The Luxury Gap

The Luxury Gap is the second studio album by the English synthpop band Heaven 17. It was originally released in April 1983, on the label Virgin. Recorded under the working title "Ashes and Diamonds",[6] it is the band's best-selling album, peaking at number 4 on the UK Albums Chart – eventually becoming the 17th best-selling album of the year – and certified platinum (300,000 copies sold) by the BPI in 1984.

The Luxury Gap
Studio album by
Heaven 17
Released8 April 1983 (1983-04-08)
StudioTownhouse Studios, AIR Studios Oxford St
GenreSynth-pop
Length37:39 (original)
60:49 (reissue)
LabelVirgin
Producer
Heaven 17 chronology
Penthouse and Pavement
(1981)		 The Luxury Gap
(1983)		 How Men Are
(1984)
Singles from The Luxury Gap
  1. "Let Me Go"
    Released: 30 October 1982
  2. "Temptation (UK/Europe only)"
    Released: 8 April 1983
  3. "We Live So Fast (US only)"
    Released: 8 April 1983
  4. "Come Live with Me"
    Released: 24 June 1983
  5. "Crushed by the Wheels of Industry"
    Released: 29 September 1983
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[1]
Christgau's Record GuideB+[2]
PopMatters5/10[3]
Record Collector[4]
Rolling Stone[5]

In contrast to their debut album, Penthouse and Pavement, the singles charted strongly, particularly "Temptation" which reached number 2 in the UK Singles Chart and was the 34th biggest selling single of 1983. Other hits included "Come Live With Me" (UK number 5) and "Crushed by the Wheels of Industry" (UK number 17).

The band performed the album in its entirety on 14 October 2011 at London’s Roundhouse, the first night featured Heaven 17 (Martyn Ware and Glenn Gregory) performing the album in "3-D sound" developed by Ware himself. The show is a sequel of sorts to the Penthouse and Pavement concerts the band played in 2010.

A new deluxe edition of the album in 2012 was promoted with a tour of the UK in October and November followed by some dates in Germany and Belgium. The band played the original album in its entirety followed by a selection of Heaven 17 tracks and two Human League tracks "A Crow and a Baby" and "Being Boiled". A cover version of "You've Lost That Lovin' Feeling", similar to the one recorded by The Human League in 1979, and a cover version of the Associates' track "Party Fears Two" were also performed.

Track listing

All songs written and composed by Glenn Gregory, Ian Craig Marsh, and Martyn Ware.

  1. "Crushed by the Wheels of Industry" – 5:54
  2. "Who'll Stop the Rain" – 3:04
  3. "Let Me Go" – 4:23
  4. "Key to the World" – 3:42
  5. "Temptation" – 3:34
  6. "Come Live with Me" – 4:18
  7. "Lady Ice and Mr Hex" – 3:46
  8. "We Live So Fast" – 3:49
  9. "The Best Kept Secret" – 5:09

The US Arista issue of this album omitted "Who'll Stop the Rain" and "Let Me Go", both of which had appeared on a US-only release titled Heaven 17 (featuring most tracks from Penthouse and Pavement) in 1982. They were replaced with re-recorded versions of "Let's All Make a Bomb" and "Song With No Name" (from Penthouse and Pavement, and released as B-sides in the UK).

Bonus tracks on 2006 remastered edition

  • "Let Me Go (Extended Mix)" – 6:22
  • "Who'll Stop the Rain (Dub)" – 6:15
  • "Crushed By the Wheels of Industry (Parts 1 and 2)" – 6:59
  • "Come Live With Me (12" version)" – 4:34

Personnel
Heaven 17
Session musicians

Chart performance
Chart (1983) Peak
position
Australia (Kent Music Report)[7] 53
Dutch Albums Chart[8] 20
Finnish Albums Chart (Suomen virallinen lista)[9] 13
French Albums Chart[10] 18
German Albums Chart[11] 7
New Zealand Albums Chart[12] 11
Swedish Albums Chart[13] 17
UK Albums Chart[14] 4
US Billboard 200[15] 72

References
  1. LeRoy, Dan. "The Luxury Gap – Heaven 17". AllMusic. Retrieved 11 October 2012.
  2. Christgau, Robert (1990). "Heaven 17: The Luxury Gap". Christgau's Record Guide: The '80s. Pantheon Books. ISBN 0-679-73015-X. Retrieved 18 September 2016.
  3. O'Neil, Tim (30 November 2006). "Heaven 17: Penthouse and Pavement / The Luxury Gap / How Men Are". PopMatters. Retrieved 11 October 2012.
  4. Easlea, Daryl (November 2012). "Heaven 17 – The Luxury Gap: Collector's Edition". Record Collector (407). Retrieved 18 September 2016.
  5. Fricke, David (1 September 1983). "Heaven 17: The Luxury Gap". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on 31 August 2009. Retrieved 18 September 2016.
  6. "Smash Hits magazine February 3 - 19 1983 page 12".
  7. Kent, David (1993). Australian Chart Book 1970–1992 (Illustrated ed.). St Ives, N.S.W.: Australian Chart Book. p. 137. ISBN 0-646-11917-6.
  8. Steffen Hung. "Heaven 17 - The Luxury Gap". dutchcharts.nl. Retrieved 24 October 2018.
  9. "Sisältää hitin: Levyt ja esittäjät Suomen musiikkilistoilla vuodesta 1961: HAS - HEL". Blogspot (in Finnish). Retrieved 1 December 2017.
  10. "InfoDisc : Tous les Albums classés par Artiste". Infodisc.fr. Archived from the original on 31 July 2014. Retrieved 29 February 2012.
  11. Steffen Hung. "Heaven 17 - The Luxury Gap". germancharts.de. Retrieved 24 October 2018.
  12. Steffen Hung. "charts.nz - Heaven 17 - The Luxury Gap". Charts.nz. Retrieved 24 October 2018.
  13. Steffen Hung. "Heaven 17 - The Luxury Gap". swedishcharts.com. Retrieved 24 October 2018.
  14. "HEAVEN 17 | full Official Chart History | Official Charts Company". Officialcharts.com. Retrieved 24 October 2018.
  15. Billboard. "Heaven 17 The Luxury Gap Chart History". Billboard. Retrieved 24 October 2018.
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