Recommendations of the Editorial team
The pumping bass produced by Trevor Horn was probably intended to evoke associations with the rhythm of ejaculation. The look of the band – lots of leather, sailor hats, chains – as well as song lines like “Shoot It In The Right Direction” left no doubt about it. Frankie Goes To Hollywood wanted to convey one thing above all else: a constant willingness to have sex.
Room for interpretation
Her debut single, “Relax,” released in 1983, was all about orgasm. Pre-published newspaper advertisements (“All the nice boys love sea men”) with pictures of the band members left no room for interpretation about sexual orientation.
After an appearance by Frankie Goes To Hollywood on the TV show “Top of the Pops”, it became too much for those responsible at the British radio station BBC. “Relax” was banned from broadcasting on all BBC stations.
Frankie Goes To Hollywood – “Relax” on YouTube:
One may wonder about that. Even though the puns in the song are easy to understand, not a single obscene word appears in the lyrics.
In England, “Relax” is number seven among the best-selling singles of all time
And of course the ban fueled interest in the song. On January 24th, “Relax” was at number 1 on the UK Singles Chart. And stayed there for five weeks. When the charts for “Top of the Pops” were announced, the performance with “Relax” was not recorded. But just showed a picture of the band.
The station repeated this each of the five weeks in which “Relax” took the top spot.
At the end of 1984 the BBC the lock up. Every other radio and TV station in the UK played the song from the start anyway. By the end of the year, two million “Relax” singles had been sold. In England, “Relax” is number seven among the best-selling singles of all time.
