Generally known as the album where the wheels fell off, "Bilingual" saw the Pet Shop Boys "Imperial Phase" come to an end. Or at least popular opinion would have it. The singles "Before" and "Se A Vida E (That's The Way Life Is)" did respectably in the charts, reaching numbers 7 and 8 respectively, and the other singles reached the top 20. So why the bad reputation? Was it the lack of a tour to accompany the album? Was it the overt Latin feel on some of the tracks? Was Neil Tennant's disclosure that he was gay a factor? Maybe, but perhaps the real reason is that it was just dull. Yes, dull, which they'd never been before. Even Farrow's art work was below par. Bored of white? Try yellow.
So it was that Parlophone tried to revive sales of "Bilingual" on the back of a hit cover version of "Somewhere" by issuing a "Special Edition" of the album with a bonus disc of mixes. "Limited" it was, and who are we to doubt them? Apart from the fact you can easily pick up a copy today. Anyway, enjoy the promo postcard from 1997.
