"Victims" is a song by English band Culture Club, released as a single in 1983 and taken from the album Colour by Numbers. The song would become a major hit in several European countries.
| "Victims" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Single by Culture Club | ||||
| from the album Colour by Numbers | ||||
| B-side | "Colour by Numbers, Romance Revisited" | |||
| Released | 28 November 1983 | |||
| Recorded | 1983 | |||
| Genre | Soft rock | |||
| Length | 4:56 | |||
| Label | Virgin Epic | |||
| Songwriter(s) | Boy George, Roy Hay Mikey Craig, Jon Moss | |||
| Producer(s) | Steve Levine | |||
| Culture Club singles chronology | ||||
| ||||
The group's previous single "Karma Chameleon" had been a massive hit worldwide, but "Victims" would be released as a single in Europe, Australia, and Africa.[1] The song peaked at #3 on the UK Singles Chart, #2 in Ireland, and #4 in Australia. The song was not released as a single in North America, South America, or Japan/Asia, where instead "Miss Me Blind" was released as a single, becoming a hit in those markets.
The orchestral overdub on this track was recorded in Studio 1 at CBS Recording Studios, London by the renowned recording engineer, Mike Ross-Trevor (assisted by Richard Hollywood) on Saturday 9 July 1983. The day earlier (on Friday 8 July), a new drum track was overdubbed by Jon Moss in Studio 1. However, this was later replaced by a new drum track for the final released version.
Its B-side was a song titled "Colour by Numbers", which is the title of the group's album to but not included on it. An instrumental version was also issued on the 12", renamed "Romance Revisited". Both songs are now available on the 2003 remastered version of Colour by Numbers.
An early demo version of the song was released re-titled "Shirley Temple Moment" on the Culture Club box set. The track is a candid glimpse of the relationships within the band as they argue viciously amongst one another between takes, before Boy George finally walks out. It is notable also for the different lyrics which appear in the first verse:
"We love and we never tell what places our hearts in the wishing well / Strange lover I've never been, but you must be strong, you must come clean / And I keep on loving you, it's the only thing to do / There are stranger things, if I do those things, I'm a puppet king for you."
Lead singer Boy George re-recorded the song himself as a solo artist, as a folk arrangement with piano and an orchestra, in 2002. That version can be found on the Culture Club box set that was released the same year.
Charts edit
Weekly charts edit
| Chart (1983-1984) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| UK Singles Chart | 3 |
| Australia (Kent Music Report)[2][3] | 4 |
| Belgian Singles Chart | 11 |
| German Singles Chart | 39 |
| Irish Singles Chart | 2 |
| Italy Singles Chart | 2 |
| Netherlands Singles Chart | 17 |
| New Zealand Singles Chart | 7 |
| Switzerland Singles Chart | 18 |
Year-end charts edit
| Chart (1984) | Position |
|---|---|
| Australia (Kent Music Report)[2] | 38 |
References edit
- ^ "'80s Music Icon Boy George Led English Band Culture Club to Legend Status".
- ^ a b "Kent Music Report No 548 – 31 December 1984 > National Top 100 Singles for 1984". Kent Music Report. Retrieved 23 January 2023 – via Imgur.com.
- ^ Kent, David (1993). Australian Chart Book 1970–1992. St Ives, NSW: Australian Chart Book. ISBN 0-646-11917-6.
