"Poison Arrow" is a song by the English New Wave and pop band ABC, released as the second single from their debut

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 ...

, '' The Lexicon of Love'' (1982). It reached #6 in the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Northwestern Europe, off the coast of European mainland, the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

. In the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

, it topped off at #24 in ''

Cash Box ''Cashbox'', also known as ''Cash Box'', is an American music industry trade magazine, originally published weekly from July 1942 to November 1996. Ten years after its dissolution, it was revived and continues as ''Cashbox Magazine'', an online ...

'' and #25 in ''Billboard''. The single was released in the United Kingdom on 15 February 1982 on 7" and 12", with the same mix appearing on both formats; however a subsequent U.S. 12" remix (also known as the "Jazz Remix") appears on several ABC compilations, and as a bonus track on reissues of '' The Lexicon of Love''. An alternate, lounge music styled version of this song, entitled "Theme from ''Mantrap''", was released as the B-side of "Poison Arrow" in the United Kingdom, and " The Look of Love" in the United States. The 12" single in the United Kingdom additionally included an instrumental version of "Theme from ''Mantrap''" under the title "''Mantrap'' (The Lounge Sequence)". The band's first hit in the United Kingdom " Tears Are Not Enough" was the B-side of "Poison Arrow" in the United States.

Music video

In the

music video A music video is a video that integrates a song or an album with imagery that is produced for promotion (marketing), promotional or musical artistic purposes. Modern music videos are primarily made and used as a music marketing device intended to ...

, ABC's lead vocalist Martin Fry plays three parts: a haughty upper-class opera patron; a messenger boy at the opera; and a bandleader at a 1960s-style swinging nightspot. In all three roles, he unsuccessfully attempts to woo the leading lady, played by

Lisa Vanderpump Lisa Jane Vanderpump (born 15 September 1960) is an English television personality and actress. She initially gained fame as a main cast member on ''The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills'' from 2010 until 2019. Vanderpump parlayed her ''Housewiv ...

, later of '' The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills'' and '' Vanderpump Rules''.

Personnel

Credits sourced from ''Sound on Sound'' and the original album liner notes. ABC * Martin Fry - lead and backing vocals * Mark White - electric guitars, piano, synthesizers * Stephen Singleton - saxophone *Mark Lickley - bass guitar *David Palmer - drums, congas Additional musicians * Trevor Horn - Minimoog bass, Roland TR-808 programming, Roland MC-4 Microcomposer sequencer * J.J. Jeczalik - Fairlight CMI programming * John Thirkell - trumpet, flugelhorn *Karen Clayton - spoken voice

Chart performance

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

In popular culture

* The song was featured in an early 1983 episode of the US daytime soap opera ''

The Young and the Restless ''The Young and the Restless'' (often abbreviated as ''Y&R'') is an American television soap opera created by William J. Bell and Lee Phillip Bell for CBS. The show is set in the fictional Genoa City (named after the real-life Genoa City, Wiscon ...

''. * "Poison Arrow" was used in the 2002 video game '' Grand Theft Auto: Vice City'' on the fictional radio station Wave 103. * In February 1998, the song was featured in an episode of '' Top Gear'', in which scenes of the Vauxhall Astra is being driven, with a voice over by presenter Jeremy Clarkson. *The song was featured as the title credits song for the

BBC The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) is a British public service broadcaster headquartered at Broadcasting House in London, England. Originally established in 1922 as the British Broadcasting Company, it evolved into its current sta ...

series '' White Gold'' in the episode "The Past Does Not Equal the Future". *The song was featured in the

Nine Network Nine Network (stylised 9Network, and commonly known as Channel Nine or simply Nine) is an Australian commercial free-to-air television network. It is owned by parent company Nine Entertainment and is one of the five main free-to-air television ...

program '' Footy Classified'', where it is used to introduce the segment "Caro's Arrow". The segment involves Caroline Wilson delivering a monologue where she targets high-profile issues and personalities in the

Australian Football League The Australian Football League (AFL) is the pre-eminent professional sports, professional competition of Australian rules football. It was originally named the Victorian Football League (VFL) and was founded in 1896 as a breakaway competition ...

. This segment ended after 2024 with Wilson's departure.

References

External links

* {{Authority control 1982 songs 1982 singles ABC (band) songs Song recordings produced by Trevor Horn Songs written by Mark White (musician) Songs written by Stephen Singleton Songs written by Martin Fry Music videos directed by Julien Temple Mercury Records singles Vertigo Records singles