Frankie beats ban

Press, 23 August 1984, Page 18

Frankie beats ban

NZPA-Reuter London Twenty years after the Beatles recorded their first No. 1 hit, another Liverpool group is taking the British pop world by storm. But unlike the rise of the phenomenally talented “fab four,” the meteoric success of FYankie Goes to Hollywood is due in part to a contrived campaign of controversy. The group’s latest song, “Two Tribes," entered the charts at No. 1 at the beginning of July, earning a gold disc in Britain for sales of more than 500,000 copies within eight days and selling faster than any record since the Beatles “Can’t Buy Me Love” in the early 60s. •The record’s only serious rival early last month was Frankie Goes to Hollywood’s debut single, “Relax," which was No. 1 for five weeks earlier in the year. “Relax” has been in the charts for 40 consecutive weeks and with sales of more than 1.3 M, it is set to

become the most popular record of the 1980 s, and be one of the top 10 best-sellers ever. “Relax has been in the charts for 35 consecutive weeks and, with sales of over 1.3 M, is set to become the most popular record of the 1980 s and one of the top 10 best-sellers ever. The record has a catchy chorus and driving background beat, but its amazing success is due more than a little to a ban by British Broadcasting Corporation (8.8. C. radio and television. Many pop groups, including the Rolling Stones, have realised that a whiff of scandal improves a group’s reputation among young fans, and the notorious Sex Pistols found that a 8.8. C. ban often meant a ticket to the top of the charts. So when the 8.8. C. disc jockey, Mike Read, said he would not play “Relax” again as it seemed to describe homosexual lovemaking, many suspected the ban

was all part of the group’s masterplan. The group — named from a poster advertising a visit by Frank Sinatra to Hollywood — expressed outrage at the ban but happily watched “Relax” rocket to the top of the charts. The lead singer, Holly Johnston, says that his latest song, “Two Tribes,” which sounds remarkably like “Relax,” is about the futility of war. The record cover of “Two Tribes” has Lenin on the front and the British Prime Minister, Margaret Thatcher, and President Reagan on the back. Charts show the nuclear forces of the super-Powers. Television companies consider the record’s video too violent to be shown before midnight. Actors portraying Reagan and the Soviet leader, Konstantin Chernenko, fight in a sandpit in front of the world’s press. At one stage Reagan bites off Chernenko’s ear.