"Pretty in Pink" '81 Version vs. '86 Version

[A-Bone]

I was in a band that covered that back in 87. One night while playing it who of all people was in the crowd right in front of me? Ian Mculloch from Echo and The Bunnymen.

Was that the year New Order and Echo and the Bunnymen toured as co-headliners with Gene Loves Jezebel?

 

[Noise Under The Floor]

There are days when that 80s music really works. It was distinctive. Some of it is a bit slept upon like mid period records by The Damned

Always nice to see my all time favorite band mentioned, and appreciated, on TGP by someone other than myself.

 

[fretless]

Was that the year New Order and Echo and the Bunnymen toured as co-headliners with Gene Loves Jezebel?

Yeah it was. The Bunnymen played some in between shows as the headliner sans New Order and GLJ and happened to be in town that night (they played here the next night by themselves then played with the full tour lineup a few nights later in D.C. I asked Ian Mculloch why Gene Loves Jezebel at least wasn't playing the one off dates with them. His answer - "They ran out of hair dye".

 

[A-Bone]

Yeah it was. The Bunnymen played some in between shows as the headliner sans New Order and GLJ and happened to be in town that night (they played here the next night by themselves then played with the full tour lineup a few nights later in D.C. I asked Ian Mculloch why Gene Loves Jezebel at least wasn't playing the one off dates with them. His answer - "They ran out of hair dye".

Haha!

 

[Noise Under The Floor]

I have to admit, I never realized that there were two vastly different versions of the song. I only knew the original 81 version and never listened to the soundtrack and honestly never cared much for the film. More of a Breakfast Club fan.

 

[uab9253]

Damn I remember the band and saw the movie but didn't remember them being in it.

I do remember I thought the bass player was the best looking one in the band though.

They were credited under a different name but it was 3 of the 4 of them. They sang "Computer Madness" lol - it was terrible. It was only years later that I realize who it was!

 

[evanjackson]

To the OP I like the 81 version better as do most it seems.

First time I heard of the Furs was a video from this live performance - I admit I wasn't quite sure what to make of their musical mix with Butler sitting down smoking in a trench coat - but it was certainly memorable. I admit among my high school friends at the time Mirror Moves was a very influential record and several of our HS bands covered Ghost in You, President Gas, etc... including my own, albeit a somewhat different interpretation...



As for 80s bands in movies The Plimsouls were the one that I immediately recalled.

And I have to give props to the late great Tommy Keene for his cameo in the otherwise dreadful Out of Bounds, playing one of his best songs actually "Run Now" (which was edited for the soundtrack - the significantly better and longer version appeared on his EP of the same name and on various retrospectives - which include his guitar solo/outro).



Here is the full length studio version - just about power pop perfection to my ears... dang I miss him.

Cheers to Tommy Keene for not even missing a beat of his solo as Anthony Micheal Hall and his girlfriend are chased by a gun wielding maniac right in front of him on stage.

 

[HesNot]

Cheers to Tommy Keene for not even missing a beat of his solo as Anthony Micheal Hall and his girlfriend are chased by a gun wielding maniac right in front of him on stage.

Ha! Talk about a pro right!?

 

[cugel]

81 all the way
Richard Butler is a great vocalist, totally unique sound.

 

[MrSteve]

That sounds right. At least her sister dated a member of The Rave-Ups, which were a real band (if not an all time great band).

Not sure about the other band, but she pushed hard to have the Rave Ups included as she was a huge fan.

 

[MrSteve]

The entire first album is fantastic -- one of my favorites of the decade. "Fall" is my favorite track:



I was the only kid in my group who liked the Psychedelic Furs more than The Clash, you know, "the only band that matters." To my ears the Furs have aged better.

Plus the Clash drank iced tea out of Jack Daniels bottles on stage.

 

[Fatherflot]

Plus the Clash drank iced tea out of Jack Daniels bottles on stage.

Ha!

I saw the Furs around '83 at the Capital Theater in Passaic, NJ and Butler had a beer in his hand the entire show. And believe me, it wasn't the same one.

 

[superdave2001]

Then there's this atrocity....



Nik Kershaw's original version was infinitely superior.

Disagree with this one. I think the remastered version is a bit more melodic, you can hear the instruments better AND the vocals. I feel it's more cohesive and gelled than the original - which seemed like a hodgepodge of ideas thrown together and not mixed as well.

Cheesier....yes. But to me, better. Pretty In Pink?....... original, no question.

 

[funkapus]

81 all the way, although I'll admit I don't hate the 86 version.
A great song is a great song...

Just found this thread. This is the way that I feel. I've always been aware of both recordings, and always liked both, because the song is just a really good song. But the original recording is head and shoulders above the re-recording. The re-recording is too slick to be a classic like the original was.

 

[lousyatit]

The band that I played in during the eighties covered PIP, I always enjoyed playing it.

 

[Raygun Gothic]

Disagree with this one. I think the remastered version is a bit more melodic, you can hear the instruments better AND the vocals. I feel it's more cohesive and gelled than the original - which seemed like a hodgepodge of ideas thrown together and not mixed as well.

Cheesier....yes. But to me, better. Pretty In Pink?....... original, no question.

That's not the issue. The issue is that the movie version was a badly done cover by another band. Nik Kershaw wrote and recorded the original, which is IMO vastly superior.

 

[Lost_Cause]

Don't know if I'm the only one, but the 86 version sounds like such a different song, plus the compression and crappy sound is inherent to YouTube so....

The 86 version sounds like it could have come off of The Replacements Don't Tell a Soul. It has a completely different vibe. I do not dislike it.

 

[mnf67]

And better yet Rodney says "F#ck you!" to Vonnegut.

For some reason that movie holds a special place in my heart. Call me crazy but I think it's actually held up. Maybe it's my prejudice speaking? Dangerfield makes it memorable. A good friend of mine feels the same way. We can drive down the road and run through scene after scene word for word all on memory. Not sure if I should be proud or ashamed.

The "triple Lindy" is part of my kids' vocabulary because I always use it to describe an extreme version of something.

Also, "lets go out sometime when you . . . have no class."

 

[mnf67]

My favorite Furs song- this brings back post-football game Friday night dances my Freshman year of High School.

 

[Fatherflot]

Update.

Found a pretty complete article on the song here:

http://popdose.com/whats-that-supposed-to-mean-the-psychedelic-furs-pretty-in-pink/

It includes Butler's own thoughts about the lyric, John Hughes' total failure to understand what the song was saying, etc. It also has a fascinating quote from Tim Butler to the effect that when they were asked to re-record the song, the stated rationale was that there was an out of tune guitar on the original track