#132: Love Resurrection by Alison Moyet

City: Montreal, PQ
Radio Station: CKGM
Peak Month: July-August 1985
Peak Position in Montreal ~ #11
Peak position in Vancouver ~ did not chart
Peak Position on Billboard Hot 100 ~ #82
Peak Position on Italy Singles chart ~ #4
Peak Position on Ireland Singles chart ~ #8
Peak Position on UK Singles chart ~ #10
YouTube: “Love Resurrection”
Lyrics: “Love Resurrection”

Geneviève Alison Jane Moyet was born in 1961 in Billericay, Essex, England. After leaving school at 16, she worked as a shop assistant and trained as a piano tuner. She was involved in a number of punk rock, pub rock and blues bands in the South East Essex area during the late 1970s and early 1980s, including the Vandals, the Screamin’ Ab Dabs, the Vicars and the Little Roosters. At the age of 21, Moyet’s mainstream pop career began in 1982 with the formation of the synth-pop duo Yazoo with former Depeche Mode member Vince Clarke.

In the United States, the band operated under the name Yaz, due to trademark issues with the Yazoo Records record label already operating in the region. Yazoo had several hits, including “Only You”, “Don’t Go”, “Situation” and “Nobody’s Diary”, and recorded two albums. After Yaz disbanded in 1983 Moyet got a record contract with CBS. And in 1984 she released her debut solo album Alf. The debut single, “Love Resurrection”.

“Love Resurrection” was cowritten by Alison Moyet, Steven Jolley and Tony Swain. Jolley was born in 1950 in Llandrindod Wells Powys, Wales. Tony Swain was born in 1952, in London, England. They were a successful songwriting and record production duo in the UK in the early to mid-1980s. Their songs written for Imagination include “Body Talk” (#4 UK – 1981), “Just An Illusion” (an international Top Ten hit in over a dozen countries in 1982), “Music and Lights” (an international Top Ten hit in over eight countries in 1982). They wrote hits for Bananarama that include: “Shy Boy” (1982-83), “Cruel Summer” (1983), and “Robert DeNiro’s Waiting” (1984). The duo also produced “True”, “Gold”, “Only When You Leave”, and “I’ll Fly For You” for Spandau Ballet.

“Love Resurrection” is a song that metaphorically concerns a barren land in a relationship. The singer doesn’t want to “toil in vain,” but to be “optimistic” that there may be a “love resurrection” and “a little divine intervention.” The song spoke to anyone who has been in a relationship that has reached a crossroads. Can the relationship be saved? Do they believe in miracles? Or is all their effort fruitless?

“Love Resurrection” peaked at #10 in Boston, #11 in Montreal, and #13 in Ottawa. Internationally, “Love Resurrection” climbed to #4 in Italy, #8 in Ireland, #10 in the UK, #17 in Australia, and #18 in New Zealand.

The followup release from the album, “All Cried Out”, made the Top Ten in New Zealand, Ireland, South Africa and the UK. Jolley and Swain co-wrote the single with Alison Moyet. Her third single release from Alf was “Invisible”, produced by Jolley and Swain. The single cracked the Top Ten in Paraguay, New Zealand and Ireland.

In 1985 Alison Moyet covered a 1944 blues tune by Billie Holiday titled “That Ole Devil Called Love”. Her cover climbed to #2 on the UK pop chart, becoming her biggest hit record. While her single was on the UK charts, her record label released “For You Only’ from Alf on continental Europe. The single climbed to #7 in West Germany.

In 1986 Moyet released the studio album Raindancing. From the album came “Is This Love?”, which she co-wrote with David Stewart of the Eurythmics. The single cracked the Top Five in Belgium, Ireland, New Zealand, Norway, Sweden, and the UK. A second single release from the album, “Weak In The Presence Of Beauty”, was released in early 1987. It also cracked Top Ten charts in the UK, Ireland, New Zealand and Norway. Later in 1987 Moyet was again in the Top Ten in Ireland and the UK with a cover of the Kitty Lester hit from 1961 titled “Love Letters”.

Tony Swain went on to produce Kim Wilde’s album Close, which included the international Top Ten hit “You Came”. Jolley produced Bananarama’s 1991 album Pop Life. Swain became head A&R Consultant for Universal Records International. Jolley was convicted in 2001 of sexual offences involving minors and jailed for 18 months.

Over the years Alison Moyet has released nine studio albums. Aside from “Whispering Your Name” reaching #18 in the UK in 1992, she has not returned to the Top 40 anywhere internationally. Nonetheless, she has continued to release new material. Her tenth studio album, Key, reached #8 on the UK pop album chart in 2024.

Moyet has only appeared in concert in Canada on two occasions. Both of these have been in Toronto in 2008 and 2017.

April 14, 2025
Ray McGinnis

References:
“Interview: Alison Moyet,” Nottingham Post, October 16, 2009.
Paul Lester, “Alison Moyet: ‘I Smashed all my Gold Discs. There Were Hundreds’,” Guardian, April 18, 2013.
Una Brankin, “A Confident Alison Moyet is Beating her Demons,” Belfast Telegraph, May 28, 2013.
Kay Pearson, “‘I Quite Enjoy the Invisibility of Middle Age’,” Echo, October 27, 2017.
“Pop Producer Jailed Over Sex Assault,” BBC, October 12, 2001.
“Interview with Tony Swain,” Journal on the Art of Record Production, April, 2015.

CKGM 980-AM Montreal (PQ) Top 15 | August 7, 1985