However in the second half of 1989 Terry did return to fulfil his contractual obligations to Chrysalis. Terry joined together with two Americans - Blair Booth and Anouchka Groce - to form Terry, Blair and Anouchka. Their first release was a single called 'Missing' which was backed by two album tracks 'Happy families' and 'Beautiful people'. There are numerous songs with similar titles and themes as 'Missing' however Terry's version is a humourous tale of woe - "The kids are crying,
The dog is dying,
and I just got the flu,
Oh how we're missing,
missing you."
'Missing' was followed in early 1990 by the single 'Ultra Modern Nursery Rhyme' closely followed by the ten track album 'Ultra Modern Nursery Rhymes'. The album consists of bouncy, playful, almost comical music and cheery vocals but with largely downbeat lyrics. Terry has often stated that at this time he had no desire to release records and was simply getting his contractual obligations out of the way. During this time Terry said "I don't know what pop music is anymore. People say Jason Donovan - that's what pop music should be about. Disposable. I disagree. It should be memorable. Pop should last forever." Terry also stated something which has pervaded his lyrics in the 1990s - "I can only write about me, really. I can't write about anything else." Terry, Blair and Anouchka is by no means Terry's best work however it was an interesting stage in Terry's diverse career and rather worryingly at the time looked like it might be Terry's last recording.
In 1992 Terry was thankfully coaxed back into recording by the former Eurythmics member, Dave Stewart who had to release a final album for BMG/RCA. Together they recorded a one-off album project under the name Vegas. The fact Vegas was a one-off project enabled Terry to actually part company with Dave Stewart without the problems leaving earlier groups had created. The first Vegas single was 'Possessed' which features a slightly eerie orchestral arrangement and saw Terry's vocals clearer than ever. The first lines of the single marking his return perhaps highlighted his reasons for keeping a low profile in previous years -
"Got tired of being gifted and tormented.
Signed, sealed, delivered, then resented"
But now he was back - " Feels like I'm home again,
Feeling safe and sound again
I even feel like myself again
And it feels good."
.
The single came with an expensive video featuring Terry and Dave in large pink dressing gowns. The single also saw Terry back into the Top 40 after a very long wait. The second Vegas single was a cover of Charles Aznavour's 'She' with Terry's slower detached vocals making it an interesting reading of the classic song. A 'disco' mix was also produced which strangely managed to bring out the poetry of the song's lyrics. The promo video features Charles Aznavour himself who was very pleased with Terry's version of his most famous song. Two other interesting tracks were included on the nicely packaged CD - 'Tip of my tongue' and 'If you kill my cat, I'll kill your dog' with the great lyric "I consider myself as one of your favourites". The 12" contains two rather superfluous mixes of 'She' in a very bright sleeve.
The Vegas album was released featuring a cover photograph of Terry and Dave sitting side by side on chairs looking somewhat bored. The album contains 10 tracks (11 if you read the CD label) including three singles. The album is slightly patchy however the high quality of many tracks makes up for the weaker ones. 'The Thought of You' is a highlight with the great self depreciating verse -
" I promise you a miracle,
I promise to be everything he is,
Please don't get hysterical,
can't you see I'm trying to take the piss"
Vegas was starkly different from previous work by both Terry and Dave Stewart and therefore may have alienated many former fans. Many reviewers were critical perhaps expecting something either in the Eurythmics or Colourfield mode and not expecting to be challenged by something different.
The third and final Vegas single was the sublime 'Walk into the Wind' which is totally transfixing. Terry's vocals are amazing and the music is rather unique yet soothing. Nearly everyone I know is impressed by it but it failed to get much airplay. The single also came with two new tracks, 'Art Blind' which borrows the "ignorance prevails when all else fails" coda from the Colourfield's 'My Wild Flame' and the great 'Truth is stranger than fiction' which is better than many of the album tracks. Like many Vegas songs it has a hypnotic effect with Terry's vocals floating over the music.
To correspond with Terry's return with Vegas, Chrysalis records released a collection of records from Terry's previous incarnations. 'The Collection' as it was imaginatively called featured 18 tracks from the Specials to Terry, Blair and Anouchka. 'The Collection' did not consist solely of singles (and indeed it was not very comprehensive in terms of single releases) since it contained 'Friday night, Saturday morning', 'From Dawn to Distraction' and 'Beautiful People'. The CD booklet also contains a short history by Lestyn George. A US version of the Collection contains a number of extra tracks including a couple of Vegas songs.
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