A Question of Lust

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"A Question of Lust"
DepecheModeAQuestionOfLust.jpg
Single by Depeche Mode
from the album Black Celebration
B-side "Christmas Island"
Released14 April 1986 (1986-04-14) [1]
RecordedNovember 1985
Genre
Length4:29 (7" single version)
4:23 (album version)
Label Mute
Songwriter(s) Martin L. Gore
Producer(s)
Depeche Mode singles chronology
"Stripped"
(1986)		"A Question of Lust"
(1986)		"A Question of Time"
(1986)
Music video
"A Question of Lust" on YouTube
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svg [4]

"A Question of Lust" is a song by the English electronic music band Depeche Mode from their fifth studio album, Black Celebration (1986). It was released on 14 April 1986 in the UK by Mute Records and in West Germany by Intercord Records.

Contents

The single reached number 28 in United Kingdom and number 8 in West Germany.

Background and recording

Depeche Mode released their album Black Celebration in mid-March 1986, [5] and its first single, "Stripped", was released the month before. [6] Due to scheduling and recording conditions, recording sessions for the album were tense and the band were constantly under deadlines to deliver. [7] Recording for "A Question of Lust" occurred around 19 November 1985. [7] "A Question of Lust" was one of four songs sung by songwriter Martin Gore on the album, and the first Gore-sung Depeche Mode single since 1984. [7] Although recording started at Westside Studios in London, final production and mixing moved to Hansa Studios in West Berlin by early 1986. [8]

B-side "Christmas Island", an instrumental, was co-written by Gore and Alan Wilder, and represented Wilder's final writing credit for the band before his departure in 1995. [9]

Release and promotion

"A Question of Lust" was released on 14 April 1986 [10] by Mute Records in the UK and Intercord Records in West Germany. [11] In the UK, the single was released on 7" and 12" vinyl with catalogue numbers 7BONG11 and 12BONG 11, respectively. [12] Intercord released a 7" single (first editions were pressed on red vinyl), a 12" single, and a limited 12" single that included a booklet containing band photos and information with catalogue numbers INT 111.836, INT 126.841 and INT126.844, respectively. [13]

In the US, Sire Records released the single only promotionally, with 7" and 12" vinyl releases that contained unique remixes by Robert Margouleff; catalogue numbers were 7-28697-DJ for the 7" and PRO-A-2504 for the 12". [14] In addition, on 4 March 1987, Sire Records released a promotional 7" with "A Question of Lust" on the A-side and "People Are People" on the B-side (catalogue number 92 86977 in Canada and 7 21994 in the US). [14]

"A Question of Lust" reached number 28 in the UK, but made it into the top 10 on the West German charts. [12]

In 2017, "A Question of Lust" was included on Billboard's list of their top 20 Depeche Mode songs. [15]

The B-side, "Christmas Island", was featured in the end credits for the second episode of the Disney+ series, Hawkeye in 2021. [16]

Music video

The music video for "A Question of Lust" features the return of director Clive Richardson for his last video with the band. [12]

Track listings

All songs written by Martin L. Gore, except "Christmas Island", written by Gore and Alan Wilder, and "If You Want", written by Wilder.

  1. "A Question of Lust" – 4:29
  2. "Christmas Island" – 4:51
  1. "A Question of Lust" – 4:29
  2. "Christmas Island (Extended)" – 5:37
  3. "People are People (Live)" – 4:21
  4. "It Doesn't Matter Two (Instrumental)" – 2:49
  5. "A Question of Lust (Minimal)" – 6:49
  1. "A Question of Lust (Flood Mix)" – 5:07 [*]
  2. "Christmas Island" – 4:51
  3. "If You Want (Live)" – 5:16
  4. "Shame (Live)" – 4:13
  5. "Blasphemous Rumours (Live)" – 5:25

Charts

References

  1. ↑ "New Singles" (PDF). Music Week . 12 April 1986. p. 6. Retrieved 26 August 2024.
  2. ↑ Zaleski, Annie (26 February 2015). "Where to start with '80s U.K. synth-pop". The A.V. Club . Retrieved 24 January 2019.
  3. ↑ Unterberger, Andrew (18 March 2017). "The 10 Most Underrated Depeche Mode Singles: Critic's Take". Billboard . Retrieved 27 January 2022.
  4. ↑ Raggett, Ned. "A Question of Lust – Depeche Mode". AllMusic . Retrieved 26 August 2024.
  5. ↑ Burmeister & Lange 2017, pp. 138–139.
  6. ↑ Burmeister & Lange 2017, p. 132.
  7. 1 2 3 Depeche Mode: 1986: The Songs Aren't Good Enough, There Aren't Any Singles and It'll Never Get Played on the Radio (DVD). Mute Records. 2006.
  8. ↑ Bell, Max (22 February 1986). "Depeche Mode Interview". Number One . pp. 8–11. Retrieved 28 August 2025.
  9. ↑ Burmeister & Lange 2017, pp. 141, 148.
  10. ↑ "Depeche Mode Discography: A Question of Lust" . Retrieved 6 September 2025.
  11. ↑ Burmeister & Lange 2017, p. 141-144.
  12. 1 2 3 Burmeister & Lange 2017, p. 141.
  13. ↑ Burmeister & Lange 2017, p. 141,148.
  14. 1 2 Burmeister & Lange 2017, p. 144.
  15. ↑ Bein, Kat (20 September 2017). "The 20 Best Depeche Mode Songs: Critic's Picks".
  16. ↑ Rowe, Brandon (3 December 2021). "What's The Song At The End Of Hawkeye Episode 2?" . Retrieved 6 June 2025.
  17. ↑ "Depeche Mode – A Question of Lust" (in Dutch). Ultratop 50. Retrieved 20 December 2020.
  18. ↑ "European Hot 100 Singles" (PDF). Music & Media . Vol. 3, no. 20. 24 May 1986. p. 13. OCLC   29800226 – via World Radio History.
  19. ↑ Pennanen, Timo (2006). Sisältää hitin – levyt ja esittäjät Suomen musiikkilistoilla vuodesta 1972 (in Finnish) (1st ed.). Helsinki: Kustannusosakeyhtiö Otava. ISBN   978-951-1-21053-5.
  20. ↑ "The Irish Charts – Search Results – A Question of Lust". Irish Singles Chart. Retrieved 20 December 2020.
  21. ↑ "Nederlandse Top 40 – Depeche Mode" (in Dutch). Dutch Top 40. Retrieved 20 December 2020.
  22. ↑ "Depeche Mode – A Question of Lust" (in Dutch). Single Top 100. Retrieved 20 December 2020.
  23. ↑ "Depeche Mode – A Question of Lust". Singles Top 100. Retrieved 20 December 2020.
  24. ↑ "Depeche Mode – A Question of Lust". Swiss Singles Chart. Retrieved 20 December 2020.
  25. ↑ "Depeche Mode: Artist Chart History". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 20 December 2020.
  26. ↑ "Indies – Top 50 Singles" (PDF). Music Week . 3 May 1986. p. 11. ISSN   0265-1548 – via World Radio History.
  27. ↑ "Offiziellecharts.de – Depeche Mode – A Question of Lust" (in German). GfK Entertainment charts. Retrieved 20 December 2020.
  28. ↑ "Top 100 Single–Jahrescharts 1986" (in German). Offizielle Deutsche Charts. Retrieved 20 December 2020.
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