"It's a Sin" is a song by Englishsynth-pop duoPet Shop Boys from their second studio album,Actually (1987). Written byChris Lowe andNeil Tennant, the song was released on 15 June 1987[8] as the album's lead single.[9] It became the duo's second number-one single on theUK singles chart, spending three weeks atop the chart. Additionally, the single topped the charts in Austria, Denmark, Finland, West Germany, Ireland, Norway, Portugal, South Africa, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, and Zimbabwe, while reaching number nine on the USBillboard Hot 100. It remains one of Pet Shop Boys' most popular songs with 40 millionstreams in the UK.[10]
"It's a Sin" was written in 1982 at Ray Roberts' studio inCamden, where Lowe and Tennant worked on songs in their early years.[11][12] Their original demo was one of the songs Tennant brought to his meeting with New Yorkrecord producerBobby Orlando.[13] Pet Shop Boys made another demo with Orlando in 1984, but it was never released. The song's basic structure from the 1984 demo remained intact in the 1987 version, although the released production is far more dramatic.[1]
Tennant came up with the phrase "It's a sin" when he heard Lowe play a piece of music that sounded to him like a hymn.[12] In the lyrics, he describes some impressions he took from his time at theCatholic[6]St Cuthbert's Grammar School inNewcastle upon Tyne, in particular the teaching that sex is a sin except within marriage for the purpose of procreation.[11][14] Tennant has said that the song was not intended to be serious:
People took it really seriously; the song was written in about 15 minutes, and was intended as a camp joke and it wasn't something I consciously took very seriously—sometimes I wonder if there was more to it than I thought at the time—but the local parish priest in Newcastle delivered a sermon on it, and reflected on how the Church changed from the promise of a ghastly hell to the message of love.[15]
In thecoda, Tennant recites a part of theConfiteor inLatin,[12] which translated into English is "I confess to almighty God, and to you, my brothers, that I have sinned exceedingly in thought, word, act and omission, through my fault, through my fault, through my most grievous fault".
"It's a Sin" is in the key ofC minor; the music for thebridge ("Father forgive me…") was taken from another song of theirs written inE-flat minor.[16] In Tennant's words, "'It's a Sin', at its heart, is a heavy metal record. There is a huge link between hi-NRG music and heavy metal: the urgency, the chords, the slightly histrionic melody."[6] The dramatic, overblown production style of the song, loaded with synthesizers,orchestra hits and bookended by anon sequitur sample of aNASAcountdown, has come to exemplify the most theatrical extremes of the Pet Shop Boys' musical style.[17]
Julian Mendelsohn was the primary producer of "It's a Sin".[a] He had been selected to co-produceActually based on his work on the previous Pet Shop Boys single "Suburbia".[19]
To add ambience to the track, Mendelsohn went with the duo toBrompton Oratory, a Catholic church in London, to record background sounds that can be heard during the bridge.[19] AtWestminster Cathedral, they recorded asung Mass that happened to be in the right key, C minor; theamen response is heard at the end of the song. Keyboard programmerAndy Richards used aFairlight to create the choir sound that opens the track.[20]
After Mendelsohn moved on to another project,[1] Pet Shop Boys decided they weren't satisfied with the end result, particularly the vocals.[12] They askedStephen Hague, the producer ofPlease (1986), to do another mix, which was the version used on the album and as the single. Mendelsohn commented that although he thought his version had better sound anddynamics, Hague's version was more interesting and the track benefitted from his "fresh ears."[1]
The first single fromActually was originally slated to be "Heart", but Pet Shop Boys managerTom Watkins advised them thatEMI considered "It's a Sin" to be the most commercial option.[12] "It's a Sin" preceded the album's September release on 15 June 1987 and became the Pet Shop Boys' second number one hit in the UK after "West End Girls". It held the top spot for three weeks during its six weeks in the top 10,[21] and it was the nation's eighth best-selling single of 1987.[22]
"It's a Sin" has sold at least 500,000 copies in the UK[22] and is certified Gold byBPI.[23]With 40 million streams as of May 2024, it is the duo's third most streamed song in the UK.[10] It received a boost of nearly 250% in sales and streams after the 2021 premiere ofIt's a Sin, a television series about the AIDS crisis of the 1980s that was named after the song.[22]
"It's a Sin" was a bestseller across Europe, reaching number two on theEuropean Hot 100 Singles chart in 1987.[24] It was number one in Austria, Denmark, Finland, West Germany, Ireland, Norway, Portugal, Spain, Sweden, and Switzerland, and in the top 10 in Belgium, Greece, Italy, and the Netherlands. The song also reached number one in South Africa and Zimbabwe and the top 10 in Canada, the United States, Australia, and New Zealand (seeCharts).
A 12-inch single of "It's a Sin" had a remix byIan Levine,[25]and another featured a Disco Mix by Stephen Hague,[26] which is included on the reissueActually: Further Listening 1987–1988. A US 12-inch edition included the Hague and Levine remixes along with a Vocal Mix and Dub Mix byStock Aitken Waterman engineerPhil Harding.[27]
In a review published inSmash Hits, Tom Hibbert wrote that "It's a Sin" starts with "an enormous clap of thunder, horns winking in the distance and then an absolute huge slab of European disco drama", noted that it sounds like a song byPrincess Stéphanie of Monaco and uses the same notes asCat Stevens' "Wild World".[31]Billboard deemed it "a lively and commercial hi-NRG track",[32] and Jerry Smith ofMusic Week called it "a slick new track, given their characteristic epic high-energy production, and sure to receive media overkill in the next few weeks".[33]
Directed byDerek Jarman, the "It's a Sin" video marked the experimental director's first of several collaborations with the band.[34] It extended the lyrical themes of the song by showing Tennant under arrest by aninquisition with Lowe as his jailer andRon Moody in the role of his judge, interspersed with brief clips ofpersonifications of theseven deadly sins.[35]
After "It's a Sin" was released, the NewcastleEvening Chronicle published a front-page article calling the song "a direct attack on the religious values preached by the teachers and priests" at the school Tennant had attended. An unnamed spokesman for St. Cuthbert's Grammar School called it "a gross misrepresentation of life at the school and the Catholic faith", and an anonymous staff member, who claimed to have taught Tennant, said:
It is very unfortunate that Neil has painted this distorted picture of his school days and the things he was taught. It is very hurtful. It is a long time since he has been here and there have been a lot of changes since then in the Church. But even back in the Sixties when he came here we were quite open and forward-thinking. It certainly wasn't all hellfire and damnation.[41]
In return, Tennant toldSmash Hits that the article was embarrassing for his parents, who still lived in Newcastle, and that it was cowardly for school staff to speak anonymously about a former pupil.[42]
At the time of the single's release, British DJJonathan King accused the Pet Shop Boys of plagiarising the melody for "It's a Sin" fromCat Stevens' 1971 song "Wild World". He made the claims inThe Sun newspaper, for which he wrote a regular column during the 1980s. King went so far as to release his own cover version of "Wild World" as a single, using a similar musical arrangement to "It's a Sin", in an effort to demonstrate his claims. The single flopped and the Pet Shop Boys sued King, eventually winningout-of-court damages, which were donated to Jefferiss Research Trust to support the study of sexually transmitted diseases.[43]
* Sales figures based on certification alone. ^ Shipments figures based on certification alone. ‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone.
On 22 January 2021, British electronic groupYears & Years covered the song to coincide with the release of theChannel 4 seriesIt's a Sin, which stars frontmanOlly Alexander in the lead role.[95][96] The cover was produced byMark Ralph,[97] with part of the proceeds going to the George House Trust.[98] The band had previously collaborated with the Pet Shop Boys on the 2019 single "Dreamland", and Alexander previewed his version forNeil Tennant prior to its release.[99] A slowed-down version of the song with only piano accompaniment, the cover is inC minor at a tempo of 126 beats per minute.[100][101] Pet Shop Boys praised the cover, calling it "beautiful".[102] A music video was released, consisting of clips fromIt's a Sin.[103] Alexander performed the song as part of the setlist for his 2022Night Call Tour.[104]
A pre-recorded performance of the song by English musiciansElton John and Years & Years aired as part of the2021 Brit Awards on 11 May 2021.[105] Pet Shop Boys were scheduled to be a part of the performance, but were unable to do so due to a "contractual issue".[105] The duet started as a slower piano track before transitioning intosynth-pop with accompanying backup dancers anddrag queens.[106][107][108] A studio recording of the collaboration, produced byStuart Price and the Pet Shop Boys, was released following the performance, with proceeds going to theElton John AIDS Foundation.[106][109] "It's a Sin" debuted at number 57 on theUK Singles Chart and at the top ofThe Official Big Top 40.[110][111]
Longmire, Ernie and Steffen Gärtner (1989–2006)."Pet Shop Boys: It's a Sin"(TXT).Gardner's Pet Shop Boys Discography. Gardner Publishing Ltd. Retrieved10 September 2006.
^In the liner notes ofActually: Further Listening 1987–1988 (2001), Tennant said they had considered using theStock Aitken Waterman production team for "It's a Sin" butPete Waterman didn't like the song;[12] Tennant has since said he does not recall that happening.[18][6]
^"Pet Shop Boys Return"(PDF).Music Week. London, England, United Kingdom: Spotlight Publication Ltd.: 3 6 June 1987.ISSN0265-1548. Archived fromthe original(PDF) on 30 September 2021. Retrieved27 June 2023.Parlophone releases the first Pet Shop Boys single of the year June 15
^"Classifiche".Musica e dischi (in Italian). Retrieved30 May 2022.Select "Singoli" in the "Tipo" field, type "It's a sin" in the "Titolo" field and press "cerca".
