Synth-Pop Britannia

Something to keep you entertained (hopefully) while I work on adding Synth Britannia artists and albums to the list above. Whoever heard of a 10-minute single? Well, here it is. 

                  1986: A-ha - Scoundrel Days

  1991: A-ha - Headlines & Deadlines: The Hits of A-ha

                  2002: A-ha - Lifelines

                  1986: Berlin - Count Three & Pray

  1990: China Crisis - Collection: The Very Best of China Crisis                 

                  1983: Depeche Mode - Construction Time Again

  1985: Depeche Mode - The Singles 81>85

                  1990: Depeche Mode - Violator

                  1997: Depeche Mode - Ultra

  2005: Depeche Mode - Playing the Angel

  1998: Duran Duran - Greatest

  2004: Duran Duran - Astronaut

                  1983: Eurythmics - Sweet Dreams (Are Made of This)

                  1983: Eurythmics - Touch 

                  1987: Eurythmics - Savage

                  1989: Eurythmics - We Too Are One 

  1991: Eurythmics - Greatest Hits

                  1999: Eurythmics - Peace

  1993: Flock of Seagulls - The Best of

                  2000: Goldfrapp - Felt Mountain

                  2003: Goldfrapp - Black Cherry

                  2005: Goldfrapp - Supernature

                  2008: Goldfrapp - Seventh Tree

                  2010: Goldfrapp - Head First

                  2013: Goldfrapp - Tales of Us

                  1995: The Human League - Octopus

  1995: The Human League - Greatest Hits

                  2010: Hurts - Happiness

                  2013: Hurts - Exile

  2006: Japan - The Very Best of Japan

  1994: Jon & Vangelis - Chronicles 

                  2007: Maps - We Can Create

                  1991: OMD - Sugar Tax

                  1996: OMD - Universal

  2008: OMD - Messages: Greatest Hits

                  2017: OMD - The Punishment of Luxury                 

  1985: Propaganda - A Secret Wish

                  2001: Royksopp - Melody A.M.

                  2005: Royksopp - The Understanding

  2000: Spandau Ballet - Gold: The Best of Spandau Ballet

  1988: Talk Talk - Spirit of Eden

  1990: Talk Talk - Natural History: The Very Best of Talk Talk

                  1983: Tears for Fears - The Hurting

                  1985: Tears for Fears - Songs from the Big Chair

  1989: Tears for Fears - The Seeds of Love

  1992: Tears for Fears - Tears Roll Down (Greatest Hits 82-92)

                  1993: Tears for Fears - Elemental

                  1995: Tears for Fears - Raoul and the Kings of Spain

                  2004: Tears for Fears - Everybody Loves a Happy Ending

  1996: Thompson Twins - Singles Collection

  1993: Ultravox - If I Was: The Very Best of Midge Ure & Ultravox    

                  2014: Visage - Orchestral

  1982: Yazoo - Upstairs at Eric's

Album links and ratings to follow.....

Signed to the 'Mute' label (Depeche Mode,Erasure) by Daniel Miller.

^ I certainly would think so, Synth Pop and Synth Punk.  Of course some albums and songs could be considered more appropriate than others.

This is great, imo.

One I need to check out more.

^ Then it's not available in your region.  It's "Wheels of Fortune" off Fad Gadget's Under the Flag.  I might try to edit in another embed.

A more modern one to mention that I really like but might not be so much to your tastes, Paul, is Linea Aspera.

ABC       The first band on the A to Z list and the second most famous Synth-Pop band from the cosmopolitan city of Sheffield. Martin Fry & co. have been entertaining us now for over forty years with their sophisticated, highly danceable tunes, although I strongly suspect the only ABC album anyone remembers these days is their magnificent debut: The Lexicon of Love - an album I love with All of My Heart. If you can Show Me a better UK Synth-Pop debut than The Lexicon of Love, then you can shoot that Poison Arrow through my heart. 

Harry Enfield's Yorkshireman knows all about sophistication. He's been to Leeds! 

Out of all the artists named here i think that Gary Numan is one who is still consistently putting out high quality stuff.

I know it's probably next to impossible to name everyone, however I do wonder where two of my favourite bands of that era fit in: Cabaret Voltaire and Shriekback.

I would also like to mention a one-off album by a group who named themselves Gardening by Moonlight. They only made one album but it's a cracker:

ABC's largely forgotten second album, which has been called "the greatest career sabotage in pop music history", but it's really not that bad. 

The two singles released from the Beauty Stab album, the first of which includes the immortal lyric, "Can't complain, mustn't grumble, help yourself to another piece of apple crumble" - and Martin Fry wondered why the album flopped. 

S.O.S. (not the ABBA classic) 

The third ABC album, which is notable for not only including founder members Martin Fry and Mark White, but also includes two uncredited performers who made little or no musical contribution to the album, but were there merely to make up the numbers for promotional purposes. A bit like Boney M and Milli Vanilli then.