''Cheapness and Beauty'' is the fifth

studio album An album is a collection of audio recordings issued on compact disc (CD), Phonograph record, vinyl, audio tape, or another medium such as Digital distribution#Music, digital distribution. Albums of recorded sound were developed in the early ...

Boy George George Alan O'Dowd (born 14 June 1961), known professionally as Boy George, is an English singer, songwriter, DJ, author and mixed media artist. Best known for his soulful voice and his androgynous appearance, Boy George has been the lead singe ...

, released in 1995. It peaked at number 44 on the

UK Albums Chart The Official Albums Chart is a list of albums ranked by physical and digital sales and (from March 2015) audio streaming in the United Kingdom. It was published for the first time on 22 July 1956 and is compiled every week by the Official Charts C ...

Background

Having scored his biggest solo success in the US and Canada with the theme song for the movie ''

The Crying Game ''The Crying Game'' is a 1992 thriller film written and directed by Neil Jordan, produced by Stephen Woolley, and starring Stephen Rea, Miranda Richardson, Jaye Davidson, Adrian Dunbar, Ralph Brown, and Forest Whitaker. The film explores the ...

'' in 1992, George decided to move away from an electronic sound and record some rock-oriented tracks with a glam-rock edge. One of the reasons he cited for this move was revisiting his teenage years while writing his autobiography, '' Take It Like a Man'', which was released around the same time as the album.Boy George with Spencer Bright (1995), ''Take It Like A Man'',

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

, Sidgwick & Jackson The album also marked the first time in which George didn't hide his gay sexuality in the lyrics. The tracks "Genocide Peroxide" and "Il Adore" were both later featured in the musical ''

Taboo A taboo or tabu is a social group's ban, prohibition, or avoidance of something (usually an utterance or behavior) based on the group's sense that it is excessively repulsive, sacred, or allowed only for certain persons.''Encyclopædia Britannica ...

''.

Singles

The album opens with a

cover version In popular music, a cover version, cover song, remake, revival, or simply cover, is a new performance or recording by a musician other than the original performer or composer of the song. Originally, it referred to a version of a song release ...

Iggy Pop James Newell Osterberg Jr. (born April 21, 1947), known professionally as Iggy Pop, is an American singer, musician, songwriter and actor. Called the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, Godfather of Punk", he was the vocalist and lyricist of ...

's " Funtime", which was released as a single and reached number 45 in the

UK Singles Chart The UK Singles Chart (currently titled Official Singles Chart, with the upper section more commonly known as the Official UK Top 40) is compiled by the Official Charts Company (OCC), on behalf of the British record industry, listing the top-s ...

. Another single was the ballad "Il Adore" which peaked at number 50, and "Same Thing in Reverse", which reached number 56 in the UK and number 28 on the US ''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertise ...

'' Dance Charts.

Track listing

All tracks composed by George O'Dowd (Boy George) and

John Themis John Themis is an Australian-born musician, songwriter and record producer, best known for his long-term work with Boy George and Culture Club, collaborating on many of their songs and albums since the 1990s. He also worked on ''Taboo'', a music ...

; except where indicated # " Funtime" – 3:05 (

David Bowie David Robert Jones (8 January 194710 January 2016), known professionally as David Bowie ( ), was an English singer-songwriter and actor. A leading figure in the music industry, he is regarded as one of the most influential musicians of the ...

) # "Satan's Butterfly Ball" – 3:03 # "Sad" – 3:52 # "God Don't Hold a Grudge" – 2:49 # "Genocide Peroxide" – 3:44 # "If I Could Fly" – 4:04 # "Same Thing in Reverse" – 3:33 # "Cheapness and Beauty" – 3:59 # "Evil Is So Civilised" – 3:32 # "Your Love Is What I Am" – 4:12 # "Blindman" – 4:42 # "Unfinished Business" – 3:33 # "Il Adore" – 6:12

Personnel

– lead vocals *

– guitar, vocals and musical director * Winston Blisset – bass guitar * Tansay Ibrahim – drums * Mike Timothy – keyboards * Lady Zee, Linda Duggan, Stefan Frank – other vocals *

Luís Jardim Luís Alberto Figueira Gonçalves Jardim (born 4 July 1950) is a Portuguese percussionist, born in the Madeira Island, best known for his work with producer Trevor Horn. Family Jardim is a cousin of Alberto João Jardim (former president of the ...

– ethnic percussion on track 11 * Hossam Ramzy – mandolin * Martin Bell – extra drums * Uli Webber – cover picture * Jessica Corcoran – production * John Themis – production on tracks 5, 6 and 13

Charts

Weekly charts

References

External links

* Review at AllMusic {{Authority control 1995 albums Boy George albums Virgin Records albums