ABC

Beauty Stab

ABC's Beauty Stab: A misunderstood gem

Review Score:

(8/10)
One of the most misunderstood albums of the eighties, "Beauty Stab", ABC's 1983 follow-up to their multi-platinum debut, "The Lexicon of Love," so thoroughly alienated the band's core audience and was so reviled by critics that it nearly annihilated their career.

Which is why open-minded fans of 80s-era pop may be pleasantly suprised to find that this critical and commercial disaster is actually a great album. With a new sound and a new social conscience, the band seemed intent on defining a different direction with its very first track. Its title, "That Was Then, But This Is Now" could be taken as a bold statement that this was no longer your little sister's ABC.

Other tracks like "Power of Persuasion" and "Hey Citizen!" feature a tough, guitar-driven style that blends arena rock theatrics seamlessly with singer-lyricist Martin Fry's voice and quirky songcraft. Ballads like "If I Ever Thought You'd Be Lonely" and "By Default By Design" stay true to Fry's romantic streak but show a more mature approach to matters of the heart than anything on ABC's first album.

But in the end, it was this radical new sound and lyrical focus beyond L.O.V.E. that sent this album to record store bargain bins across the globe. Many potential fans who remembered the band's gold lame' suits, pancake makeup, and faux soul-disco sound had already written them off. Meawhile, it's core audience, which consisted largely of teenage girls, apparently didn't know what to make of their new sound. They likely felt betrayed that they weren't treated to "Lexicon of Love, Part II."

Let's face it, pop music fans may like evolution in their favorite bands but usually they don't want it overnight. For example, if John, Paul, George, and Ringo had released "Sgt. Pepper" right after "Meet the Beatles" the world probably would have just scratched its collective head and wondered what the Fab Four had been smoking.

I'm not saying that "Beauty Stab" is ABC's "Sgt. Pepper." But is it a damn fine pop-rock album?

You bet.

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