The strange case of Terence Trent D'arby

In 1987 when this album came out I played it and played it so much because it really is a great record.
The man can sing.I had seen him on a British TV show called `The Tube' which was a music show -a cooler version of Top of the Pops because the artists were more edgy and it was hosted by Jools Holland and Bob Geldof's soon to be wife Paula Yates. Paula was a groupie.In fact she met her husband when he and his band The Boomtown Rats performed on the show and she reportedly climbed in the back of the band's truck and performed for him.But before that Terence Trent D'arby appeared on the show singing Sam Cooke's `What a wonderful world.' I was floored by his rendition of the song. It was absolutely brilliant and I immediately went on a manhunt for a record of that song sung by him.Of course this was in the pre-Google days.Pre-Itunes,Pre-anything except schlepping around record shops and asking pimply assistants who were more into Snotbag or The Groping Monkeys or whatever amateur slime and filth band they followed to the muddy fields of British noise festivals.
Apparently I wasn't the only one attracted to Mr D'arby as Paula Yates was obviously getting all squirmy at the sight of him and rumor has it that she gave him a going away present at the end of the show. He was a slight but muscular man,very Prince-like though I wouldn't have made the comparison as the only Prince record I had was Dirty Minds and my brother had declared that the picture on the cover looked like a `Paki in woman's underwear'. I tried overlooking the racist aspect of his comment but it still took the luster away from the treasure somewhat. I believe my brother's attitude was fueled by the fact that he had recently applied for membership of a drinking club in downtown Liverpool,which was the thing you did when you were drunk and wanted to carry on boozing.He's filled out the application form,paid his money and had his photograph taken. A week later his membership card arrived with his name and some Pakistani guys mug shot grinning back.Anyhow,This TTD album was the peak of TTD-ness for me. What happened with this man's career is a mystery.Because what happened was all that talent curdled into a pile of crap.Several piles of crap actually.And this is just one of them.

This was his third album.The second called `Neither Fish nor Flesh' was exactly as titled. It was
neither good nor musical.It was tripe. Symphony or Damn was his last chance with me. CD's at the time cost an outrageous amount.The public was being gouged by the greedy bastards of the music biz who in a few years would be out of a job thanks to digital downloading. I can't say I've shed tears for them.But anyway,I couldn't keep buying ridiculously priced CD's of music this excruciatingly
bad.Now its been some years since I tried listening to it again and I remember that time hadn't improved it in the slightest. And what of Jools Holland, once the piano player in the band Squeeze now hosting his own music show `Later...with Jools Holland'? He got fired from The Tube for saying `fuck' on air.
It was ok for Paula to do just not ok for Jools to say.