Alphabet City

From HitStory, the pop encyclopedia of School of Rock · Work

After a two-year break, during which singer Martin Fry was treated for Hodgkin's disease, ABC recorded this fourth album. The recording took nine months and was done at Marcus Recording Studios in London, with the help of Bernard Edwards, best known from Chic. The title and several songs refer to Alphabet City, the neighbourhood in Manhattan where Fry and Mark White lived for a time.

Fry said at the time that, after records that had left people confused, the band wanted to make an overview of everything it had done before. When Smokey Sings is a tribute to Smokey Robinson and reached number eleven in the British singles chart. The Night You Murdered Love and King Without a Crown were also released as singles. The album reached number seven in the United Kingdom, the first top ten since the debut The Lexicon of Love.

Listening

Track list

1. 1Avenue A0:57Apple Music ↗
2. 2When Smokey Sings4:19Apple Music ↗
3. 3The Night You Murdered Love4:53Apple Music ↗
4. 4Think Again3:41Apple Music ↗
5. 5Rage and Then Regret3:34Apple Music ↗
6. 6Ark-Angel4:55Apple Music ↗
7. 7King Without a Crown4:42Apple Music ↗
8. 8Bad Blood3:57Apple Music ↗
9. 9Jealous Lover3:35Apple Music ↗
10. 10One Day5:36Apple Music ↗
11. 11Avenue Z0:45Apple Music ↗
12. 12Minneapolis2:58Apple Music ↗
13. 13Chicago (Abridged)3:41Apple Music ↗
14. 1424 Carat Plastic3:30Apple Music ↗
15. 15The Night You Murdered Love (The Reply)4:49Apple Music ↗
16. 16One Day (Instrumental With Real Strings)5:45Apple Music ↗
17. 17King Without a Crown (Monarchy Mix)8:47Apple Music ↗

30-second previews via Apple Music. Listen to the whole album on Apple Music ↗