No Parlez


No Parlez is the debut solo studio album by English singer Paul Young. Released in 1983, it reached number one on the UK Albums Chart and remained in the UK Top 100 for 119 weeks. The album has been certified quadruple platinum by the BPI for UK sales in excess of 1.2 million copies.

Release

Initially, the first two singles, "Iron Out the Rough Spots" and a remake of "Love of the Common People", had no success, but the third, a cover of the Marvin Gaye song "Wherever I Lay My Hat ", was No. 1 on the UK Singles Chart for three weeks in July and August 1983, and the first of Young's 14 UK Top 40 singles. Similar success followed in continental Europe. In the UK, the follow-up single "Come Back and Stay" reached No. 4, and the re-release of "Love of the Common People" made it to No. 2 in late 1983.
The album was released the year after the introduction of CDs with their potential for a longer playing time. The CD edition of No Parlez featured one extra track not on the vinyl release. Additionally, five of the other 11 tracks were extended versions compared to the vinyl edition.
The album featured eight cover versions alongside two tracks written by Young and keyboard player Ian Kewley and one written by the guitarist in Young's band at the time, Steve Bolton. Three of the cover versions were written by Jack Lee who also wrote "Hanging on the Telephone" which was a big hit for Blondie.
The album was released with a different cover with two tracks shorter in length in North America, and a new video for the single "Come Back and Stay" was made.

Critical reception

Writing for Sounds, Garry Bushell called Young "a real prospect" and No Parlez "a creditable collection and a worthy launching pad" whose "well-varied contents prove he doesn't want to get stuck in any 'revivalist' rut." Claire Sheaff of Smash Hits commented that although Young's "velvet voice" rarely "seems to take off" on the album, she was hopeful "that this pop star will mature into a fully-fledged soul man. The potential is there."
In a retrospective review for AllMusic, Dave Thompson deemed No Parlez "one of the most assured debut albums of the mid-'80s, and one of the finest pop-soul confections of all time".

Track listing

Original UK vinyl edition

;Side one
  1. "Come Back and Stay" – 4:57
  2. "Love Will Tear Us Apart" – 5:00
  3. "Wherever I Lay My Hat " – 5:18
  4. "Ku Ku Kurama" – 4:19
  5. "No Parlez" – 4:57
;Side two
  1. "Love of the Common People" – 4:56
  2. "Oh Women" – 3:35
  3. "Iron Out the Rough Spots" – 4:47
  4. "Broken Man" – 3:54
  5. "Tender Trap" – 4:32
  6. "Sex" – 4:49

    Original CD edition

  7. "Come Back and Stay" – 7:56
  8. "Love Will Tear Us Apart" – 5:00
  9. "Wherever I Lay My Hat " – 6:01
  10. "Ku Ku Kurama" – 4:19
  11. "No Parlez" – 4:57
  12. "Behind Your Smile" – 4:08
  13. "Love of the Common People" – 5:51
  14. "Oh Women" – 3:35
  15. "Iron Out the Rough Spots" – 7:28
  16. "Broken Man" – 3:54
  17. "Tender Trap" – 4:32
  18. "Sex" – 6:51

    Production

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Chart Position
Austrian Albums 23
Dutch Albums 3
Italian Albums 2
Japanese Albums 15
New Zealand Albums 16

Certifications and sales

2008 re-release

The album was re-released on 30 June 2008 in the UK and worldwide on 5 August 2008 as a 25th-anniversary edition. It contains the original 11 tracks as well as a bonus 10-track disc with a combination of B-sides, remixes and live tracks. Although the booklet claims that this is the original vinyl album on CD, three songs are shortened from their UK vinyl release; "Come Back and Stay", "Love Will Tear Us Apart" and "Love of the Common People", all of which use the respective single edits found on the original US and Canadian pressings of the album. The original UK vinyl versions of these tracks remain unreleased on CD.
The Extended Club mixes of "Wherever I Lay My Hat" and "Sex", the full version of "Love Will Tear Us Apart" and the Scratch Mix of "Come Back and Stay", which were all included on the original CD and cassette release, were not included on the 25th anniversary edition. However, In 2013 they were all included on the compilation album Remixes and Rarities.

Track listing

  1. "Come Back and Stay" – 4:24
  2. "Love Will Tear Us Apart" – 4:17
  3. "Wherever I Lay My Hat " – 5:18
  4. "Ku Ku Kurama" – 4:20
  5. "No Parlez" – 4:54
  6. "Love of the Common People" – 4:00
  7. "Oh Women" – 3:34
  8. "Iron Out the Rough Spots" – 4:47
  9. "Broken Man" – 3:55
  10. "Tender Trap" – 4:31
  11. "Sex" – 4:49

    Bonus Disc track listing

  12. "Come Back and Stay" – 7:34
  13. "Iron Out the Rough Spots" – 7:28
  14. "Love of the Common People" – 5:51
  15. "Behind Your Smile" – 4:10
  16. "I've Been Lonely for So Long" – 3:37
  17. "Yours" – 5:39 – 5:59

    How the different editions compare

Tracks are the same versions unless stated in the notes column.
TrackVinylCD/CassetteCD Daily Mail CD25th CDNotes
Come Back and Stay4:577:56 *4:26 **7:56 *4:25 *** Scratch Mix
  • * Single remix version
Love Will Tear Us Apart5:005:004:18 *5:004:18 ** 7" version
Wherever I Lay My Hat 5:186:02 *5:186:02 *5:18* extended club mix
Ku Ku Kurama4:194:194:194:194:19
No Parlez4:574:54 *4:574:54 *4:53 ** Slightly earlier fade out
Behind Your Smile–4:08––4:08 ** included on bonus CD
Love of the Common People4:565:52 *4:565:52 *4:01 *** extended club mix
** unidentified edit
Oh Women3:353:353:353:353:35
Iron Out the Rough Spots4:477:29 *4:477:29 *4:47* extended club mix
Broken Man3:543:543:543:543:54
Tender Trap4:324:324:324:324:32
Sex4:496:53 *4:496:53 *4:49* extended club mix
It is possible to create the original vinyl version of the album by using a combination of the original UK and US CD releases together with the 'Full length' version of Come Back and Stay which is included on the 2015 Tomb of Memories career-spanning box set.