Why did Spandau Blue only have one big hit single in the USA with “True” (1983)?

Not sure about Spandau Blue, but Spandau Ballet was awesome.

I love "True," and hearing it takes me right back to the '80s. It helps that it was featured in 16 Candles.

I love "True," and hearing it takes me right back to the '80s. It helps that it was featured in 16 Candles.

r3 Déjà vu

r4, Miss Warwick has NOTHING to do with this thread.

[quote]I love "True," and hearing it takes me right back to the '80s.

Same here, it. was a wonderful time in my life, I had a great job, a hot BF and a nice apt in NYC, life was good.

Spandau Ballet. I was listening to it as I typed this and it was on the ooh ooh ooh oooooh ooooooh part and when I was a kid I used to sing it as blue blue blue blueeee blueeee and would call them Spandau Blue. It just sort of came out and I didn’t realize I typed Blue instead of Ballet lol

Yeah, no idea why that double-posted.

Except I'm R2 & 3. 🙄🫣

I actually feel sad and a bit of depression when I think of the 80s, and not because I found it depressing but because I find myself longing for the 80s or 90s again. What a time. Even those who didn’t have a lot of money could get by somehow, things just felt fun and fresh and it was truly a time to be alive. Shit now just feels… a mess.

I love Spandau Ballet, mainly because their repertoire was quite good. Gold remains my favourite song of theirs to this day.

Also, the fact that Tony Hadley, Martin Kemp and Gary Norman were gorgeous, did help.

Spandau Ballet had many great singles that never caught on in America -- "Gold", " To Cut A Long Story Short", " Only When You Leave", "Chant No.1" and "I'll Fly For You", among others. I love them, never understood why they weren't bigger here.

I know they broke up in 1990 and then got back together in 2009 for a little while. I believe some of them sued one of the others.

Underrated band for sure, OP.

And this comes from someone who generally dislikes 80s music.

80s music was all over the place and I like that the 80s brought us tons of variety, from bubblegum pop to electronic to punk rock etc.

It’s a lot different than now, where hip hop/R&B and country seem to dominate.

Why did they go by Spandau Ballet?

no dangly earring.

STEVE Norman, not Gary

I loved their videos on MTV and went out and bought their LPs as a young college student at the time: Musclebound, Instinction, Paint Me Down, Chant No. 1... lots of great stuff.

R19 I loved them also.

Steve Norman was gorgeous.

There was a great docu on them out a few years ago called “The Soul Boys of the Western World”

Needed a better name for their band.

[quote]the 80s brought us tons of variety

If you like your variety synth-flavored.

True stands out from other New Romantic hits - it’s unusually dramatic and has some odd timings that surprise the listener. I think it’s easily one of the most memorable songs of the entire genre .

[quote] True stands out from other New Romantic hits - it’s unusually dramatic and has some odd timings that surprise the listener. I think it’s easily one of the most memorable songs of the entire genre .

"True" was unique because it is SB's interpolation of American soul music. New Romantics created new wave by leaning on synths to amalgamate punk, glam rock and disco. There is no other "True" in SB's catalog even though they have many great tracks, as cited above. It was a lightning strike of brilliance.

Also, Tony Hadley had the best voice of that movement.

Thank you for coming home, sorry the chairs are all worn, I left them here, I could have sworn

These are my salad days slowly being eaten away, just another play for today

Oh, but I'm proud of you, but I'm proud of you, nothing left to make me feel small

Luck has left me standing so tall…

… Gold!

I liked Chant No 1

The story behind their name back in the day was pretty gross, but I don't know how much truth there is to it. In this day and age, I am surprised it hasn't been re-discovered and caused them to be canceled. Probably because no one remembers them.

Spandau was a Nazi prison and when people were hanged there, their jerky motions were referred to as doing the "Spandau Ballet."

I heard this back in the 80s, so it's not something new.

[quote] Spandau Ballet. I was listening to it as I typed this and it was on the ooh ooh ooh oooooh ooooooh part and when I was a kid I used to sing it as blue blue blue blueeee blueeee and would call them Spandau Blue.

I wonder if one could sing it as Dan, Dany booo-ooon. Flu Flu Flu FLUUUU Flu.

I see what you did there, R30!