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Left to My Own Devices

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"Left to My Own Devices"
Single by Pet Shop Boys
from the album Introspective
B-side"The Sound of the Atom Splitting"
Released14 November 1988 (1988-11-14)
Genre
Length
  • 8:16 (album version)
  • 4:43 (7-inch)
LabelParlophone
Songwriter(s)
Producer(s)
Pet Shop Boys singles chronology
"Domino Dancing"
(1988) 		"Left to My Own Devices"
(1988) 		"It's Alright"
(1989)
Alternative cover
12-inch single cover

"Left to My Own Devices" is a song by English synth-pop duo Pet Shop Boys, released in November 1988 by Parlophone as the second single from their third studio album, Introspective (1988). It is the first track of the album. The song fared better than the album's lead single, "Domino Dancing", charting three positions higher on the UK Singles Chart, at number four.[1] It was the first song that Pet Shop Boys recorded with an orchestra, arranged by Richard Niles.[2] Since its release, it has become a staple of Pet Shop Boys' live performances.[3] Eric Watson directed its music video.[4]

Background and composition

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"Left to My Own Devices" was written because Pet Shop Boys wanted to work with producer Trevor Horn and they needed a song to record.[5] The day before their meeting with Horn, they made a demo at Abbey Road Studios of an instrumental by Chris Lowe, with a line Neil Tennant came up with, "left to my own devices I probably would". Tennant finished the lyrics a few days later, and explained his process:

That's when I realised what the song was about - that this person goes through life always doing what he wanted to do. I liked the idea of writing a really up pop song about being left alone.[6]

... The song is a day in the life of someone, so it starts off with getting out of bed and being on the phone and drinking tea and all the rest of it, and it ends up with coming home. ... By this time I was making the words very exaggerated and camp, though writing a book and going on stage were both things I had wanted to do when I was young.[7]

Tennant called the song an exaggerated autobiography.[8][9] He included a childhood reminiscence of being "in a world of my own at the back of the garden" playing with toy soldiers at his family home in Newcastle, although he actually pretended to be a Cavalier instead of "a Roundhead general" as in the song.[10] The "party animal" on the phone was Tennant's friend Jon Savage.[6] The line "It's not a crime" is from a Pet Shop Boys song of that name written in 1982[9] that was released in 2024. Trevor Horn was the source of the phrase "Debussy to a disco beat", which Tennant paired with Che Guevara "to combine revolution with beauty."[7]

Recording and release

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"Left to My Own Devices" was produced by Trevor Horn and Stephen Lipson. Lipson took the Pet Shop Boys' demo, which had a Motown sound, and added the popular house music influence of the time.[2] The song opens with mezzo-soprano Sally Bradshaw singing the word "house".[11]

An orchestra was recorded at Abbey Road, arranged and conducted by Richard Niles. Pet Shop Boys had not worked with an orchestra before and they were initially taken aback by the arrangement; Lowe in particular felt it was too much. The arrangement was pared down, but they retained most of it on the track and continued to work with Niles on future projects.[11]

The album version includes a long outro in which fragments of the main song lyrics are cut into a different order, such as "Che Guevara's drinking tea".

As with the other tracks on Introspective, it has a longer version on the album and was edited down to become more radio-friendly when released as a single. This is mainly due to Pet Shop Boys wanting to be different from other artists at the time. Tennant stated:

It was quite exciting to plan the songs as long because we had been so disciplined at making four-minute pop singles, with the exception of "It's a Sin", which is five minutes. The idea also was to have an album where every track was a single.[12]

Super version

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In April 2017, Pet Shop Boys released a new version of "Left to My Own Devices" as a bonus track on the single "Undertow" from their 2016 album Super. It was produced by Stuart Price and was based on the live performance of the song during their Super Tour,[13] featuring tour musicians Afrika Green, Christina Hizon, and Simon Tellier on backing vocals, keyboards, and percussion.[14]

Critical reception

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Miranda Sawyer from Smash Hits named "Left to My Own Devices" Single of the Fortnight, writing, "Pop perfection from the winsome twosome. Complete with swank orchestra, this massive stomper galumphs away at a breakneck pace into all sorts of dramatic twists and turns, over which Neil's deadpan vocals sound brilliantly menacing. [...] A storming chorus plus! — plus! — one of those superbly pretentious talking bits Neil does, rounded off with a breathtaking violin swoosh, must ensure that this soars to the top of the charts and stays there for weeks and weeks. A truly awe-inspiring Single of the Fortnight."[15]

Music video

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The accompanying music video for "Left to My Own Devices", directed by longtime Pet Shop Boys director Eric Watson, primarily consists of Tennant and Lowe dancing on an invisible glass floor, with the camera angle facing upwards. Tennant and Lowe are joined by several acrobats who are also seen from the same camera angle. At one point, balloons are also visible.

Watson had used a similar technique, filming through layers of perspex, on the video for "Breakaway" by the Australian band Big Pig, but Pet Shop Boys were not happy with the result. Watson recalled, "I thought I'd pulled it off, but they were furious because it was so dark".[16] MTV declined to show the video due to the dim lighting.[citation needed]

Usage in other media

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Turkey's longest-running weekly video-music programme Pop Saati (lit. Pop Hour) on TRT begins with the intro of the song.[17]

In 2024, the song was used in a television commercial titled "Clocking Off" for the British telecommunications company EE, depicting people leaving a drab workplace for a vibrant home life.[18]

Track listings

[edit]
UK 7-inch single
No.TitleLength
1."Left to My Own Devices"4:43
2."The Sound of the Atom Splitting" (extended version)5:13
Total length:9:56
UK 12-inch single
No.TitleLength
1."Left to My Own Devices" (Disco mix)11:28
2."Left to My Own Devices"4:43
3."The Sound of the Atom Splitting"3:37
Total length:19:48
UK CD single
No.TitleLength
1."Left to My Own Devices"4:43
2."Left to My Own Devices" (Disco mix)11:28
3."The Sound of the Atom Splitting"3:37
Total length:19:48

Charts

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Release history

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Release dates and formats for "Left to My Own Devices"
Region Date Format(s) Label(s) Ref(s).
United Kingdom 14 November 1988
  • 7-inch vinyl
  • 12-inch vinyl
 Parlophone [39][40]
21 November 1988
  • CD
  • cassette
 [41]
Japan 25 January 1989 Mini-CD EMI [42]

References

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  1. ^ "Pet Shop Boys Songs and Albums: Full Official Chart History". Official Charts. Retrieved 22 October 2024.
  2. ^ a b Kay, Vernon (host) (24 February 2024). Piano Room: Pet Shop Boys (radio programme). BBC Radio 2.
  3. ^ "Left to My Own Devices performed by Pet Shop Boys". Setlist.fm. Retrieved 22 October 2024.
  4. ^ Perrone, Pierre (5 April 2012). "Eric Watson: Photographer who worked with the Pet Shop Boys and for pop bible Smash Hits". The Independent. London. Retrieved 22 October 2024.
  5. ^ Heath, Chris (2018). Introspective: Further Listening 1988-1989 (booklet). Pet Shop Boys. Parlophone Records. p. 3. 0190295826178.
  6. ^ a b Heath 2018, p. 4.
  7. ^ a b Heath 2018, p. 6.
  8. ^ "Pet Shop Boys: Why is their new LP called ... Introspective ????". Smash Hits. 21 September 1988.
  9. ^ a b Tennant, Neil (2018). One Hundred Lyrics and a Poem: 1979–2016. London: Faber & Faber. p. 110. ISBN 9780571348916.
  10. ^ "Pet Shop Boys interview". This Is Not Retro. March 2004. Retrieved 16 November 2024.
  11. ^ a b Heath 2018, p. 7.
  12. ^ Heath 2018, p. 1.
  13. ^ Sinclair, Paul (15 March 2017). "Pet Shop Boys / Undertow vinyl EP". Super Deluxe Edition. Retrieved 16 November 2024.
  14. ^ "Pet Shop Boys - Undertow". Discogs. Retrieved 16 November 2024.
  15. ^ Sawyer, Miranda (16 November 1988). "Singles: Single of the Fortnight". Smash Hits. p. 77. Retrieved 9 March 2023.
  16. ^ Pet Shop Boys. (May 1992) "Interview with Eric Watson". Literally, issue 8, p. 2
  17. ^ "'Pop Saati' rekora koşuyor". www.milliyet.com.tr. 2 March 2006. Retrieved 22 August 2014.
  18. ^ "EE Wi-Fi 7 'Clocking Off': Orwell would've been up for it". Decision Marketing. 18 October 2024. Retrieved 22 October 2024.
  19. ^ "Pet Shop Boys – Left to My Own Devices". ARIA Top 50 Singles. Retrieved 23 June 2012.
  20. ^ "Pet Shop Boys – Left to My Own Devices" (in Dutch). Ultratop 50. Retrieved 1 May 2020.
  21. ^ "RPM 100 Singles" (PDF). RPM. Vol. 49, no. 18. 27 February – 4 March 1989. p. 6. ISSN 0033-7064 – via World Radio History.
  22. ^ "Eurochart Hot 100 Singles" (PDF). Music & Media. Vol. 5, no. 50. 10 December 1988. p. 22. OCLC 29800226 – via World Radio History.
  23. ^ Pennanen, Timo (2006). Sisältää hitin – levyt ja esittäjät Suomen musiikkilistoilla vuodesta 1972 (in Finnish) (1st ed.). Helsinki: Kustannusosakeyhtiö Otava. p. 233. ISBN 978-951-1-21053-5.
  24. ^ "Top 3 in Europe" (PDF). Music & Media. Vol. 6, no. 4. 28 January 1989. p. 32. OCLC 29800226 – via World Radio History.
  25. ^ "The Irish Charts – Search Results – Left to My Own Devices". Irish Singles Chart. Retrieved 1 May 2020.
  26. ^ "Classifiche". Musica e dischi (in Italian). Retrieved 30 May 2022. Select "Singoli" in the "Tipo" field, type "Pet Shop Boys" in the "Artista" field and press "cerca".
  27. ^ "Nederlandse Top 40 – Pet Shop Boys" (in Dutch). Dutch Top 40. Retrieved 1 May 2020.
  28. ^ "Pet Shop Boys – Left to My Own Devices" (in Dutch). Single Top 100. Retrieved 23 June 2012.
  29. ^ "Pet Shop Boys – Left to My Own Devices". Top 40 Singles. Retrieved 30 August 2019.
  30. ^ Salaverrie, Fernando (September 2005). Sólo éxitos: año a año, 1959–2002 (in Spanish) (1st ed.). Madrid: Fundación Autor/SGAE. ISBN 84-8048-639-2.
  31. ^ "Pet Shop Boys – Left to My Own Devices". Swiss Singles Chart. Retrieved 1 May 2020.
  32. ^ "Pet Shop Boys: Artist Chart History". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 9 November 2016.
  33. ^ "Pet Shop Boys Chart History (Hot 100)". Billboard. Retrieved 1 May 2020.
  34. ^ "Pet Shop Boys Chart History (Dance Club Songs)". Billboard. Retrieved 1 May 2020.
  35. ^ "Pet Shop Boys Chart History (Dance Singles Sales)". Billboard. Retrieved 1 May 2020.
  36. ^ "Cash Box Top 100 Singles – Week ending February 4, 1989". Cash Box. Archived from the original on 11 June 2021. Retrieved 1 May 2020.
  37. ^ "Offiziellecharts.de – Pet Shop Boys – Left to My Own Devices" (in German). GfK Entertainment charts. Retrieved 1 May 2020.
  38. ^ "Top 100 Single-Jahrescharts – 1989" (in German). GfK Entertainment. Retrieved 1 May 2020.
  39. ^ Smith, Robin (12 November 1988). "News: Nuclear Device". Record Mirror. p. 4. ISSN 0144-5804.
  40. ^ "New Singles". Music Week. 12 November 1988. p. 31.
  41. ^ "New Singles". Music Week. 19 November 1988. p. 36.
  42. ^ "レフト・トゥ・マイ・オウン・ディバイセズ | ペット・ショップ・ボーイズ" [Left to My Own Devices | Pet Shop Boys] (in Japanese). Oricon. Retrieved 22 January 2024.
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