Artist: Culture Club
Album: Greatest Hits
Label: Virgin Records
Tracks: 17

Length: 1:12:12

Review by: Mark Fisher

 

 

 

 

 

Ah yes, Culture Club. For those of us who were teens in the eighties the name is synonymous with the glammed out pop that the decade of decadence is partially remembered for. Although Boy George would go on as a solo artist, Culture Club and its cross dressing vocalist will forever be remembered more for their fashion sense and open homosexuality than for their music. This greatest hits CD is probably just one of many that have been released over the years, but they seem to have covered all the bases…and then some.

 

What makes this greatest hits collection unique is the fact that it boasts 17 songs- I would be willing to bet that most people don’t even realize that Culture Club ever recorded 17 songs, let alone had 17 “hits.” Obviously these were not all “hits” but it does make for a good anthology for those nostalgic for a time when music was very different from what it is in 2005. All the big hits are included here, “Do You really Want to Hurt Me” (no, they didn’t make that song up for “The Wedding Singer”), “I’ll Tumble For Ya”, “Karma Chameleon”, “Church of the Poison Mind”, etc. as well as lesser buzz creators like “The War Song”, “Time (Clock of the Heart)”, and the wonderful “Your Kisses are Charity.”

 

There’s really not a whole lot to say here. While some of these songs come off as goofy and totally dated, there are some that transcend the decade and offer a timeless hope for peace and love, a subject that the was at always the forefront of the band’s music.  You just can’t knock that, can you? We all want the world to be a better place and Culture Club did their best to offer a soundtrack for it. Fans of eighties pop will love this and those looking to explore the decade’s pop side will find some delight as well.