The early tracks that the Pet Shop Boys recorded with Ray Roberts and Bobby 'O'
The Pet Shop Boys wrote and recorded a number of their early songs before they hit it big with the 1985 releases of "West End Girls" and the album Please, both produced by Stephen Hague. Most of these early "pre-fame" recordings have seen the light of day either officially or—more often than not—unofficially. But there's a good deal of confusion about the precise origins of many of these early recordings made with Ray Roberts and/or with Bobby 'O' Orlando. (Yes, they recorded some songs with both of them.) This page represents my attempt to clarify matters.
Some of the earliest PSB recordings of all have been mistakenly identified as "Bobby 'O' demos." For instance, the unreleased tracks "Bubadubadubadum," "In the Club or in the Queue," and "Oh, Dear" are often cited as Bobby 'O' demos, as has an early demo version of "Jealousy." But these were demoed circa 1982-83 in a small London studio belonging to Ray Roberts before they ever met and worked with Orlando. In fact, it was these earliest demos that Neil shared with Bobby 'O' as part of his successful effort to persuade him to work with them.
A short while afterward, in late 1983 and early 1984, Chris and Neil recorded thirteen of their early songs in New York City with their first "true" producer, Bobby Orlando, better known in the music world as Bobby 'O'. A songwriter and recording artist in his own right, Bobby 'O' was the man primarily responsible for (among many other things) the 1982 cult dance classic "Passion" by The Flirts, which proved a major influence on the early style of the Pet Shop Boys. The story of how Neil and Chris ended up working with him is too well known for me to repeat it here; besides, I've already related it elsewhere on this website.
Only four of the Boys' Bobby 'O' recordings were ever officially released, although demos of all the others have emerged "unofficially" on bootlegs and unauthorized downloads. Most of these songs were subsequently re-recorded with other producers and released in newer versions on the albums Please and Actually and/or subequent singles, although it wasn't until as late as Very that one of them finally saw the official light of day. The sole exception—apparently the lone song that's definitely and utterly unique to the Bobby 'O' sessions—is the eponymous "Pet Shop Boys," released as a b-side to the Bobby 'O' single versions of "West End Girls" and "One More Chance."
The following table attempts to encapsulate the history of these early PSB songs, listed in alphabetical order:
| Song | Ray Roberts demo? | Bobby 'O' recording? | Early version officially released? | Subsequent alternate version first official release |
| Bubadubadubadum (aka All My Wasted Time) | Yes | No | No | Never - officially unreleased |
| Don't Ask Me1 | Yes | No | No | Never - unreleased |
| I Get Excited (You Get Excited Too) | Maybe* | Yes | No | 1988 single b-side produced by PSB |
| I Want a Lover | Yes | Yes | No | Please version produced by Stephen Hague, Blue Weaver, and PSB |
| If Looks Could Kill | Yes | No | No | Disco 3 version produced by PSB |
| I'm Not Scared2 | Yes | No | No | Introspective version produced by David Jacob and PSB |
| In the Club or in the Queue | Yes | Maybe* | No | Never - officially unreleased |
| It's a Sin | Yes | Yes | No | Actually version produced by Julian Mendelsohn |
| It's Not a Crime | Yes | No | No | 2024 single b-side produced by PSB |
| I've Got Plans (Involving You) | Yes | No | No | 2024 single b-side produced by PSB |
| Jealousy | Yes | No | No | Behaviour version produced by Harold Faltermeyer and PSB |
| Later Tonight (mistakenly titled "Sooner or Later" on a demo tape)3 | Yes | Yes | No | Please version produced by Stephen Hague |
| Looking for Love4 | Yes | No | No | Never - unreleased |
| Love Comes Quickly | Yes | No | No | Please version produced by Stephen Hague |
| A Man Could Get Arrested (mistakenly titled "Do It" on a demo tape) | No | Yes | Yes | 1985 single b-side produced by Bobby 'O' and PSB5 |
| New Boy (originally titled "New Boy in Town") | Yes | No | No | 2020 single b-side |
| Oh, Dear (aka Walking Down the High Street) | Yes | No | No | Never - officially unreleased |
| One More Chance | Maybe* | Yes | Yes | Actually version produced by Julian Mendelsohn |
| Opportunities (Let's Make Lots of Money) (mistakenly titled "Let's Make Lots of Money" on a demo tape) | Yes | Yes | No | 1985 single and Please versions produced by Stephen Hague, J.J. Jeczalik, and Nicholas Froome |
| Pet Shop Boys | No | Yes | Yes | No subsequent versions/releases |
| Pet Shop Noise6 | No | Yes | No | Never - unreleased |
| A Powerful Friend | Yes | No | No | 2010 limited-edition vinyl single produced by PSB |
| Rent (mistakenly titled "You Pay My Rent" on a demo tape) | Yes | Yes | No | Actually version produced by Julian Mendelsohn |
| Stick It On | Yes | No | No7 | Never - unreleased7 |
| That's My Impression | Yes | Yes | Yes8 | 1986 single b-side produced by PSB |
| To Face the Truth | Yes | No | No | Behaviour version produced by Harold Faltermeyer and PSB |
| To Speak Is a Sin | No | Yes | No | Very version produced by PSB and Stephen Hague |
| Two Divided by Zero (mistakenly titled "Two Divided by One" on a demo tape) | Maybe* | Yes | No | Please version produced by Stephen Hague |
| West End Girls | Maybe* | Yes | Yes | single and Please versions produced by Stephen Hague |
*I say "Maybe" for several songs simply because these are matters of uncertainty and mixed or apparently conflicting evidence. It's possible that recordings from more than one studio were grouped together on the same demo tape. Unless the Boys clarify this matter, it remains in the realm of uncertainty and speculation.
An early recording of "Why Don't We Live Together?" has been listed (and bootlegged) as a Bobby 'O' demo, but this is very likely incorrect. It was, however, recorded (also in New York City) with producer Ron Dean Miller, the "Original New York Mix" of which has been officially released by the Boys.
It's interesting to note that the number and total length of the recordings made with Bobby 'O' strongly suggest the complete tracklist of a full-length album. Sure enough, Neil and Chris had originally planned on recording their first album with Bobby 'O', only they were talked out of it by their newly hired manager, Tom Watkins, and their subsequent contract with EMI inspired them to re-record everything anew. But how might history have been different—very different indeed—if the first Pet Shop Boys album had indeed been produced and released by Bobby 'O'?
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1Never released in any form (at least to date), the Boys demoed a song with this title in 1984.
2An instrumental that evolved into "I'm Not Scared" was written and demoed in Ray Roberts's studio, although it wasn't titled "I'm Not Scared" at that time and subsequently underwent substantial changes before its official release. Its original title was, curiously, "A Roma."
3Although the mistaken title "Sooner or Later" (provided by Bobby 'O' based on hearing the track) might lead one to believe that it's in reference to "Love Comes Quickly," it's been confirmed by the PSB organization that it actually refers to "Later Tonight."
4The Boys recorded two versions of an unreleased song with this title in 1984.
5The 12-inch released version of "A Man Could Get Arrested" is a remix with additional production of a demo recording made with Bobby 'O'. The alternate title "Do It" was supplied by Bobby 'O' based simply on his hearing of the track, although the actual Tennant-Lowe title of the song has always been "A Man Could Get Arrested." The 7-inch version of the song is a entirely different recording.
6"Pet Shop Noise" is an unreleased instrumental that, despite the similarity in titles, is completely different from the released track "Pet Shop Boys." Although it is fundamentally an instrumental, it does include lines spoken by Neil—excerpts of lyrics from unreleased songs he and Chris had already written at the time.
7"Stick It On" (also known by a few other alternate titles) was written and demoed in 1984 for broadcast radio ads for Smash Hits magazine that aired in March 1985. Poor-quality recordings of it made from the radio have surfaced online. It has never, however, been "officially" released, although it could be briefly heard in the 1996 BBC radio documentary About Pet Shop Boys.
8The Bobby 'O' demo version of "That's My Impression" has seen the "official" light of day only as a limited-edition promo release.
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