranged by Neil who had been working on the album for the previous 18 months. Pet Shop Boys cover 'Sail away' and are joined by other artists like Elton John, Paul McCartney and Robbie Williams. Pop diva Kylie Minogue duets on ‘In denial’ from 1999's 'Nightlife' album. The song is about a daughter (Kylie) who knows that her father is gay (Neil). David Morales and Craig Armstrong co-produce some of the songs on the album. 'I don't know what you want but I can't give it anymore' and 'New York City boy' are released in the same year. 'You only tell me you love me when you're drunk' is released in the first week of January 2000 and reaches number 8 in the UK singles chart. The official song for the England Euro 2000 team was a cover of 'Jerusalem' by Fat Les. The Pet Shop Boys remix was more upbeat. Around the same time, Pet Shop Boys do three remixes of Bloodhound Gang's 'Mope'. In 2001, Pet Shop Boys work with US DJ Peter Rauhofer (aka The Collaboration) on 'Break 4 Love'. The track hits number one in the US dance chart. Break 4 Love was never planned as a commercial release in the UK, but London Records had a temporary license to promote and distribute the track. Break 4 Love was added as a B-side to Home and Dry in 2002. 2003 has been a busy year so far for Neil and Chris. They have remixed/produced tracks for Kiki Kokova (Love to love you baby) and Atomizer (Hooked on radiation) on their new record labels Lucky Kunst and Olde English Vinyl respectively. The Boys' have also remixed 'Walking on thin ice' for John Lennon's wife, Yoko Ono. There are also rumours that Neil and Chris will be working with Sophie Ellis-Bextor. Neil has recently said "It has been discussed". |
