West End Girls

Pet Shop Boys

About West End Girls

"West End Girls" is a song by the English pop duo Pet Shop Boys. Written by Neil Tennant and Chris Lowe, the song was released twice as a single. The song's lyrics are concerned with class and the pressures of inner-city life which were inspired partly by T. S. Eliot's poem The Waste Land. It was generally well received by contemporary music critics and has been frequently cited as a highlight in the duo's career. The first version of the song was produced by Bobby Orlando and was released on Columbia Records' Bobcat Records imprint in April 1984, becoming a club hit in the United States and some European countries. After the duo signed with EMI, the song was re-recorded with producer Stephen Hague for their first studio album, Please. In October 1985, the new version was released, reaching number one in the United Kingdom and the United States in 1986. In 1987, the song won Best Single at the Brit Awards, and Best International Hit at the Ivor Novello Awards. In 2005, 20 years after its release, the song was awarded Song of The Decade between the years 1985 and 1994 by the British Academy of Composers and Songwriters. In 2015 the song was voted by the British public as the nation's 12th favourite 1980s number one in a poll for ITV. The song was performed by Pet Shop Boys at the 2012 Summer Olympics closing ceremony. 


Year:
1986
4:45
1,136 
#3

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West end girls

Sometimes you're better off dead
There's a gun in your hand
It's pointing at your head
You think you're mad too unstable
Kicking in chairs and knocking down tables
In a restaurant in a West end town
Call the police there's a mad man around
Running down underground
To a dive bar in a West end town

In a West end town a dead end world
The East end boys and West end girls
In a West end town in a dead end world
The East end boys and West end girls
West end girls

Too many shadows whispering voices
Faces on posters too many choices
If when why what how much have you got
Have you got it do you get it
If so how often
Which do you choose
A hard or soft option

In a West end town a dead end world
Meet East end boys and West end girls
In a West end town in a dead end world
The East end boys and West end girls
West end girls

In a West end town a dead end world
Meet East end boys and West end girls
Ooh a West end town in a dead end world
East end boys and West end girls
West end girls

I've said it all before, I'll say it all again
We're all modern men
We've got no future, we've got no past
Here today, built to last
In every city, in every nation
From Lake Geneva to the Finland station

And a West end town, a dead end world
The East End boys and West End girls
Ooh West End town, a dead end world
East End boys, West End Girls
West End girls

You got a heart of glass or a heart of stone
Just you wait till I get you home
All your stopping, stalling and starning
Who do you think you are, Joe Stalin
Sometimes you're better off dead
There's gun in your hand
And it's pointing at your head

In a West end town a dead end world
The East end boys and West end girls
In a West end town in a dead end world
East end boys and West end girls
West end girls

West end girls

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Pet Shop Boys

Pet Shop Boys are an English electronic dance music duo, consisting of Neil Tennant, who provides main vocals, keyboards and occasional guitar, and Chris Lowe on keyboards. more »

7 fans

Written by: Neil Tennant, Christopher Lowe

Lyrics © Kobalt Music Publishing Ltd.

Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind


10 facts about this song

Song Background
"West End Girls" is a song by British duo Pet Shop Boys from their debut studio album Please (1986).
Chart Performance
"West End Girls" reached number one on the UK Singles Chart in January 1986 and number one in the United States on the Billboard Hot 100 chart in May 1986.
Critical Acclaim
In 1987, the song won the award for Best Single at the Brit Awards, and in 2005, was voted number 1 in the Top 50 singles of the 1980s by viewers of VH1.
Song Inspiration
The lyrics of the song were largely inspired by T.S. Eliot's poem The Waste Land, specifically the line 'I will show you fear in a handful of dust'.
First Release
The song was first released in April 1984 through independent label Bobcat Records but gained little attention and wasn't a success.
Re-Release
The song was re-recorded and re-released in October 1985 after the band signed with Parlophone Records, and this version became a global hit.
Music Video
The iconic music video for the song was filmed in various locations in London, including outside the Palace Theatre, the docks in Isle of Dogs and Greenwich.
Song Meaning
"West End Girls" is about class and the pressures of inner-city life which were inspired by the tensions and uncertainties of the Cold War era.
Collaboration
The song is a result of collaboration between Pet Shop Boys and music producer Stephen Hague.
Legacy
"West End Girls" has been covered by various artists and also been used in video games such as Grand Theft Auto V.

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    West End Girls

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    Top Hot 100 Songs 1986

    Billboard #1


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