A brand new, extended version produced by Dave Ball to be released on limited edition 10” pink vinyl
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July 2021 is the 40th anniversary of Soft Cell’s ‘Tainted Love’ and, to celebrate, a brand new, five-minute version by Soft Cell’s Dave Ball using the original studio parts is set for release. Originally 2min 36seconds, the new version will be available to listen to from 17th July after an exclusive first play on BBC Radio 2 with Holly Johnson.
As well as the new extended version, the three-track release will feature 2021 remastered versions of the original 7”, coupled with its original B-side ‘Where Did Our Love Go’.
These tracks will all feature on a limited-edition pink 10” vinyl with a rare version of its original sleeve design and comes with four postcards of classic Soft Cell images. It’s available to pre-order from www.softcell.co.uk/tainted-love/
In addition, arriving shortly will be a brand-new Jamie Jones remix, which will be released to celebrate the re-opening of UK clubs after nearly 18 months of closure.
Written by Ed Cobb, ‘Tainted Love’ is a cover of the northern soul classic and was originally performed by Gloria Jones in 1964, then by Ruth Swann in 1975. Soft Cell’s definitive version (originally released on 17th July 1981) went on to be best-selling single of the year in the UK, was the 11th best-selling single of the 80s, and is now certified as platinum. It spent a then record breaking 43 weeks in the US chart, was No.1 in 17 countries and is regarded as one of the most important and influential electronic tracks of all time.
In its glorious 40-year history, Soft Cell’s version of ‘Tainted Love’ has been voted 5th in VH1’s 100 Greatest Number 1s Of The 1980s and has been streamed over 849 million times to date (with 214 million streams in 2020 alone!). It has been sampled on worldwide hits such as Rihanna’s ‘SOS’ (108 million Spotify streams), and covered numerously by artists of many genres, including Marilyn Manson. Soft Cell’s version has featured in feature films including La La Land, Pride, Mr And Mrs Smith, Bruno, 13 Going On 30, Sleepers and hit TV shows including Friends, The Office (UK), This Is England, Ashes to Ashes, Eastenders and Coronation Street.
‘Tainted Love’ is taken from Soft Cell’s seminal 1981 debut album ‘Non-Stop Erotic Cabaret’, which will be reissued in an expanded edition in 2022.
Soft Cell – Marc Almond & Dave Ball – reunited in 2018 and will release brand new material later in 2021.
