"The Word Girl" is a song by the British pop band Scritti Politti. Included on their second studio album, Cupid & Psyche 85, the reggae style track was released as a single in the UK on 29 April 1985[4] and remains the band's highest charting hit in the UK, peaking at No. 6 on the UK Singles Chart.[5] The music video was directed by John Scarlett-Davis and produced by Nick Verden at Aldabra Films for Virgin Records.
| "The Word Girl" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Single by Scritti Politti | ||||
| from the album Cupid & Psyche 85 | ||||
| B-side | "Flesh & Blood" | |||
| Released | 29 April 1985 (UK) | |||
| Recorded | December 1984 | |||
| Genre | ||||
| Label | Virgin (UK) | |||
| Songwriter(s) | ||||
| Producer(s) | Scritti Politti | |||
| Scritti Politti singles chronology | ||||
| ||||
| Music video | ||||
| "The Word Girl" on YouTube | ||||
The B-side to the single, "Flesh & Blood", is an alternative version of the song with Lovers Rock and Conscious Roots Reggae chanter Ranking Ann on vocals.
Critical reception
editSpin called it a "bubbling reggae ditty. Sort of like Bryan Ferry, only infinitely more sophisticated."[3]
Chart performance
edit| Chart (1985) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Australia (Kent Music Report)[6][7] | 70 |
| Netherlands (Single Top 100)[8] | 18 |
| New Zealand (Recorded Music NZ)[9] | 18 |
| UK Singles Chart[5] | 6 |
References
edit- ^ Lewis, John (2016). "Scritti Politti - Cupid And Psyche 85". In Dimery, Robert (ed.). 1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die. London: Cassell Illustrated. p. 543.
- ^ Reynolds, Simon (January 1, 2005). "New Gold Dreams 81-82-83-84: The Peak and Fall of New Pop". Rip It Up and Start Again: Postpunk 1978-1984. Faber & Faber. p. 418. ISBN 0-571-21570-X. Retrieved 18 December 2024.
- ^ a b Richard Gehr (September 1985). "Spins". Spin. No. 5. p. 29.
- ^ Melody Maker. London, England: IPC Media: 4. 27 April 1985.
{{cite journal}}: Missing or empty|title=(help) - ^ a b "Official Charts - Scritti Politti". officialcharts.com. Retrieved 1 October 2017.
- ^ Kent, David (1993). Australian Chart Book 1970–1992 (illustrated ed.). St Ives, N.S.W.: Australian Chart Book. p. 267. ISBN 0-646-11917-6.
- ^ "Forum – ARIA Charts: Special Occasion Charts – 1985". Australian-charts.com. Hung Medien. Retrieved 1 October 2017.
- ^ "dutchcharts.nl". Hung Medien. Retrieved 1 October 2017.
- ^ "NZ chart archive". Retrieved 1 October 2017.
External links
edit- "The Word Girl" at Discogs (list of releases)
 | This 1980s pop song-related article is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it. |