Bananarama have shared a brand new remix of their iconic hit single, Cruel Summer, as the track turns 40.
Released in the summer of 1983, the track featured on the group’s self-titled second album and became a global hit, peaking at No. 8 in the UK and going Top 10 in the US.
Marking its latest milestone, a new mix courtesy of 3AM has been unveiled, featuring alternative vocals originally included in the 2001 ‘Exotica’ remake.
Listen to Cruel Summer (3AM Remix) below.
Having become a hit at home, Cruel Summer went global following its inclusion in the 1984 film, ‘The Karate Kid’, and has since been covered by artists including Ace Of Base, Evanescence and Lorde.
Last year, Bananarama kickstarted their 40th anniversary celebrations with the release of their 12th album, ‘Masquerade’, which became their highest-charting LP in close to four decades.
Speaking in an exclusive RETROPOP cover feature, Sara Dallin and Keren Woodward opened up about how their approach to releasing music has changed over the past decade as they celebrate their latest milestone as independent artists.
“It has been such a turnaround for us – which we only really discovered in 2019 after not doing an album for 10 years,” said Keren. “You just sort of think, ‘Oh my God, you can do it yourself and have complete control,’ which is obviously something that we’ve always hankered after.”
She explained: “Most of our albums and most of our career has been mostly under our control, but there’s always stuff you have to give away to someone else because they’re the people with the money and pulling the strings.
“But, you know, for us now, it just seems to sit so well with us. We choose exactly what we do and when we do it.”
In a review of the album, RETROPOP said: “Four decades into their career, Bananarama have delivered one of their strongest albums yet and, if ‘Masquerade’ is anything to go by, they have plenty more music left in them.”
