On December 19th, 1989 Peter Murphy released his third solo album Deep. Following 1987’s Love Hysteria, Deep continued the collaborative effort between Murphy and producer Simon Rodgers, as well as his backing band, The Hundred Men, a supergroup of sorts featuring UK Decay’s Eddie Twiggy Branch on bass, and B-Movie’s Paul Statham on guitars and keyboards.
Rounding up the lineup were also Terl Bryant on percussion, and Peter Bonas on guitar.
The album spawned three singles: “The Line Between the Devil’s Teeth (And That Which Cannot Be Repeat)”, “Cuts You Up” and “A Strange Kind of Love”.
The track “Cuts You Up” became a modern rock hit in 1990, and is Murphy’s most popular song outside his work with Bauhaus, being second only to that band’s debut single “Bela Lugosi’s Dead”.
“Cut’s You Up’s” popularity is more than deserved, as even though it is an anthem for Goths, it is objectively one of the best pop songs of the 80s, being an international hit, having spent seven weeks at the top of the U.S. charts and crossing over to Billboard Hot 100, where it peaked at number 55.
Murphy’s video for “Strange Kind of Love”. was directed by Beyhan Murphy with his 2-year old daughter Hurihan Murphy making a cameo appearance.
The almost mournful sounding “Strange Kind of Love” (which would live sometimes lead into a “Bela Lugosi’s Dead” medley) also came in a second version with drums, bass, and guitars from the beginning of the song and different vocal take. This version sounds more pop-oriented than the album version. You can find this version in the B side of the single releases of “The Line Between the Devil’s Teeth” and “Cuts You Up”.
The song “Marlene Dietrich’s Favourite Poem” sounded similar to “Strange Kind of Love”, and although not a single, became a fan favourite live to this day during Peter Murphy solo concerts.
The album’s opening track and title track “Deep Ocean Vast Sea” was also released as a single in Spain in September 1990.
Peter Murphy’s Deep is considered by most to be his signature work, and the record that firmly established his legacy beyond his band mates in Bauhaus. Starting in 1989, Dave Kendall of MTV’s 120 Minutes noticed, and made Murphy’s music a staple on the network for the next three years.
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