In case you missed them the first time around, here are the expanded playlists from last November’s #PetShopBoysTop30 and April’s #NewOrderTop30 challenges:

Pet Shop Boys | Thirty (Expanded)
spotify.link/UdTNYzYpMXb

New Order | Thirty (Expanded)
spotify.link/9Rvu1z0pMXb

#PetShopBoysTop30
In addition to the top thirty, here are two further playlists. An expanded thirty (now sixty) and a top thirty collection of b-sides and album tracks only.

Thirty Expanded
open.spotify.com/playlist/7ew...

B-Sides & Album Tracks
open.spotify.com/playlist/7Lv...

#PetShopBoysTop30
Here’s the Radio 2 list (which inspired the challenge) and the final list from the Twitter / BlueSky votes. A lot of crossover but a different top two and Go West dropping out completely.

#PetShopBoysTop30
Here’s the final playlist of the top thirty tracks voted for and a runaway winner at number one (obvs). Many thanks to everyone who took part and commented on the challenge.

Pet Shop Boys Thirty
open.spotify.com/playlist/5oB...

Two men in an old kitchen, one sitting at a table, the other standing in the corner.

#PetShopBoysTop30

1. It’s a Sin

Long intro with crashing waves. Religious trauma mingled with an infectious rhythm. Chef’s kiss.

“So I look back upon my life
forever with a sense of shame
I’ve always been the one to blame”

Mea maxima culpa

youtu.be/dRHetRTOD1Q?...

@tansleyjames.bsky.social

#MusicChallenge
#PetShopBoysTop30

01. Always on my mind

Blocking this choad (who barged into my #petshopboystop30 thread) who seems to have nothing better to do than inject snark into random people's posts.

I admit being up there in years (given the music period challenges I partake in) but I still draw the line (for now) in being called grandpa 😂😂😂😂😂

#PetShopBoysTop30 1

Two Divided By Zero

Please

After hearing WEGirls, interest was peaked. Hooked after 2/0 and never looked back. This cd has many great tunes that were left off but it’s a challenge and testament to the boys catalogue.

#PetShopBoysTop30
#MusicChallenge

@tansleyjames.bsky.social
Thanks for this awesome challenge. I knew and liked a lot of PSB songs before. Now I have an awesome playlist with even more great songs.

My no. 1 is simply one of the most lively and feel good songs ever created:

(1) Se A Vida É

Where is VOCAL?

One of my all time favorites!!

#PetShopBoysTop30

www.youtube.com/watch?v=qNR8...

#PetShopBoysTop30
This was the Radio 2 poll from earlier this year which inspired this Top 30 challenge. At present 22 songs are in both lists but some big hitters have dropped out altogether and spoiler alert, number one and two ain’t the same! 😁👍

I would like to thank (again for tirelessly hosting awesome music challenges)
@tansleyjames.bsky.social for #petshopboystop30 - it opens up new appreciation for the artists, as well as discovery and rediscovery.

#PetShopBoysTop30

1: I get excited (You get excited too) (1988)

From the title that could only be them to the stunning key change, everything about this one is, ahem, exciting.

youtu.be/q1IjYpcc4LY

Thanks to @tansleyjames.bsky.social for hosting!

Always on My Mind Pet Shop Boys · Discography - Complete Singles Collection · Song · 1998

#PetShopBoysTop30

1

Always On My Mind - the top spot for me, and the song that defines them at their indulgent best. I don’t care how many times I listen to it, the effect is the same; dopamine in its purest form

open.spotify.com/track/07ABET...

And we get to the top!
#petshopboystop30
#1 To Face The Truth (Behaviour, 1990)
I guess no one but hardcore 'Boys fans knows this though. But ANTHEM since first listen. Tender, vulnerable, sincere - what more would you want from a heartbreak ballad?

www.youtube.com/watch?v=-vR4...

#PetShopBoysTop30
Thanks to everyone who has participated and commented on the challenge. A 30 day commitment can be a stretch at the best of times so as always it’s greatly appreciated. There’ll be two playlists revealed tomorrow, the Top 30 and a Top 30 B-Sides & Album tracks.

#PetShopBoysTop30
01🥇

Being Boring | 1990

A fairly obvious choice... but it's impossible to listen to this high-art marvel and come away immune to its melancholic atmosphere. Rarely does popular music work at this level.

youtu.be/DnvFOaBoieE?...

#PetShopBoysTop30

1= - Left to My Own Devices & Being Boring

No surprises here, I think.
The two sides of PSB at their very best: not just my favourite of theirs, my favourite by anyone.

Che Guegara and Debussy to a disco beat.

#PetShopBoysTop30
1. So Hard
Single (1990)

Neil's spoken vocal. Harold Faltermeyer's super-electronic production. The lyrical drama. A perfect Pet Shop Boys record.
"So whose matches are those?"

Thank you @tansleyjames.bsky.social for hosting.

As the #PetShopBoysTop30 draws to a close, it’s time to shift focus onto another electronic behemoth. Very much looking forward to the #Top31DepecheMode challenge starting tomorrow. Hosted by @top10nathan.bsky.social

Final day of #PetShopBoysTop30 - what a great month this has been, sharing all of these fabulous songs - big thanks to @tansleyjames.bsky.social for organising it.

So, number one then.

Over a glorious 40 year career (to date), Pet Shop Boys were never…

Being Boring

youtu.be/DnvFOaBoieE?...

#PetShopBoysTop30

1 - Being Boring

Thanks as always, @tansleyjames.bsky.social for a great challenge.

West End Girls - 2018 Remaster Pet Shop Boys · Please: Further Listening 1984 - 1986 (2018 Remaster) · Song · 1986

No.1 #PetShopBoysTop30 Still, even now, I get enjoyment from this track, I’d go so far to say it’s ’probably’ my favourite song from the 80’s. Of its time, and timeless, synth pop perfection. open.spotify.com/track/2Di0qF...

#PetShopBoysTop30 1

Being Boring | 1990

Genuinely one of the most moving songs I know. Pop music as high art in every sense. The line “But I thought in spite of dreams, You'd be sitting somewhere here with me” chokes me every single time I hear it.

youtu.be/DnvFOaBoieE?...

#PetShopBoysTop30 1

Rent | 1987

A sentimental choice but it could only be this. My first PSB single. Even Barry Keoghan murdering it in Saltburn can't diminish my love for it. Thanks @tansleyjames.bsky.social for another great challenge.

www.youtube.com/watch?v=NTHi...

#PetShopBoysTop30 1: ‘In The Night.’ I first heard this on a Record Mirror sampler. It sounded very rudimentary and with an intriguing “Parisian film noir” lyric quite arresting. Over the years it’s become a very enjoyable listen. Thanks @tansleyjames.bsky.social for the challenge :-)

Neil and Chris sitting in a room with a bunch of empty wooden chairs.

#PetShopBoysTop30

2. Always On My Mind

A cover of a cover of a cover (or something). Doesn’t matter though, PSB did it best.

“If I made you feel second best
I'm so sorry I was blind
You were always on my mind”

youtu.be/bDMCwSP5nf0?...