On May 2 the Pet Shop Boys appear at Heaven nightclub in London, playing a four song set as part of Can You Bear It?, a benefit for Dainton Connell’s family. For the final song they are joined by Suggs and Carl from Madness, in rambunctious high spirits, to perform a dance version of Madness’s “My Girl”: “It was a very emotional night”.
On October 27 a Pet Shop Boys-produced single by the British artist Sam Taylor-Wood, “I’m in love with a German film star”, is released on the cult German dance label Kompakt. It is the Pet Shop Boys’ third collaboration with Sam Taylor-Wood though the previous one was released under the pseudonym Kiki Kokova. The song is an electronic reinterpretation of the 1981 single by the Passions, a suggestion of Neil’s.
This year’s annual Christmas single from the Killers — “Joseph (Better You Than Me)” — is originally planned as a collaboration between The Killers and Elton John. Neil gets involved after Brandon Flowers asks for help with the lyric; in the end Neil’s short section of guide vocal for the lyric he contributes will remain in the final song when it is made available for download.
A various-artists book-with-CD compilation titled We Love You is released. The CD consists mostly of somewhat techno-oriented collaborations, including the first appearance of the Pet Shop Boys’ pairing with Sam Taylor-Wood on ‘Je T’Aime… Moi Non Plus.’
Neil records vocals for the song ‘Motoring,’ after which the Boys go out to celebrate Neil’s sister’s birthday.
They play their newly completed album Fundamental to their management and various friends, including Janet Street-Porter and Mark Farrow. The initial order of tracks, however, will later be scrapped for a new running order.
The Pet Shop Boys conclude their North American Fundamental Tour with a show in Monterrey, Mexico.
This evening Chris attends a performance of the one-woman show An Audience with Princess Julia at the London bar/cabaret/theatre The Glory. On the Boys’ official website, Chris writes, ‘So many great memories. An absolute legend of the London fashion and club scene!’
Tonight the Pet Shop Boys end the U.S. leg of their Super Tour with a show at the Jackie Gleason Center in Miami Beach.
They work with Stuart Price on the tracks ‘Monkey Business’ and ‘Collector’s Item.’ Mid-day they walk to the Christmas market at Potsdamer Platz for lunch.
Neil and Chris attend the Soft Cell concert this evening at London’s Hammersmith Apollo (now formally the Eventim Apollo, but still popularly referred to by its older name). Afterward they post on their website how much they loved the show and note that Chris and Soft Cell’s David Ball had attended the same school in Blackpool.
Neil’s performance singing ‘Cricket Wife’ and ‘Legacy’ with orchestral accompaniment, recorded six days earlier in Berlin, is broadcast this evening on Sven Helbig’s radio show.
The Boys are in Chris’s hometown of Blackpool, where they perform on this evening’s edition of the TV show Strictly Come Dancing.