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And so Disc Two commences with a track that in some ways sounds more like an opener than 'Barcelona' did.
Despite what one reference book claims, this 'Sweet Little Mystery' has no discernable connection to the John Martyn song, although the title may not be coincidental, as the Wets did eventually cover another Martyn number. Instead we get another slice of the era's blue-eyed soul, but very much on the commercial end of the spectrum: the parent album was called Popped In, Souled Out (see what they did there?) and ironically it finally unseated Now 10 from the top of the chart in January 1988.
Thanks to the current legal situation, you'll have to take my word for it unless you can remember but I'm pretty sure the video showed the band larking about on jeeps in the Gambia, and that reflects the carefree, light-hearted vibe that's obviously intended here. Of course, for this very reason they swiftly became the unacceptable face of the style, and the fact that girls found Marti Pellow's face very acceptable did nothing for their street credibility. A lot of water has passed under the bridge since then: plagiarism lawsuits, Pellow's heroin addiction, the only Top 10 single to spend a single week in the Top 75, and an awful lot of awful ballads. But with the benefit of nostalgia, it's still possible to hear some of the charm that these first couple of singles had.
Also appearing on: Now 11, 12, 16, 21, 28, 31, 37, 38
Available on: Best Of
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