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Flamboyant (Pet Shop Boys song)

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This article is about the Pet Shop Boys song. For the Big L song, see Flamboyant (Big L song). For the Dorian Electra song, see Flamboyant (album).

"Flamboyant"
Single by Pet Shop Boys
from the album PopArt: The Hits
B-side"I Didn't Get Where I Am Today"
Released29 March 2004 (2004-03-29)[1]
Recorded2003
Genre
Length3:50
LabelParlophone
Songwriter(s)
Producer(s)
Pet Shop Boys singles chronology
"Miracles"
(2003) 		"Flamboyant"
(2004) 		"I'm with Stupid"
(2006)
Music video
"Flamboyant" on YouTube

"Flamboyant" is a song by English synth-pop duo Pet Shop Boys from their greatest hits album, PopArt: The Hits (2003). It was released on 29 March 2004 as the album's second and final single, reaching number nine in Spain, number 12 in the United Kingdom, and number 13 in Denmark.

Background and composition

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"Flamboyant" was written for the purpose of being a new single for PopArt.[2] It was included after the duo decided against using "Numb", which they had acquired from songwriter Diane Warren and instead saved for their next studio album, Fundamental (2006).[3]

Lyricist Neil Tennant described "Flamboyant" as, "A celebration of a celebrity's determination to be noticed and in the public eye at all times".[4] He mentioned Elton John, David Beckham, and Oscar Wilde as examples. The line, "Just crossing the street, well, it's almost heroic", refers to Philip Sallon, a club promoter and style innovator, wearing an "unbelievable outfit" in public.[2]

Release

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The album version was produced with Tomcraft and Felix J. Gauder at Daylight Studios in Stuttgart in 2003.[5] At the end of the year, the song was remixed for single release with Stuart Crichton, adding extra vocals and keyboards.[6]

An extended mix of the original album version—dubbed the "Tomcraft Extended Mix"—was issued as one of the single's B-sides, along with a remix by Scissor Sisters and one by DJ Hell, who also contributed a remix of "West End Girls" (1985).[7] Another B-side, "I Didn't Get Where I Am Today", features Johnny Marr on guitars, as well as a guitar sample from "Father's Name Is Dad" (1968) by Fire.[8]

Artwork

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The single cover art contains the song title and the duo's name in katakana: "Flamboyant Pet Shop Boys" (フランボヤント ペット・ショップ・ボーイズ, Furanboyanto Petto Shoppu Bōizu). The photos on the different versions were modified stills from the music video. Some featured Tennant and others showed Chris Lowe with long hair (pictured), which he sported for a short time.[3]

Music video

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The music video for "Flamboyant" was directed by Nico Beyer.[3] Heavily based on aspects of Japanese popular culture, it tells the story of a Japanese office worker who aspires to appear on the television variety show Kasou Taishou, where guests perform silly stunts. He envisions a billiards-based routine, where he and others portray living balls on an enormous pool table. In the beginning of the video, scenes are of his unsupportive environment; his wife is annoyed at him, his manager scolds him for reading a billiards magazine at work, and his coworkers tease him at lunch. At the end of the video, however, he and his team perform their routine successfully on the show and win top ranking. The story footage is intercut with fake Japanese-style television commercials where the Pet Shop Boys offer various products such as an automatic ironing machine[3] and a car called Boxy (Nissan Micra).

The video was released on DVD on the documentary Pet Shop Boys: A Life in Pop (2006), although the disc does not mention the video's inclusion.[9] DVDs in some territories, like Canada, did not feature the video.

Critical reception

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Anthony Smith of Drowned in Sound rated "Flamboyant" a 6 out of 10. Reflecting on the duo "at their zenith", he wrote: "Listening to 'Flamboyant', though, makes it all it seem such a long time ago … this is one single that's in distinct need of some silly hat treatment. A sombre, elegiac affair, its maudlin melody and glum resignation - damn, its sheer restraint - reeks of middle age".[10]

Conversely, Simon Sadler of Emap TV told Music Week, "This is the best thing that they've done in eight or nine years. It's a real return to their old-fashioned, camp-pop form with an extremely funny video. It's one of those big, up-tempo things that they do so well".[11]

Live performances

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In November 2003, Pet Shop Boys played "Flamboyant" and three other songs for their first live radio performance on XFM.[12] It was also part of a charity gig at The Barfly in Camden in March 2004. A reviewer for The Guardian observed: "Stripped back to electronics, these songs sound sleeker and tougher. Flamboyant, the new single, and a retooled It's a Sin bite as hard as any electroclash track".[13] A Top of the Pops appearance where the duo staged "Flamboyant" was later included on DVD with the compilation Ultimate (2010).[14]

The song appeared on the Pet Shop Boys' set list for the next few years, including their first concert in Portugal in October 2004,[15] followed by a brief tour of Latin America in November 2004,[16] and on the Fundamental Tour from 2006–2007. A live performance from the latter is included on the DVD Cubism (2007).[17]

Track listings

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  • 2-track CD
  1. "Flamboyant" (single mix)
  2. "I Didn't Get Where I Am Today"
  • Enhanced CD
  1. "Flamboyant" (Tomcraft extended mix)
  2. "Flamboyant" (Scissor Sisters silhouettes & shadows mix)
  3. "Flamboyant" (DJ Hell remix)
  4. "Flamboyant" (demo version)
  5. "Flamboyant" (Enhanced video)
  • 12-inch vinyl
  1. "Flamboyant" (DJ Hell remix)
  2. "Flamboyant" (Scissor Sisters silhouettes & shadows mix)
  3. "West End Girls" (DJ Hell remix)

Personnel

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Credits adapted from the liner notes of PopArt: The Hits[5] and "Flamboyant".[18]

Pet Shop Boys

Technical personnel

  • Pet Shop Boys – production
  • Tomcraft – production, remix
  • Felix J. Gauder – production, remix
  • Stuart Crichton – production, mixing (single mix)
  • Pete Craigie – mixing (single mix)
  • Pete Gleadall – engineering, original programming

Artwork

  • Farrow Design/PSB – design, art direction
  • Gary Stillwell – still images treated by

Charts

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Chart performance for "Flamboyant"
Chart (2004) Peak
position
Belgium (Ultratip Bubbling Under Flanders)[19] 13
Denmark (Tracklisten)[20] 13
France (SNEP)[21] 81
Germany (GfK)[22] 43
Hungary (Single Top 40)[23] 5
Ireland (IRMA)[24] 33
Ireland Dance (IRMA)[25] 3
Romania (Romanian Top 100)[26] 83
Scotland (OCC)[27] 13
Spain (PROMUSICAE)[28] 9
Sweden (Sverigetopplistan)[29] 43
UK Singles (OCC)[30] 12
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References

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  1. ^ "New Releases: Singles". Music Week. 27 March 2004. p. 39.
  2. ^ a b Heath, Chris (2017). Release: Further Listening 2001–2004 (booklet). Pet Shop Boys. Parlophone Records. pp. 34–35. 0190295921149.
  3. ^ a b c d Hoare, Philip; Heath, Chris (2006). Pet Shop Boys, Catalogue. New York: Thames & Hudson. pp. 298–301. ISBN 9780500513071.
  4. ^ Tennant, Neil (2018). One Hundred Lyrics and a Poem: 1979–2016. London: Faber & Faber. p. 66. ISBN 9780571348916.
  5. ^ a b Pet Shop Boys (2003). PopArt (liner notes). Parlophone Records. 07243 593884 2 7.
  6. ^ "New single mix". petshopboys.co.uk. London. 12 February 2004. Retrieved 17 April 2025.
  7. ^ "Pet Shop Boys Get Snipped". NME. 2 March 2004. Retrieved 17 April 2025.
  8. ^ Heath 2017, pp. 25, 45.
  9. ^ "Documentary DVD released, exhibition opens". petshopboys.co.uk. London. 30 October 2006. Retrieved 17 April 2025.
  10. ^ Smith, Anthony (19 March 2004). "Pet Shop Boys Flamboyant". Drowned in Sound. UK. Retrieved 15 April 2025.
  11. ^ Sadler, Simon (13 March 2004). "Upfront: Tipsters" (PDF). Music Week. London. Retrieved 15 April 2025 – via World Radio History.
  12. ^ "If you missed them on XFM…". petshopboys.co.uk. London. 28 November 2003. Retrieved 17 April 2025.
  13. ^ Lynskey, Dorian (9 March 2004). "Pet Shop Boys Barfly, London". The Guardian. London. Retrieved 17 April 2025.
  14. ^ "Pet Shop Boys announce 'Ultimate' best-of tracklisting, record new single 'Together'". Slicing Up Eyeballs. 21 September 2010. Retrieved 17 April 2025.
  15. ^ "Um autêntico desfile 'best of'". Diario de Noticias (in Portuguese). Portugal. 24 October 2004. Retrieved 17 April 2025.
  16. ^ "Latin America". petshopboys.co.uk. London. 9 November 2004. Retrieved 17 April 2025.
  17. ^ Rich, Jamie (2 July 2007). "Pet Shop Boys: Cubism in Concert". DVD Talk. Retrieved 10 April 2025.
  18. ^ Pet Shop Boys (2004). Flamboyant (liner notes). Parlophone Records. 07243 548410 2 6.
  19. ^ "Pet Shop Boys – Flamboyant" (in Dutch). Ultratip. Retrieved 16 December 2018.
  20. ^ "Pet Shop Boys – Flamboyant". Tracklisten. Retrieved 16 December 2018.
  21. ^ "Pet Shop Boys – Flamboyant" (in French). Le classement de singles. Retrieved 16 December 2018.
  22. ^ "Pet Shop Boys – Flamboyant" (in German). GfK Entertainment charts. Retrieved 16 December 2018.
  23. ^ "Archívum – Slágerlisták – MAHASZ" (in Hungarian). Single (track) Top 40 lista. Magyar Hanglemezkiadók Szövetsége. Retrieved 27 April 2020.
  24. ^ "Irish-charts.com – Discography Pet Shop Boys". Irish Singles Chart. Retrieved 17 January 2020.
  25. ^ "Top 10 Dance Singles, Week Ending 1 April 2004". GfK Chart-Track. Retrieved 17 June 2019.[permanent dead link]
  26. ^ "Romanian Top 100: Editia 22, saptamina 31.05 – 6.06, 2004" (in Romanian). Romanian Top 100. Archived from the original on 13 October 2004. Retrieved 2 May 2020.
  27. ^ "Official Scottish Singles Sales Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 16 December 2018.
  28. ^ "Pet Shop Boys – Flamboyant" Canciones Top 50. Retrieved 16 December 2018.
  29. ^ "Pet Shop Boys – Flamboyant". Singles Top 100. Retrieved 16 December 2018.
  30. ^ "Pet Shop Boys: Artist Chart History". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 2 May 2020.
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