Soft Cell ‎– Say Hello, Wave Goodbye

MONSTER B side to the 7" single. Dave Tofani's clarinet solo is both deliciously morose and emotionally charged. Portions were spliced (and it has to be said, rather clumsily) into the Marc vocal version to produce the 12" mix. It's always puzzled me why the Tofani version hasn't been included on any compilation, expanded edition or reissue. Then I heard the Dave Ball "Lateral Mix" and the relative lack of Tofani's clarinet leads to suggest that maybe Dave Ball just didn't like it! Hence it's absence from any issues since 1982? Perhaps... In any event, if YOU like the clarinet parts of the 12" mix then head straight to the marketplace and grab a (still reasonably priced) 7" copy.

"Fun City" - previously a Marc And The Mambas single A-side - surely this opus to disaffected (gay) youth must be seen as a precursor to Bronski's "Small town boy"? Yes. You read that right. Only people of a certain age would possibly understand the reference to "Playland". That so-called 'slot machine emporia', erstwhile hunting ground for 'mature' gay men, on the lookout and prowl for 'youth on the game', or just desperate, homeless ones. It became notorious in the sexually repressed 1970s when a sensational TV exposé did little to curb activities and may even have served as free publicity! But to those poor unfortunates who strayed into the web, there was usually only one escape. Marc, there's an even deeper story here waiting to be told...

Incidentally - the line Marc sings, "I'm quite straight just playing for rent" might not have raised an eyebrow with most people at the time, but even with hindsight, the (probably unintentional) irony is rather amusing!

Track B of this 12" is as far as I know exclusive to this Canadian pressing.
The mix is a combination of 2 other mixes widely available.
The first 3:15 or so is from the 9:14 "Tainted Dub". After that you get the last 5:40 of "Tainted Love/Where Did Our Love Go"

And the Instrumental is still not released on cd.

One of my favorite Soft Cell songs of all time. I have an interview with Bernard Sumner of New Order where he's asked if there was a song that New Order could have written what would it be and he answers "Say Hello, Wave Goodbye" by Soft Cell! My favorite band in the world wanting to write one of my all time favorite songs by Soft Cell!

the 7" instrumental b-side has yet to appear on CD officially. Every time these new "best of" compilations come out, the first thing I check to see is if this track has been re-issued. You hear this instrumental playing in the closing credits of the Non-Stop Exotic Video Show video tape.