How to Be a ... Zillionaire!

How to Be a ... Zillionaire! is the third studio album by English pop band ABC. It was originally released in October 1985, on the labels Neutron, Mercury and Vertigo. The album peaked at No. 28 on the UK Albums Chart and at No. 30 on the Billboard 200.[5][6] Four singles were released from the album, "(How to Be A) Millionaire" (UK Singles Chart: No. 49; Billboard Hot 100: No. 20), "Be Near Me" (UK: No. 26; US: No. 9), "Vanity Kills" (UK: No. 74; US: No. 91), and the fourth was "Ocean Blue", (UK: No. 54). It is the group's first and only album to feature founder members Martin Fry and Mark White flanked by new members Eden and David Yarritu, the latter two credited merely as "performers" with effectively no or limited musical contribution to the album. The four-piece was also presented in a cartoon form for the album's artwork and promotional videos, and wore outrageous costumes and played false instruments for "live" promotional performances.

How to Be a ... Zillionaire!
Studio album by
ABC
ReleasedOctober 1985
Recorded1984–1985
Genre
Length37:52
LabelNeutron (UK)
Mercury (US)
Vertigo (Canada)
Producer
ABC chronology
Beauty Stab
(1983)		 How to Be a ... Zillionaire!
(1985)		 Alphabet City
(1987)
Alternative covers
International commercial release cover
Alternative cover
Record club and initial CD cover
Singles from How to Be a ... Zillionaire!
  1. "(How to Be A) Millionaire"
    Released: 26 October 1984
  2. "Be Near Me"
    Released: April 1985
  3. "Vanity Kills"
    Released: 1985
  4. "Ocean Blue"
    Released: 1986
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[1]
The Rolling Stone Album Guide[2]
Smash Hits8/10[3]
The Village VoiceB−[4]

In 2005, a digitally remastered CD of the album was released with eight bonus tracks.

Released editions

Original British promo pressing

On the cover the album's title is in the foreground lit up like a spotlight against a tri-tone background on which various quotes of the album's lyrics can be seen. There is also a drop shadow behind the title.

No dialogue at the start of the song "Vanity Kills". Eden (see band line up in next section) does the harmony vocal on the song "Ocean Blue". Guitars completely absent from Side Two/Tracks 6–10. No cursing from Eden in the song "A to Z". Four seconds of silence between "A to Z" and "(How to Be A) Millionaire". Eden performs the breakdown vocal and plays the instrumental solo in the song "(How to Be A) Millionaire".

International commercial release

On the cover the spotlight effect is gone. The tri-tone background is rotated 180°. There is a third layer of elements on the cover consisting of animation artwork, specifically storyboards for the "Be Near Me" and "(How to Be A) Millionaire" music videos.

Dialogue at the start of the song "Vanity Kills". Same mix of "Ocean Blue" as on previous pressing. Guitars prominently present on side two/tracks 6–10. Eden is uncensored in the song "A to Z". "A to Z" immediately segues into "(How to Be A) Millionaire". Session musician David Williams performs the breakdown vocal and plays the instrumental solo in the song "(How to Be A) Millionaire".

Record Club and initial CD version

On the cover the spotlight effect is retained with a solid blue background.

Dialogue at the start of the song "Vanity Kills". Same mix of "Ocean Blue" as on the initial pressing. Eden is uncensored in the song "A to Z". Same segue between "A to Z" and "(How to Be A) Millionaire" as on previous pressing. Session musician David Williams performs the breakdown vocal and plays the instrumental solo in the song "(How to Be A) Millionaire".

2005 version

The cover is a recreation of the cover to the international commercial release.

Dialogue at the start of the song "Vanity Kills". Same mix of "Ocean Blue" as on the initial pressing. Guitars prominently present on side two/tracks 6–10. Eden is uncensored in the song "A to Z". Same segue between "A to Z" and "(How to Be A) Millionaire" as on the previous pressing. Session musician David Williams performs the breakdown vocal and plays the instrumental solo in the song "(How to Be A) Millionaire".

Track listing

All tracks are written by Martin Fry and Mark White.

Side one
No.TitleLength
1."Fear of the World"3:50
2."Be Near Me"3:37
3."Vanity Kills"3:28
4."Ocean Blue"3:36
5."15 Storey Halo"5:36
Side two
No.TitleLength
6."A to Z"2:49
7."(How to Be A) Millionaire"3:34
8."Tower of London"3:36
9."So Hip It Hurts"4:17
10."Between You and Me"3:16
Total length:37:52
Additional tracks on initial CD pressing
No.TitleLength
11."Fear of the World" (In CinemaScope)4:40
12."Be Near Me" (Munich Disco mix)5:27
13."(How to Be a) Zillionaire" (Bond Street mix of "(How to Be a) Millionaire")6:05
14."Vanity Kills" (The Abigail's Party mix)5:08
Additional tracks on 2005 version
No.TitleLength
11."(How to Be a) Trillionaire" (Harajuku mix of "(How to Be a) Millionaire")3:38
12."What's Your Destination?" (B-side to UK version of "Be Near Me" single)3:38
13."Vanity Kills" (USA remix)5:40
14."Vanity Kills" (The Abigail's Party mix)5:08
15."Ocean Blue" (Pacific Mix)3:40
16."Judy's Jewels" (B-side to "Vanity Kills" single)2:03
17."Fear of the World" (in CinemaScope)4:40
18."Tower of London" (instrumental version)3:38

Personnel

ABC

Additional personnel

Production

  • Mark White – producer
  • Martin Fry – producer
  • Martyn Webster – chief engineer
  • Julian Mendelsohn – mixing; second engineer
  • Mark Stent – assistant engineer
  • Paul Corkett – assistant engineer
  • Dietmar Schillinger – assistant engineer
  • Heff Moraes – assistant engineer
  • Mike Drake – assistant engineer
  • Paul Wright – assistant engineer
  • Charles Harrowell – assistant engineer
  • Ian Cooper – analogue mastering engineer
  • Daryl Easlea – digital pre-mastering; album sequencing
  • Gary Moore – digital mastering engineer
  • Nick Knight – photography
  • Keith Breeden at Design KB – art direction
  • Alan Best – animation art
  • Ted Hall – animation art
  • Peter Care – dialogue and photo modelling director
  • Anne Dudley – string arrangement on "Ocean Blue" (record club/initial CD pressing only, uncredited)
  • Ross Bagdasarian Jr. – string concertmaster on "Ocean Blue" (record club/initial CD pressing only, uncredited)

Chart performance

Weekly charts
Chart Peak
position
Canadian RPM Albums Chart[7][8] 36
UK Albums Chart[5] 28
US Billboard 200[9] 30
West German Media Control Albums Chart[10] 58
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References
  1. Erlewine, Stephen Thomas. "How to Be a... Zillionaire! – ABC". AllMusic. Retrieved 1 October 2011.
  2. Sheffield, Rob (2004). "ABC". In Brackett, Nathan; Hoard, Christian (eds.). The New Rolling Stone Album Guide (4th ed.). Simon & Schuster. p. 2. ISBN 0-7432-0169-8.
  3. Mills, Simon (25 September 1985). "ABC: How to Be a... Zillionaire!". Smash Hits. 7 (19): 59.
  4. Christgau, Robert (3 December 1985). "Christgau's Consumer Guide". The Village Voice. Retrieved 1 October 2011.
  5. "ABC". Officialcharts.com.
  6. "How to Be a...Zillionaire! Charts & Awards Billboard Singles" at AllMusic. Retrieved 1 October 2011.
  7. "Item Display – RPM – Library and Archives Canada". Collectionscanada.gc.ca. Retrieved 23 June 2012.
  8. "Results – RPM – Library and Archives Canada". Collectionscanada.gc.ca. Retrieved 23 June 2012.
  9. ABC. "ABC – Awards". AllMusic. Retrieved 23 June 2012.
  10. "Charts.de". Charts.de. Retrieved 23 June 2012.
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