This section of the chart from twenty down to eleven seems to have become very camp very quickly with first Eurovision, then the B52's and now Erasure, and it's another admittedly odd choice. I've got to say I'm a tad embarrassed to put Erasure so high in the chart, but how can you not love Vince Clarke in camp synth-pop mode with Andy Bell on vocals?
Vince Clarke finally settled down in Erasure after all his previous incarnations. I saw them twice in the period before they were popular and I was never in any doubts they would go on to become superstars. I'm not sure they ever reached the giddy heights of super-stardom, but at least they were popular and made a good living. Although they're still going strong, Erasure have dated badly since the heady days of the late eighties, but at the time this unlikely duo were at the cutting edge; sitting somewhere between Bronski Beat and New Order.
'Breath of Life' is the best song from the seriously under-rated Chorus LP and shows Vince at his euro-synth-pop best with Andy crooning with a passion rarely seen outside Soul music (or Eurovision). I remember listening to it on various long and boring trips down to Kent and it just about kept me going; surely Vince Clarke is headed for the 'Into the Valley' Hall of Fame sometime soon?
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