Colour by Numbers – Culture Club

In 1983, you couldn’t get any cooler than Boy George. Well, unless you were Michael Jackson or Prince. He may not have been on the same level as those two superstars, but the British singer and his group, Culture Club, was certainly a sensation. Boy George was, in essence, a drag queen making hit records, which, considering how conservative America was in the early Eighties, is something of a surprise. His band’s easygoing mix of pop, soul and reggae and George’s vocals (which often get compared favorably to Smokey Robinson’s) probably helped ease the shock of seeing him prance around in videos in long braids and eye makeup.

The second salvo in the one-two punch that earned them that year’s Kiss of De…er, Best New Artist Grammy award was Colour by Numbers. It would be very easy to call this one “hits plus filler” and call it a review, but Colour has much more to offer than the Club’s debut, Kissing to Be Clever, an album that basically was an experiment in how many times one could place the words and phrases “white”, “boy” and “white boy” together in song titles that happened to boast three hit singles. Colour is the band’s most solid record by a pretty wide margin, and if you choose to venture outside of the realm of greatest hits for this band (which isn’t totally necessary), you should start with this album.

Two things immediately stick out with Colour by Numbers. One is that their songwriting has definitely improved. The lyricism was pretty threadbare on their debut, so it’s nice to see songs here that are more than chants. In typical Eighties fashion, however, it’s not very easy to ascertain what exactly the songs are about. All this talk about “eyes across the street” and “guns that cross the street” (as you can see, a lot of street imagery here) means nothing in the grand scheme of things. The best songs are the ones that have a clear narrative arc-the bouncy, reggae-flavored Mister Man, the aching ballad Victims, and the dance-floor filler Miss Me Blind, which is the album’s best song. Crunchy guitar solo, sassy lyrics from George (“you’re turning around on me because/I’m better than the rest of your men) and backing vocals from Jermaine Stewart before he opted not to take off his clothes to have a good time (oh no). What’s not to like?

The second improvement is made with the addition of Helen Terry on vocals. She takes on solely a support role, but she’s a nice support to Boy George’s vocals, disproving any thought that only plus-size American women had leather lungs. The musical version of a faghag wails all over songs like the insistent first single Church of the Poison Mind and the piano ballad That’s the Way (I’m Only Trying to Help You).

And we still haven’t mentioned two of the album’s biggest hits. Karma Chameleon is Culture Club’s best known song and it was their only #1 hit in the States. It’s easy to sing along with (although hell if I know what I’m actually singing about), has a killer chorus (everyone-”karmakarmakarmakarma larma chame-le-onnnnnn…you come and goooooo….you come and gooooooo…”), and how can you not love a song that has a harmonica in it? Personally, I find it impossible. It’s a Miracle is the least essential of the singles, a fairly twee pop song that has the “guns that cross the street” line I mentioned a little earlier. My strongest memory of the song is of exclaiming the song title in response to getting a mention in the school newspaper back in 4th grade, and me and the kid I was with both breaking into the song at the same time. Yep-pret-ty gay. But somehow appropriate when discussing a Culture Club album.

…and there you have it, folks! While the majority of people would be able to get by strictly on a Culture Club greatest hits album (and there are several), Colour by Numbers is the best of their three albums still in print. Bouncy uptempo numbers mixed with dramatic ballads (and Boy George’s impeccably smooth, soulful voice), it’s a classic slice of pop from the early era of MTV.