Welcome_to_the_Pleasuredome

<i>Welcome to the Pleasuredome</i>

Welcome to the Pleasuredome

1984 studio album by Frankie Goes to Hollywood

Welcome to the Pleasuredome is the debut studio album by English synth-pop band Frankie Goes to Hollywood, first released on 29 October 1984 by ZTT Records.[16] Originally issued as a vinyl double album, it was assured of a UK chart entry at number one due to reported advance sales of over one million.[16] It actually sold around a quarter of a million copies in its first week.[17] The album was also a top-10 seller internationally in countries such as Switzerland, Sweden, Australia and New Zealand.

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While commercially successful, the album also drew criticism [by whom?] for containing new versions of all of the songs from the group's (already much-remixed) singles from the same year ("Relax" and "Two Tribes", plus B-side "War"), as well as a surfeit of cover versions in lieu of much new original material. It was later revealed that Trevor Horn's production dominated the record so thoroughly that the band's own instrumental performances were often replaced by session musicians or Horn himself.[citation needed] Frankie's second album, Liverpool, actively featured the full band.

However, the album's evergreen ballad "The Power of Love" subsequently provided the group with their third consecutive UK number one single.

To celebrate the album's 30th anniversary, in October 2014, ZTT through Union Square Music released a limited edition (2,000 copies only) box set entitled Inside the Pleasuredome, available exclusively from the website pledgemusic.com. The box set contains rarities on 10" vinyl, as well as a book, a DVD, a cassette (featuring 13 mixes of "Relax" and its B-side "One September Monday") as well as a new 2014 remastered version of Welcome to the Pleasuredome on 180g vinyl.

Sleeve art

The cover art was conceived by ZTT owner Paul Morley and illustrated by graphic artist Lo Cole. The front cover featured an illustration of the Frankie Goes to Hollywood band members; on the back of the album was an illustration of a large animal orgy; and the inner gatefold artwork was an image of a procession of animals entering the head of a very large phallus. The sleeve art proved controversial, and the printing company refused to print the album covers. Cole was forced to alter the orgy image by adding green fig leaves to cover the offending animal genitalia.[1]

Track listing

All songs written and composed by Peter Gill, Holly Johnson, Brian Nash and Mark O'Toole except where noted.[18][19]

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Personnel

Frankie Goes to Hollywood

Additional personnel

Production

  • Produced by Trevor Horn
  • Engineers – Stuart Bruce, Steve Lipson
  • Mastering – Ian Cooper

Technical

Charts

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Certifications

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References

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    Richard Cook (3 November 1984). "Welcome to the pleasuredome". NME. Retrieved 3 September 2023.
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    Liverpool Echo: Peter Ashworth interview: Frankie Goes to Hollywood
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    "Record Mirror". 16 June 1984.
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Bibliography
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