From Luxury to Heartache
From Luxury to Heartache | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|
![]() | ||||
Studio album by | ||||
Released | 30 March 1986 | |||
Recorded | 1985–1986 | |||
Studio | Mountain Studios, Montreux and Atlantic Studios, New York City[1] | |||
Genre |
| |||
Length | 44:04 | |||
Label | Virgin (UK) Epic (US) | |||
Producer |
| |||
Culture Club chronology | ||||
| ||||
Singles from From Luxury to Heartache | ||||
|
Review scores | |
---|---|
Source | Rating |
Smash Hits | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
Robert Christgau | (C) link |
AllMusic | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
From Luxury to Heartache is the fourth album by the British pop group Culture Club, released in 1986. It was the last studio album released by Culture Club until 1999's Don't Mind If I Do.
Background[]
From Luxury to Heartache was produced by veteran pop and R&B producer Arif Mardin, who replaced Steve Levine, the producer of Culture Club's previous three albums, in a bid to revitalise the band's sound. Due to lead singer Boy George's growing addiction to drugs, recordings dragged on for so long that Mardin had to disband the sessions and leave it up to engineer Lew Hahn to record the final vocals. The final credit on the album gave production credit to both Mardin and Hahn on all tracks. Songs like "Gusto Blusto" and "Reasons" took days for the addicted singer to finish.
Following the release of the album, rumours of George's heroin addiction began to circulate in the press and in British and US tabloids, and by the summer of 1986, he announced that he was indeed addicted to drugs. In July, he was arrested for possession of cannabis.[3] Several days later, keyboardist Michael Rudetsky, who played on the album and had co-written "Sexuality"[4] with George, was found dead from a heroin overdose[5] in George's home.[6]
Commercial performance and single releases[]
Despite the lead single "Move Away" becoming a hit, the album sold far less than Culture Club's previous albums. "God Thank You Woman" was the second single released from the album in the UK but it only reached #31 in the UK Singles Chart, while in the US "Gusto Blusto" was chosen as a single, but it failed to chart. A third UK single, "Heaven's Children", was planned to be released in July 1986, but was cancelled. Within a year of the album's release, the band broke up and Boy George embarked on a solo career, making this the last Culture Club album until Don't Mind If I Do in 1999.
Track listing[]
No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
---|---|---|---|
1. | "Move Away" | George O'Dowd, Jon Moss, Michael Craig, Roy Hay, Phil Pickett | 4:21 |
2. | "I Pray" | O'Dowd, Moss, Craig, Hay, Pickett | 4:00 |
3. | "Work on Me Baby" | O'Dowd, Moss, Craig, Hay | 4:06 |
4. | "Gusto Blusto" | O'Dowd, Moss, Craig, Hay, Pickett | 4:40 |
5. | "Heaven's Children" | O'Dowd, Moss, Craig, Hay, Pickett | 4:44 |
No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
---|---|---|---|
6. | "God Thank You Woman" | O'Dowd, Moss, Craig, Hay, Pickett | 4:14 |
7. | "Reasons" | O'Dowd, Moss, Craig, Hay, Pickett | 4:35 |
8. | "Too Bad" | O'Dowd, Moss, Craig, Hay, Pickett | 4:36 |
9. | "Come Clean" | O'Dowd, Moss, Craig, Hay, Pickett | 3:20 |
10. | "Sexuality" | O'Dowd, Moss, Craig, Hay, Michael Rudetsky | 5:28 |
CD bonus tracks:
- "Move Away" (Extended) – 7:25
- "God Thank You Woman" (Extended) – 7:03
- "Sexuality" (Extended) – 10:34
Personnel[]
Culture Club[]
- Boy George – vocals
- Mikey Craig – bass guitar
- Roy Hay – guitar, piano, keyboards, sitar, electric sitar
- Jon Moss – percussion, drums
Additional musicians[]
- Michael Rudetsky – keyboards
- Phil Pickett – keyboards, background vocals
- Lewis Hahn – recorder
- Helen Terry – backing vocals
- Jocelyn Brown – backing vocals
- David Lasley – backing vocals
- Wendell Morrison – backing vocals
- Ruby Turner – backing vocals
Production[]
- Arif Mardin – producer
- Lewis Hahn – producer, mixing
- George Marino – mastering
- Jon Moss – digital mixing
- Michael O'Reilly – engineer
- Martin Pearson – engineer
- David Richards – engineer
- Tony Gordon – management
Charts[]
Album[]
Chart (1986) | Peak position[7] |
---|---|
Canadian RPM Albums Chart[8] | 34 |
Dutch Albums Chart | 28 |
German Albums Chart | 45 |
Italian Albums Chart[9] | 14 |
Japanese Albums Chart | 13 |
New Zealand Albums Chart | 44 |
Norwegian Albums Chart | 18 |
Spanish Albums Chart[10] | 30 |
Swedish Albums Chart | 13 |
Swiss Albums Chart | 24 |
UK Albums Chart | 10 |
U.S. Billboard 200 | 32 |
Singles[]
Single | Chart (1986) | Peak position |
---|---|---|
"Move Away" | UK Singles Chart | 7 |
"Move Away" | U.S. Adult Contemporary | 11 |
"Move Away" | U.S. Billboard Hot 100 | 12 |
"Move Away" | U.S. Hot Dance Club Play | 4 |
"Move Away" | U.S. R&B Chart | 87 |
"God Thank You Woman" | UK Singles Chart | 31 |
"Gusto Blusto" | CAN Singles Chart | 24 |
Release details[]
Country | Date | Label | Format | Catalog |
1986 | Virgin | CD | E-40345 | |
LP | 2380 | |||
1998 | Virgin | CD | 86704 |
References[]
- ^ https://www.discogs.com/Culture-Club-From-Luxury-To-Heartache/release/1799717
- ^ "Hibbert, Tom (27 March 1986). "Album Reviews". Smash Hits. Vol. 8 no. 7. EMAP Metro. p. 56.
- ^ http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/4321642.stm
- ^ http://www.discogs.com/Culture-Club-From-Luxury-To-Heartache/release/970158
- ^ http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/4321642.stm
- ^ http://articles.chicagotribune.com/1986-08-07/news/8602260755_1_kevin-o-dowd-george-o-dowd-drug-related-death
- ^ http://swisscharts.com/album/Culture-Club/From-Luxury-To-Heartache-387
- ^ Library and Archives Canada. Retrieved 5 March 2012
- ^ http://www.hitparadeitalia.it/hp_yenda/lpe1986.htm
- ^ Salaverri, Fernando (September 2005). Sólo éxitos: año a año, 1959–2002 (1st ed.). Spain: Fundación Autor-SGAE. ISBN 84-8048-639-2.
External links[]
- 1986 albums
- Culture Club albums
- Virgin Records albums
- Epic Records albums
- Albums produced by Arif Mardin