Culture Club

A London pop band fronted by Boy George that went from a 1982 debut to the UK's biggest-selling single of 1983 and a Grammy for Best New Artist.

Origin: London, England
Years active: 1981-1986, 1998-2002, 2006, 2011-present
Genres: pop, new wave, blue-eyed soul, reggae pop
Labels: Virgin, Epic

Formation

Culture Club formed in London in 1981 out of the New Romantic scene. Boy George had sung for a short while with Bow Wow Wow, then started his own group with bassist Mikey Craig and guitarist Jon Suede. They were first called In Praise of Lemmings, then The Sex Gang Children. Drummer Jon Moss, who came from the Damned and Adam and the Ants, joined, Roy Hay took over from Suede, and the band became Culture Club.

EMI paid for demos but chose not to sign them. Virgin Publishing heard the tapes and offered a songwriting contract, and Virgin Records followed with a recording deal.

Kissing to Be Clever

The first two singles, White Boy and I'm Afraid of Me, failed to chart. Do You Really Want to Hurt Me, released in September 1982, reached number one in the UK and number two in the US. Their first Top of the Pops appearance made the tabloids, which fixed on George's androgynous style of dress.

The debut album, Kissing to Be Clever (1982), reached number five in the UK and number fourteen in the US. Time (Clock of the Heart) went to number two in the US and number three in the UK, and I'll Tumble 4 Ya was another US top ten hit. That made Culture Club the first group since the Beatles to have three US top ten hits from a debut album. Steve Levine produced it, and he stayed on for their first three records.

Colour by Numbers

Colour by Numbers came out on 10 October 1983, made again with Levine at Red Bus Studios in London, but with more session players, among them keyboardist Phil Pickett and backing singer Helen Terry. It reached number one in the UK and number two in the US, where it spent six consecutive weeks behind Michael Jackson's Thriller, and it has sold more than 10 million copies worldwide. Church of the Poison Mind led it off, followed by Karma Chameleon, which spent six weeks at number one in the UK and was the country's biggest-selling single of 1983. In the US it was number one for three weeks in early 1984.

At the 1984 Brit Awards the band won Best British Group, and Karma Chameleon won Best British Single. They also took the Grammy for Best New Artist, and George accepted by satellite. Rolling Stone placed the album at number 96 on its list of the best albums of the 1980s, and NME put it seventh among the albums of 1983.

Decline and split

Waking Up with the House on Fire (1984) reached number two in the UK and went platinum in both the UK and the US, yet it sold less than its predecessor and drew weak reviews. George later said he felt the material had been half-hearted, released under pressure from the labels after an exhausting world tour. At the end of 1984 Bob Geldof recruited him for the Band Aid single, and he was the last singer to record a lead vocal for it.

From Luxury to Heartache (1986) was produced by Arif Mardin, who replaced Levine, with engineer Lew Hahn finishing the sessions. Its first single, Move Away, reached number seven in the UK and number twelve in the US. Culture Club disbanded in 1986.

Returns

A reunion was attempted in 1989 and cancelled. In 1998 the band came back with a tour that began with a VH1 Storytellers performance, and the new song I Just Wanna Be Loved reached number four in the UK. Don't Mind If I Do (1999) peaked at 64. They played a 20th anniversary concert at the Royal Albert Hall in 2002.

In 2014 the band reformed for a tour and a new album, and played Edinburgh Castle on 19 July ahead of the Commonwealth Games opening. A 21-date UK and US tour was cancelled in November, and the album Tribes was shelved in 2016. A 60-city world tour that year produced Live at Wembley. Jon Moss left in May 2021.

Members

Boy George lead vocals (1981-1986, 1998-2002, 2011-present)
Roy Hay guitar, keyboards (1981-1986, 1998-2002, 2011-present)
Mikey Craig bass (1981-1986, 1998-2002, 2006, 2011-present)
Jon Moss drums, percussion (1981-1986, 1998-2002, 2006, 2011-2021)

Records

Kissing to Be Clever 1982 · Virgin
The 1982 debut that carried Do You Really Want to Hurt Me and Time (Clock of the Heart).
Colour by Numbers 1983 · Virgin
The second album: Karma Chameleon, Church of the Poison Mind and more than 10 million copies sold.
Waking Up with the House on Fire 1984 · Virgin
The 1984 third album, a UK number two that sold less than its two predecessors.
From Luxury to Heartache 1986 · Virgin
The fourth album, the last studio record before the 1986 split and the last until 1999.

Songs

Karma Chameleon Colour by Numbers · 1983
The 1983 single that reached number one in the UK for six weeks and was the country's biggest seller of the year.
Do You Really Want to Hurt Me Kissing to Be Clever · 1982
The band's first major hit, a UK number one in 1982 and a number two in the US.
Church of the Poison Mind Colour by Numbers · 1983
The lead single from Colour by Numbers, a UK number two built on Stevie Wonder's Uptight.
Time (Clock of the Heart) Kissing to Be Clever · 1982
The follow-up to Do You Really Want to Hurt Me, a number two in the US and number three in the UK.
Victims Colour by Numbers · 1983
The ballad that closes Colour by Numbers and reached number three in the UK.

Bow Wow Wow, Adam and the Ants, Sailor, Spandau Ballet, Duran Duran

Where to go next

Reference

Culture Club Band history, line-ups, awards and the full discography.
Colour by Numbers Album article with reviews, personnel and track listing.
Kissing to Be Clever Album article for the 1982 debut.
Waking Up with the House on Fire Album article for the 1984 third album.
Karma Chameleon Song article with background, video and chart history.
Do You Really Want to Hurt Me Song article covering release, video and covers.
Steve Levine The producer of the band's first three albums.

Writing and criticism

100 Best Albums of the Eighties: Colour by Numbers Rolling Stone's entry with Boy George on making the album.
Albums and Tracks of the Year 1983 NME's year-end list for 1983.
The Million Sellers: Culture Club's Karma Chameleon Official Charts piece on the single, with producer Steve Levine.
The Official Top 40 best-selling songs of 1983 UK sales ranking for 1983.
Do They Know It's Christmas? Rolling Stone account of the Band Aid recording day.
Culture Club cancel first tour for 12 years Guardian report on the 2014 tour cancellation.
Culture Club: Crashing the tour bus down memory lane theartsdesk review of the BBC Four documentary.
Karma by Boy George review Guardian review of Boy George's 2023 memoir.

Film and video

Boy George and Culture Club: Karma to Calamity BBC Four documentary page on the 2014 reunion.

Sources

Culture Club, Wikipedia
100 Best Albums of the Eighties: Culture Club, Colour by Numbers, Rolling Stone
The Million Sellers: Culture Club's Karma Chameleon, Official Charts (2012-11-08)
Culture Club cancel first tour for 12 years, The Guardian (2014-11-14)
Boy George and Culture Club: Karma to Calamity, BBC Four
Karma by Boy George review, The Guardian (2023-11-14)