The People Who Grinned Themselves to Death is the second and final studio album by The Housemartins. It was released in 1987, and produced three singles - "Five Get Over Excited", "Me and the Farmer" (#15) and "Build". The title song is about the British Royal Family, which found them gaining controversy in the tabloid papers similar to that of other bands such as the Sex Pistols, The Smiths and The Stone Roses.
Actually is the second studio album by English synth-pop duo Pet Shop Boys, released on 7 September 1987 by Parlophone in the United Kingdom and by EMI Manhattan in North America. According to Neil Tennant and music historian Wayne Studer, Actually loosely critiques Thatcherism, the political zeitgeist of the 1980s, and was recorded in anticipation of Margaret Thatcher's re-election.
Introspective is the third studio album by English synth-pop duo Pet Shop Boys, released on 10 October 1988 by Parlophone. It received generally positive reviews from critics.
"Together Forever" is a song recorded by English singer-songwriter Rick Astley and released by RCA and BMG as the fourth single from his debut album, Whenever You Need Somebody (1987). The song reached number two in the United Kingdom, behind Neighbours star and fellow Stock Aitken Waterman artist Kylie Minogue's debut single "I Should Be So Lucky". The single was a worldwide hit, reaching number one on the Billboard Hot 100 on 18 June 1988, becoming Astley's second US chart-topper. It also topped the charts in Canada, Ireland and Spain, and was a top ten hits in many European countries.
Alphabet City is the fourth studio album by English pop band ABC. It was originally released in August 1987, on the labels Mercury, Phonogram and Neutron, two years after their previous album How to Be a ... Zillionaire! Following a hiatus in which singer Martin Fry was being treated for Hodgkin's disease, it was recorded over a period of nine months, in sessions that took place at Marcus Recording Studios in London, assisted by Bernard Edwards, best known for his work with the American band Chic.
"It's a Sin" is a song by English synth-pop duo Pet Shop Boys from their second studio album, Actually (1987). Written by Chris Lowe and Neil Tennant, the song was released on 15 June 1987 as the album's lead single. It became the duo's second number-one single on the UK Singles Chart, spending three weeks atop the chart. Additionally, the single topped the charts in Austria, Denmark, Finland, Germany, Ireland, Norway, Portugal, Spain, Sweden and Switzerland, while reaching number nine on the US Billboard Hot 100. It remains one of Pet Shop Boys' most popular songs with 40 million streams in the UK.
"Heart" is a song by English synth-pop duo Pet Shop Boys from their second studio album, Actually (1987). It was released as the album's fourth and final single on 21 March 1988 by Parlophone. The song topped the UK Singles Chart for three weeks in April 1988, becoming the duo's fourth and final chart-topper to date in the United Kingdom. Its music video was directed by Jack Bond and filmed in Yugoslavia. The group had initially written the song for Madonna, though they never asked her to record it, instead keeping it for themselves.
Pop Art is the debut studio album by the English pop rock band Transvision Vamp. It was released in October 1988 and features the band's first top ten hit "I Want Your Love". The album reached No. 4 in the UK, and peaked at No. 13 in Australia, where it was the 25th highest-selling album of 1989.
Wonderful Life is the debut album by English singer Black. Released in 1987, it peaked at No. 3 on the UK Albums Chart in September of that year. Three of the songs were co-written with Vearncombe's friend and musical collaborator, keyboardist Dave "Dix" Dickie.
All by Myself is the debut album by American singer–songwriter Regina Belle. Released on June 1, 1987 by Columbia Records, the album features the hit singles "Show Me the Way", "So Many Tears", "How Could You Do It to Me", "Please Be Mine" and "You Got the Love".
Get Even is the debut album by British boy band Brother Beyond, released on the EMI/Parlophone label in two different editions, both in 1988, generally referred to as Get Even I and Get Even II. The second edition of the album included two songs by Stock Aitken Waterman, "The Harder I Try" and "He Ain't No Competition", which replaced two songs written by the band.
"I'm Not Scared" is a song by British pop band Eighth Wonder, released in February 1988 by CBS as the first single from their debut album, Fearless (1988). The song achieved success in France, Italy, Switzerland, the United Kingdom and West Germany, where it was a top-10 hit. Written by the Pet Shop Boys, the original version contains several words in French. "J'ai pas peur" is the French adaptation of "I'm Not Scared" and is included as the B-side to the 7-inch and 12-inch singles. The 12-inch "disco mix" combines the two versions into one long mix. Pet Shop Boys also released their own version of the song, with Neil Tennant vocals, on the album Introspective.
Dancing on the Couch is the second studio album by English pop duo Go West, released in 1987. It reached number 19 on the UK Albums Chart.
The Time is the second album by British pop band Bros and the follow-up to their debut Push. It was released on 16 October 1989 and was their first album as a duo of twins Matt and Luke Goss, following the departure of bassist Craig Logan earlier in the year. It was also the first album to feature Matt and Luke as co-writers, along with Nicky Graham. Four singles were released from the album: "Too Much", "Chocolate Box", "Madly in Love" and "Sister". The track "Sister" was written about Matt and Luke's stepsister Carolyn, who was killed in a collision with a drunk driver in London in 1988.
"Trouble" is a song by the British new wave and synth-pop band Heaven 17, released on 5 January 1987 as the second and final single from their fourth studio album, Pleasure One (1986). It was written and produced by Glenn Gregory, Ian Craig Marsh and Martyn Ware. The song peaked at No. 51 in the UK and spent four weeks on the chart. It was a bigger success in Germany where it reached No. 17.
"Cross My Heart" is a song recorded by English pop band Eighth Wonder, released in June 1988 by CBS as the second single from their debut album, Fearless (1988), and the group's sixth single. It proved to be almost as successful chartwise as "I'm Not Scared", reaching the top ten in Italy, Norway and Switzerland, and the top twenty in France, West Germany and United Kingdom. It was a minor success in the US, peaking at number 56, but remains the band's only American top 75 hit single. The music video was directed by Dieter 'Dee' Trattmann. The song was also notably recorded by American singer Martika.
"Warm Wet Circles" is a song by the British neo-prog band Marillion. It was the third single from their fourth studio album Clutching at Straws, released on 26 October 1987.
"Freaks" is a song by British neo-prog band Marillion. First released in 1985 on the B-side to the number five UK hit single "Lavender", in November 1988 it was released in a live version on a double A-side single together with the band's 1985 number two hit, "Kayleigh". The single was intended to promote the forthcoming double-live album The Thieving Magpie, which documents the band's history with singer Fish, who had left the band in October 1988; as such, this was Marillion's last single to feature Fish on vocals and cover art by Mark Wilkinson, who would go on to collaborate with Fish.
Eighth Wonder were an English pop band, formed in 1983 in London, initially composed of singer/model/actress Patsy Kensit, her brother Jamie Kensit, Steve Grantley, Geoff Beauchamp, Nigel Davis, Jake Walters and Lawrence Lewis. The band first enjoyed major success in Japan and Italy in 1985–87, before finally breaking through in the UK and across Europe in 1988, thanks to their hit single "I'm Not Scared".
"Sweetest Smile" is a song by English singer Black, released in June 1987 as the third single from his debut album Wonderful Life. It became his first UK top ten hit, peaking at number 8 on the UK Singles Chart. On the back of its success, "Wonderful Life" was re-released, becoming an international hit.
