Songoftheday 6/14/14 - the message is perfectly simple the meaning is clear, don't ever stray too far and don't disappear...

ABC - "Be Near Me"
from the album How To Be A Zillionaire (1985)
Billboard Hot 100 peak: #9 (two weeks)
Weeks in the Top-40: 11

Today's Song of the Day comes from the British new wave group ABC, whose ultra-suave debut The Lexicon Of Love was one of the best albums of the early 80's, and scores them two big hits with "The Look Of Love" and "Poison Arrow". Drummer David Palmer left after the first record, and their second effort Beauty Stab was a complete left turn from their former sound, with a hard rock edge that turned off American fans, and the first single "That Was Then, This Is Now" stalled down in the bottom half of the pop chart. Without sonic guru Trevor Horn at the controls, and even saxophonist and original member Stephen Singleton leaving the group after Beauty Stab, it seems like they were destined to be one of those acts with one perfect album going then into oblivion.

Regrouping for their third album, remaining members Martin Fry and Mark White recruited a writer for fashion mag The Face, Fiona Russell Powell (who was briefly in the first incarnation of the band before Fry even joined), and American photographer David Yarritu. Both had no musical input on the group's work save for spoken interludes, but mimed playing toy instruments in the band's campy videos and stage act, and with Fiona (working here as "Eden") coming from the scene that included Boy George and S'Express' Mark Moore, their fashion sense was a bigger contrubution to the act.  While in Englnad the single "How To Be A Millionaire" was the first single released from the new set, in America it was the grand Brit-pop of "Be Near Me" that came out. Written and produced by Fry and White, "Be Near Me" was a refreshing tack back to new wave goodness...


ABC - Be Near Me by jpdc11

"Be Near Me" became ABC's first American top-10 pop hit in November of 1985, while sending them to the top of the Dance Club Play chart in Billboard magazine for the second time (after "The Look Of Love"). The record also crossed over to the adult contemporary radio chart at #11. As the second single in Britain, the single was a more modest hit at #26. But most importantly, the record restored their rep as worldwide music stars.

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Here's ABC miming the song for kids TV in the UK...

...next up, the "Munich Disco Mix" that topped the club charts ...

...and finally, ABC live from an appearance in Las Vegas in 2011..

Up tomorrow: A Canadian rocker goes for an evening fling.