Vinyl Icons

Original Vinyl
As piled-high, sold-cheap vinyl releases from this era go, the first physical incarnations of Lexicon Of Love presented the band’s Technicolor vision impressively on black plastic [Neutron NTRS1].Some listeners have found that the latter tracks on each side begin to suffer in quality on the original 1982 pressings, but on the whole it still stands up handsomely. What’s more, it can be picked up in decent nick for only a few quid.

Original CD Release
Appearing in 1983, it’s perhaps no surprise it was one of the earliest mainstream pop albums to see the light of day on a shiny silver-backed platter [Mercury 810 003-2, pictured below] as the LP was still selling well by the time major labels began to ramp up CD manufacturing in the early 1980s. The limited run of discs it was afforded has rendered it a rarity for CD collectors (£80 or more for a mint copy). However, to be fair it doesn’t have a lot to recommend investment thanks to pretty flat in-house remastering. One dissatisfied punter has since called it ‘the first CD release that sold me on the fact that CDs did not always sound better than vinyl’.

Deluxe Reissues
In 1996 The Lexicon Of Love was repackaged [Neutron/Mercury 514 942-2] with six extra tracks and a Roger Wake remastering job that is punchy but hardly subtle – the softly symphonic opening on ‘Show Me’ no longer creeps slowly out of the speakers, for instance. Of the bonus tracks, the flute-flecked ‘jazz mix’ of ‘Poison Arrow’ is an interesting, if hardly essential curio, while the inclusion of an early demo of ‘Tears Are Not Enough’ reinforces the impression that ABC were close to glory even before Trevor Horn got his hands on them. An eight-minute 12in version of their live set’s band-introduction jam ‘Alphabet Soup’, also sees our heroes venturing into full-on funk territory, though it’s a place where they never quite sit comfortably.

While the 1998 reissue only has one of the extra tracks from the 1996 version, it’s a worthwhile addition. ‘Theme From Mantrap’ makes for a beautifully noir-ish loungey piano rendition of ‘Poison Arrow’ that adds a neat coda to the album (it’s also the version you’ll find on Spotify these days). Dick Beetham’s mastering also offers more light and shade.

Want more outtakes and alternate mixes? The 31-track 2004 Deluxe Edition is your one-stop shop. And before enjoying a 1982 live show you can ponder what in the heavens possessed ABC to record ‘Into The Valley Of The Heathen Go’ – an Iron Maiden parody dashed off during the album’s demo sessions.

Of other new cuts, the demo of a Brit-funky take on ‘Show Me’ can’t really compare to the final album incarnation and an early demo track, called ‘Surrender’, is a respectable effort but nothing more than B-side material.

Audiophile Vinyl
ABC fans who remained loyal to the larger format had to wait until 2014 to enjoy a new vinyl pressing of The Lexicon Of Love, but when it finally arrived as part of Universal’s Back To Black series [Neutron 378 941-8/UMG 0602537894185] its faithful, dynamic reproduction was warmly received. Just recently, though, this has been superseded by 2023’s half-speed remaster by Miles Showell at Abbey Road Studios [Neutron NTRS401/UMC 0602445227396].

Blu-ray Audio
For those who are happy to hop between hardware, The Lexicon Of Love motherlode also arrived in shops in 2023: a 4LP plus Blu-ray disc 40th Anniversary edition of the album [Neutron NTRS40X1]. As well as including the Abbey Road half-speed master of the original LP, three discs of extras are included in a lavish package, plus two Blu-ray platters. One of these has a hi-def presentation of the Julien Temple-directed short film Mantrap and several promo videos, while the other offers four new mixes overseen by remaster maestro Steven Wilson: Dolby Atmos, plus 96kHz/24-bit stereo, DTS-HD 5.1 and instrumental versions.