With music that is smart, sassy and utterly danceable, the synthpop
Pet Shop Boys have established themselves the fourth-most successful dance artists ever in the USA Billboard dance charts, behind only
Madonna,
Donna Summer and
Janet Jackson. Pet Shop Boys formed in London in August 1981 when vocalist
Neil Tennant, (a former editor at Marvel Comics), first met keyboardist
Chris Lowe (a onetime architecture student) at an electronics shop. Discovering a shared passion for dance music and synthesizers, they immediately decided to start a band, calling themselves the
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Pet Shop Boys in honor of friends who worked in such an establishment. The duo broke out in 1985 with a re-release of a single called “West End Girls,” which became an international chart-topper. Its massive success propelled the Pet Shop Boys' 1986 debut LP Please into the Top Ten. Disco, a collection of dance remixes, was quickly rushed into stores, and in 1987 the duo resurfaced with the superb Actually, which launched three more Top Ten Pet Shop Boys songs -- "It's a Sin," a cover of the perennial "Always on My Mind," and "What Have I Done to Deserve This.”
Since that time, with their ever present ability to craft melodic and catch dance/pop music, the Pet Shop Boys have sold more than 100 million records worldwide. They have had thirty-nine Top 30 singles and twenty-two Top 10 hits in the UK, while in the US they garnered huge popularity in the 80s and continue to enjoy cult and club success. In May 2006, the Pet Shop released Fundamental, an album which peaked at #5 in the UK and in the rest of
Europe at #2, marking a strong return to the charts. The album's first single, "I'm with Stupid" reached #8 in the UK Singles Chart. In December 2006, the duo was nominated for two Grammy Awards for Best Dance Recording ("I'm with Stupid") and Best Electronic/Dance Album (Fundamental). This led the chief of their Parlophone label to comment: “What Pet Shop Boys are doing is unique. They continue to be at the vanguard of pop culture, constantly surprising and thrilling us with their every move.” Clearly, long time Pet Shop Boys fans agree.