Pet Shop Boys - West End Girls (Parlophone)

The Pet Shop Boys (alias Mutt and Tibbs, no doubt) released "West End Girls" some time ago, but claim that second time around it's re-recorded. Which could be another way of saying that they've only got one good song and this is it and please will you buy it. Well if it worked for King with "Love and Pride", it should work for "West End Girls" which, with its sad, reflective air set to subdued sub-disco, is miles better. (Adrian Tierney-Jones, No 1, November 16, 1985)

For some reason, this sprightly amble through the studied lowlife of a city triggers off the fragrance of William DeVaughn's "Be Thankful For What You Got" and something else that'll come to me when I least need it. (Mike Gardner, Record Mirror, November 9, 1985)

A tumble through Soho in the seedy wee, wee hours accompanied by the kind of jaundiced horns that are more often found on soundtracks of films about Hollywood actresses hitting the bottle and cracking up with mascara running down their faces (Valley Of The Dolls springs to mind). Set against this, the electronic bleats and the demi-rap (Grandmaster Flash And The Furious Five's "The Message" without the baseball bat) create an atmosphere of danceteria sleaze that's almost sinister. Brrr. (Tom Hibbert, Smash Hits, November 6, 1985)