Frankie Goes To Hollywood - Rage Hard (ZTT)

The best things in life are threes. So after Whambley and Prince, here come the boys who'll come all over you.. Frankie, welcome back. So what's new? Well, there's more of those awfully nice guitar noises, less of the 'frisco disco and some jolly good burps on the B-side. 'Rage Hard' may not at first catch the ear in the same way as 'Relax' or 'Two Tribes' but crank it up for a couple of hours and even Snabber Towers will shake to the chandeliers. Beefy! Only weak link is a less than brutal version of Bowie's "Sufragette City" on the 12-inch but whom careth? The Hit Parade is for Frankie. And Frankie only. 5/5 (Paul Simper, No 1, August 30, 1986)

Frankie have been away for what seems like ages. Actually it's been 18 months and during this time they've been messing about in recording studios all over the world. Naturally then, you'd expect them to come forging back with a single impressive enough to knock your socks off. Unfortunately this didn't even wrinkle mine. "Rage Hard" sounds like any of their previous singles but watered-down and without the guts. They've even used that familiar "menacing" voice from the "Two Tribes" single (the one that tells you what to do in the event of a nuclear explosion) but it's no longer menacing - in fact it sounds like he was out of the room when his bit was being recorded. The overall effect is a bit limp and very disappointing. (Ro Newton, Smash Hits, August 27, 1986)