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Kissing to Be Clever is the debut album by the English band Culture Club, released on
8 October 1982 in the United Kingdom.[2] It includes Culture Club's international breakthrough hit single, "Do You Really Want to Hurt Me", which reached number one in the band's native UK and the top 10 of many charts around the world. The album has reportedly sold over 4 million copies worldwide,[3] including over 1 million in the US where it has been certified Platinum by the RIAA.
The album's first two singles were "White Boy" (which failed to crack the US or UK charts), and "I'm Afraid of Me" (which peaked at No. 100 in the UK). But with the release of "Do You Really Want to Hurt Me", the band scored a number one hit in over a dozen countries, and the song also hit the top 10 in several other countries including number two in the U.S. The album itself spent 88 weeks on the US Billboard chart, reaching its peak position of number 14 in March 1983 in the US.[4] The follow-up single, "Time (Clock of the Heart)", became a US number two and UK top three hit. This song appeared on the US version of the album but not initially on the UK version. Another single was released in North America, "I'll Tumble 4 Ya", which became the group's third consecutive top 10 single in the US. This gave Culture Club the distinction of being the first band since The Beatles to have three top 10 hits from a debut album in the US.
Kissing to Be Clever was remastered and re-released in 2003 on CD. This edition contains the song "Romance Beyond the Alphabet", which is the orchestral instrumental version of "Time (Clock of the Heart), also included on Culture Club Collect – 12" Mixes Plus and its subsequent re-release Culture Club Remix Collection as "Time (Clock of the Heart) (Instrumental Mix)". The 2003 release of the album has the restoration of the original colour cover which had been replaced by a black-and-white picture of lead singer Boy George on previous versions.
Reviews for Kissing to Be Clever have been generally positive. AllMusic's Lindsay Planer noted that it "was embraced by not only post-disco dance music enthusiasts, but also new wave listeners and pop fans as well." He also stated that the singles "provide accurate thumbnail sketches of what Culture Club were capable of pulling off musically." He concluded by saying: "From the light and buoyant Philly soul-inspired string arrangement to the effervescent and singalongable chorus, the melody foreshadowed a similar vibe that would carry over to their sophomore long-player, Colour by Numbers."[10]
Contemporary reviews were generally favourable. Smash Hits' Beverly Hillier gave the album a 9 out of 10 rating calling it "a first class record". Hillier found the songs "well crafted and the musicianship is excellent throughout" and pointed out Boy George's voice as "the band's strongest asset." "Disco, salsa, reggae and Caribbean rhythms are all used but with such obvious love and respect for their roots that nobody can accuse them of plagiarism. On this showing Culture Club will easily outlive the fashionable wave they're riding on at the moment."[8]
Robert Christgau of The Village Voice wrote that "for all [Culture Club's] fashionability I think their hearts are in the right place". However, he stated that "their bland Caribbean rhythms move no muscles, and their confrontations with racial issues are rarely more than a phrase deep."[9] Lloyd Sachs of Rolling Stone stated that the album "positively jumps, from the pleasure-seeking masochism of "Do You Really Want to Hurt Me?" to the fearful soul-searching of "I'm Afraid of Me" to the shady "I'll Tumble 4 Ya"". He further stated that "[Boy George's] vocal "normalcy" [plays] against the provocative content of the material." He concluded that "the beat does special service to the message – even when we don't quite know what that message is."[6]
"Time (Clock of the Heart)" appears as the lead track on side two on the reissued North American version of Kissing to Be Clever, which was reissued shortly after the single's release in March 1983. In Europe and other regions, it does not appear on the album, but instead was released as a stand-alone single on 19 November 1982. The Epic Records cassette version also included "Do You Really Want To Hurt Me" (Dub Version, featuring Pappa Weasel) & "Romance Beyond the Alphabet" ("Time" Instrumental). The track listing is as follows:[11]
Side one
No.
Title
Length
1.
"Do You Really Want To Hurt Me"
4:22
2.
"I'm Afraid Of Me" (Remix)
3:17
3.
"You Know I'm Not Crazy"
3:36
4.
"I'll Tumble 4 Ya"
2:36
5.
"Love Twist" (Featuring Captain Crucial)
4:23
6.
"Do You Really Want To Hurt Me" (Dub Version) (Featuring Pappa Weasel)
3:38
Side two
No.
Title
Length
7.
"Time (Clock Of The Heart)"
3:42
8.
"White Boy" (Dance Mix)
4:40
9.
"Boy, Boy (I'm The Boy)"
3:46
10.
"White Boys Can't Control It"
3:42
11.
"Take Control"
3:10
12.
"Romance Beyond the Alphabet" ("Time" Instrumental)
^Pennanen, Timo (2006). Sisältää hitin – levyt ja esittäjät Suomen musiikkilistoilla vuodesta 1972 (in Finnish) (1st ed.). Helsinki: Kustannusosakeyhtiö Otava. p. 263. ISBN978-951-1-21053-5.
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