Highly Strung (song)

When Spandau Ballet guitarist/songwriter Gary Kemp was working on their first single "To Cut a Long Story Short" with producer Richard James Burgess and was wanting to remix that song for the B-side of the 7-inch single, he had in mind the reggae dubs and remixes done by King Tubby and Lee "Scratch" Perry dating back to the sixties. They thought of the remix for that song as having been inspired by those recordings rather than as an attempt at performing an all-out reggae version of the song, and they borrowed the terminology from those record labels by using the subtitle "Version", Recorded in spring 1984, "Highly Strung" was released in the UK on 8 October of that year and peaked at number 15 there. It also reached number 18 in Ireland, number 36 in the Netherlands, number 46 in New Zealand and number 83 in Australia. ==Critical reception==

Mike Read of Smash Hits wrote, "The winning combination of Gary Kemp's songs and Tony Hadley's voice contrives unchecked, although it has neither the aggression of 'Musclebound' nor the sensitivity of 'True'. 'Highly Strung' will be much played, highly vaunted and a sizeable hit." Number One's Paul Simper was not impressed: ==Music video==

An article in Billboard magazine at the time of the song's UK release reported the band was "believed to be the first major pop act to make a high-budget promotional music video on location in Hong Kong." Spandau saxophonist Steve Norman told Smash Hits, "We don't just use these locations for the sake of it… 'Highly Strung' is about pressure and claustrophobia—there are more people per square inch in Hong Kong than anywhere in the world." The band was also interested in filming in mainland China but applied too late to get permission. Billboard explained, "The summit talks about the eventual handing over of Hong Kong to the Chinese in 1997 helped fuel enthusiasm for making the video in this territory." ==Track listing==

• 7-inch single :A. "Highly Strung" – 4:10 :B. "Highly Strung" Version – 4:05 • 12-inch single :A. "Highly Re-strung" – 5:27 :B. "Highly Strung" (Extended Version) – 5:17 ==Personnel==

Credits adapted from the liner notes for Parade: Spandau Ballet • Tony Hadley – lead vocals • Gary Kemp – guitar and backing vocals • Martin Kemp – bass • Steve Norman – saxophone and percussion • John Keeble – drums Additional musician • Jess Bailey – keyboards Production • Tony Swain – producer, engineer • Steve Jolley – producer • Spandau Ballet – producers • Richard Lengyel – engineering assistance • Pete Hillier – equipment • Nick Sibley – equipment • David Band – illustration • Mixed at Musicland Studios (Munich) ==Charts==