The Great 80s

Culture Club

Culture Club is a Grammy Award-winning British pop group that formed in the early 1980s. The band consisted of Boy George (lead vocals), Mikey Craig (bass guitar), Roy Hay (guitar and keyboards), and Jon Moss (drums and percussion). From the time of the band's first album release in 1982 to its dissolution in 1986, Culture Club had amassed hits in several countries around the world, including ten Top Forty hits in the US, most of which went Top Ten. They went on to have subsequent hits in the UK during a reunion period of 1998-2002, where they scored a #4 single and a #25 single. Culture Club has sold approximately 22 million albums worldwide.

In 1981, Boy George occasionally sang with the group Bow Wow Wow under the stage name "Lieutenant Lush". However, his popularity in this role caused friction with the group's actual lead singer Annabella Lwin. After his tenure with the group, George decided to start his own band and enlisted Mikey Craig. Next came Jon Moss, and finally Roy Hay. The group recorded demos, which were paid for by EMI Records, but the label was unimpressed and decided not to sign the group. Virgin Records heard the demos and signed the group in the UK, and Epic Records signed them in the US as Virgin did not have a U.S. presence at the time.

Their first album, Kissing to Be Clever (UK #5, US #14) (1982), saw the release of their first single "White Boy". Although the song failed to reach the US or UK Top 100, George was still happy because "5000 people bought my song and didn't even know me." The next single "I'm Afraid of Me" also failed at radio. But it was with the release of their third single "Do You Really Want to Hurt Me", a reggae-influenced number, that the group scored one of its biggest hits. The song went to #1 in the UK in late 1982 and became an international smash, peaking at #1 in over a dozen countries (#2 US). With George's eccentric and androgynous look and long hair, the band's debut on Top of the Pops caused headlines such as "Wally of the week" and "Mr. (or is it Mrs.?) Weird" as the tabloids and magazines plastered him all over their covers. Pete Burns, lead singer of the pop/new wave band Dead or Alive would later claim he was the first to wear braids, big hats, and colorful costumes, but George would cut back with a sharp-tongued remark, "It's not who did it first, it's who did it better".

The follow-up single "Time (Clock of the Heart)", featuring George's soulful vocals over an R&B groove, became another Top 10 hit in the US (#2) and UK (#3). "I'll Tumble 4 Ya" also became a Top Ten hit in the US (#9) and in Canada. This made Culture Club the first group since The Beatles to have three Top Ten hits from a debut album in America. Kissing to Be Clever sold over two million copies in the US, and another three million worldwide at the time of its release, propelling George to international stardom.

In 1984, the group released its third album, Waking Up with the House on Fire (UK #2, US #26). It was a commercial and critical disappointment compared to their first two releases. "Waking Up..." sold two million copies worldwide upon its release, selling just under one million copies in America and going gold. The album had one hit single in "The War Song", which went top ten and top twenty in the UK and US, respectively. Other singles like "Mistake No. 3" (US #33) and "The Medal Song" (UK #32) would become modest hits. George later stated he felt the album experienced a lukewarm reception because of half-hearted material he felt they released due to pressure from Virgin and Epic to quickly release a follow-up to Colour By Numbers. According to him, the band had just come off a world tour in 1984 and, as a result, the fatigue ended up coming off on the album.

At the end of 1984, Boy George was recruited by Bob Geldof to attend the Band Aid recording, consisting of mostly internationally-known UK and Irish recording stars. George was in New York City when Geldof called him, but managed to catch the final Concorde of the day to London and was the last singer to record a lead vocal track for the song "Do They Know It's Christmas". The song would eventually become an international hit, raising millions for famine victims in Africa.

George had been abusing drugs for several years and by 1986 he became seriously addicted to cocaine, which then evolved into a heroin addiction. As a result, the band continued to lose its place musically. The recording of their fourth studio album, 1986's From Luxury to Heartache (UK #10, US #32) dragged on for so long that producer Arif Mardin had to abandon the sessions due to prior commitments and leave it to engineer Lew Hahn to record the final vocals. Songs like "Gusto Blusto" and "Reasons" took days for the addicted singer to finish. Nevertheless, the first single "Move Away" became a hit, peaking at UK #7 and US #12, and the album seemed capable of returning Culture Club back to hit-making status. However, George and Jon could no longer be around each other due to constant relationship battles and, coupled with George's drug problem, a forthcoming American tour had to be canceled. By the time of the release of the second single "God Thank You Woman", news of George's drug addiction began to circulate in British and American tabloids, which were denied by the singer, and the second single stalled on the charts. From Luxury to Heartache began to fade from the charts as well and the album eventually sold fewer than one million copies worldwide. By the summer of 1986, George admitted that he was indeed addicted to drugs. In July, he was arrested by the British police for possession of cannabis. The band broke up and George pursued a solo career with several European hits and a couple of US Top 40 hits. George would continue to struggle with his drug addiction for several years.

Wikipedia contributors. Culture Club. Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. May 5, 2009, 23:46 UTC. Available at: http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Culture_Club&oldid=288161611. Accessed May 6, 2009.