Kissing to Be Clever
is the album that put
Culture Club
on the musical map. Incorporating
pop
,
rock
dance
new wave
soul
, and Caribbean rhythms (an amalgamation of "cultures"), the result was a soulful, progressive
outing that scored several landmark international hits and made a star out of the band's outrageous frontman,
Boy George
. A couple of tracks were European
hits, but the first "official" single,
"Do You Really Want to Hurt Me,"
was a simple masterpiece, resonating with an ache that harked back to the classic
torch songs
of yesteryear. Most of the other songs were quite different, with energetic beats and sometimes silly, campy themes (
"Boy Boy I'm the Boy,"
"White Boys Can't Control It,"
and
"White Boy"
). The album scored two other major hits, the zippy and bouncy
"I'll Tumble 4 Ya"
and the gorgeous
"Time (Clock of the Heart)."
However, beware that
"Time"
is only on certain pressings of the album. When the album was issued on CD, and once the
Epic
label dissolved, the formerly colorful album cover had turned to black and white, and
had been omitted, which is pretty ridiculous, considering the song was a huge number two hit, and the album was then left with only nine tracks. Still, this set is a highlight of 1980s music, and set the stage for one of the decade's most loved and oft-remembered bands. ~ Jose F. Promis