Welcome to the Pleasuredome was the debut album by Frankie Goes to Hollywood

Frankie Goes to Hollywood

Frankie Goes to Hollywood were a British dance-pop band popular in the mid-1980s. The group was fronted by Holly Johnson , with Paul Rutherford , Peter Gill , Mark O'Toole , and Brian Nash .The group's debut single "Relax" was banned by the BBC in 1984 while at number six in the charts and...

, first released in the UK

United Kingdom

The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...

 in October 1984 by ZTT

ZTT Records

ZTT Records is a record label founded in 1983 by NME journalist Paul Morley, record producer Trevor Horn, and businesswoman Jill Sinclair. The label's name was also printed as "Zang Tumb Tuum" and "Zang Tuum Tumb" on various releases....

/Island Records

Island Records

Island Records is a record label that was founded by Chris Blackwell in Jamaica. It was based in the United Kingdom for many years and is now owned by Universal Music Group...

. Originally issued as a vinyl

Gramophone record

A gramophone record, commonly known as a phonograph record , vinyl record , or colloquially, a record, is an analog sound storage medium consisting of a flat disc with an inscribed, modulated spiral groove...

 double album

Double album

A double album is an audio album which spans two units of the primary medium in which it is sold, typically records and compact discs....

, it was assured of a UK chart entry at number one due to reported advance sales of over one million. The album was also a top ten seller internationally in countries such as Switzerland, Sweden, and New Zealand.

Whilst commercially successful, the album also drew criticism for containing new versions of the group's (already much-remixed) hit singles from the same year ("Relax" and "Two Tribes

Two Tribes

"Two Tribes" is the second single by Frankie Goes to Hollywood, released in the UK by ZTT Records in May 1984 . The song was later included on the album Welcome to the Pleasuredome....

", plus B-side "War"), as well as a surfeit of cover version

Cover version

In popular music, a cover version or cover song, or simply cover, is a new performance or recording of a contemporary or previously recorded, commercially released song or popular song...

s in lieu of much new original material.

However, the album's evergreen ballad "The Power of Love

The Power of Love (Frankie Goes to Hollywood song)

Holly Johnson, former singer of Frankie Goes to Hollywood, recorded his own version of "The Power of Love" which was released on his 1999 album Soulstream and was released as a single which made #56 in the UK. The single stayed in the charts for 2 weeks...

" would subsequently provide the group with their third consecutive UK number one single.

LP: ZTT / ZTTIQ 1 (United Kingdom)

All songs written by Peter Gill/Holly Johnson

Holly Johnson

Holly Johnson is an English artist, writer and musician, best known as the lead vocalist of Frankie Goes to Hollywood, and former bassist for Big in Japan.- Big in Japan :...

/Brian Nash

Brian Nash

Brian Nash was the guitarist for 1980s pop band, Frankie Goes to Hollywood. He was otherwise known as Nasher....

/Mark O'Toole, unless otherwise noted.

Side 1 ("F")

1. "Well..." (Gill/Johnson/Nash/O'Toole/Andy Richards) – 0:55
2. "The World Is My Oyster" – 1:02
3. "Snatch of Fury (Stay)
   Ferry Cross the Mersey
   "Ferry Cross the Mersey" is a song written by Gerry Marsden. It was first recorded by his band Gerry and the Pacemakers and released in late 1964 in the UK and in 1965 in the United States. It was a hit on both sides of the Atlantic, reaching number six in the United States and number eight in the...
   
   " (Gerry Marsden
   Gerry Marsden
   Gerard "Gerry" Marsden is an English musician and television personality, best known for being leader of the British band Gerry & the Pacemakers.-Biography:...
   
   ) – 0:36
4. "Welcome to the Pleasuredome
   Welcome to the Pleasuredome (song)
   "Welcome to the Pleasuredome" is the title track to the 1984 debut album by Frankie Goes to Hollywood. The lyrics of the song were inspired by the poem Kubla Khan by Samuel Taylor Coleridge....
   
   " – 12:58

Side 2 ("G")

1. "Relax
   Relax (song)
   "Relax" is the debut single by British dance group Frankie Goes to Hollywood, released in the UK by ZTT Records in 1983. The song was later included on the album Welcome to the Pleasuredome ....
   
    (Come Fighting)" (Gill/Johnson/O'Toole) – 3:56
2. "War (...and Hide)" (Barrett Strong
   Barrett Strong
   Barrett Strong is an American singer and songwriter. Strong was the first artist to record a hit for Motown, although he is best remembered for his work as a songwriter, particularly in association with producer Norman Whitfield.-His career:Strong was among the first artists signed to Berry...
   
   /Norman Whitfield
   Norman Whitfield
   Norman Jesse Whitfield was an American songwriter and producer, best known for his work with Berry Gordy's Motown label during the 1960s...
   
   ) – 6:12
3. "Two Tribes
   Two Tribes
   "Two Tribes" is the second single by Frankie Goes to Hollywood, released in the UK by ZTT Records in May 1984 . The song was later included on the album Welcome to the Pleasuredome....
   
    (For the Victims of Ravishment)" (Gill/Johnson/O'Toole) – 3:23
4. "(Tag)" – 0:35 [unlisted track on vinyl and some CD editions]

Side 3 ("T")

1. "Ferry (Go)
   Ferry Cross the Mersey
   "Ferry Cross the Mersey" is a song written by Gerry Marsden. It was first recorded by his band Gerry and the Pacemakers and released in late 1964 in the UK and in 1965 in the United States. It was a hit on both sides of the Atlantic, reaching number six in the United States and number eight in the...
   
   " (Marsden) – 1:49
2. "Born to Run
   Born to Run (song)
   "Born to Run" is a song by American singer songwriter Bruce Springsteen, and the title song of his album Born to Run.- Songwriting :Written at in Long Branch, New Jersey in early 1974, the song was Bruce Springsteen's last-ditch effort to make it big. The prior year, Springsteen had released two...
   
   " (Bruce Springsteen
   Bruce Springsteen
   Bruce Frederick Joseph Springsteen , nicknamed "The Boss," is an American singer-songwriter who records and tours with the E Street Band...
   
   ) – 3:56
3. "San Jose
   Do You Know the Way to San Jose
   "Do You Know the Way to San Jose" is a popular song written for Dionne Warwick by Burt Bacharach and Hal David . Introduced on the 1968 RIAA Certified Gold album Dionne Warwick in Valley of the Dolls, "Do You Know the Way to San Jose" was issued as the follow-up single to the double-sided hit "...
   
    (The Way)" (Bacharach
   Burt Bacharach
   Burt F. Bacharach is an American pianist, composer and music producer. He is known for his popular hit songs and compositions from the mid-1950s through the 1980s, with lyrics written by Hal David. Many of their hits were produced specifically for, and performed by, Dionne Warwick...
   
   /David
   Hal David
   Harold Lane "Hal" David is an American lyricist. He grew up in Brooklyn, New York. David is best known for his collaborations with composer Burt Bacharach.-Career:...
   
   ) – 3:09
4. "Wish (The Lads Were Here)" (Gill/Johnson/O'Toole) – 2:48
5. "The Ballad of 32" – 4:47

Side 4 ("H")

1. "Krisco Kisses" – 2:57
2. "Black Night White Light" – 4:05
3. "The Only Star in Heaven" – 4:16
4. "The Power of Love
   The Power of Love (Frankie Goes to Hollywood song)
   Holly Johnson, former singer of Frankie Goes to Hollywood, recorded his own version of "The Power of Love" which was released on his 1999 album Soulstream and was released as a single which made #56 in the UK. The single stayed in the charts for 2 weeks...
   
   " – 5:28
5. "Bang" – 1:08

• "(Tag)" was an unlisted orchestral extract from Two Tribes and featured an impersonation of HRH Prince Charles
  Charles, Prince of Wales
  Prince Charles, Prince of Wales is the heir apparent and eldest son of Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh. Since 1958 his major title has been His Royal Highness The Prince of Wales. In Scotland he is additionally known as The Duke of Rothesay...
  
   (by Chris Barrie
  Chris Barrie
  Chris Barrie is a British actor. He first achieved success as a vocal impressionist, notably in the ITV sketch show Spitting Image...
  
  ) ruminating about orgasms.
• "Ferry (Go)" was a short version of Ferry Cross the Mersey, the Gerry & The Pacemakers' track that backed Frankie's first 12-inch single, Relax. A very brief extract of the vocals from this featured on side one as "Snatch of Fury (Stay)"
• The LP was also issued as a double picture disc in transparent PVC sleeve, cat no: NEAT 1, and cassette, cat no: ZCIQ1.

CD: ZTT / CID 101 (United Kingdom)

The original CD version had the following altered tracklist. Subsequent CD reissues reverted to the vinyl LP's track listing and cover art.

1. "The World Is My Oyster" – 1:57 (incorporates "Well...")
2. "Welcome to the Pleasuredome" – 13:38 (incorporates "Snatch of Fury (Stay)")
3. "Relax (Come Fighting)" – 3:56
4. "War (...and Hide)" – 6:12
5. "Two Tribes (For the Victims of Ravishment) including The Last Voice" – 10:22 ("Two Tribes" version is actually "Annihilation")
6. "Born to Run" – 4:13
7. "Happy Hi!" – 4:12
8. "Wish (The Lads Were Here) including The Ballad of 32" – 7:35
9. "Krisco Kisses" – 2:57
10. "Black Night White Light" – 4:05
11. "The Only Star in Heaven" – 4:16
12. "The Power of Love" – 5:28
13. "Bang" – 1:08

• Several CD reissues omit the vocals on "Snatch of Fury (Stay)".
• A 2000 reissue included the bonus B-side tracks "One September Monday" (4:50) and "One February Friday" (4:58).

25th anniversary Deluxe Edition

In 2010, a Deluxe Edition of Welcome to the Pleasuredome was released, featuring a second disc containing rare and previously unreleased material. The first CD contains the LP version of the original album. The contents of the second CD are as follows:

1. "Relax (Greatest Bits)" - 16:59
2. "One September Monday" - 04:49
3. "The Power of Love (12 inch version)" - 09:30
4. "Disneyland" - 03:07
5. "Two Tribes (Between Rulers And Ruling)" - 04:10
6. "War (Between Hidden And Hiding)" - 04:00
7. "Welcome to the Pleasuredome (Cut Rough)" - 05:40
8. "One February Friday" - 05:00
9. "The Ballad of 32 (Mix 2)" - 11:03
10. "Who Then Devised the Torment?" - 00:16
11. "Relax (Greek Disco Mix)" - 06:18
12. "Watusi Love Juicy" - 04:03
13. "The Last Voice" - 01:14

Chart performance

Chart (1984)	Peak position
Austrian Albums Chart	3
Canadian Albums Chart	9
French Albums Chart	7
German Albums Chart	4
New Zealand Albums Chart	1
Norwegian Albums Chart	8
Swedish Albums Chart	7
Swiss Albums Chart	5
UK Albums Chart	1
U.S. Billboard 200	33

Credits

• Holly Johnson: lead vocals
• Brian Nash: guitar
• Peter Gill: drums
• Mark O'Toole: bass
• Paul Rutherford
  Paul Rutherford
  Paul Rutherford is the former backing vocalist, dancer and occasional keyboardist with 1980s pop band Frankie Goes to Hollywood , one of the group's two openly gay singers....
  
  : vocals
• J. J. Jeczalik: keyboards, programming, software
• Andrew Richards: keyboards
• Louis Jardim: percussion
• Anne Dudley
  Anne Dudley
  Anne Dudley is an English composer and pop musician, and was the first BBC Concert Orchestra's Composer in Association in 2001. She has worked in both the classical and pop genres. She is perhaps best known, however, as one of the core members of the synthpop band Art of Noise and also as a film...
  
  : keyboards, string arrangement on "The Power of Love"
• Steven Lipson: guitar
• Steve Howe
  Steve Howe (guitarist)
  Stephen James "Steve" Howe is an English guitarist, known for his work with the progressive rock group Yes...
  
  : acoustic guitar (on the track "Welcome to the Pleasuredome")
• Trevor Rabin
  Trevor Rabin
  Trevor Charles Rabin is a South African born musician, best known as a guitarist, vocalist and songwriter for the British progressive rock band Yes from 1983–1994, and since then, as a film composer.- Early years :...
  
  : guitar
• Trevor Horn
  Trevor Horn
  Trevor Charles Horn CBE is an English pop music record producer, songwriter, musician and singer. He was born in Houghton-le-Spring in north-east England....
  
  : backing vocals, bass

Production

• Produced By Trevor Horn
  Trevor Horn
  Trevor Charles Horn CBE is an English pop music record producer, songwriter, musician and singer. He was born in Houghton-le-Spring in north-east England....
  
  
• Engineers: Stuart Bruce, Steve Lipson
• Mastering: Ian Cooper

External links

• Zang Tuum Tumb and all that