Colour By Numbers

This album is pretty ass.

i love Miss Me Blind DOWNNN 80s pop they could never make me hate you

STANDOUTS: Karma Chameleon Mister Man OVERALL: 3/5; I'll take this over bad grunge dad garage music ANY day, even if it isn't a solid album.

Not bad but pretty similar throughout Standout songs: Its a Miracle Thats the Way Stormkeeper

Excellent

Couple ok songs

could i write poetry to this? n

Better than I thought it was going to be. I bet if I give this another listen I'll like it more. I started off not caring for each song, and liking it by the end.

I'm an 80's music fan, I enjoy bands such as Billy Idol, Echo & The Bunnymen, Corey Hart, The Smiths, and the Cure. I even enjoy spanish 80's rock such as Soda Stereo and the pop band Timbiriche not to mention other mainstream acts of the decade. I mention all this to say that I did not enjoy Culture Club's Colour By Numbers. I understand it's more pop but even then I don't consider this a top 1000 album.

So very 80's High nostalgia value

eh

I am surprisingly fond of the music from the 80s, but this album embodies everything that was wrong about it. It's full of clichés, repetitive melodies, poor songwriting, with an absolutely horrid back-up singer. Of course I recognise and quite like 'Karma Chameleon' because it's catchy as hell, but the rest of this album is 90% garbage and maybe one or two passable songs. 2 stars

Fun

I'd call them experimental punk. I didn't know about them, they are not great musician, but they know how to twist your mind.

Ofboðslega gaman að fá smá Culture Club skammt en mikið rosalega eru lögin þeirra mikil endurtekning á sömu frösunum aftur og aftur og aftur. Maður vissi allaveganna hvaða lag maður var að hlusta á

没啥感觉

I found this ok, I was expecting it to be horrendous

Much better than I was expecting. Quite enjoyable.

Better than I expected but my expectations were lower than a chameleons toe. One overplayed single and an average show. Someone with just a little talent should really do the right thing and go.

Meh! This was fine. Nothing much to complain about but likely won’t listen again 3.0

Not really my thing, too upbeat and joyous. Listened to: at home. Favorite tracks: Miss Me Blind, Victims

If you like the whole 80s vibe, you’ll love this, but there’s really nothing of substance here.

decent album, a bit dated. But Karma Chameleon lives on!

That cover screams 80s. A very strong album of an album of its time. There's some good synthy type work and his voice works with it. Not a masterpiece but it makes sense to have things like this on the list showing where music goes. It's fine. Karma Chameleon shines so much brighter due to the harmonica.

I'm not sold on this needing to be on the list. The music sounds like poor generic karaoke tracks. The harmonica sounds so out of place. There's one catchy tune and a couple alright ones.

Un album d’Anglais fascinés par les musiques des Amériques, avec des synthétiseurs accrocheurs. Une bonne pop de l’époque

Growing up, my parents had this album on vinyl. I don’t remember them ever putting it on, but I was familiar with “Karma Chameleon,” a song which I still enjoy today. At some point, I became familiar with “Church of the Poison Mind” as well, which I also like. Even though I like those two songs, I don’t have high hopes for the rest of this album, but I’ve been surprised before, so we’ll see. I wound up liking this album more than I thought I would. There’s a little bit of everything on here as far as eighties pop music is concerned: upbeat earworms, synthesizers, touches of world music, and some pretty decent ballads. Boy George’s vocals are fantastic throughout the album, and Helen Terry provides some fantastic backing vocals. The musical arrangements are best on “Karma Chameleon,” “Church of the Poison Mind,” and “It’s a Miracle,” but with the exception of some great bass grooves throughout the album, a lot of the songs were a touch boring to me musically. Still, there’s a lot of deep emotions conveyed by Boy George’s singing, and his persona as a pop star was massive during Culture Club’s peak popularity. This is a pretty good and fun album, where the vocals and emotional lyrics really shine. I can’t see myself listening to the whole album again, but “Karma Chameleon” is still an absolute blast, and it barely beats “Church of the Poison Mind” as the best song on the album.

sooooo 80s. some good songs

Pedophile anthems

Solid if somewhat maudlin white boy soul - possibly the origin of what followed. Good bass and whilst his voice gets tiring, the Boy can sing Won't be listening again

There’s a cool, jazzy feel to this that separates it from a lot of other 80s pop albums, and Boy George has a great voice.

Again,good, but not my thing really

I can’t be too bothered with most of the songs, but there are a few decent pop songs that hold up. Karma Chameleon is impossibly catchy.

I wasn't looking forward to this album at all. Karma Chameleon just isn't my jam... That being said, it's the opener on this record. To me, the record started off poorly. But I was pleasantly surprised that other songs were pretty decent. Nothing special. But poppy, and akin to Wham! I dislike New Wave type music... And I feel like Culture Club may be one of the last New Wave artists that really had a successful career. Of course other New Wave bands are successful.. But I feel like Culter Club had huge, quick success. I really really really dislike Boy George. From interviews I've seen, live banter over the years, I think he is an asshole. So, to not let the artist influence my thoughts on the music, I tried being as objective as possible. The best song on this record is the closer. It's instrumental (which, as I dislike New Wave singers - yes, they all sounds similar... But actually Boy George probably has the best voice comparatively to other new wave singers) - very beautiful string arrangements. I give huge props for anyone who is stigmatized for their personal lives, and that they have to go above and beyond to be accepted by bigot societies. The fact that Boy George and the drummer, Jon Moss were both homosexual, they already had a target on their backs but on the contrary, they had a huge fanbase within the LGBTQ community. But to have a number 1 hit in the 80s, where people's sexuality were scrutinized, and judged... This is pretty incredible. Anyways, not to make this a political rant... This album was better than I thought. Not my 'cupatee' but there were moments of well written pieces of music.

Some hate for this in other reviews, don't know why just fun happy music. What can you hate about that. Easy 4. Added this and other Culture Club albums to favorites for future fun happy enjoyable listening.

all songs were decent, black money i found was really annoying, i found some songs i haven’t heard since i was a child which was nice, good album overall

I enjoyed this more than I expected to

There’s not a lot too this but George has a fine voice and was obviously a trailblazer in many ways

Apart from Karma Chameleon it's poor, it's not actually as bad as a lot of 80s stuff but that's because it doesn't try to be anything, it flirts with styles without being any of them, and tries to lean on Boy George's voice as a strength. That's fine, but his voice and style is shown up for being inferior to George Michael some years later, not their fault, but with 40 years of hindsight this isn't list-worthy. 2.

An album that was very much of its time, and the kind of music that induces a smile for a track or two but quickly loses its gloss. I definitely didn't need a whole album of this, and starting with the only really memorable song meant that there wasn't even any anticipation that things might get much better. It's a high 2, but a 2.

Synth pop with some blue eyed soul and funk. It's fine, it's very flamboyant, and contains plenty of 80s tropes. I really like the singer they got for a few songs to act as a foil to Boy George. I enjoyed it a lot more than most of the 80s stuff on this list, but it's still nothing insane. Favorite tracks: "Church Of the Poison Mind", "Victims", "Mister Man"

Karma Chameleon ist bekannt

Im sure this didn't sit well with some of our American brethren but this was writ large over my 80's UK based childhood so it left me with a lovely wave of nostalgia. The opening track is obviously a pop classic but the rest of the album didn't fall off a cliff. The surprising orchestral piece at the end was a welcome addition as well. This isn't going to rock many worlds but a solid three is always welcome.

A whole album of Culture Club is just a bit too much 80's pop. That being said, some good songs, always loved Church of Poison Mind.

Ok it’s 80’s pop. Until you remember that it’s “80’s” pop. And this is a band making pretty good pop music by a band led by a… clearly non-hetero/maybe bi/maybe gay definitely non of our business/ singer with a very good voice. In the 80’s this was pretty ground breaking in the MTV age.

Between a 2 and a 3. nothing really objectionable. I just got bored with it.

Perfectly fine 80s pop. I liked it enough. My daughter was singing Karma Chameleon for two days after.

Just the one. Rest are trash

pop-wrapped social commentary. let's dance while the world falls apart! some very good songs. some very boring ones as well. so very uneven. But I will give +10 points for the spelling of "Colour"

Es una banda bien pop/rock de los 80s. Tiene unos temitas que suenan muy bien con el saxo característico de época y buenos arreglitos.

Not my thing really

Only about two songs worth relistening to on the album, seems like the other ones are just trying to repeat something to the point that is gets catchy. 4/10

Fairly generic 80's pop for most of the album, very in line with wham or george michael. Enjoyable album that definitely starts off with its best song. Not sure if I would put the whole album on again but Karma Chameleon is a bop.

First song is a banger and there's some decent stuff spread throughout the album, but it was just a bit long and never reached the heights of the opener again.

This is a weird one to review because I feel like my opinion of it has changed each time I listened to it. The first listen, I thought it was crap. Hated the obvious 80's production to it. The second listen it grew on me, and some tracks started to stand out. The third listen, I... actually liked it? I think I did anyway. It's just bizarre to me that I can go from hating it to somewhat liking it so quickly. The obvious highlight is the hit 'Karma Chameleon' which boasts an unbelievably catchy melody and hook in the chorus. I've known, and enjoyed that song for years, but the surprising best song for me on the album is 'That's The Way'. A beautifully sung ballad with piano accompaniment, the way the backing vocals slot in with the harmonies is the great part of this track. Coupled with a powerful lead sung by Boy George, this song really genuinely surprised me. The coda with the two vocalists trading lines perfects the song. I was worried when this album came up because I assumed it would be shit. And at first I thought it was shit. But now I think its less shit. In fact, maybe its not shit at all? I'll probably have to listen to it another 10 times to make sure. FAVORITE SONGS - Karma Chameleon - That's The Way As I said, tough to rate, but lets go 3.5/5 for now

I can see how this would have been an important album culturally, but it's not for me. Karma Chameleon is a banger, though

very much looking forward to never listening to this album ever again as long as i live 👍

The album starts off with a bang with Karma Chameleon, and it never gets back to that level of quality. In fact, a handful of the songs are just really bad. It's never consistently bad, but the album on a whole is not worth listening to.

Vibey - saved quite a few songs. Didn’t know Karma Chameleon was by them

Such a good album!

All songs have the Culture Club vibe. Great if you are into that. Best track is Karma Chameleon.

Peak 80's pop. Karma Chameleon es, con toda justicia, uno de los éxitos de la década. La inclusión del disco completo sólo por ese argumento es más debatible.

Iconic and clearly a hit for the early 80's

I didn’t think much of Culture Club in 1983. Coming on the heels of the 70s it seemed really light weight. After doing over 100 albums on this list and realizing how talentless the 21st century can be I have a new found appreciation for this music. It’s well done, it’s upbeat, it’s intelligible and just good mood music.

Boy George is a much better singer than I remember, very soulful . Great new wave album, still holds up

Colourful romantic pop from the 80's.

I'm sorry but this album doesn't deserve to be on this list. It's just not a good album as a whole. One massive hit song and a boat load of filler. I know Boy George was quite a prominent figure in his time so I suppose they felt they had to represent him somehow but musically this is just so bland. There are 2 reasons this gets a 2/5 instead of a 1/5: firstly, Karma Chameleon is a decent enough song with a catchy chorus. Secondly, I had "L'eau Rouge" by the Young Gods yesterday and this felt like a palette cleanser in comparison to that.

Meh

Low 3. 50/100

Not much stands out in this aside from Karma Chameleon.

One ok song and mediocre filler.

Better than I remember it 30 years ago, but still 2-3 strong tracks with generic filler.

80's cheese.

Pretty good if you like New Wave

When Boy George first appeared on Top of the Pops back in the early 80s there was a brief wave of moral panic about ‘gender bending’ pop stars from the right wing press, recycling the same headlines they’d printed about Bowie and Bolan from 10 years previously. However, he soon silenced the critics with a series of top ten hits and a second album that was full of bright, soulful pop with backing vocals from Helen Terry giving a Motown vibe. Lovely stuff.

I give it a second star because of gender-bending Boy George infuriating bigots. Apart from that, it's pretty dull '80s pop.

Fun and silly.

It was interesting to listen to this at a distance but it hasn't aged well and is pretty boring overall. Fave: Stormkeeper

This is not for me, I'm afraid. "Karma Chameleon" was played to death, of course, but has slightly redeemed itself in my eyes as a fun karaoke number, but the rest of the album was quite hard work to get through. Fave track - uh, "Mystery Boy (Suntory Hot Whiskey Song)" had some novelty value, I guess!

Fun album that goes on for way too long

While I personally wouldn’t listen to this on my own, it’s a pretty solid record. No filler. I almost went with 3 stars, but it really had to be a 4.

Karma Chameleon is an amazing song as far as I'm concerned. The rest is pretty okay-ish.

Really solid album. Didn’t realize how many songs I knew

I didn't like this at all when it came out. You couldn't escape it. This was the 1st time I listened to this album. Pretty solid, lots of hits.

- This is very much not my speed, but I do have to give credit for some catchy tunes. More of a fan of the songs with the more mournful tones ("Black Money" and "That's The Way"), though that honestly may be more of a result of the inclusion of the gospel singer. Also found "Miss Me Blind" to be more what I wanted. - "Karma karma karma karm--" noooooope. - The harmonica is driving me up the wall a little bit. Sounds like it belongs on an 80s children's special.

fun album. boy george comes across as a more flamboyant poor man’s version of george michael. didn’t love it, but didn’t hate it either.

This was actually a lot of fun.

Karma Chameleon. What a goofy song. If I wanted to encapsulate everything about the pop 80s sound that I dislike, I'd be hard pressed to find a better candidate. Cheesy ass backing synths, overly bright and forward vocal harmonization, fucking harmonica, fake as hell bass interludes, and strange tempo breakdowns. As much as I don't like these things, it is a goddamned catchy chorus. Gotta say, while I hate cheesy synth horns, It's A Miracle is a damned fun song. The drums in particular provide a great element to root into. Also the bass (while cheesy in tone) is pretty funky in its progression. I have no business enjoying this as much as I am. For all the 80s blunders that are on here in the mix, a lot of the songs are catchy and there are a few (mostly near the front end) that were downright entertaining. I would say that this is a low 3 with little actual replay potential for me.

Shout out to the office. Karma karma karma karma chameleon! Random fucking album lol. 80s beats with some 80s intensity coming out of this album. 2.5 stars for me

hahaha what an all time song to be the intro to this album. This certainly has the cheese. Kinda odd that it went from bubbly dancey pop music to a slower ballad of Victims. I was enjoying the first couple songs of this album for what they were, but it feels a bit long as it falls off through the middle of the album. Melting Pot brought it back to what I was expecting the whole album to me. I think I might be irrationally harsh here with how much I disliked the structure of this album. Liked the pop and cheese. Disliked the ballads. Hated that they were all mashed into one incoherent album.

Holy hell Karma Chameleon is such a bop, I never thought that this song would show up. These songs are all catchy as hell thats for sure. I really like the two singers being used in most of the songs. Wouldn't normally think I would like this music, but I could not help but tap my foot in enjoyment pretty much throughout the whole album.

Oh man immediately expecting some 80's bullshit from the cover. I feel like I shouldn't like Karma Chameleon but I do. Just a fun song that probably helps that I'm familiar with it. Second song is alright as well, is my view on 80's sounding pop music actually changing?? The love for this was short lived with those two. Black Money sucks ass. Changing Every Day sucks ass. I refuse to listen to the bonus tracks on this. Hell yeah it's over. 2.

Stuff me full with Stilton and cheddar, but this is too much British cheese to handle.

Trökigt

It's fun but what's it doing in this list?

Didn’t enjoy very much

As a child of the 90s, when I think "80s music" the thing that always pops into my head is androgynous, brightly-clad singers in retro-futuristic clothing spouting nonsensical lyrics while backed by synthesizers. While this project has shown me plenty of great 80s counter-examples, this album is maybe the embodiment of that mental image. Some catchy songs, though.

Smart, sophisticated pop for heartsick yuppies. I fucking love it.

Boy George‘s heavenly soulful voice cannot hide the mediocre songs.

Karma chameleon is a jam, otherwise this is music that I would never want to listen to on a regular basis.

The definition of lead single

I appreciate it more now than I did at the time. Boy George is one of the more underrated soul singers of his time.

I was intrigued, as (like most people) I only know Karma Chameleon. I'm not going to say I really enjoyed this album, but I certainly didn't hate it, and never felt like skipping any songs. It was quintessential 80s, but never hyper.

wanted to like it but unfortunately lame and one-note

fun. I like it

Soooo 80s, in a good way. But kind of one-note.

I was dreading this one. Turns out...not too bad! Someone needed to say no to the harmonica though!

I was grooving to this but most of the songs sounded basically the same to me. 3.5 rounded down to 3.

Liked this better than I remembered it and expected to. 2 big hits, 2 minor hits and other side one tracks were quite nice. Fun to sing to and move to. A solid debut effort.

Two songs in, contemplating quitting. Four songs in, quitting.

With all due respect to Boy George, an incredibly brave individual who did incredible work in normalizing queerness in a time notoriously unfriendly to the concept, this album is basically unlistenable.

A great single followed by some deeply average dreck.

The most 3/5 album ever made. Pleasant to listen to, short, completely forgettable, ugly as fuck album cover. Just a perfect example of mediocrity.

This album never gets old to me.

Eh. Not bad but not great. A lot of the songs are pretty repetitive. But some of them are pretty good. Nothing too out there or interesting just some solid early 80s bops. Songs added to Spotify: 1

Doesnt really hold up

More 80s pop that's one or two hits followed by 10 more songs that feel like the musical equivalent of T-posing. I don't even like Karma Chameleon, so this was dead on arrival for me.

80ssssssss ✨✨✨✨

Ok. A couple good songs and one great one

I hate painting but never tried paint by numbers

Opening a song with “clowns caress you:” -bold -not helpful at all, contrary to the title

What did they put in the water during 1980-1989 that made everyone write bad music?

Fun album.

mig 9 gange efter jeg Karma Chameleon: "lyder som en værre version af Karma Chameleon?" ekstremt uessentielt album at have på listen

Altså. Jeg er ikke engang særlig vild med Karma Chameleon, og det var objektivt set den "gode sang" her. Fair nok at de gerne vil finde plads til noget 80er pop på listen, men jeg kan altså nemt komme i tanke om mere inspirerede valg end den her.

Kaaaarmakarmakarmakarmachameeeleeoooonnnn - Banger! Men nej.

nice 80s vibe

Un poco rollo. Pero bueno, tiene la mítica Karma Chameleon, y es Culture Club.

kama kama kama kama kamalionnnnnnnnn

Never had any interest in this album but once again after giving it a try it I was surprised by how much i enjoyed it. A really fun Pop album that has some really solid songs. Church of the Poison Mind really stood out for me here.

There is a category of song so deeply worn into your brain that you can sing along while doing something else. Catchy, bouncy, and fun. Did I mention catchy? Extra star for Boy George being Boy George in 1983.

Nothing here that I enjoy and a lot that I dislike.

Light and poppy, recognized Karma Chameleon

In the 80s, it was a sometimes good and danceable pop production. In my opinion, the album never had any other aspirations. After 40 years, however, the varnish is clearly off, for me personally it's clearly too soft, the songs seem boring without substance.

"Karma Chameleon" is an all-time pop song. Tracks 2-10 are not. There was a point on "That's the Way (I'm Only Trying to Help You)" I thought to myself, "Who's that singing backup, more of her please!" Then I got my wish on "Church of the Poison Mind" and wished I hadn't. There's good musicianship here, Boy George has a nice voice, and there's a surprising amount of harmonica on "Colour By Numbers," but every song beyond the first is so forgettable I don't understand why this made the list.

Miss me blind is a bop

Really just one good song

About as non-cocaine 80s music as it gets, which still happened to be a lot of cocaine. I try and put myself into the shoes of a 20 something with each of these albums and though I enjoyed the melody’s and the heavy use of the sax on this one, I think I would have avoided the culture club fandom much like I’ve avoided mainstream pop for my entire life

Pleasant listening, smooth jazzy pop type stuff. Not exceptional, but reasonably enjoyable.

Good production and catchy, just not my vibe

Classic 80s

Some half decent tracks, would I listen to the album again? No.

It all feels a bit dated and samey. Didn’t really make an impact

I enjoyed this album. It was a very upbeat and peppy kind of feel.

It's a time capsule!

Karma Chameleon is easily the album highlight, but the rest is perfectly fine synth pop. Pleasant and sunny.

Campy and soulful. Great backing vocals and bossa nova vibes, with urprisingly fresh RnB pop melodies that sound more recent than 1983. But then other tracks sound dated. I kept trying to imagine when I'd play this album. Maybe as a background to a pleasant dinner.

The variation! I love the beats, the vocals and harmonies. Absolutely loved this album from a band I've never heard of.

Great

When it comes to Culture Club, I've only ever heard the song "Karma Chameleon" before listening to this album. It's a pretty smooth new romantic track that I always found mildly catchy and is easily the best song here. Not sure why, but the harmonica always seemed out of place and sort of soured the mix. But I do like the chorus and the harmonies; they're very light and cleanly performed. Digging into it lyrically, the sentiment here stands out. Boy uses the imagery of a chameleon to describe the desire to blend in and conform to avoid alienation and scrutiny. Clean and light are probably the two best adjectives I can use to describe this album's overall aesthetic. Boy George is a solid vocalist, taking influences from RnB vocalists which I find somewhat unique for this genre of music and adds some enjoyability and life to many of the performances. The vocals are the highlight here and generally carry (like on the song Black Money). I'll also acknowledge his good writing here, like on the closer "Victims" a song whose meaning is difficult to pin down, but the imagery is evocative and almost tragic. The instrumentation is dull and dry to me for the most part. The harmonica and saxophone that occasionally crop up act as blemishes rather than enhancements and only serve to age this album. There are some cool moments, like the guitar solo on "Miss Me Blind", a song where I think the instrumentation's smooth, minimal, and reserved yet well-composed nature works in the track's favor. Ultimately though, my issues with this record boil down to just lackluster songs that are neither memorable nor interesting. It seems to be a recurring issue for me with New Romantic.

Love Culture Club and Boy George one of my 80s favorites!

Love this album cover except for the first distorted C in Culture Club — red, green and gold are all represented and tie into the lyrics from their hit Karma Chameleon all while proudly announcing the band's style. I don't find the music particularly interesting or exciting but Boy George is as listenable as ever. A solid, heartfelt 2 stars wishing there was enough substance to the album to accompany all this style to give it 3 or more.

its giving zumba

Culture Club was very popular when I started getting into music, so I have nostalgia for some of these songs. Karma Chameleon, It's a Miracle, Church of the Poison Mind, and Miss Me Blind were all hits I believe. The rest of the album is solid. I only listened to the original 10 tracks, but I'll probably hit the rest later.

The only thing keeping this from being 1/5 is the incredible backup singer belting out those notes. Otherwise, this ain't for me.

Iconic 80s sound. But not a real fan of the album in its entirety. Feels a little flat.

Уууу, обложка впечатляющая [ще хуевая]. Я уважаю главного чела. До сих пор заигрывания с гендером встречаются аудиторией натянуто, а сорок лет назад? Да, Боуи вытворял там подобные штуки и того раньше, но факт остается фактом. Моя проблема с альбомом состоит в том, что 8 из 10 основных песен имееют самую отвратную структуру, которая может быть в поп-песне. Ко всему к этому припевы, которые повторяют одну и ту же строчку, не всегда такую уж впечатляющую, по двадцать три тысячи раз подряд - это рак поп-музыки. Не мое. Лучшая песня - Karma Chameleon.

ekki beinlínis fyrir mig. þokkalegasta sterílt popp. 2,5

I don't quite get what Culture Club are trying to do here, but it is admittedly groovy at times. Also, it doesn't help with the confusion that Boy George and George Michael have extremely similar vocals.

I would never in a million year pick up a record with that album cover. It’s horrible - but what a banger opening! The second half is better than the first, but all in all it’s just fun and quite catchy. Just good times at your aunt’s dance party.

good easy listening

This had really strong potential to be another tainted love soft cell album where there’s one classic banger and the rest is lame trash but it managed to rise above that if only barely. Every song is still super simplistic and catchy but there was just enough for me to not want it to be over after karma chameleon. There was a great guitar solo in miss me blind but other than that it was just fine. Karma chameleon isn’t enough to get it above a 3 in the same way take on me got its album above a 2.

A fun album with good vibes

I've heard of this group. I only knew one of the songs. Music was okay - not offensive. I liked the last song, Romance Reinvented, an instrumental.

Ok

Was very surprised and happy to hear the first song! I’ve never heard any of their songs and honestly don’t know if I missed out at all. Really was a great stoop down after the first song. Wasn’t horrible, but not what I thought it’d be.

80s week continues ... this is one I most definitely did not like this as a kid and even though so much of what I thought was "uncool" I either legitimately enjoy now or have a fond nostalgia for ... this isn't fitting under either. Just too smooth/polished/nice. Easy to understand how it was so popular - even the album colours are so of-the-time - and I don't have a thing against pop but man I really really don't like this and in a similar vein to George Michael - recognizing that he and Boy George are at the same time good singers that just turn me right off. The music is almost like cookie-cutter / Sesame Street ideas of what pop-meets-fake-soul should be. Moving on. 4/10 2 stars

Absolutely terrible. Shouldn't be anywhere close to a top anything list.

Okay

Seems good? Just don't really like this genre.

# 165 : A happy album, but one banger doesn't make a good album, basically 2-3 good songs and a bunch of filler. Fav Track : Karma Chameleon

What a disappointment this is. Karma Chameleon is a fun song. The other songs are weak and the performance is mediocre and missing any drive.

Somehow I missed the fact that Boy George is the lead singer of Culture Club. TIL. While "Karma Chameleon" is obviously a classic, I could take or leave the rest of the album. I fucking love this album cover, though. The colours, the clothing, the facial expressions, the random kanji. It's perfect. It perfectly encapsulates everything I love about the 80s.

Too 80s for me thanks

No esta mal, pero suena igual que mucha música. Los coros son pegadizos pero me parece que es mas merito de lo repetitivo que de una buena melodía. El sonido queda anticuado.

I really enjoyed this album. He has the sweetest voice!

Not normally my sort of album or music, but there is no denying this has some huge eighties moments on it. Colour by Numbers is packed with that unmistakable early eighties pop sound. Bright, melodic and full of personality. At times it feels very much of its era, which is probably why I am not sure I would return to it often. Karma Chameleon is superb. An absolute classic and still incredibly catchy. It carries the album for me and reminds you why Culture Club were so massive at the time. Beyond that, several of the other tracks feel very eighties and slightly forgettable. Favourite song: Karma Chameleon Least favourite: A few of the deeper tracks blend together Album artwork: Bold, colourful and completely reflective of the era

I love 80s music. I grew up in the 80s. This isn’t it

Was worried this would be a one track album and boy were my concerns validated. I’m it’s better moments it’s a little Prince adjacent (I liked miss me blind) but overall it’s just shitty, sappy, surprisingly political pop.

1.5

I like the horns all over the place, but Karma Chameleon is really the only above average track.

Nothing super offensive here but nothing really stands out either. Just another very 80s album

Fyrsta lagið er banger þótt ég myndi setja meiri kraft í flutninginn ef ég væri að pródúcera það. Hin lögin fara inn um annað og út um hitt við fyrstu hlustun og mér finnst ég ekki þurfa að hlusta aftur.

Cheese ball but fun I love jt

I remember dismissing this band when it first came out. It seemed so poppy, and I didn't like Boy George's voice and persona. Now it sounds better, and I'm wiser and don't judge outward appearances like I used to. His voice is still not my favorite but it's pretty good. The band is great, song arrangements are fun and very 1980s with a reggae feel. It will never be a favorite, but I appreciate it now.

Clearly a monster record when it was released. Poppy enough to be fun and raise your mood. But also interesting enough to make you stop once in a while and notice what’s happening. Boy George had a little bit of a gospel vibe going on sometimes. I never really noticed this before!

I knew Culture Club’s big hits like Karma Chameleon from growing up in the 80s. That one is still a bop. Miss Me Blind is also catchy. Mister Man was one of the better songs on the album. Overall this is not a good album and I did not enjoy it. Even the hits are catchy, but not “good.” They are very generic 80s, with shallow lyrics. It was painful to listen to this. I’ll give it a 2, rounding up.

It was fine. I thought it would better but it became a safer album as it went.

I think there a reason everyone only remembers the first track on the album

Started with a banger then fizzled immediately. Some good jams here and there that have a very city pop like sound, but just wasn’t quite there.

Yes

Probs like a 3.9

More like 2.5

I have a love/hate relationship with 80s pop - used to hate it, now (sometimes) love it. Maybe that’s a natural reaction from being one generation removed from the 80s; this is Mom’s music. Listening as a kid I thought it was appalling. I see some musical and nostalgic value in 80s pop now, with there being some real gems (looking at Yes, MJ, Phil Collins, Billy Joel). That being said, this was an unremarkable album. Seemed to be never-ending with too many songs; lots of them sounding totally the same. A struggle to make it through all of them, in fact I only made it 2/3 the way through and just can’t get myself to listen to another 20 min. Not offensive, but not even entertaining either. Two stars here.

Not too much to go off here. It is a very basic 80's pop album. It it likely only here for the big karma chameleon hit. Overall it was just okay. Not bad but not good. 2.5 stars

Achterlijke kanker herrie

Not for me…

I dig the first track well enough but by the end you realize it’s pretty formulaic and bland. I didn’t mind his voice at first but I grew to almost hate it.

One hit, boring album

Karma Chameleon reste un bon morceau qu’il est impossible de ne pas chanter en choeur. Les autres titres sont plus conventionnels, pas forcément désagréables, reflets d’une période et des orchestrations en vigueur à l’époque. Pas renversant mais au final sympathique.

Karma Chameleon and Church of the Poison Mind are both absolute bangers. Album wasn’t terrible

Karma Chameleon always gets stuck in my head to the point where I skip it if it appears on a playlist, but the album itself isn’t bad.

Found the sound annoying.

A poor man's Wham!

Nice

saw karma chameleon and was excited to listen, ended up being an album that just uses the new-wave formula with nothing unique and had a lot of filler. completely average.

On 5 December 2008, Boy George was convicted in Snaresbrook Crown Court, London, of the April 2007 assault and false imprisonment of Audun Carlsen, a Norwegian model and male escort, who initially stood for a photography session with Boy George. Carlsen claimed that he had been handcuffed to a wall fixture and beaten with a metal chain during their next meeting

He definitely had a cultural significance. So I see the reason for it being on the list. from a music stand point ... super 80's!! maybe too much for me today.

A lot more bluesy and soulful than expected. I think I would've liked it more if it was just a full album of Karma Chameleon soundalikes.

Not exactly my cup of tea but a couple songs got my head bopping.

Pretty solid 80s pop. What would it be like if this was the sound of my thoughts? What would it be like if this was my what my brain craved to listen to? Who would I be? It’s groovy

Hard to get through

Besides the two hits on this album, the other songs... feel like b-sides. They don't pop a much as "Church of the Poison Mind" and "Karma Chameleon". And I'll say it: "Church of the Poison Mind" is the better song. "KC" is overly repetitive, and feels like it's a good 30 seconds too long. The backup singer sounds more talented than Boy George, overpowers him in a couple of songs. THAT'S never good. And the drums have that manufactured 80s sound (I mean, yeah, it was the 80s, but still....). So it did not wow me to hear the other songs on this album. Not at all. Next.

First listen - meh. Second listen - a lot better. I don't think it's an album I can keep coming back to, but it's energetic and joyful. It epitomizes the early 80s, which is probably why it made the list. But it's not bad. Fun or emotional beats, good harmonies, and pretty smooth. And it's certainly more than just Karma Chameleon - It's a Miracle is an even better fun one, Church of the Poison Mind is their deepest or most complete one (beats, lyrics, vocals), and That's the Way and Victims are two good piano-heavy softer yet soaring songs.

Mostly pretty bland, although a few of the songs are great dance music, and there are some cool synth moments (like in "Miss Me Blind"). Also, why is a random upbeat pop-soul track called "Church of the Poison Mind"?

Karma chameleon rips tho

Great listen. I had no idea who Culture Club was until I heard the first sind of the album. Karma Chameleon is such a banger and so is the whole album.

moises appendix go wah wah

This was agony

I didn't realise how well I knew this album until I listened to it again today. It's a pretty good all round pop album. Of its time, obviously, but I don't think I can knock it on that basis. It's a good set of songs.

9/10 godDAMN, this is my shit

"Church of the Poisoned Mind" is probably my favorite Culture Club song, but the rest are from Kissing to be Clever and "Karma Chameleon" is definitely not one of them. I certainly wanted to love this album, but I just didn't. It's mostly of an ooey gooey 80s style I don't enjoy. "Church of the Poisoned Mind" gets a five but the rest is a miss.

Definitely a fun throwback to the 80s. I had never listened to the album (as my memory tells me). It was pretty good.

Backing vocalist Helen Terry is the highlight of this album for me. I give her 5 stars. The rest of the album is quite good. I wasn’t much of a fan back in the day, but listening now I appreciate this Club’s unique style and charisma. I find Boy George’s voice off-putting somehow. At some point, I might’ve blamed the androgyny of that but now it occurs to me that he might not always be singing on pitch.

I heard this many times back in the day, but haven’t revisited this album since the 80s. Culture Club and Boy George were a huge influence on 80s pop music and while I appreciated their hit songs my young, rural-raised self did not appreciate or even understand the androgynous style of Boy George. But I think I they still played an important, if under appreciated at the time, role in my evolution to become a more understanding and tolerant person. Back to the music - this album is packed with monster 80s hits. But this time I appreciated the entire album more than back in the 80s. There are some tender songs on here and Boy George’s update of the crooner vocal delivery serve these songs well. This trip back to the 80s has made me realize how much my ability to appreciate this music and the band has evolved!

Class!

Pretty solid pop, catchy, good voice. Not my thing but it's pretty good. 3.2

It was an interesting album. not my style but I can see the allure.

Brutal. Don’t like the singles on here and the rest is garbage.

Not even Karma Chameleon could save this from all the other naffness

Karma Chameleon doing a lot of heavy lifting on this rating

All around great vibes

Red, Gold & Green! One of my favorite childhood lyrics... plus perfect for CHRISTMAS! But the album.. wasn't that good

cant stand these guys

Overall good but a lot of songs ended with repetition of a line for 1-2 minutes which made it annoying after a while.

Disappointing, especially considering that Karma Chameleon is on this album. All the songs sounded very similar and not good. DNF.

Iconic group. Iconic album.

Cant fucking believe I'll be doing this shit for 3 more months. 4 3

As it turns out, 40 years doesn’t change a thing. I hated this in 1983 and still hate it in 2023.

Fun trip down memory lane with more hits that I remember.

Soft 3

Well crafted '80s pop with a good measure of sould and a gospel tinge on numbers like That's the Way and Church of the Poison Mind, which for me is the strongest song on the album. 3.5 stars

I don't understand the appeal of Karma Chameleon, and I don't understand the appeal of this album.

not my favourite

Ville godt kunne lide det men sagde mig ikke så meget. Gled lidt i baggrunden på en ok måde, men synes ikke rigtig det hookede

This record was an absolute monster at the time and Boy George was everywhere. Very much a product of early MTV, the look was just as important as the sound. Great vocals, very soulful, and while some of the tunes are a little cheesy, the big hits are solid.

This album came out of the gate with the only song worth listening to as its first track. After Karma Chameleon I would suggest just moving on cause everything else is just 80's pop garbage. I can't in good conscience give this album a 1 start and lump it in with the other truly terrible 1 star albums so for Karma Chameleon alone this gets 2 stars.

To much 80’s glitterpop..! But of course som classic songs.

Better than I expected. Nice voices but just not a pop fan I guess. 2/5

Am I the only person that thinks George Michael and Boy George are the same person with different wardrobes? Fine 80s approximation of soul. Nothing astounding.

So sappy, so cheesy, so SO long. One hit does not make a great FIFTEEN song album. 2/5

Karma Khameleon is a great song but the rest didn't really stand out to me

I was in junior high when this album first came out. My brother had a copy of the album but didn't listen to it all the way through until today. Some of the tracks ring a bell but were unremarkable. I was far more interested other New Romantic bands like Spandau Ballet and Duran Duran. The 4 hits off the album are definitely the best songs on the album, but only Victims is a standout among the others. Overall the original album feels uneven, but the 2003 bonus tracks all are better than the "filler" that makes up the rest of the original album. Those bonus tracks earn it 4 stars.

Every now and then I encounter a new quintessential album of the 80s, and after few days I see another ultimate record with 80s tunes. And Culture Club is so much formed by this decade, that it's hard to analyse the music from a neutral perspective. In my opinion - too much 80s is not a good thing.

Hated Boy George. But as a child of the 80's I grew up with this stuff and other UK new wave bands so a pleasant walk down memory lane.

I didn't appreciate this album much when it was released, but I sure do now. Fantastic album that has said the test of time.

Un poco rollo. Pero bueno, tiene la mítica Karma Chameleon, y es Culture Club.

Fun in parts

Listening to ‘Karma Chameleon’ for the first time and wondered why everyone would make a fuss over such a busy, repetitive track. Rest of the album nosedived from there into pure 80s excess, with way too much going on and yet nothing meaningful being conveyed. All pomp and no circumstance, should’ve left this back in the awful decade it came from.

Interesting American influences. Fun music and Karma Chameleon is a an 80s classic.

I don't think anything comes close to Karma Chameleon but still a pleasant listen.

Classic 80s pop

sassy and fun I hope a definite bop. 3 stars. If I'm feeling more generous later maybe it'll be 4.

Very repetitive, but that was the norm for the time.

I love a good generic 80s pop album it’s generic and such a light lift to listen to

Omg perongeluk bij het vorige gecomment wat hier moest, nouja ik rate ze toch allebei hetzelfde dus het maakt niet uit

Le groupe à Boy George. C'est doux, ça fait très années 1980 rêveur. Du Michael Jackson soft

This is a pretty good album but its dated AF and makes me long for the heady carefree days of Thatcher's Britain. 3/5

Not for me

Karma Chameleon can't save this. Black Money and That's The Way kill any momentum side one had. Side two picks up with Miss Me Blind and Mister Man. It's ** overall but I would just listen to the second half.

They broke America and got a guest appearance on the A-Team out of this?! Karma Chameleon is a good pop record. I was hoping there would be more to the rest of the album. Some underplayed gems. Nope. Just a continual drone of 80s ness. It not a good sign when you’re googling the name of the backing singer (who’s not even featured on the cover) because they’re the most interesting thing on the album.

Mwah , poppie sound

cheesy

Purest essence of pop. Boy George is an odd candidate for icon, it's not as if he's that strong of a singer, but it all works. A fair bit of filler in this though.

Karma Chameleon and not a lot else

Några rätt skapliga låtar, annars lite fånigt.

I enjoyed this so much! Black Money and That’s The Way are my favourite tracks.

5/10. It had Karma Chameleon on it.

This is extremely 80s but I kinda dig it. Karma Chameleon is very mall-core to me but in a nostalgic way. 7/10

It was a relatively short album. I knew at least a couple of songs. It was enjoyable but I don't see myself revisiting the entire album again.

Never heard this full album, only Karma Chameleon. Pretty good 80s sound.

It was oh so shocking! Gender fluid! Not that we called it that then. Or at least the circles in which I found myself didn’t. And Boy George certainly garnered a lot of attention. And controversy. What people tended to forget was just how damned bloody good this band is. The slightly reggae approach, not quite ska, closer to the police than the specials, really was tight. Superb playing. And the songs. Sure, karma chameleon. But I preferred it’s a miracle as a single. But neither are anything less than great. George’s voice is really underrated. That reedy tenor but with a bit of heft sounded different to everyone else. At the time, most British singers had brassier baritones - think George Michael or the guy from Spandau ballet, or the guy from the Thompson Twins. Or Howard Jones. All great voices. Paul young another exception. But George coquettishly coos and sighs and holds the melody exactly where it belongs. George Michael was a master of that as well. I don’t care what you think. 5/5. At least.

I always thought Church Of The Poison Mind was the best thing Culture Club ever did, by about 10 lengths. That single spent a lot of time on my jukebox. On the other hand, I couldn’t really stand Karma Chameleon - the fact that it was constantly being played probably didn’t help. But apart from those 2 songs & It’s A Miracle, an ordinary single, I had no recollection of anything else on this album. I always thought George had a great voice, but I find a lot of these tunes less than inspiring. Great to be reminded what a great voice backup vocalist Helen Terry had.

I would have been 12 or 13 when this album came out, and Culture Club were the biggest thing on the pop charts. And their cultural presence was even greater; I distinctly remember the 60 Minutes (Australia) interview with Boy George, which was BIG NEWS at the time. Everyone was talking about it.; what was he on about? Why did he dress like that? Was he (gasp!) gay? Watching it again now (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nfo25Mry-ak), George is charismatic and funny, but delicately treading around issues that were highly controversial at the time, and hopefully less shocking now. Even though he pointedly and repeatedly dodged the question of his sexuality, Boy George was clearly queer coded, and he is important for being one of the first unambiguously queer presenting pop stars. I sure Boy George's very existence (not to mention his successes) meant the world to a whole generation of queer youth. And good on him for that. But, a musical level, it didn't do much for me then (when I was pretty firmly in the age demographic for mainstream pop music), and still does not much for me now. George's voice is a pleasant enough pop voice, but the songs and production are just... you know... OK.

Já começa com um clássico, sonzão agradável

I’ve been telling myself I need to be harsher with my rating, and I think this’ll start that. This is a two for me. I just don’t click with it. Maybe 80s new wave isn’t my thing? Cause despite the impressive commercial and critical reception of this album, I just don’t care for it. I like the guitar solo in miss me blind. And I like a lot of the lyrics. But for listening to? I just don’t care for it at all

Pop album not my deal

Assumed I would hate this but honestly it's got some bops. It needs some editing though. Too many songs and too many long songs. Overall I will never go back to this.

That songs that go, GO.

Almost TOO 80s

At least 'colour' is spelt correctly. 2 stars for that.

I only knew Karma Chameleon before listening to this today. It's kind of like background music. There are some catchy tunes here, but nothing stands out and wows me. It's pretty average overall.

If we’re interpreting the name of the book/list literally as albums you need to hear, in contrast to albums you need to know about because of their cultural significance, then Culture Club does not belong on this list. This album is boring as hell. It’s all watered down reggae and world music and gospel. It’s offensively bland. For someone who made such an impression with his image— I mean, I was really young so maybe I’m wrong here, but Boy George was an outlier in the cultural landscape at the time— the music is surprisingly nondescript. It sounds like something my mom would enjoy. I’ve heard Contemporary Christian Music artists who make edgier music than this.

Bleh

Great 80's album. Karma Chameleon is a very catch tune.

A fun pop record! Also really involved piano songs. Not too dissimilar to Queen ballads.

3.5

A bit catchier than I expected. 2.5/5

Classic 80s! Boy George rocks!