How to Be a ... Zillionaire!
Studio album by
ABC
Released4 October 1985[1]
Recorded1984–1985
StudioJacobs Studios (Farnham, Surrey)
Genre
Length37:52
LabelNeutron (UK)
Mercury (US)
Vertigo (Canada)
Producer
ABC chronology
Beauty Stab
(1983) 		How to Be a ... Zillionaire!
(1985) 		Alphabet City
(1987)
Alternative covers
Original CD artwork
Singles from How to Be a ... Zillionaire!
  1. "(How to Be A) Millionaire"
    Released: 26 October 1984 (UK)
  2. "Be Near Me"
    Released: 1 April 1985 (UK)
  3. "Vanity Kills"
    Released: June 1985 (UK) [3]
  4. "Ocean Blue"
    Released: 3 January 1986 [4]
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[5]
The Encyclopedia of Popular Music[6]
Record Mirror[7]
The Rolling Stone Album Guide[8]
Smash Hits8/10[9]
The Village VoiceB−[10]

How to Be a ... Zillionaire! is the third studio album by English pop band ABC. It was originally released in October 1985, on the labels Neutron, Mercury and Vertigo. The album peaked at No. 28 on the UK Albums Chart and at No. 30 on the Billboard 200.[11][12] Four singles were released from the album, "(How to Be A) Millionaire" (UK Singles Chart: No. 49; Billboard Hot 100: No. 20), "Be Near Me" (UK: No. 26; US: No. 9), "Vanity Kills" (UK: No. 74; US: No. 91), and the fourth was "Ocean Blue", (UK: No. 54). It is the group's first and only album to feature founder members Martin Fry and Mark White flanked by new members Eden and David Yarritu, the latter two credited merely as "performers" with effectively no or limited musical contribution to the album. The four-piece was also presented in a cartoon form for the album's artwork and promotional videos, and wore outrageous costumes and played false instruments for "live" promotional performances.

In 2005, a digitally remastered CD of the album was released with eight bonus tracks.

Track listing

All tracks are written by Martin Fry and Mark White

Side one
No.TitleLength
1."Fear of the World"3:50
2."Be Near Me"3:37
3."Vanity Kills"3:28
4."Ocean Blue"3:36
5."15 Storey Halo"5:36
Side two
No.TitleLength
6."A to Z"2:49
7."(How to Be A) Millionaire"3:34
8."Tower of London"3:36
9."So Hip It Hurts"4:17
10."Between You and Me"3:16
Total length:37:52
Additional tracks on initial CD pressing
No.TitleLength
11."Fear of the World" (In CinemaScope)4:40
12."Be Near Me" (Munich Disco mix)5:27
13."(How to Be a) Zillionaire" (Bond Street mix of "(How to Be a) Millionaire")6:05
14."Vanity Kills" (The Abigail's Party mix)5:08
Additional tracks on 2005 version
No.TitleLength
11."(How to Be a) Trillionaire" (Harajuku mix of "(How to Be a) Millionaire")3:38
12."What's Your Destination?" (B-side to UK version of "Be Near Me" single)3:38
13."Vanity Kills" (USA remix)5:40
14."Vanity Kills" (The Abigail's Party mix)5:08
15."Ocean Blue" (Pacific Mix)3:40
16."Judy's Jewels" (B-side to "Vanity Kills" single)2:03
17."Fear of the World" (in CinemaScope)4:40
18."Tower of London" (instrumental version)3:38

Personnel

Credits adapted from the original album liner notes.

ABC

Additional personnel

Production

Charts

References

  1. ^ Strickland, Andy (28 September 1985). "Index: That's Rich". Record Mirror. p. 2. ISSN 0144-5804.
  2. ^ a b Lewis, Justin (2003). "ABC". In Buckley, Peter (ed.). The Rough Guide to Rock (3rd ed.). London: Rough Guides. pp. 2–3. ISBN 978-1-84353-105-0.
  3. ^ "ABC singles".
  4. ^ "ABC singles".
  5. ^ Erlewine, Stephen Thomas. "How to Be a... Zillionaire! – ABC". AllMusic. Retrieved 1 October 2011.
  6. ^ Larkin, Colin (2007). The Encyclopedia of Popular Music (5th Concise ed.). United Kingdom: Omnibus Press. p. 32. ISBN 978-1-84609-856-7.
  7. ^ Morton, Roger (12 October 1985). "Albums". Record Mirror. p. 16.
  8. ^ Sheffield, Rob (2004). "ABC". In Brackett, Nathan; Hoard, Christian (eds.). The New Rolling Stone Album Guide (4th ed.). Simon & Schuster. p. 2. ISBN 0-7432-0169-8.
  9. ^ Mills, Simon (25 September 1985). "ABC: How to Be a... Zillionaire!". Smash Hits. 7 (19): 59.
  10. ^ Christgau, Robert (3 December 1985). "Christgau's Consumer Guide". The Village Voice. Retrieved 1 October 2011.
  11. ^ "ABC". Officialcharts.com.
  12. ^ "How to Be a...Zillionaire! Charts & Awards Billboard Singles" at AllMusic. Retrieved 1 October 2011.
  13. ^ "Top RPM Albums: Issue 0604". RPM. Library and Archives Canada. Retrieved 21 August 2021.
  14. ^ "European Top 100 Albums" (PDF). Eurotipsheet. Vol. 2, no. 44. 4 November 1985. p. 15. OCLC 29800226 – via World Radio History.
  15. ^ "Offiziellecharts.de – ABC – How to Be a... Zillionaire!" (in German). GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved 26 March 2021.
  16. ^ "Official Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 21 August 2021.
  17. ^ "ABC Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved 26 March 2021.
  18. ^ "Billboard 200 Albums – Year-End 1986". Billboard. Archived from the original on 8 March 2021. Retrieved 26 March 2021.

External links

ABC
Authority control databases
Categories