''Cheapness and Beauty'' is the fifth

studio album An album is a collection of audio recordings (e.g., music) issued on a medium such as compact disc (CD), Phonograph record, vinyl (record), audio tape (like 8-track cartridge, 8-track or Cassette tape, cassette), or digital distribution, dig ...

by English singer and songwriter

Boy George George Alan O'Dowd (born 14 June 1961), known professionally as Boy George, is an English singer-songwriter and DJ who rose to fame as the lead singer of the pop band Culture Club. He began his solo career in 1987. Boy George grew up in Eltham a ...

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

UK Albums Chart The Official Albums Chart is the United Kingdom's industry-recognised national record chart for album, albums. Entries are ranked by sales and audio streaming. It was published for the first time on 22 July 1956 and is compiled every week by the O ...

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 crime thriller film, written and directed by Neil Jordan, produced by Stephen Woolley and Nik Powell, and starring Stephen Rea, Miranda Richardson, Jaye Davidson, Adrian Dunbar, Ralph Brown, and Forest Whitak ...

'' 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 city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

, 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 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, offensive, sacred or allowed only for certain people.''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, actor and radio broadcaster. He was the vocalist and lyricist of proto-punk band the Stooges, who were formed in 1 ...

's " Funtime", which was released as a single and reached number 45 in the UK Singles Chart. 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 advertis ...

'' 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 musi ...

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

David Bowie David Robert Jones (8 January 194710 January 2016), known as David Bowie ( ), was an English singer, songwriter and actor. Regarded as one of the most influential musicians of the 20th century, Bowie was acclaimed by critics and musicians, pa ...

) # "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 on the island of Madeira. He is best known for his work with producer Trevor Horn. Family Jardim is a cousin of Alberto João Jardim (former presiden ...

– 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