“Vienna” by Ultravox

Ultravox's "Vienna" gave its name to the band's fourth studio album in 1980 and came out as its third single early in 1981, and it's new wave in a dinner jacket, all brooding grandeur. Written in January 1980, it grew out of a Roland CR-78 pattern from Warren Cann, and the four writers (Cann, Chris Cross, Billy Currie and Midge Ure) built it up from there: a MiniMoog bass line throbbing underneath, an Elka string synth, a stately grand piano and a viola solo sawing away in the middle. Conny Plank produced it with the band.

Ure sings it like a man walking home alone through the fog, and it became their signature song and their biggest seller, a touchstone of the synth-pop that took over the early '80s. They played it at Live Aid at Wembley in 1985, and Ure still brings it out at his solo shows.

Written with AI assistance from RockLists chart data, MusicBrainz and Wikipedia.