On May 2 the Pet Shop Boys appear at Heaven nightclub in London, playing a four song set as part of Can You Bear It?, a benefit for Dainton Connell’s family. For the final song they are joined by Suggs and Carl from Madness, in rambunctious high spirits, to perform a dance version of Madness’s “My Girl”: “It was a very emotional night”.
On October 27 a Pet Shop Boys-produced single by the British artist Sam Taylor-Wood, “I’m in love with a German film star”, is released on the cult German dance label Kompakt. It is the Pet Shop Boys’ third collaboration with Sam Taylor-Wood though the previous one was released under the pseudonym Kiki Kokova. The song is an electronic reinterpretation of the 1981 single by the Passions, a suggestion of Neil’s.
This year’s annual Christmas single from the Killers — “Joseph (Better You Than Me)” — is originally planned as a collaboration between The Killers and Elton John. Neil gets involved after Brandon Flowers asks for help with the lyric; in the end Neil’s short section of guide vocal for the lyric he contributes will remain in the final song when it is made available for download.
‘I Wouldn’t Normally Do This Kind of Thing’ is released as a single.
The Boys’ rendition of ‘Somewhere’ peaks at #125 on the U.S. singles chart.
Chris and Neil write the song ‘Home and Dry.’
Neil attends a brief (five-song) live set by Madonna at London’s Koko Club. Afterward he goes to the Groucho Club with Bernard Sumner.
Tickets go on sale today for the premiere run at London’s Sadler’s Wells Theatre in March 2011 of the ballet The Most Incredible Thing, with music composed by Tennant and Lowe.
The official PSB website announces that the Boys will be performing at the upcoming New Year’s Eve festivities in Sydney, Australia, where they will present their entire Pandemonium Tour show ‘Down Under’ for the first time. Also slated to appear on the same bill are Culture Club, Jamiroquai, and Pseudo Echo, among others.
The Museum of Modern Art in New York City begins today a year-long exhibition titled Making Music Modern: Design for Ear and Eye, much of which concerns album cover design. Mark Farrow’s design for the PSB album Introspective is among the items exhibited.
Neil, along with the Boys’ collaborator, playwright Jonathan Harvey, and the original Billie Trix, Frances Barber, attend this afternoon’s matinee performance of Closer to Heaven at London’s Union Theatre and meet with the cast after the show.
The Boys perform this evening in St. Petersburg, Florida.
They work at length on ‘Hoping for a Miracle,’ including Chris’s piano part on the track.
The double-single ‘New London Boy’/‘All the Young Dudes’ is released in physical format today.