Happy 20th: Pet Shop Boys, Bilingual

20 years ago today, Pet Shop Boys released their 10th album, a 12-track affair which – as the title implies somewhat – has a slightly international flair, delving into some Latin sounds here and there, including one of the several successful singles scattered amongst its dozen songs.

Bilingual found Neil Tennant and Chris Lowe exploring some of the sounds and musical styles that they learned about while touring South America for their previous album, Very, most notably on “Se a vida é (That's the Way Life Is),” which hit #8 on the UK charts. But that was actually the album’s second single: the first single, “Before,” hit #7 in the UK and also went on to hit the top spot on Billboard’s Dance Singles chart. The third single, meanwhile, was the title track, which made it to #14 in the UK, and while “To Step Aside” didn’t see UK single release, it was issued as a double A-side with “Se a vida é (That's the Way Life Is)” and once again found its way to the top of the Dance Singles chart. Lastly, “A Red Letter Day” found the Pet Shop Boys back in the UK top 10, hitting #9, but the song only earned Bubbling Under status in the States.

One song that didn’t emerge as a single, even though it certainly had the hook to be a hit, was “Up Against It,” which features some guest guitar work – not to mention backing vocals – from former Smiths guitarist Johnny Marr. It might be the catchiest thing on the album, and if you know anything about the Pet Shop Boys, you know that’s saying something.