Pet Shop Boys Biography

Neil Tennant, a vocalist, met up with Chris Low in a London shop one day in 1981. A short conversation struck not only a friendship, but also the formation of what would become Pet Shop Boys. Neil and Chris shared a love of music, in particular the synthesized dance music which was becoming all the rage in England at that time. In tribute to their mutual friends who worked in a pet shop, they dubbed themselves as such and embarked on a music career.

Pet Shop Boys hit the scene in 1984 with the single ‘West End Girls,” which initially became a minor hit in the United States. They followed up with “Opportunities (Let’s Make Lots of Money,” but their big breakthrough came when a remake of “West End Girls” was released in 1986, propelling not only the single but also Pet Shop Boys’ debut album, Please, to the top of the charts. Disco came next in 1978, spawning the hits “It’s a Sin,” “Always on My Mind,” and “What I Have I Done to Deserve This?” Introspective followed in 1988, with Pet Shop Boys’ first Top 40 hit, “Domino Dancing,” and the boys rounded out the decade with the album Results. Additional albums and hit singles followed in the 1990’s, including: Behavior (1990), Very (1993), Bilingual (1996), Nightlife (1999), “Where the Streets Have No Name,” “Can’t Take My Eyes Off you,” “New York City Boy,” and “It’s a Sin.”

In the latter part of the 1990’s, Pet Shop Boys began working on a musical devoted to the exploration of gay life. In 2001, the play, Closer to Heaven, debuted in London’s West End and run successfully for a year. Pet Shop Boys released an accompanying album, and followed up with Release (2002), Fundamental (2006), Yes (2009) and Elysium (2012.)

In total, Pet Shop Boys have sold fifty million records thus far and earned six Grammy nods and three Brit Awards. Currently the most successful duo in UK’s music history, Pet Shop Boys continue to tour, perform, and record.