Baby, the Stars Shine Bright

Britain's early-1980s ‘neo-acoustic’ scene was like fresh young shoots emerging from the scorched earth of punk. Among its artists, Ben Watt and Tracey Thorn's duo Everything but the Girl attracted attention for combining a rebellious spirit with rich musicality and a cool bearing. Their debut's smart songwriting and music coloured by jazz and bossa nova were compared favourably with the Style Council. On this third album, they try a new sound.

Here they bring in an orchestra, arranged by Watt and recorded at Abbey Road Studios. The music is more overtly pop than before. The songs seem to pay respect to 1960s Tin Pan Alley pop, bringing the duo into view as heirs to songwriting teams such as Goffin & King and Greenwich & Barry. In opposition to the MTV era, this insistence that songs matter above all reflects their punk attitude: loving music at its essence. It has a grandeur and dreaminess that refuses to end as mere nostalgia.