The Pet Shop Boys today revealed the tracklist for their upcoming 19-song best-of Ultimate Pet Shop Boys — which also will be available as a special edition with a bonus DVD of vintage BBC live performances — and announced the set will close with a newly recorded single called “Together.”
As we reported last week, the new EMI Catalogue collection — due Nov. 1 in the U.K. — features a sampling of the synthpop duo’s singles, spanning 1984’s “West End Girls” to “Love Etc.,” the first single off 2009 album Yes. By limiting Ultimate to one CD, however, the band has omitted some of its best-known tracks, including such hits as “Opportunities (Let’s Make Lots of Money)” and “Rent” (see full tracklist below).
As whoever runs the Pet Shop Boys’ Twitter feed noted last week, “It’s really aimed at the casual or impulse buyer who’d quite like one CD of the PSB’s hits. Do such people exist? EMI think so.” (PSB also announced via Twitter that it will release a 2CD score next March for its upcoming “The Most Incredible Thing” ballet.)
The new song, “Together,” was written and recorded this month with Tim Powell, a former “staff member” of the songwriting and production team Xenomania. The track also will be issued as a single, although the release date has not yet been announced.
Finally, the DVD included in the special edition will include 27 live performances culled from various BBC programs such as “Top of the Pops,” dating back to a 1985 rendition of “West End Girls” (see tracklist below as well). The DVD also will include the Pet Shop Boys’ full performance last June at the Glastonbury festival.
See tracklist for ‘Ultimate Pet Shop Boys’ after the jump…
Tracklist: Ultimate Pet Shop Boys: Special Edition
CD:
1. “West End Girls”
2. “Suburbia”
3. “It’s a Sin”
4. “What Have I Done to Deserve This?”
5. “Always On My Mind”
6. “Heart”
7. “Domino Dancing”
8. “Left To My Own Devices”
9. “Being Boring”
10. “Where the Streets Have No Name (I Can’t Take My Eyes Off You)”
11. “Go West”
12. “Before”
13. “Se a Vida é (That’s the Way Life Is)”
14. “New York City Boy”
15. “Home and Dry”
16. “Miracles”
17. “I’m With Stupid”
18. “Love Etc.”
19. “Together”
DVD:
1. “West End Girls” (Top Of The Pops, 12/15/85)
2. “Love Comes Quickly” (Top Of The Pops, 3/20/86)
3. “Opportunities (Let’s Make Lots of Money)” (Whistle Test, 4/29/86)
4. “Suburbia” (Top Of The Pops, 10/2/86)
5. “It’s a Sin” (Top Of The Pops, 6/25/87)
6. “Rent” (Top Of The Pops, 10/22/87)
7. “Always On My Mind” (Top Of The Pops, 12/10/87)
8. “What Have I Done to Deserve This?” (Brits Awards, 2/8/88)
9. “Heart” (Wogan, 3/30/88)
10. “Domino Dancing” (Top Of The Pops, 9/22/88)
11. “Left To My Own Devices” (Top Of The Pops, 12/1/88)
12. “So Hard” (Wogan, 9/28/90)
13. “Being Boring” (Top Of The Pops, 11/29/90)
14. “Can You Forgive Her?” (Top Of The Pops, 6/10/93)
15. “Liberation” (Top Of The Pops, 4/7/94)
16. “Paninaro ‘95” (Top Of The Pops, 8/3/95)
17. “Se a Vida é” (Top Of The Pops 2, (12/2/03)
18. “A Red Letter Day” (Top Of The Pops, 3/28/97)
19. “Somewhere” (Top Of The Pops, 7/4/97)
20. “I Don’t Know What You Want But I Can’t Give It Any More” (Top Of The Pops, 7/30/99)
21. “New York City Boy” (Top Of The Pops, 10/8/99)
22. “You Only Tell Me You Love Me When You’re Drunk” (Top Of The Pops, 1/14/00)
23. “Home and Dry” (Top Of The Pops, 3/29/02)
24. “I Get Along” (Top Of The Pops 2, 4/17/02)
25. “Miracles” (Top Of The Pops, 11/14/03)
26. “Flamboyant” (Top Of The Pops, 3/19/04)
27. “I’m With Stupid” (Top Of The Pops, 4/23/06)
PLUS: Complete Glastonbury 2010 set
PREVIOUSLY ON SLICING UP EYEBALLS
- ‘Ultimate Pet Shop Boys’ features 19 singles, from ‘West End Girls’ to ‘Love Etc.’
- Pet Shop Boys scoring ‘Most Incredible Thing’ Hans Christian Andersen ballet
- Pet Shop Boys issuing 2 previously unreleased songs on Record Store Day 7-inch
- Pet Shop Boys’ Pandemonium Tour returns to the UK this summer for 5 more shows
- Video: Watch the trailer for Pet Shop Boys’ new ‘Pandemonium’ concert DVD
One song off Very? ONE SONG? While Bilingual gets two tracks? Absurd.
In it for the DVD.
First off, I am a HUGE PSB fan, but enough is enough. For christ’s sake, how many “best of” albums can you put out? If you put out one every friggin time you have an album it seems a little self-important and that you’re trying to milk your loyal fan base for all their money. I, for one, will NOT be buying this just for one measly new song. BOOOOOOO, PSB.
In reply to Craig they’ve only released 2 proper “best of” albums in the past Discography in 1991 and PopArt in 2003.
Granted there was Essential in 1998 which was a USA only release and Party in 2009 which was a Brazil only release. But you aren’t obliged to buy them.
As a fan I’ll be buying it for the awesome DVD of 27 TV performances and also their full Glastonbury 2010 performance.
Sounds good, i just hope they wont mess up the versions of the songs like they did with PopArt (ie the album version of Heart was included in lieu of the excellent remix version).
Otherwise I will definitely buy this record.
No offense Che – but I’m a longtime PSB fan and I won’t shell out a dime for this. We deserve a singles box set – just like Morrissey, DM and Duran have released.
Craig & uofsc93, this release includes a DVD with OVER THREE HOURS of television performances on Top Of The Pops and their entire Glastonbury set. None of this video has been available before to purchase. How can you complain about this?