Song · ABC
“The Real Thing” by ABC
From the album Up (1989)
“The Real Thing” by ABC appears on 1 radio countdown from 1 station in 2003. It was first released in 1989 on the album Up. Its best result is #1985 on the Fred XM Top 2044 Songs of All-Time (July 2003). In the combined RockLists rankings it is #7,536 alternative song of all time.
Martin Fry and Mark White wrote "The Real Thing" and produced it themselves, and in 1989 it followed "One Better World" as the second single from ABC's fifth album, Up. Bob Kraushaar recorded and mixed it, and it's glossy dance-pop, built for the club.
Record Mirror's reviewer reckoned the band had come full circle, hearing an intro that sounded just like "The Look of Love" dropped onto a dance beat, and judged it decent but short of their finest. The charts weren't much kinder: it stalled at No. 68 in Britain, the lowest a single of theirs had placed there since "Vanity Kills" in 1986.
Written with AI assistance from RockLists chart data, MusicBrainz and Wikipedia.
RockLists rankings
Alternative & Modern Rock
All Rock Formats
All-time and decade countdowns
| Year | # | Station | Countdown | of |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2003 | 1985 | Fred (XM 44) | Fred XM Top 2044 Songs of All-Time (July 2003) | 2044 |
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