I lucked out in November 81 when I caught Depeche Mode on their "Speak & Spell" tour,not only was it the only tour to feature Vince Clark{he quit the band the day after their November 16th show at The Lyceum} but also Blancmange opened for them.
I'd missed out on their debut "Irene And Mavis" EP and the now famous "Some Bizzare" album which featured the likes of Depeche Mode,Soft Cell,The The and B Movie but was quick to pounce on their debut single "God's Kitchen"/I've Seen The Word".
Their follow up single "Feel Me" fared better in the charts but it took their third single "Living On The Ceiling" to finally give them a top 20 hit, hitting #7 and also broke them in the US reaching #52 on the "Hot Dance Club"
Perhaps it was the mix of synths and sittar that made "Living On The Ceiling" such a hit and while the early 80's saw me and dance clubs non compatible I made the most of any opportunity my father was out which was most evenings to turn our living room into my very own Studio 54 so I could "get my groove on" to the songs that loved and bought on 12'' vinyl on a weekly basis,I'm reasonably confident his footprint in my arse was not the fashion accessory my wardrobe required!!!
In 83 they released one more track off their "Happy Families" LP "Waves" a slower song than the two previous singles but still earned them another top 20 hit #19 b4 releasing two singles off the forthcoming sophomore effort "Mange Tout" first "Blind Vision" another top ten hit in the UK #10 and also another hit on the US "Hot Dance Club" reaching #3 b4 "That's Love That It Is" which should've done better in the UK top 40 #33 in my opinion as it rocked at least American audiences were hip to it as it reached #16 on the "Hot Dance Club"
As if to underline how fickle the pop business can be in 84 b4 they released "Mange Tout" "Don't Tell Me" gave them their third but sadly final UK top 10 hit #10 while here in the US it only reached #44.
I will never forget the nite I saw them at Hammersmith Palais on the "Mange Tout" tour it was May 24th the nite after Spurs had won a dramatic penalty shoot out to win the Ufea Cup,I was still in celebratory mood and Blancmage were in rare form in fact that show was filmed for their "Hello Good Evening" dvd which is on my list but beware it's another of those pesky NTSC format dvds which means you'll need an all region dvd player to watch it but worth it just for Neil Arthur's brilliant comeback when someone from the audience threw an empty cigarette box at him "no thanks,I've just given up" he replied in his unique Lancashire accent which underlined the humour that ran through Blancmage's music.
In a rather ballsy move they covered an Abba tune "The Day Before You Came" which I rank it as one of the great cover versions of all time and would prove to be their last hit single reaching #22.
One sensed the wheels of synthpop were beginning to turn slower come 1985,"What's Your Problem" only just scrapped into the UK top 40 at #40 while "Lose Your Love" could only get to #77 but did give Neil Arthur and Stephen Luscombe a final hit on the "Hot Dance Club" reaching #2,I always though "Lose Your Love" was pretty kick arse
In 86 w/ their third album "Believe You Me" only reaching #54 after ''Happy Families" had gone to #30 and "Mange Tout" had gone to #8 in 1982 and 1984 respectively the writing was on the wall "What's Your Problem" which might've been a veiled question to the record buying British public stalled at #71 and not long after that Blancmange called it a day.......
As of yet I still haven't picked up their 2011 reunion cd "Blanc Burn" I did however jump all over the reissue of their first three albums on cd which also featured the 12'' remixes of most if not all eleven of their singles,at least when I'm dancing my living room these days I don't have to keep one eye out for my disapproving father as my living room can be Studio 54 or any any 80's dance venue of my choosing
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