The Pet Shop Boys’ electronic-meets-symphonic score to the new ballet adaptation of the Hans Christian Andersen story “The Most Incredible Thing” is out in the U.S. this week, and to mark the occasion, Astralwerks is providing us with a 7-album PSB prize back to award one lucky Slicing Up Eyeballs reader in the United States (sorry, the geographic restriction is the record rule).
One randomly drawn winner will receive not only a copy of the brand-new The Most Incredible Thing 2CD score (which Astralwerks also is selling directly for just $9.99 online and which you can stream in its entirety right here, today at least), but six other CDs — including the duo’s first three studio albums, a best-of and a live collection — culled from the Pet Shop Boys’ back catalog on EMI.
The winner will receive CD copies of the following Pet Shop Boys albums:
- Please (1986)
- Actually (1987)
- Introspective (1988)
- PopArt: The Hits (2003)
- Yes (2009)
- Pandemonium: Live (2010)
- The Most Incredible Thing (2011)
To enter, simply drop a comment below — it can be anything, but if you want, tell us your favorite PSB track and why. We’ll take entries until noon EST Friday, April 1. After that point, we’ll select one winner at random and contact them via e-mail — so please remember to use a legit address when you enter. At the request of Astralwerks, the contest is open only to residents of the United States. One entry per person.
UPDATE 4/1/11: This contest is now closed. The randomly selected winner is Jim. Thanks to all for taking the time to enter and sharing their PSB memories.
PREVIOUSLY ON SLICING UP EYEBALLS
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- Pet Shop Boys announce ‘Ultimate’ tracklisting, record new single ‘Together’
- Pet Shop Boys scoring ‘Most Incredible Thing’ Hans Christian Andersen ballet
I love PSB!
My fav songs are still It’s a Sin and Suburbia. Every friging Saturday night my bests friends an I would blast PSB and sing like scanky catholic girls to it. Lord…i know I am going straight to hell for grinding on my girlfriend to it but it was all fantastic.
Suburbia…I was a Suburbia kid…lol
Yes, please!! Count me in on the contest.
My favorite track has always been (and always shall be) “Being Boring.” It sums up that collective feeling of me and my friends growing up in the late 80’s, anxiously waiting for the 90’s and the adulthood which would accompany the new decade. Sitting on the stairs after the party, smiles on our faces, knowing the world would always be ours…
My favorite PSB track is “Some Speculation” – it has a slowly propulsive groove that reminds me of Giorgio Moroder meets a hit of Ecstasy.
Favorite track is probably Love Comes Quickly. Reminds me of old flames from middle school.
“Always on My Mind” – I have a weakness for covers.
Consider this my entry! But really, you guys dropped the ball. You should have had everyone answer the question “What Have You Done to Deserve This?” :)
Being Boring. No particular reason, I’ve just always liked it best.
Pet Shop Boy’s were playing when I walked into a college dorm for my first time as a high school senior. Never forgotten that moment and the realization that college music was going to be way cooler that the FM radio crap being played in my home town.
Huge fan since 1985. Left to my own devices will always be my favorie of theirs.
impossible to choose a single fave… their B-sides put other bands to shame… i mean, ‘the resurrectionist’: a ridiculously catchy song about victorian body snatchers. they can do ANYTHING.
Probably “Opportunities,” for the razor-sharp irony, the brilliant arrangement, and the general hugeness of it all!
(Runner-up: “Hey Headmster”)
My absolute favorite Pet Shop Boys song is “Two Divided by Zero”. I love the beat and simply because of all of the memories I had of driving around with this cassette playing ever so loudly down Hwy 436 to and from work or on my way to dance. Love it and all PSB tracks!
My fave PSB track is Jealousy because it brings me back to a relationship I had in the 80’s instantly.
Suburbia–best song ever!
“West End Girls” is still my favorite song of theirs. I use to live on the West wing of a dorm room (guys were on the East wings) and that song always reminded me of the good times we had as a hall.
Being Boring. Or Theatre. Pet Shop Boys kill me in a good way.
the way it used to be from Yes and home and dry are my favorite tracks from the 2000s albums
Paninaro!
I love all the pet shop boys musical project A sides or B sides. this new opera cd is very interesting. Please add me into the contest
My favorite PSB album is Introspective,
and my favorite PSB track is Suburbia!
My favorite PSB fans are Tadd and Cord :)
Two Divided By Zero as the first song ever heard.
My favorite PSB track has always been “Jealousy.” From the powerful orchestration in the beginning to Niel singing “The dead of night” this track has evey element that make the PSB so unique and timeless.
Cool contest!
Favorite PSB track is probably “Can You Forgive Her?” from Very…although they have so many great tunes it probably changes on any given day!
my favorite song has gotta be Rent!
Yeah,tough one, but prolly “West End.” LOL. Such a seductive song. I got do dance to it on a local dance show in 86, too! Schweet! Was pretty worn out, though, dancing all day to stuff, as they did many takes to that and to stuff like Prince’s “Kiss.”
Was so happy to see them live, though, last year. What an amazing show!! Just like a Broadway production, as I was told beforehand that it would be.
“Opportunites”, because everybody loves money. That’s why they call it “money”!
What Have I Done to Deserve This is all class! Rent is up there as well.
Would love to add this to my PSB Collection.
Wow, I would love to win this!!!! I have so many Pet Shop Boys favorites – it would be too difficult to pick just one! Thanks!!
Its a sin- its the best because THE DISCO BEATS DON’T STOP!
It’s very hard to choose but I would say Rent is my fave PSB song! :D
All time favorite is Tonight Is Forever from Please – but the whole album is stilla masterpiece
“West End Girls” is my favorite because it was part of the beginning of a great thing in music for me.
Would love to win!
“It’s Alright” as it speaks to the timelessness of music as the foundation we must cling to when the world is in turmoil. This is so true these days. Comfort to all in Japan, Libya, and beyond.
I received my “The Most Incredible Thing” CD last weekend from England with the signed card from Neil Tennant and Chris Lowe (95 of 550). The album is great! My overall favorite PSB track as of recent is “Minimal.” The last two tours have been awesome. Okay, I’ll shut up now. Thanks S.U.E. for the cool contests!
I love so many of their tunes, but I always come back to West End Girls. That was the song that started it all for me and to this day can evoke some pretty intense nostalgia.
They’re all so good but I’d have to pick The Theatre or Suburbia, both for the lyrics and the music and the general relate-ability.
Pandemonium by far is my favorite PSB song, and I’ve been listening to them from the beginning.
Upbeat, happy…..love it!!
I want a dog. And to win this contest.
My favourite PSB track is “Rent.” Before Liza Minneli did it with ’em. Love your site!
I love Being Boring for the story it tells. I was living in Detroit at the time of it’s release, and lo and behold, the PSB tour made a stop there! Love all the gay dance anthems really. Thanks for the chance to win cool stuff.
“Suburbia” was playing the first time I ever got past second base with a girl, so I think that’s a sentimental fave for me.
As long as it doesn’t involve a last-minute trip to New York…
Always On My Mind
Sure they did not write it nor were they the first to record it. But I’ll be damned if they were not the ones to perfect it.
Just such a great pop song that never gets old.
And I should know as I listen to it all the time.
Let’s make lots of money!
Picking a favorite is hard however, ‘Rent’ has always been a sentimental favorite. I love the fact that its laid back and breazy while be so tongue-in-cheek hilarious as well.
I love all of their songs!
I think the song “Jealousy” from the “Behaviour” album is very special…
thanks!
Favorite PSB song is Rent
My wife’s favorite!
The Cure for Pain brings me Joy Division, Rock Noise got Visions, Pet Shop Boys in the Kitchen
I love “Rent.” The sarcasm makes the song.
Favorite PSB’s track is Opportunities, but they have tons of great songs that I like.
Jealousy is just one of those songs that one hears and you just know its the PSB. Its as pure as frosting!!!!
I’ve always been partial to their cover of the song “Go West”
“Opportunities” is still my favorite.
They were all so good, though . . .
Always on My Mind is always sounds on my mind.
“Being Boring” has always been my favorite because of its contradictions. It’s such a tranquil tune despite its steady BPM, and has such sad, elegiac lyrics over the upswell of the chorus.
I enjoyed their cover of ” where the streets have no name.”
My favorite PSB song changes all the time, and lately I’ve reverted back to ’88 with “I Want a Dog”. I love the sad silliness of it, along with the typical PSB love of lists and sound effects.
Jealousy from Behavior…
Always a fan of “Love Comes Quickly”, but I do enjoy “Do I Have To?” quite a bit
Living just north of Dallas at the time, I was 13. SUBURBIA helped me grow up and become aware of my surroundings.
“Being Boring.”
It showed up at a time in my life when things were changing pretty dramatically. I’d left home, made new friends, lost touch with old friends, had my first friend die, really fell in love for the first time– all of those sorts of things that are just ongoing parts of your life and are terribly important all at the same time.
“Young Offender” has got to be my favorite PSB track of all time. When I heard Neil sing “see how your fingers run over the keys, so sure what you do, I haven’t a clue”, never have I heard such deprecation, but at the time in my life when technology was consuming everything, I could relate. During the final chorus run, Neil confesses the problematic relationship with a youngster, saying “I know, I know” without ever being questioned… that’s a powerful way to convey his message. Pure dead brilliant. “Young Offender” is a pinnacle example of why “Very” is the ultimate PSB record and I think most fans would agree.
“Left to my own devices” always started a Saturday night during my college days. Love how that song started and never let up. Also dug the philosophy and lyrics of “Miserablism” – a splendid “B” side.
Flag this entry for the prize…!
“London” from the ‘Release’ record from 2002. My husband and I took our first trip together to the UK and that song was played in every club and every shop we seemed to tour. I’ll never forget it and it remains one of my favorite pop records of all-time.
Being Boring.
So Hard to choose from so many songs, and Opportunities like this don’t pop up every day. I’ve always loved the way the PSB manage to evoke interesting song titles out of a Minimal use of words. With so many great tunes to choose from, it is tempting to just make my excuses and leave. It’s a Sin to be stuck in such a quandary. Am I just Being Boring now? I Get Along with just about any PSB song, really. Yesterday When I Was Mad, I listened to Being Boring and ended up feeling Flamboyant….wait a minute…that wasn’t quite accurate….hell, I Don’t Know What You Want But I Can’t Give It Any More.
What Have I Done to Deserve This?
Have a Heart, fellas….I Wouldn’t Normally Do This Kind Of Thing, but It’s Alright, because it will be A Red Letter Day if I get picked! I’ll be Domino Dancing and believing in Miracles. I just can’t help but ask myself…..when some other gal wins….Can You Forgive Her? I guess I would. I’ll just cheat on the Rent and buy those albums myself while trying to stamp out the Jealousy…..
I love PSB since I was 3 years-old and danced to their songs on diapers
Want that 7-prize pack so badly
I am a big fan of nearly all of PSB’s catalog, but have a special place in my heart for “Can You Forgive Her.” I originally bought the cassette single in ’93, and it literally got played non-stop until the magnetic tape stretched and snapped!
Run with the dogs tonight in Suburbia
My would be “I’m not scared.” I love how it sounds and the words. I know it is about France and spy stuff like that, but for me it is about not being scared of who you are and that people should respect who you are, in short be yourself and don’t take crap from other for it.
It is good words to live by when you are in the us military.
opportunities! :)
the Theatre
cool prize! i have many PSB faves and one of them is “heart”. it’s such a perfect pop song and it’s video is just lovely 80’s cheese!
“Opportunities” and “Rent” flashback to great times!
Actually was one of the best shows that I have seen.
A great artist can take a song that someone else wrote, reinvent it, and make it theirs. That’s what PSB’s did with “Always On My Mind” and it has long been my favorite.
“Miracles” is a fantastic song, although “Love, etc.” is one of their greatest newer songs by far. The video is outstanding too.
It’s hard to pick a favorite, but one of my all-time faves by PSB is “Red Letter Day.” Awesome song.
i know it’s the most popular, but west end girls is still my fav. love the bassline….
West End Girls. I grew up on the East Side of Detroit. When I was in high school my best friend and I got involved with this group of girls from the West Side of Detroit. Needless to say that things did not end well for my friend or myself. West End Girls, became kind of a theme song/cautionary tale for the rest of our teenage years and into our early 20’s. It remains one of my favorite songs to this very day. Due to the good memories of bad times it invokes.
Paninaro…the Disco version.
It has to be How Can You Expect To Be Taken Seriously?, from the wonderful album version to the funky Perfect Attitude mix.
Will this be the year PSB finally work with Robyn? Yes, Please.
Favorite song is “So Hard”…. every time I heard it, I was!
“Being Boring” for managing to be both both pensive and upbeat at the same time.
I love PSB. They are fantastic.
My favorite PSB song?? Oh, too many to narrow down to one….but It’s a Sin still gets me up and moving every time!! Strange thing, though. I am Catholic, and I have a great relationship with my very forgiving and understanding father.
It’s still West End Girls for me.
Your Funny Uncle
west end girls. loved it since day one. never gets old. i’m in the song, walking down a wet sidewalk near that bar. its burnt into my brain. and i’m not real sure where it came from…
Love the PBS and love your show on Strange Ways!
“Was It Worth It?” is my favorite… Purely for personal, sentimental reasons. The PSB are brilliant!
Hard to pick just one fave PSB track. Here are three:
1. It Couldn’t Happen Here: Co-write with Ennio Morricone, an amazing high drama ballad.
2. Dreaming Of The Queen: What I take to be a sad rumination on the ravages of AIDS.
3. I Want a Dog: This B-side perfect sums up Tennant’s dry sense of humor.
Liberation, gotta love those psb chord progressions.
I love the Pet Shop Boys have seen them live 5 times going all the way back to their first USA tour in the 1980s
Of course, I have many faves by PSB, but “The Way It Used to Be” is my top one. It’s so hauntingly beautiful.
West End Girls is a sentimental fave.
Love PSB and have made it my mission to force an appreciation of them on my 18 yr old son and 13 yr old daughter. I can actually hear their eyes rolling at the prospect of me winning this collection!
The PSB have so many amazing tracks that it is hard to pick one, but I will go with “Dreaming of the Queen”. The amazing rich & layered production and vocal arrangement gives it the aura of a dream. Well, a nightmare really, at the height of the AIDS epidemic. Incredibly moving and powerful.
that one they did with dusty springfield
Well, although not my favorite West End Girls reminds me of when I first started going to night clubs. Because that song came out the same time frame. I know that dates me. :)
I think though my favorite song is Opportunities because I loved playing that song when I was DJing night clubs. It is always a good dance floor filler.
The most incredible thing is I might win this drawing!
“Left To My Own Devices”…followed very closely by “Jealousy.”
I wouldn’t normally do this kind of thing but I’ve always liked “So Hard.”
i like opportunities- its the best
“West End Girls” will probably always be my favorite. We were on a vacation in Southern California when it was first released in 1984, and we heard it in heavy rotation on KROQ as we were driving around. As soon as we got home, I bought the 12″ single which is still in my collection.
Favorite song: Miserablism
“All Over the World” – I love it live!
Favorite song: Rent
It’s well established that Being Boring is the best pop song of all time, but It’s A Sin is by far my favorite. It’s what got me hooked on PSB after hearing the intro to the song used in a movie I liked.
Then again A Different Point of View has some of the most brilliant production I’ve ever heard…
my favorite song would have to be It’s Alright. whenever I hear it it gives me chills, takes me back to someplace when my life was good. i love the video too.
“Before” has always been a favorite of mine. Love the catchy synth and truly an original that is hard to match with Neil’s voice
Left To My Own Devices gets me everytime :)
The song: “West End Girls”.
The scene: New York City, summer of 1986.
Saturday evening at dusk. I had a weekend job as a limo driver, and a pickup on the Upper West Side for a drop-off at a Broadway show.
As I turned the limo onto West End Avenue and the anticipation of Saturday night began to build, “West End Girls” came on the radio (WDRE 92.7 FM). It was only the third or fourth time I’d heard it, and it was already my favorite song of the moment. Just then, three beautiful young women in black dresses came to the sidewalk and waved. Game on.
(Yes, I know the song refers to London’s West End and not New York’s, but who cares?) Looking back, it was one of life’s perfect moments.
The song sounded utterly perfect and beautiful 25 years ago, as it does today.
Love Comes Quickly is always going to be a favorite.
Actually is the best PSB CD…if you were coming out in the late 80’s it was the soundtrack of your life…
my favorite psb track may always be “Left to my own devices” because i live it.
I love Morrissey!
I adore the Pet Shop Boys!
Hoping Pet Shop Boys tour US again soon! One of my favorite all time bands from the 80s. Count me in for the contest…and thanks again Slicing Up Eyeballs for the great blog!
Being Boring or My October Symphony.
Impossible to pick just one. Do I have to?
I like “I Don’t Know What You Want But I Can’t Give It Anymore” because I’ve had relationships dissolve with exactly that same thought going through my head.
I will not name a favorite, because to do so implies that one is better than another. It is deplorable that our society is so consumed by being number 1.
I ADORE the Pet Shop Boys!
I love the old stuff and the new stuff too! In fact Bilingual re-energized my love for them and have kept them at the fore front of my mind since.
Someday I’m going to do a cover of one of their songs, some day!
“West End Girls” still makes me cry, almost 30 years since I was love-struck lad in New York City, running the streets with my first gay boyfriend and singing “WEG” and “It’s a Sin” to each other and laughing, laughing, laughing.
Paninaro. There’s something about the simplicity of this dance song that has few words. And it reminds me of my care free days of high school. Good times and good tunes.
So hard (pun intended) to pick a fav… Very is my favorite album, so perhaps “I Wouldn’t Normally Do This Kind of Thing” might win if I was forced to make a choice. Loved the last tour…we sat 3rd row at the Greek in L.A.
In 2006 while at a PSB show I met this man who told me that “It’s a Sin” held special place in his heart because his family had disowned him when he came out and they never spoke to him again. That was 20 years ago. The song still makes me cry for that random stranger I met years ago ….
Pet Shop Boys, KROQ, Richard Blade… I love the 80’s!!!
Fav track is Being Boring which is something that never happens when one listens to PSB!
Hulk biggest Pet Shop Boys fan there is!!!
There’s no other song-writing/performing partnership like The Pet Shop Boys – with such diverse body of work from Pop music, to film score, to a West End Musical to a Ballet. Pet Shop Boys is a ground breaking song-writing/performing partnership that had endured for almost thirty years. They will go down in History as such.
Rent. I’ve lived that song
Very hard to pick a favorite, but I have to go with “Suburbia”. Just hearing those dogs barking in the beginning takes me right back to freshman year. Ahh sweet teenage angst and drama overload.
I (legitimately) own almost their entire discography, but winning this contest will give me the chance to spread the love for free. (^_^)
Here are my LEAST favorite tracks:
New York City Boy
You Only Tell Me You Love Me When You’re Drunk
Only One
Transparent
What Keeps Mankind Alive
Paninaro (sorry Chris)
… and worst of all: the “E Smoove” mix of Liberation on Disco 2; atrocious!!!!
This contest is now closed and the winner has been notified. Thanks everyone for sharing their PSB faves and the memories associated with those songs — it’s been great reading all the entries as they came in.