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Bronski Beat’s Smalltown Boy reissued for 40th anniversary

Two new physical editions

By Paul Sinclair

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55

‘Smalltown Boy’, Bronski Beat’s classic debut single from 1984, is being reissued as a CD single and a coloured vinyl seven-inch for its 40th anniversary.

The song has been reworked by London-based DJ and producer ABSOLUTE. (Ant McGinley) and the new version gets the ‘thumbs up’ from Jimmy Somerville: “ABSOLUTE. has kept a strong essence of the period and the song. The Bass 🤩…,” he said. ”I was transported back to our first times writing (banging on a Pro One and a Moog) and me realising I never had to walk around vocally imitating a sequence ever again!”

The transparent CD single of ‘Smalltown Boy’

The new CD single of ‘Smalltown Boy’ boasts a rather groovy semi-transparent design and is housed in a die-cut, numbered sleeve. It features the original 1984 edit of ‘Smalltown Boy’ alongside four new reworkings. The pink vinyl seven-inch features the edit on the A-side and the ABSOLUTE. Rework on the B-side.

Both formats are limited to 1,000 units and are available exclusively from the official Bronksi Beat shop.

The pink vinyl 7″ of ‘Smalltown Boy’

Tracklisting

Smalltown Boy Bronski Beat / 40th anniversary edition

      1. Smalltown Boy (Edit)
      2. Smalltown Boy (Reprise)
      3. Smalltown Boy (Symphonic Version)
      4. Smalltown Boy (Extended Sunset Version)
      5. Smalltown Boy (ABSOLUTE. Rework)

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55 Comments

55 thoughts on “Bronski Beat’s Smalltown Boy reissued for 40th anniversary”

  1. Bold statement but for me Smalltown Boy makes my top ten songs of the 80’s.

    #notbasedonsales

    Other contenders for this mythical top ten in no particular order; Careless Whisper, Take On Me, West End Girls, Golden Brown, This Charming Man, Billie Jean.

    What makes your top ten?

    1. Quite good choices. I would add Kiss by Prince for sure. If we go for the well known songs anyway. And First and last and always. And Award Tour.

    2. Kim Carnes/Bette Davis Eyes, Bryan Adams/Run To You, Toni Basil/Mickey, Bangles/Manic Monday, Don Henley/The Boys Of Summer, Irene Cara/Flashdance (What A Feeling), Ray Parker Jr./Ghostbusters, Robert Palmer/Addicted To Love, Men Without Hats/Safety Dance, Vapors/Turning Japanese. Those are top ten songs that are especially stuck in my head from the 80’s.

    3. Some good choices. Some of yours and Small-town Boy would make my top 10.

      So many songs. Difficult to narrow down

      I’ll add
      Howard Jones – Hide and Seek
      Midnight Oil – Beds are Burning
      Any number of frankie singles.
      Bangles – Eternal Flame
      Erasure – Ship of Fools
      Yazoo – Only You
      Thompson Twins – Love on your side.

    4. Thompson Twins – Hold Me Now
      Cyndi Lauper – Time after Time
      Bucks Fizz – Now those Days are Gone
      Animotion – Obsession
      Roxy Music – Avalon
      RE Flex – The Politics are Dancing
      Change – Change of Heart
      Pointer Sisters – Automatic
      Scritti Politti – Wood Beez
      Scandal – The Warrior (USA hit )

    5. I think Propaganda’s P: Machinery (polish) is probably the pinnacle of my beloved extended mixes (of which there are many, Kate Bush’s Big Sky, Act’s Snobbery & Decay etc)

    1. Starts off ok but too much percussion later. Would have preferred a modern but more minimalist remix. And the video editing is annoying.

  3. Fantastic piece of music. Only down side is, I was hoping for the symphonic version to be the vinyl b side.
    I still bought it.

  6. One of the seminal 80’s songs. The synth riff is still copied today in new dance songs. The cd single can nicely accompany the 2018 2cd reissue. Bought it for that reason.

  7. When I lived in Japan in 1987 bought the Japanese cd release The age of consent that had bonus 12inch versions from the album . Was and still is a great cd pressing. The limited cd release of Smalltown boy has sold out quickly on some sites, looking forward to this collectable.

  8. The new edit of the video is just a big no for me. Pointless cuts and repeats. Absolutely butchered version you have to see to believe. Amateurism at his best… I hope there was absolutely no budget for this video rework because this is exactly what it looks like. The remix in itself is a decent one ( I prefer the original 12”) but it don’t bother me as the new video

  9. Glad this single is getting some love. It’s a seminal 80’s hit, even today it’s synth riffs are widely copied and used for dance songs. The cd single is a great disc to accompany the 2018 2CD reissue.

  10. The SDE-exclusive was far more interesting with the original 12” on CD-single format. What about a SDE-exclusive Blu-ray for the series ?

  13. I was never a fan of Bronski Beat or Jimmy Somerville. But if pushed, I think I would say Why? was a much better single from the Age Of Consent album, and Hit That Perfect Beat was their best single all round. And yes, I know Somerville didn’t sing on that one (which is probably why I prefer it). And as Jai23 remarked below, why isn’t the original 12″ version getting a reissue?

  14. I’ve ordered the CD. Hopefully the Original UK 7” Single Version is included! I’m a Vinyl Collector, but I prefer buying original records, so this 7” Single was not an option for me

    1. There are 1000 copies of each. The original sold over 600,000 copies in the UK alone. Trust me, this version is more appealing to a collector than the original.

  18. Hi Paul, I have a couple of questions regarding the mixes. Do you know:
    1.whether the “7inch mix” is the original UK 7inch mix or the original German 7inch mix?
    2.if the “reprise” version is the same as the one released in 2014 digitally by Jimmy Somerville (solo)?
    3.if the “Symphonic version” is the same as the one released in 2018 on the Various Artists album called “80’s Symphonic”?
    4.whether the “Extended Sunset Version” is a new mix or a previously released mix (I am not aware of)?

      1. Thank you.

        I searched further, and it is apparently a recording released by “Gus F ft Jimmy Somerville” (on the Music To Die For label), available in two versions – Original and Extended Sunset – both released digitally only, in 2022 indeed. So, the Extended Sunset Version will be available for the first time on CD.

        And later that year another recording came out on the same label, this time by “Richie Blacker x Gus F ft Jimmy Somerville”, available in two digital-only versions – Original and Acid Breaks Mix.

  19. Not going to buy this, but I streamed the new ABSOLUTE. remix and it’s surprisingly decent! Maintains all of the classic elements of the song, makes it sound a little more current without drowning it in modern signifiers. A worthy update. “Thumbs up” from me, too.

    1. It is indeed a decent remix! Streaming also offers a 7+min “Absolute Extended Rework” version. I guess that’s not the one that will be featured on the 20min max Minimax CD, featuring five tracks…

  20. I find this quite great… but I’d definitely find more interest in a complete reissue of the second Bronski Beat album (Without Jimmy Somerville, but with Eartha Kitt’s “Cha Cha Heels”, “Hit That perfect Beat” and so on…)
    There’s still a lot of music waiting …

    1. London Records have promised more Bronski Beat reissues this year. I’d be surprised if Smalltown Boy was all we’re going to get.

      1. I would’ve thought that Age If Consent 40 is nailed on. Whether it will just compile the best of the previous two releases, we will see. Though when I worked through Discogs a couple of years back, if you had both sets, you had all the 1984/85 released tracks/versions. Jimmy’s team seem to like modern remixes though so it might be updated….

  21. Interesting release. However, IMHO you can’t beat the original 12″ inch version of the song so a bit of a shame that they couldn’t find room to throw that onto the CD single. Hopefully a deluxe version of the album which includes all the bells and whistles is on the cards in the not too distant future.

  22. Possibly the worst CD presentation I’ve seen in a long time.

    With these clear CDs, you have the same playing length as a 3 inch CD, ie, just under 20 minutes. This will be ‘why’ they didn’t put the original 9 minute 12″ on it.

    Why put a hole over the logo? Move the logo.

    Print the logo on the inside of the sleeve.

    1. I disagree. This Minimax CD looks awesome!

      I am aware the visual is a mock up. But I own more Minimax CDs and can foresee how it’s going to look like.

  25. One of the greatest songs ever by the incredible Bronski Beat. Age Of Consent is a masterpiece.
    So excited something is happening to celebrate their 40th anniversary.
    I wonder if there is anything left in the vaults that could be added to a 40th anniversary reissue of AOC?

  26. Completely pointless and unnecessary remix. The original is perfect.
    As for the new video, I thought YouTube was glitching.

  27. A magnificent record that spoke to almost every gay man of my generation. I used to play it in my bedroom and cry and yet the record made me feel less lonely.

    I was honoured to become friends with Steve Bronski later in his life and am still devastated at his death. I hope he and Larry would be delighted that Smalltown Boy is now recognised as a solid gold classic that goes beyond the LGBT+ community.

  28. That’s an interesting CD design. A 5″ disc with the aluminium reflection layer only covering the inner area. If I interpret correctly what I see above. Saw a disc like that only once, but it wasn’t transparent.

    2. McCartney released a CD single just like this for No Other Baby/Brown Eyed Handsome man back in 1999. They’ve been around for 25 years!

  29. Rather groovy is a nice way of describing it. $11 American isn’t a bad price, I just wish it was available elsewhere. I don’t feel like making an account on the Bronski Beat website for literally the only thing I would ever buy there.

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