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TOP 20 VINCE CLARKE REMIXES

AVince Clarke remix is a glorious thing. There’s a likelihood that anyone asking him to tweak one of their tunes knows what to expect, and that is he’s unlikely to turn anything into an acoustic folk strum or go too far from what he’s best at. He’s turned his technological know-how to a variety of acts of the past 30-plus years, repositioning indie turns towards the dancefloor (and in some cases, making them near-listenable) and has also added a level of interest to many commissions that have benefitted significantly from a layer of VC magic. Here, then is our chronological Top 20 of some of the highlights, with apologies to artists such as Polly Scattergood, Bleachers and The Presets, as well as better-known turns such as OMD, Simple Minds, Ash, Miss Kittin and Rammstein, who all found themselves on the long list when we compiled this selection.

IN REVERSE: REMIXES OF VINCE CLARKE

2O WFL (WROTE FOR LUCK) HAPPY MONDAYS (1988)

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Classic Pop Presents
Vince Clarke
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Classic Pop Presents
WELCOME
“Mr. Vincent Clarke is a God… will that do?” This was
THE Perfect GIFT FOR Christmas…
It’s better than socks!
BOYS SAY GO!
LESS THAN TWO YEARS AFTER FORMING, VINCE CLARKE AND HIS DEPECHE MODE FRIENDS WOULD SPIRAL AWAY IN DIFFERENT DIRECTIONS. BUT IN THAT SHORT TIME, WHAT A POP MANIFESTO THEY LAID DOWN…
SPEAK & SPELL
AS THE WIDE-EYED BOYS FROM BASILDON PILED INTO THE STUDIO TO RECORD THEIR FIRST ALBUM, A WATCHFUL VINCE CLARKE WAS IN HIS ELEMENT, NOTING EVERY MOVE THE PRODUCER AND ENGINEERS MADE…
YAZOO CHASING THE DRAGONS
“WE WERE NEVER MEANT TO BE A BAND. WE JUST GOT HITS WILLY-NILLY, AND THAT SOMEHOW KEPT US IN THE SAME ROOM.” CLASSIC POP TALKS ALL THINGS YAZOO WITH VINCE CLARKE AND ALISON MOYET…
BREAKING THE SILENCE
ONE PERSON WITH A UNIQUE VIEW OF THE VINCE CLARKE STORY IS, OF COURSE, MUTE LABEL FOUNDER DANIEL MILLER, HAVING BEEN WITH VINCE DURING MANY OF THE PIVOTAL MOMENTS OF HIS EXTRAORDINARY 40-YEAR CAREER. HERE, HE CANDIDLY LOOKS BACK OVER FOUR DECADES WITH “A WARM-HEARTED, BRILLIANT MUSICIAN AND SONGWRITER”…
UPSTAIRS AT ERIC’S
HOW AN OPPORTUNISTIC MEETING OF A POP PROPHET IN WAITING AND A FLEDGLING POWERHOUSE VOCALIST LED TO A STRIPPED-BACK SYNTH-POP MASTERCLASS THAT REMAINS TIMELESS ALMOST 40 YEARS ON
MATCH MADE IN HEAVEN
IN ANDY BELL, VINCE CLARKE FOUND A PERFECT MUSICAL PARTNER. TODAY, THE SINGER LOOKS BACK OVER ERASURE’S CAREER – THREE AND A HALF DECADES OF SOUL, SHOWMANSHIP AND FABULOUS POP MUSIC
THE CIRCUS
THE NAY-SAYERS WERE OUT IN DROVES BUT CLARKE AND BELL MADE THEM MUNCH THEIR WORDS WITH ERASURE’S FABULOUS SECOND ALBUM – UPLIFTING, FLAMBOYANT, AND WITH UNEXPECTED DEPTHS OF MEANING JUST WAITING TO BE DISCOVERED…
ELECTRO DREAMS
GARETH JONES HAS BEEN WORKING CLOSELY ALONGSIDE ERASURE FOR OVER 30 YEARS. HERE, THE VETERAN PRODUCER TALKS US THROUGH SOME OF THOSE SEMINAL ALBUMS HE MADE WITH VINCE AND ANDY…
Q&A
ANDY BELL IS BETTER PLACED THAN ANYONE TO KNOW WHAT MAKES HIS ERASURE PARTNER TICK. WHY ARE THE PAIR SO SUITED FOR EACH OTHER? DO THEY CONFORM TO THE SYNTH-POP LINEAGE OF THE WILD FRONTPERSON AND RESERVED KEYBOARD PLAYER? JOHN EARLS
TOP 4O VINCE CLARKE TRACKS
Timeless synth-pop nuggets, stunning ambient textures, soaring, life-affirming singles and album cuts – all these, and more, have earned their place in our round-up of the best of Vince Clarke. Plus, Classic Pop staff and writers choose their own favourites…
POP ART
VINCE CLARKE HAS A UNIQUE AND CONSISTENT SOUND, BUT THE WAYS IN WHICH HIS RECORDED BODY OF WORK HAS BEEN VISUALLY REPRESENTED VARIES WILDLY. HIS RELEASES HAVE BEEN PACKAGED BY A WIDE RANGE OF CREATIVE TALENTS, AND HERE WE GIVE A LITTLE RESPECT TO SOME OF THE HIGHLIGHTS…
RESET RECORDS
CLARKE AND RADCLIFFE’S MID-80S VENTURE
HOUSE OF ILLUSTRIOUS
FORGED IN SHEFFIELD: A LIMITED BOXSET FROM 2012
TURN ON THE BRIGHT LIGHTS
IT’S 35 YEARS SINCE ERASURE’S DEBUT SINGLE WHO NEEDS LOVE LIKE THAT, BUT ANDY BELL AND VINCE CLARKE SOUND AS YOUTHFUL AS EVER ON THEIR 18TH ALBUM, THE NEON. THE DUO HAVE REMAINED RESOLUTELY SELF-SUFFICIENT, FORSAKING OUTSIDE SONGWRITING HELP TO CREATE FORWARD-THINKING, HYPERREAL CELEBRATIONS. HOW DO THEY KEEP UP? ANDY AND VINCE GIVE CLASSIC POP A MASTERCLASS ON HOW TO STAY RELEVANT – WITHOUT BORING YOUR FRIENDS ALONG THE WAY
THE INNOCENTS
VINCE AND ANDY’S THIRD ALBUM WAS THE BIGGIE, THE ONE WHERE MELODIES AND LYRICS COALESCED TO FORM ONE OF THE FINEST POP ALBUMS OF THE 80S. IT ALSO ZOOMED TO NO.1 AND HAS SASHAYED ONWARDS TO SELL MORE THAN FIVE MILLION COPIES…
A VERY DIFFERENT RECORD LABEL
VINCE CLARKE’S VERYRECORDS IS HIS BESPOKE LABEL FOR RELEASING TOP-QUALITY ELECTRONIC MUSIC – BUT, AS HE REVEALS TO CLASSIC POP, IT’S ALSO A GREAT WAY FOR HIM TO GET OUT AND MEET NEW PEOPLE. IF YOU’RE LUCKY ENOUGH TO BE SIGNED TO THE LABEL, YOU WILL VERY PROBABLY END UP MAKING MUSIC WITH THE BOSS HIMSELF. VERY, THEN, IS NOT YOUR TYPICAL RECORD LABEL…
UNION STREET
IT’S PLAIN TO SEE VINCE CLARKE IS A BORN COLLABORATOR, FOR THROUGHOUT HIS CAREER HE HAS SOUGHT TO FIND LIKE-MINDED SOULS WITH WHOM HE CAN BRING HIS VISIONS TO LIFE. CLASSIC POP JUMPS INTO A WORLD OF ONE-OFF HITS AND AMBIENT SOUNDSCAPES – AND SOME UNEXPECTED OLD-SKOOL TECHNO, MADE WITH AN OLD FRIEND…
HIP TO BE SQUARE
2SQUARE WAS RELEASED IN 2016. ORBITAL’S PAUL HARTNOLL EXPLAINS TO CLASSIC POP HOW IT ALL CAME ABOUT…
SNAKES ALIVE!
PERHAPS THE UNLIKELIEST RECONNECTION FOR VINCE WAS WHEN HE EMAILED ONE-TIME BANDMATE MARTIN L GORE WITH VIEW TO A COLLABORATION IN THE EARLY 2010S…
Q&A
ILLUSTRIOUS, INDEED. VINCE’S COLLABORATOR IN MANY THINGS WONDROUS, EXPERIMENTAL AND AMBIENT EXPOUNDS ON THEIR SYMBIOTIC MUSICAL RELATIONSHIP… IAN WADE
Q&A
CLASSIC POP CATCHES UP WITH A REFLECTIVE VINCE CLARKE TO DISCUSS HIS FOUR DECADES AT THE TOP – THE HIGHS, THE LOWS, THE DAWN OF DEPECHE MODE – AND, OF COURSE, THE SYNTHS…
CLASSIC POP MOMENT
It was the apex of Erasure’s career, they called it
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