Oh, Manchester, So Much To Answer For

I've always thought that Jane Child made a perfect one-hit wonder. Having heard her entire debut album, I can tell (or remind) you that it wasn't that good. She was a wee bit too much into the heavy synth arrangements, and songwriting wasn't one of her strengths, either. Except. On that one, crystalline single, "Don't Wanna Fall In Love," which made it to #2 in the early summer of 1990. I've forever loved its chorus:

Don't wanna fall in love
Love cuts just like a knife
You make that knife feel good
I'll fight you till the end
- Jane Child, "Don't Wanna Fall In Love" (Jane Child, Warner Bros., 1990)

And that synth solo which made up the song's bridge? Marvelous - the best such solo since Van Halen's "Jump." Of course, there was also her mutated mohawk, and the chain connecting her nose and ear piercings. She was like Adam Ant (circa Kings of the Wild Frontier) reincarnated as a woman 10 years later. Even with her heavy-handed production techniques, "Love" still sounds timeless - it could've been a hit in '83 (can't you just see her opening for Eurythmics or Culture Club?), or maybe today (especially with a Neptunes remix - and you've gotta think that Pharrell and Hugo love this record). Thank you, Miss Child, you've done your job here; you may leave now. But don't even think of taking that cassingle with you - that stays with me!