On August 19th, Neil and Chris meet by chance in an electronics shop on the Kings Road. Realizing they have a common interest in dance music, they begin to write together. Initially they call themselves West End; later they come up with the name Pet Shop Boys, a name derived from some friends who work in a pet shop in Ealing. “We thought it sounded like an English rap group”.
‘West End Girls’ debuts on the U.S. singles chart, where it will remain for 20 weeks, including one week at #1.
Having spent the month of February in Berlin working on new songs, the Boys fly back to London for the opening later in March of their ballet The Most Incredible Thing. (A round of promotional activities will soon begin.)
Neil and Chris spend, as they say on their website, ‘a great day’ at Capitol Studios in the famed Capitol Tower building in Hollywood, overseeing the recording sessions for their next album’s brass and string parts.
This afternoon both Chris and Neil attend the final performance (at least for now) of Musik at London’s Leicester Square Theatre.