It’s five and I’m driving home againIt’s hard to believe that it’s my last timeThe man on the wireless cries againIt’s over, it’s over
Ultravox remain one of the most important and influential bands of the new wave era—architects of a sleek, modernist strain of pop that helped redirect the sound of the early ’80s. Under Midge Ure’s leadership, the group sharpened their artistic focus into a pinnacle of elegant sophistication: a fusion of electronic precision, dramatic poise, and widescreen emotional intensity that reshaped what pop music could be. It’s within this legacy that Chrysalis Records continues its expansive restoration of Ultravox’s catalogue with a newly unveiled Deluxe Edition of The Collection, the band’s 1984 singles compendium that once swept across charts and turned club floors into lighted corridors of synth-borne dramatics. First issued at the height of Ultravox’s imperial phase, The Collection gathered fourteen singles from 1980–1984 and went on to sell more than two million copies worldwide, a triple-platinum success in the UK and a fixture in countless record shelves as the group’s definitive gateway.
Those original tracks: Vienna, Dancing With Tears In My Eyes, All Stood Still, Hymn, The Voice, and Love’s Great Adventure—the single recorded specifically for the original compilation—form the core of the new edition. This release goes further: the remastered set expands into a 4CD/2 Blu-ray box, bringing Ultravox’s long arc into focus. A newly compiled Collection II spans another fourteen singles, along with alternative takes and previously unreleased versions recorded between 1986 and 2024. Ten new ’80s-style 12″ mixes—shaped by Midge Ure, Steven Wilson, Blank & Jones, and others—revive the era’s extended-format experimentation, while the complete run of B-sides appears together for the first time.
The Blu-ray discs gather more than four hours of archival footage: promotional videos, alternate edits, and BBC TV appearances from Top of the Pops to choice live sessions, painting a vivid record of Ultravox as both studio tacticians and audiovisual stylists.
Issued as a limited run of 5,000 units, the set arrives in a 12″ box housing six discs and two 20-page booklets filled with unseen photographs, artwork, and lyrics. Digital and streaming editions accompany the release.
Physical formats expand the celebration even further:
2LP Black Vinyl
Newly remastered and cut at half-speed by AIR Mastering, the album now spans two records for improved fidelity. Each copy comes in a die-cut sleeve with interchangeable cover images and a four-page insert.
4LP Clear Vinyl Box Set
A remastered and broadened edition featuring the full original compilation plus Collection II, bound in die-cut sleeves with interchangeable artwork and four-page inserts.
Standard CD Edition
An expanded version of the original release, now expanded from 14 to 19 tracks.
Four decades on, The Collection returns as the essential document of Ultravox’s ascent—expanded, restored, and presented in its most definitive form as the Deluxe and Expanded Edition. It reasserts why the 1980s remain unmatched in marrying pop innovation with high-art sophistication and enduring elegance, and why Ultravox stood firmly at the vanguard throughout their imperial era.
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Featured photo: Ultravox. Rage In Eden era, 1982. Photo by Brian Aris.
