INTRO TO 'BEAUTY STAB' (Printed Article):
If there was to be great anticipation around any pop group's follow up album in the early eighties then all eyes must have been focused on ABC. Already described by the press as the band which made perfect pop, their debut album The Lexicon Of Love had made a stunning impact on the music scene reaching No.1 within its first week of release and furnishing the charts with a trio of top ten hits (including Poison Arrow and The Look Of Love). Their style too had become influential not least because, in the age of the New Romantics, ABC had provided the industry with a highly saleable dose of excess and glamour. ABC Performing
Behind the doors of school children's bedrooms, posters of the band in their gold lame suits fronted by lead singer, Martin Fry with his blonde quiff haircut, looked down over teenagers lip-synching the words "Shoot that poison arrow through my h-h-heart." Perfect pop.
In just nine short months ABC had become a household name. After The Lexicon Of Love album was released (in the summer of 1982) the band embarked on an extensive national then international tour covering America, Europe and Japan. he road to success was, it seemed, as simple as their name had suggested.
But ABC were not a band bound by one style and if The Lexicon Of Love album can be accused of bathing in an escapist Hollywood romance with Fry as its matinee idol, then Beauty Stab can equally be regarded as its realist antidote.
"Our lives had changed dramatically," says Martin Fry, "We must have played over a hundred dates on the tour and after all the fame and attention we were ready to crash. By the end of it all, I felt like the gold lame suit was wearing me rather than the other way round. When we returned to Sheffield (the band's home town) it looked desolate, nothing had changed."
Writing new material began immediately and, after all the attention, the band kept a creative distance from both expectant fans and a supportive record company. "We were really insular, a behind-closed-doors kind of attitude". ABC were also in a state of flux. Mark Lickley had left the group before the tour and now drummer, Dave Palmer, surprised everybody by deciding, on the band's final gig in Japan, to stay in Tokyo to work with the Yellow Magic Orchestra. In their places came bass player, Alan Spenner who had played with Joe Cocker and drummer, Andy Newmark who had worked with Sly and the Family Stone. Both had impressed the band members on Roxy Music's hugely successful Avalon album.
If the pace had been fast on tour then it could never have eased. Within three intensive months the album was written and ready to record. The original intention had been for Trevor Horn who had so successfully helped craft The Lexicon Of Love album to produce and, after hearing a couple of demos, he'd agreed. However, other commitments prevented him from joining the team and instead, relative newcomer, Gary Langan, who was to go on to have great success with ZTT Records, took over the helm.
Many regard Langan's production as key to the new sound on Beauty Stab, but the intentions of the band played the greater role. Fry: "None of us wanted to make The Lexicon Of Love Part 2. We wanted to be more real, like a rock band. At the same time we were angry, so most of the tracks are like protest songs, reflecting how we felt about the North of England. It felt right to use loud electric guitars. We wanted it to sound like a hurricane, much more hard-edged and manic."
Martin FryTo be sure, that's what they created in Beauty Stab. A raw, energetic, live-in-the-studio sound that at times makes for uncomfortable listening. Even the title alludes to killing off their glamour image in order to go in the opposite direction. The anthem of the album (and their first single released from it in November 1983) That Was Then But This Is Now, is a powerful statement of intention with Fry's opening lyric marking the declaration of the band's break from their old image, "Why make the past your sacred cow?"
Yet, for all those Lexicon of Love fans there are still many goodies to be found in Beauty Stab. The call for change may be strong in That Was Then, but a sense of play is still evident; "Can't complain, mustn't grumble, help yourself to another piece of apple crumble" parallels The North's typical response in crisis to say never mind, have a cup of tea. Fry is a clever lyric writer that pulls you in but never engages his listener in dialectics.
The tracks The Power Of Persuasion and King Money can, for instance, be seen as prelude to the onslaught of Thatcher's consumerist Britain. The first is a comment on the advertising industry and the second a song about greed. But these were written for more personal reasons. The Power Of Persuasion was a reaction against all that Lexicon Of Love had represented together with Fry's observations of television. King Money, on the other hand, marks the huge chasm that had distanced the band from their community. Says Fry: "Even though we had made it from the dole to pop stars we could see the difference between London and Sheffield. They were hard times in Sheffield and I guess there's some guilt in that song too."
ABC drew a stronger influence from punk and rock and this, together with the fractured and disjointed feel, not only of the album but also within the arrangements of songs such as Love Is A Dangerous Language and Bite The Hand, give Beauty Stab it's great sense of immediacy. But there is also the feeling that the album is rough and ready, unfinished and raw.
The heavier rock style, together with the band's new message meant a change of style. Out went the gloss and glamour and in came crop haircuts and leather. The reaction from the music press to the new tougher style was mixed. In an article for New Musical Express called "Wrong Train From Tuxedo Junction" Julie Burchill criticised ABC's rockier tracks as "terrifyingly naïve little thrash ups" while Rolling Stone magazine had them "floundering in heavy metal clichés." Some of the fans were disappointed too. The first single, That Was Then But This Is Now, had made No.18 in the charts before falling back and now, Beauty Stab which had attained the very respectable position of No.12 in its first week of release was doing the same.
By January 1984 the record company was setting up another series of interviews with the teenage press for the release of the second and only other single from the album, S.O.S. which, interestingly, is a softer piece with Fry's voice charmingly floating across a keyboard-led melody and including Stephen Singleton's soaring saxophone break. Despite the possible pandering to popularity on behalf of the record company, S.O.S. managed only a week in the Top 40 (reaching No.39).
If the press and the fans couldn't accept the change from glamour and escapism to protest and realism then, equally, ABC never sought for success measured by hit singles. And although largely an album that is abrasive and energised it would be wrong to pass over the quieter and more personal numbers. If I Ever Thought You'd Be Lonely and By Default, By Design are both concerned with the need for love, the latter backed with a superb string arrangement. The final track too, United Kingdom, though based around the job crisis in the country is a relaxed solo to piano, Fry's voice is strong yet soothing which may, in part, be due to the fact that it was recorded with minimal crew at four o'clock in the morning.
In fact it would be fair to say that Beauty Stab earned ABC a whole range of new fans who hadn't taken to The Lexicon Of Love, including recognition from a variety of professional musicians. The Eurythmics were said to have used it regularly to test their sound systems and the title track, an instrumental, became the theme to the 1984 Montreux Jazz Festival.
Ultimately, Beauty Stab should be seen as a brave and honest snapshot of where the band were and what mattered to Martin Fry, Stephen Singleton and Mark White in the days following the tremendous success of their world tour. It represents an individual, positive and creative ability not just to take the courage to move away from a previous and known successful formula but to explore a wide new range of sounds and expressions not as immediately accessible as those before. As Martin Fry told the music press in November 1983, "Beauty Stab is a series of observations, a collection that documents Right Now. It's also a record that perhaps benefits from being heard a few times"
Andy Simmons, July 1997. With thanks to Martin Fry.
(Printed) Article :
'Beauty Stab' is an important record in the career of ABC. After the immense success of 'The Lexicon Of Love' many people wondered how ABC was going to follow up to that album. The answer came quickly: with a startling masterpiece, a complete failure, a dramatic change in style, an artistic progression and a record that was completely ABC. 'Beauty Stab' was all that and more.
Line up with saxes'Beauty Stab' proved ABC were in this game for real. They were not willing to bring out sequel after sequel of easily marketable product, 'The Lexicon Of Love' - Parts two, three and four. These were musicians hungry to experiment. The first line uttered by Martin Fry on the album was "Why make the past your sacred cow?". They were willing to do everything to both make great records and explore new territories. On 'Beauty Stab' ABC extended and left behind what they had done on 'The Lexicon Of Love'. It was a record that would prove to be crucial to the group's future.
'The Lexicon Of Love' had been one of the best debut albums ever, debuting at number one in the UK album chart and spawning three top six hit singles. The music was melodramatic, lush, soulful and romantic and it was a record significantly different from the then current trends. The tracks were timeless and even today it still sound fresh and undated. The album had been recorded by the talented singer/lyricist Martin Fry who had worked with what was to become the nucleus of The Art Of Noise including Trevor Horn. The other band members had been somewhat anonymous on the record but things were to change soon.
After 'The Lexicon Of Love' ABC had embarked on a world tour where they performed as a sixteen piece band. The question was raised "who was ABC?" The answer came with 'Beauty Stab'. Martin Fry, Mark White and Stephen Singleton went into the studio with a rhythm section consisting of Andy Newmark and Alan Spenner who had previously worked with Roxy Music. Helped by producer Gary Langan (They had asked Trevor Horn to produce again but he was occupied working on a Yes record) here was a band at work. Not longer was it a project involving skilled guest musicians to put together epic pieces of music but a real band aiming for a stripped down guitar based sound. Working tirelessly hard on their songs it was a band trying to create perfect songs, sometimes succeeding, sometimes not. The end result was stunning: less polished but more varied then 'The Lexicon Of Love' this was a record displaying ABC in every aspect, both pretty and ugly. The vocals and lyrics of Martin Fry, the poignant guitar hooks of Mark White, the squealing sax of Stephen Singleton all added up to a record miles away, both sonically and conceptually from the debut offering. Touring had obviously broadened ABC's perspectives and this album reflected those experiences.
It was on this record that some of the axioms which were to become so characteristic of ABC became apparent. Axiom one: "Although there is no strict formula to any one thing we do, we sort of rebel against the last record we made" Martin Fry said in 1991 when asked about the essence of ABC. "With 'Beauty Stab', rightly or wrongly, we fought hard against making 'The Lexicon Of Love Part Two'. Maybe one day we'll make the sequel, but at the time we felt we had to move on." From then on ABC would regularly change it direction but remain it's own unique style. From 'Beauty Stab' to 'How To Be A Zillionaire' to 'Up', 'Abracadabra' and 'Skyscraping'.
It is here that another pillar behind ABC is revealed: "We've always seen change as stability, change as strength." Apart from that ABC always wanted to create something worthy, something precious. Records with a heart, records with a sense of timelessness, records with style. "We want to do something that doesn't waste people's time, something that is worth the price of admission." On 'Beauty Stab' these values amalgamated into stylistic leaps that dared fans to follow. It would not be the last time.
What struck me at the time was the diversity of the songs. The hit single 'That Was Then But This Is Now' announced the stylistic change and included one of Fry's best remembered lines: "Can't complain mustn't grumble. Help yourself to another piece of apple. Crumble". There were pure pop songs such as 'S.O.S.' and 'King Money'. There was the relentless energy and power of 'Hey Citizen' and 'The Power Of Persuasion'. The inauspicious 'Bite The Hand' reflected the dark side of ABC and 'United Kingdom', with its social realism showed how ABC could make a song sober enough to fit it's content. Compare the funny, bright and danceable 'Unzip' to 'By Default By Design' with its minimal accompaniment which sees Martin's voice to the full. Not satisfied yet? Listen to the curious 'If I Ever Thought You'd Be Lonely', one of their most beautiful songs ever and the raw but melodic 'Love's A Dangerous Language'.
This set is a fantastic collection. An important chapter in the history of one of the best bands England ever produced. It might take some time to really get into these songs and learn to appreciate them but once you do this record will be a faithful friend forever.
Melvin Welters. Thanks to David Richards. June 1997. An shortened version of this article was published in the booklet for the reissue of Beauty Stab.
