Post-modern ironists cloaked behind a veil of buoyantly melodic and lushly romantic synth pop confections, Pet Shop Boys offer wry yet strangely affecting cultural commentary communicated by the Morse code of synth washes and drum machine rhythms. After first emerging in the mid-'80s with "West End Girls" and "Opportunities (Let's Make Lots of Money)," Neil Tennant and Chris Lowe quickly established themselves as hitmaking singles artists who were also able to craft emotionally resonant albums, like 1988's Introspective and 1990's Behaviour. The duo navigated the constantly shifting landscape of modern dance-pop with grace and intelligence, moving easily from disco to house music to thoughtful synth pop without losing their distinctive style in the process. Continuing to evolve artistically, Pet Shop Boys incorporated Latin music on 1996's Bilingual, expanded into theater and ballet, and morphed into elder statesmen of electronic pop, still able to release interesting albums after more than 30 years, as evidenced by highlights like 2016's Super and 2020's Hotspot.
Pet Shop Boys formed in London in August 1981, when vocalist Tennant (a former editor at Marvel Comics who later gained recognition as a journalist for Smash Hits magazine) first met keyboardist Lowe (a onetime architecture student) at an electronics shop. Discovering a shared passion for dance music and synthesizers, they immediately decided to start a band. After dubbing themselves Pet Shop Boys in honor of friends who worked in such an establishment -- while also obliquely nodding to the sort of names prevalent among the New York City hip-hop culture of the early '80s -- the duo's career first took flight in 1983, when Tennant met producer Bobby "O" Orlando while on a writing assignment. Orlando produced their first single, 1984's "West End Girls." The song was a minor hit in the U.S. but went nowhere in Britain, and its follow-up, "One More Chance," was also unsuccessful.
Upon signing to EMI, Pet Shop Boys issued 1985's biting "Opportunities (Let's Make Lots of Money)." When it too failed to attract attention, the duo's future appeared grim, but Tennant and Lowe then released an evocative new Stephen Hague production of "West End Girls," which became an international chart-topper. Its massive success propelled Pet Shop Boys' 1986 debut LP, Please, into the Top Ten, and when "Opportunities" was subsequently reissued, it too became a hit. Disco, a collection of dance remixes, was quickly rushed into stores, and in 1987 the duo resurfaced with the superb Actually, which launched two more Top Ten smashes -- "It's a Sin" and "What Have I Done to Deserve This?," a duet between Tennant and the great Dusty Springfield. Later that year, "Always on My Mind," a lovely cover of the perennial Elvis Presley standard, reached number one in several countries and the Top Ten in the U.S. A documentary film titled It Couldn't Happen Here was released one year later.
In October 1988, Pet Shop Boys issued their third studio LP, the eclectic Introspective. "Domino Dancing" and "Left to My Own Devices" both reached the Top Ten in Great Britain. The following year, Pet Shop Boys collaborated with a variety of performers, most notably Liza Minnelli, for whom they produced the 1989 LP Results. They also produced material for Springfield, and Tennant joined New Order frontman Bernard Sumner and ex-Smiths guitarist Johnny Marr in the group Electronic, scoring a hit with the single "Getting Away with It." Tennant and Lowe reconvened in 1990 for the muted, downcast Behavior, produced by Harold Faltermeyer. Their hit medley of U2's "Where the Streets Have No Name" and Frankie Valli's "Can't Take My Eyes Off You" was released in 1991, and was followed in 1993 by Very, lauded as one of the duo's finest efforts.
After a three-year absence, Pet Shop Boys resurfaced with Bilingual, a fluid expansion into Latin rhythms. Nightlife followed in 1999 and sparked the dance club hit "New York City Boy," whose success allowed the group to tour the U.S. for the first time in eight years. While on tour, the pair also collaborated with playwright Jonathan Harvey on a musical surrounding gay life and societal criticisms, which the three had been planning since 1997. Closer to Heaven made its West End debut in 2001 and had a successful run for most of the year; Pet Shop Boys' score of the original cast recording was also a hit in the U.K. They still had time to make a record for themselves, too: In April 2002, Tennant and Lowe issued Release and Disco 3 was compiled for release the following year.
Pet Shop Boys continued releasing material throughout the decade's latter half. In 2005, they put together a volume of the Back to Mine series and released their music designed to accompany the 1925 silent film Battleship Potemkin, a soundtrack they'd performed a year earlier at a free concert/screening in Trafalgar Square. A year later, they issued Fundamental, a mature, sometimes political album produced by Trevor Horn. The live album Concrete: In Concert at the Mermaid Theatre appeared at the end of the year, and Yes -- a collaborative effort with the production crew Xenomania -- marked the band's tenth studio effort in March 2009. While playing shows in support of that album, Pet Shop Boys also released a hits compilation, Party, to coincide with the Brazilian leg of their tour. In 2010, the tour was documented on the CD/DVD release Pandemonium, and another greatest-hits compilation, Ultimate, arrived.
Their 2011 effort, The Most Incredible Thing, was a two-disc ballet score composed for the Sadler's Wells Theatre in London, while 2012's Format rounded up the duo's B-sides and bonus tracks from the years 1996-2009. Also in 2012, Pet Shop Boys released the sports-themed single "Winner" and performed the track at the 2012 Olympics Summer Games, held that year in their hometown of London. The track landed on that year's album Elysium, which was produced by Kanye West affiliate Andrew Dawson. Stuart Price (Madonna, Seal, Kylie Minogue) was the producer of 2013's Electric, an album that featured no ballads, just dance tracks.
In May 2014, the duo announced more original music, this time with a concert piece scheduled for a July date at Royal Albert Hall commemorating British code breaker Alan Turing and including the BBC Concert Orchestra. Price returned as producer of 2016's Super, the second album in a row where Pet Shop Boys were "electronic purists," meaning no guitars, no orchestral support, and no organic instruments. The following year saw the band issue the Undertow EP, which featured two remixes of Super's "Undertow," a remix of "Burn," and a new version of "Left to My Own Devices," produced by Stuart Price. They were also awarded the Godlike Genius Award by NME.
The duo issued the Agenda EP in early 2019, and the live album CD/DVD/Blu-ray release Inner Sanctum appeared in April; it was recorded during Pet Shop Boys' four-day residency in July 2018 at the Royal Opera House in London. Later in the year, they started issuing songs from their next long-player, including "Dreamland," a collaboration with Years & Years, and "Burning the Heather," which featured Suede's Bernard Butler on guitar. The album, titled Hotspot, arrived in January 2020 and was their third LP to be produced by Price. Discovery (Live in Rio), a concert originally issued on video in 1995, was issued on DVD and CD for the first time in 2021. The duo also released a nearly ten-minute classical-inspired single titled "Cricket Wife."
In May 2022 Pet Shop and British pop duo Soft Cell released the album *Happiness Not Included - Soft Cell first studio album in nearly two decades. The colab included the song “Purple Zone”, blending the best of both Soft Cell and Pet Shop Boys, layering a dazzling synth riff and dance floor-ready beat with anthemic vocals. Appropriately for the pandemics, the track laments feeling stuck in the monotony of everyday mundanities: “Let’s get out of this life/ I’m afraid and alone,” goes the chorus. Paralyzed in the purple zone.”
Their much-anticipated “Unity Tour” of North America alongside New Order, rescheduled twice following pandemics delays, kicked off in Fall 2022 and included several venues in Canada and the United States, featuring Paul Oakenfold as special guest DJ.
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Somewhere
Pet Shop Boys Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Somewhere a place for us
Peace and quiet and open air
Wait for us somewhere
There's a time for us
Someday a time for us
Time together with time to spare
Someday
Somewhere
We'll find a new way of living
We'll find a way of forgiving
Somewhere
There's a place for us
A time and a place for us
Hold my hand and we're halfway there
Hold my hand and I'll take you there
Somehow
Someday
Somewhere
Somewhere (somewhere)
There's a place for us
A time and a place for us
Peace and quiet and open air
Hold my hand and I'll take you there
Somehow
Someday
Somewhere
You wanna live in this lousy world?
Somewhere, somewhere, somewhere, somewhere
I feel pretty, oh so pretty
I feel pretty, oh so pretty
I feel pretty
Pet Shop Boys' song "Somewhere" is a reflective and hopeful ballad, expressing the need and desire for peace, quiet and a place to belong. It is a song about the search for something better amidst the chaos of the world, and the need for companionship and love to make it through. The song is musically simple, with a slow and steady beat, allowing the lyrics to take center stage.
The song references Romeo and Juliet with the lyrics "There's a place for us, somewhere a place for us", which quotes the song "Somewhere" from the musical "West Side Story". It is a song about hope and longing for a better future, which is a recurring theme in Pet Shop Boys' music.
Interestingly, the song was co-written by Leonard Bernstein, the composer of "West Side Story". Pet Shop Boys were given the task of writing lyrics for a song that Bernstein had composed for the 1997 Broadway production of "West Side Story".
The song was covered by Barbra Streisand and featured in her album "The Broadway Album" in 1985. The song was also covered by Bon Jovi in 1996 as a bonus track for their album "These Days".
Pet Shop Boys' version of the song was included in their 1997 album "Bilingual". It was released as a single in the UK in December 1997 and peaked at number 9 in the charts.
The song was performed by Pet Shop Boys at the opening ceremony of the 2012 Olympic Games in London.
The song's theme of hope and the optimistic melody make it the perfect choice for weddings and ceremonies.
The song has been used in several films and TV shows, including "The Simpsons", "The Nanny" and "Will & Grace".
The song's emotional melody and lyrics have made it a favorite among fans of Pet Shop Boys, and it remains a staple of their live performances.
Chords: Unfortunately, the chords for "Somewhere" are not available as the song is primarily performed with electronic instruments and orchestration.
Line by Line Meaning
There's a place for us
There is a special place where we belong.
Somewhere a place for us
That place is not defined, but it exists.
Peace and quiet and open air
It's a place of tranquility and natural beauty.
Wait for us somewhere
We haven't found it yet, but it's waiting for us.
There's a time for us
There is a specific time when we will find it.
Someday a time for us
It's not now, but it will come eventually.
Time together with time to spare
When we find this place, we will have enough time to enjoy it.
Time to learn, time to care
We will have the opportunity to learn and care for ourselves and others.
We'll find a new way of living
This place will inspire us to live differently.
We'll find a way of forgiving
We will let go of past hurts and mistakes.
Somewhere
This indicates the hope and longing to find this place.
There's a place for us
Reiteration of the idea that this place exists for us.
A time and a place for us
A specific time and place have been set apart for us.
Hold my hand and we're halfway there
Together, we can find this place and make it our own.
Hold my hand and I'll take you there
Assurance that the singer will lead the way to this place.
Somehow
This underlines the uncertainty and mystery of this place.
Someday
Implies that this place will come into existence at some point.
Somewhere
Reiteration of the idea of a undefined yet real place.
You wanna live in this lousy world?
A rhetorical question that highlights the dissatisfaction with the current state of the world.
Somewhere, somewhere, somewhere, somewhere
The repetition of the word 'somewhere' indicates the artist's strong longing to find this place.
I feel pretty, oh so pretty
This line is a non sequitur and has no connection to the song's overall message.
Lyrics © BMG Rights Management
Written by: Leonard Bernstein, Stephen Sondheim
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Huntress
@TiCup that has to be my favourite bit, I'll get him to correct the bits he stuffed up (the end) and do the whole thing with that in it.
It cracks me up every single time followed by the "Cause Neil can never admit he's wrong with anything, he's got a real problem" followed by Neil's "Chris, unfortunately, has the same problem"😂
My 19 yr old daughter has started listening to them and has been watching them over the years and laughing. On my main channel (my 12 yr old took that over) I'm doing her a playlist that has interviews and the like where the boys are being themselves, so Neil does the talking while Chris takes potshots at him😂
If you have any suggestions then that'd be brilliant, I can't find half of them! I have the NME one and the one where Neil took the piss out of a Russian tv show while Chris was pissing himself with laughter. Doesn't matter how often I hear Neil sound very un-Neil like and come out with that sort of thing, it still seems so weird. Hearing him swear like a sailor is hilarious, I know he's got a total potty mouth but it's still so funny hearing it.
I'm trying to find the interview where the interviewer asked Neil what he thought Chris brought to the Pet Shop Boys. Pretty sure he automatically thought of it being the typical question asked about Chris so went right off on a tangent with it. Spent 10 minutes describing how Chris is a musical genius who has always been the talent behind PSB and finishes with "Without Chris, there IS no Pet Shop Boys".
Chris then got asked the same question about Neil and responded with "Hmmm. Nah, can't think of anything sorry"😂
Bert. H Buysse
That ending when they both walk thru the opposite doors always gives me goosebumps. One of the best musical duo's in the genre.
Lamalys
This just shows how faboulus PSB is. They can make the most beautilful song in the world to electropop without ruining it. NOONE else could do that !
APG
This song is from the West Side Story.
Lasse Marcher Henriksen
@APG I am very aware of that :)
Vincent Ruvo
What's up with this video?🤔😭
jarom676
Erasure could too methinks ;)
Kamal Ali
There's something so atmospheric about Neil's voice. Love psb.
Khv & Dv Jungle
Они оба из космоса
Huntress
HOW did I miss this?! I'm laughing my head off at Chris dropping his pants and them all cracking up as he madly tries to pull them back on as the curtain goes back up😂
I didn't catch what the boys said about it...the body language is pure Neil and Chris though, if there was ever a musical duo that can pull off acting like an old married couple then it's them.
Alex Di Faso
Niel says "did you see take his trousers down ? Chris replies something like "Id didnt pull them down, you did! you ran around the back and pulled them down ....( something about switching places with someone ) then says "and im really unhappy about it" LMAO