West End Girls (4:44)
86,672 listeners
322,794 plays
“West End Girls” is a song by pop duo Pet Shop Boys. It was written by Neil Tennant and Chris Lowe and was their first hit, reaching number one in the US and UK in 1986.
The lyrics were written in the early 1980s. The title and refrain refer to London’s divide between the traditional and working class East End and the cosmopolitan, consumer-driven West End.
The lyric “From Lake Geneva to the Finland Station” refers to the train route taken by Vladimir Lenin when he was smuggled by the Germans to Russia during World War I, and to Edmund Wilson’s book on the subject, To the Finland Station. There is further Russian Revolution imagery in the Bobby Orlando produced version of the single, which includes the line, “All your stopping, stalling and starting, / Who do you think you are, Joe Stalin?”; this line was removed for the 1985 version. Neil Tennant has a degree in history and his interest in Russian history is evident in many other Pet Shop Boys projects, such as their soundtrack to the silent film The Battleship Potemkin.
The single was first released in April 1984 through writer/producer Bobby Orlando’s label, and although not a hit in the United Kingdom, it was a minor dance hit in The Netherlands, Belgium, France and the USA. This initial release, on Epic in the UK, featured a mainly instrumental B-side called “Pet Shop Boys”. There have been numerous reissues and remixes of Orlando’s version as he still owns the original recordings.
The lyrics were written in the early 1980s. The title and refrain refer to London’s divide between the traditional and working class East End and the cosmopolitan, consumer-driven West End.
The lyric “From Lake Geneva to the Finland Station” refers to the train route taken by Vladimir Lenin when he was smuggled by the Germans to Russia during World War I, and to Edmund Wilson’s book on the subject, To the Finland Station. There is further Russian Revolution imagery in the Bobby Orlando produced version of the single, which includes the line, “All your stopping, stalling and starting, / Who do you think you are, Joe Stalin?”; this line was removed for the 1985 version. Neil Tennant has a degree in history and his interest in Russian history is evident in many other Pet Shop Boys projects, such as their soundtrack to the silent film The Battleship Potemkin.
The single was first released in April 1984 through writer/producer Bobby Orlando’s label, and although not a hit in the United Kingdom, it was a minor dance hit in The Netherlands, Belgium, France and the USA. This initial release, on Epic in the UK, featured a mainly instrumental B-side called “Pet Shop Boys”. There have been numerous reissues and remixes of Orlando’s version as he still owns the original recordings.
Lyrics
Sometimes you're better off dead
There's a gun in your hand it's pointing at your head
You think you're mad too unstable
Read full lyrics…
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Shouts
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rockmich wrote:
... das ist ja ewig her... :-D
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halloweenjackie wrote:
Sounds as cool as it as used to, for me. Love it <3
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Rissacakes wrote:
Reminds me of driving in the winding roads back home. :)
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Glejs wrote:
Wonderful tune from my childhood!
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78monka wrote:
Still good song.
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barsuka3 wrote:
i shutdowned :D
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weststander wrote:
Still does it for me.
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rustystake wrote:
this song is still so damn cool
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thosch71 wrote:
still their best.
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blueevelyn wrote:
A good song of morning, makes me think in a sunny and shiny day, dancing all around, starting for me
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italia1012 wrote:
Grazie Pet Shop Boys !!! Grande Musica
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fermabe wrote:
West end Girls, gran tema.
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Rubiales wrote:
Qué gran tema! Y más meritorio aun, ser la primera canción con la que se dieron a conocer.
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tie_dye_kid_454 wrote:
♫west end girls♫
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yararomeiro wrote:
: ) : ) :) =)
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antiantipizza wrote:
that synnnnnnnth!
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onewitch wrote:
A Boys Band made a cover of it, but I can't remember the name...It's a good thing I forgot it !
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obuitrago wrote:
my teen years... far away!
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amharp5 wrote:
No doubt it, this tune made it's mark around the club scene in the 80's, especially around the ville of Songtan, around Osan Air Base 40 clicks south of Seoul and and Yongsan, (용산기지) near dowtown Seoul: great place to party!
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sharwashere wrote:
what they did so well once they appeared on the scene was capture the zeitgeist. this mix of 80's airheadedness/fun/money mentality and genuine thought, things developing in strange but interesting directions. i don't think it works so well now. the old albums are best.
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Recent Activity
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