Pet Shop Boys on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno (1991)

[@andrestapia8312]

The full drama is recounted between pages 74 - 91 of “Pet Shop Boys vs. America” book: The boys are booked to appear on the 'tonight show' and perform two songs - 'streets' and 'seriously'. chris is very worried beforehand and calls the shows director to ensure that despite the fact that they'll be performing with two dancers, jj belle and scott davidson, it is made clear that the psb are a duo. the show is recorded in real time; chris can see one of the camera monitors as they perform 'streets' and to his mounting horror and anger, realises that the cameras have barely looked at him. feeling totally stitched up, he walks off stage mid song. neil is left to continue the song minus chris. he is interviewed by jay leno alone. chris refuses to perform 'seriously' until they reshoot 'steets'. realising this isn't going to happen, chris leaves the studio.

[@MrPomelo555]

I never heard about this before. I’m surprised that Chris would do such a prima donna act because I perceive him as a very down to earth person.

[@andrestapia8312]

I don't see any primmadonna stuff I see a very great example of how U.S.A. television used to treat so disrespectful with the PSB so if you read all the story with deatil you'll see he does't went any far...

[@lpsmisako103]

thanks for sharing this, i never knew this happened but it makes more sense now how neil seems so tensed and pissed in the interview

[@thedelacruz]

@@andrestapia8312 Oh please dude. I've been a fan of PSB from day one. Where did pretty much half of their money came from? The U.S. Despite the country being infamous for pushing one hit wonders the PSB has always been successful here. Chris could have swallowed his pride and be respectful to the public who came to see them and those watching on TV ( like myself ). If they didn't want Scott Davidson and JJ Bell to be showcased they could have said "leave them out" completely. They'd been around since 1985 so it's not like people didn't know they were a duo. Not being mean btw. Just my humble opinion😊

[@HipixOFFICIAL]

I'm surprised Chris even wanted to be on camera.

[@pamelamanriquez7397]

Neil nervioso, Chris fuera del escenario y los bailarines se cayeron al suelo, todo mal esa noche. Gracias por compartir este video.

[@lindasmith-wj5nk]

😂

[@Etrangier]

Según he leído, eso fue solo la gota que rebasó el vaso de muchos problemas que venían de antes. Behaviour en su momento fue un fracaso comercial, la gira de Performance les salió carísimo y en ese momento se habían planteado seriamente terminar con el grupo. Ya habían bandas parecidas separándose como The Human League, Soft Cell, Depeche Mode metidos en problemas de drogas y New Order separándose en 1993. Separarse lo veían como una decisión natural. De hecho, Neil Tennant en esa época inició el proyecto paralelo de Electronic con Bernard Summers y Johnny Marr. Fue solo luego luego que se dieron cuenta que la crítica estaba alabando Behaviour, a pesar de no haber vendido mucho, y decidieron continuar juntos. Very fue un disco totalmente opuesto en ritmos, porque no hubieran aguantado otro fracaso comercial. Esa fue la primera vez que pensaron separarse. La otra fue en 2000, pero eso es otra historia.

[@nelsoncorbal]

Lady: “I’ve seen you in London and you’re great” Neil:

[@gabi.gets.better]

Lol it's funny but honestly I don't think he meant to be rude, just distracted as hell, I bet his mind was in a whirl after what Chris did. Also noooo please don't just call her "lady", that's Shelley Winters and she had two Oscars by the time Neil Tennant was 12

[@nelsoncorbal]

Pam Sheyne, the backing vocalist closer to Neil, is one of the songwriters of Christina Aguilera’s “Gennie in a bottle”.

[@TellMeWhereItHurts1977]

She sounded and looked amazing on their Performance tour in 1991...

[@joaniec6178]

It’s the way Chris walks across the stage to the furthest side rather than off to the side that was closest to him 🤯

[@paulsmartialarts]

Yes he got some camera time after all

[@joefersanhaddad]

I love the fact that Chris threw a tantrum because the cameraman didn’t show him doing nothing.

[@richardburchett]

Exactly

[@RudyAdrian]

Funny how the music barely changed after Chris walked off :)

[@lindasmith-wj5nk]

Ohhh I love you both so very much 💙💙

[@nelsoncorbal]

Poor Neil was so nervous and angry after the incident. It was one of the 2 times he actually thought about quitting. He went back to the hotel and the next day Chris appeared with Peter Andreas and didn’t even talked about it, just pretended it never happened.

[@elenatria]

interesting fact about Chris not even mentioning it later on. Was it mentioned in a book or an article, could you share the source with us?

[@nelsoncorbal]

@DonJuanDM Chris stormed off the performance because he was annoyed the cameras were not giving him enough limelight. Neil and the rest of the crew had to carry on as normal and Neil even had to be interviewed alone and was clearly embarrassed.

[@jeshkam]

What was the other time he thought about quitting?

[@amos686]

@@jeshkam 1999, during the Nightlife tour.

[@jeshkam]

@@amos686 Wow, what happened precisely?

[@fabien.boussat]

Oh wow, what a shit show. From the dancers falling and mangling their steps to Chris ostensibly crossing the whole stage mid-song... I felt for Neil, mainly, watching this. The look of distress on his face at the end of the song...He had to do the interview alone after that... I had read about this in the Chris Heath Book but had never actually seen the video. Thanks for posting this !

[@rediscoveryrecords1348]

Neil kept it together pretty well in the interview. Considering. I'm sure he was a little embarrassed because of Chris walking off stage

[@SolemAris]

For me this tantrum is the origin for Yesterday when I was mad. Hehehe

[@RudyAdrian]

The Tonight Show often had weird framing, with an elbow of some ignored person poking into shot and that sort of thing, but it's always a bit risky to assume that what you see on a stage monitor as being the actual shot going out on air/to tape. In this case it was, but it could just as easily have been vision from an alternative video source.

[@trueceremonies5292]

Dancers falling, Chris leaving, a bombed attempt at humour with the "not ecologically sound" to have a snake on your hat, Leno not knowing they've already toured in '89... just when you think it can't get any worse, there's Shelley Winters trying to help, asking about a Pet Shop Boys play that she saw. I saw this as a young teenager on my TV and when I saw Chris leave I just thought it was Chris being Chris but I was just so awestruck to see them live on my TV that I didn't notice what an overall trainwreck this whole thing was. Also, can't tell 100% but is that Neil saying "whew, sorry about that" to Leno at the very end?

[@paulsmartialarts]

It's typical that the show would assume that first US tour = first EVER tour.

[@stargazerlaurent6780]

Neil: “How about another joke, Jay?”

[@dedpxl]

thanks for uploading, even if it's already on youtube this fresh higher quality rip is very welcome. awkward performance with Chris' hissy fit but I like the choreography and it's one of my fave songs. nice novelty of seeing them on a well known american talk show, too. you don't get much of that.

[@grashooper]

lol Chris was offended that he was not shown much and just left in the middle of the composition. 2:37

[@mr.confidential203]

Да здесь вообще цирк с конями творится какой-то. Неудивительно, что шопы просрали американские чарты в итоге

[@dedpxl]

I wonder if this was his idea by the way. most of the cover versions are. but yeah, clearly they mustn't even know he's the 2nd member of the 2 piece band. hardly show him I feel for Neil, you can see in his body language he gets concerned and even messes up a line. Chris used to do these walk outs fairly regularly in these earlier days.

[@deerparkcutie9024]

@@dedpxl really? What are some other times he walked out?

[@elenatria]

@@dedpxl could you tell us more about Chris walking out, any other instances?

[@scottyunitedboy2925]

@@elenatria from the book Pet Shop Boys vs.America. “It is the fourth time Chris has done something of this sort: he walked off the ‘Rent’ video in 1987, off the stage at the Tokyo Budokan in 1989 and at the end of Wogan in 1990.”

[@thedelacruz]

Classic. Chris said F* this.. 💩🤣🤣🤣🤣

[@lindasmith-wj5nk]

Neil is just so proper he’s absolutely gorgeous I love the way he carries himself . Just seen them twice Royal opera house loved them for 40 odd years 💙💙

[@ericcantona3624]

сейчас у PSB такой тур грандиозный идет ,столько концертов дали за 4 года, что кажется, именно сейчас они более популярны, чем тогда

[@dedpxl]

the way he says we're off to San Francisco after Jay Leno mentions talking about sex. I can see why people thought it was obvious NT is gay even though he hadn't came out at that stage.

[@jeshkam]

Is Chris gay as well?

[@EmmaRiddle543]

@@jeshkam Yes

[@NagasakiBladers]

@@EmmaRiddle543 Why are you speaking for him? Chris Lowe has never said that he's gay

[@EmmaRiddle543]

@@NagasakiBladers He has, but only recently.

[@NagasakiBladers]

@@EmmaRiddle543 Where?

[@ClaireBee82]

Tbf they cut Chris out so can understand why he was pissed off. But well done Neil for not reacting

[@CruceEntertainment]

PSB’s did amazing covers

[@JiriKluzo]

petheads know this story very well. Pet shop boys vs. America book.

[@dedpxl]

6:05 what is he holding lol. is that a long box CD? I've just found about those the other day, apparently there was a phase where CDs were sold but had to fit in 12" vinyl record places so they just made the CD case 3 times longer.

[@nelsoncorbal]

And I thought it was just some sort of promotional impromptu.

[@rediscoveryrecords1348]

Ya they were popular in about 1989-92. In fact I had Behavior in the long box myself. Not sure if it was because of taller record bins but just generally having them be more substantial and sticking out in bins versus them later with the all plastic holders that were inserted with metal detection for anti-theft.

[@petlod]

Yes, longboxes were used to be able to repurpose bins that had originally stocked vinyl.

[@SolemAris]

Rare pieces and very expensive now, the long boxes were used for cds and cassettes in USA, I am lucky enough to have the Behavior one still sealed.

[@dana.1546]

@@rediscoveryrecords1348 The purpose of the longboxes was also to avoid theft : CDs being much smaller than LPs they were easier to steal. And the trend didn't start in '89, I have many 1987 CDs in longbox format.

[@MichaelPhan-d9p]

Where's Chris Lowe.

[@DEJAVUCRISTIAN]

Somebody noticed the fall of one of the dancers A seconds before Chrisie Boy left the stage ?

[@khv_dv_jungle]

Да, упал один с крыльями. Может Крису стало неловко и он покинул зал

[@DEJAVUCRISTIAN]

@@khv_dv_jungle Jajajajaj , no ,it wasn’t that Is just because he felt ignored by the Cameras , so he left the stage and went to the Hotel. The cameras were always on Neil Jajajaja 🤣

[@ericcantona3624]

Нил молодец. Единственный достойно держался. Наверное все было ради прикола сделано))

[@nathannathan7976]

At 3:18 Neil completely mucks up the lyric - maybe understandable

[@khv_dv_jungle]

Chris is a maximalist, and that's right. If it were otherwise, it would not be PSB Their attention is focused on the person. About respect for individuality. And it can't be sold. Since you will sell Yourself. These are high-level people. And they want to be considered, even if they are in their underpants on stage. Their creativity is far from just entertainment

[@dedpxl]

Oh hang on! The video is longer than the other upload. Is that Jim Carrey and Neil Tennant in the same room!?

[@trueceremonies5292]

I couldn't believe my luck as a teenager at the time to see those two on the same show together.

[@vinnym5607]

Is the lady Shelly Winters?

[@xiaoxia5]

2:42 :P

[@USAPethead]

I'm not sure that all of the awkwardness of the interview is due to what Chris did. Jay Leno seems like he doesn't know how to talk to British people lol. His interview with Peter Gabriel was really similar to this in awkwardness haha.. Brits are very quiet and dry when they crack jokes and Jay doesn't know how to work with it.

[@DewightBarkley]

Does anyone have the full interview portion, it's cut short here as I remember Neil talking a great deal more than this...

[@khv_dv_jungle]

Да Крис показал, что играли без него. И он революционер по его по ведению. Взять и на ответственном моменте все порвать к чертям, не отвечая ни за что

[@ricardodelcorsso2925]

❤❤

[@dedpxl]

:( why did they say there'd be another song but there isn't... 6:03

[@huntress2538]

Chris refused to perform Seriously unless Streets could be redone which it couldn't. So he simply fucked off. You can actually see Neil apologising to Jay at the end there but in all fairness, Chris was right to be pissed.

[@mr.confidential203]

Какого лешего здесь происходит? 2:26 Сначала два польских гусара в шляпах устроили дебош в прямом эфире 2:40 Потом Крис взял у тупо свалил от греха подальше с этого цирка 4:34 Видя, что ситуация накаляется, Нил полез целоваться к посторонней даме в годах 5:41 Ну а в конце марлезонского балета мадмуазель стала пристовать к Нилу, чтобы он сбацал что-нибудь в духе PSB

[@lennox1930]

Комментария лучше тут уже не будет))

[@EM.1.]

I still don't know why there was a second keyboardist or you can ask what does Chris exactly play on the keyboards? The music didn't sound any different when he walked off stage.

[@xiaoxia5]

Scott(second keyboardist) did all the playing during this tour. Chris just mimed as he usually did. it wasn't until the Release tour where he actually started to play keyboards live.

[@ramonriupaul8089]

@@xiaoxia5 don' T think so, he 's always played live; for example take a look at the middle-bit of Its a sin in the 1989 tour or the orchestra bits of always on my mind in the Performance tour, he's clearly playing live.

[@xiaoxia5]

@@ramonriupaul8089 Chris actually told me he has always had a hard time remembering his keyboard parts. hence why you saw him with sheet music during the Release era while performing live. i had the same keyboard midi controller as Chris for the 1989 shows, and the Performance shows. in some shots you can see the keyboard is not even on. there's also a mention in the Performance Tour program that he didn't even want to play a single note during that show. he also makes a joke about miming the keyboard parts in the Somewhere Savoy Theatre BTS footage.

[@HipixOFFICIAL]

@@xiaoxia5 I've gotten shit on everytime I mention that Chris doesn't always play live. I don't have anything against him doing it. I play the keyboard myself, I know how tiring and stressful it can be to play for hours on end while trying to remember the notes to each song. Nobody is perfect.

[@cappaculla]

@@xiaoxia5 Nahh, Have to disagree here... I was front row at the performance tour, the keytar thing he used had a massive radio transmitter strapped to the back of it, so it was by no means a prop. Chris jokes about it for the most part sarcastically as most people assume he mimes even during live shows

[@djmylesmatisse]

I never knew the story of Chris Lowe storming off and being so upset over not being featured on camera. To me its so unlike Chris to be bothered by that. I'm sure his attitude and "BEHAVIOUR" damaged Pet Shop Boys ability to get on future American talk shows. Chris should've realized that it wasn't personal and that The Tonight Show director probably chose the shots he felt were the most dynamic with of course Neil and his singing being of #1 importance. Chris should always know THE SHOW MUST GO ON. I'm sure he NEVER behaved so poorly again. Not coming back for the 2nd song was embarrassing for Neil, the others on stage and Jay Leno. Chris was the epitome of unprofessional that night. So so terrible.

[@markhardcastle9820]

He’s done it 4 times. He’s a diva.

[@Malvina-qd4mi]

​@@markhardcastle9820😮cuales fueron las otras tres veces?

[@Etrangier]

@@Malvina-qd4mi En el libro de Chris Heath "Pet Shop Boys vs America" relatan que luego de este bochorno Neil y su staff volvieron al hotel. Chris Lowe no se veía por ninguna parte. Heath acompañaba la banda para escribir el libro en base a entrevistas. Fue ahí donde un Neil muy ofuscado le confesó que aquella era la 4º vez que Chris lo dejaba botado. Una fue en la grabación del videoclip de "Rent" en 1986, otra al inicio de un recital en Japón en 1989 que Chris se taimó y no quería subir al escenario y otra en Wigan, Inglaterra, para un concierto en 1990 donde tampoco quiso subirse hasta que lo obligaron. Seguro que ahora Chris se averguenza de eso, pero quizás hay que comprender que Lowe era 5 o 6 años menor que Neil, y este lo veía como un hermano chico. Ahora la diferencia de edad no se nota pero en un inicio debe haber sido difícil por la inmadurez de Chris y la exposición a un mundo estresante para alguien de bajo perfil como él.

[@MargauxHemingway]

Chris walked out of the stage and not much changed. Neil next to Shelley was great.

[@MrPomelo555]

WHERE HAS CHRIS GONE ?

[@huntress2538]

Haven't you seen/heard about this yet? This is partly why PSB were seen to have bombed in the US, and when they had a blazing row that nearly split them up. The boys had gone over the performance with production and camera angles and time was very much agreed upon...then the show royally fucked up. Camera time was to be equal. You'll see that until the dancers appear, the camera avoids Chris totally. He could see it on the monitor so mid song was basically like "Fuck this, I'm outta here". Neil agreed with him but was pissed that he walked off so the two of them had a huge row back at the hotel that had them on the verge of splitting. It's a rather famous moment where fans are always after the footage as this is the clearest I've seen.

[@elenatria]

@@huntress2538 I'm a relatively new PSB fan, could you give us a source for their row and how they came close to splitting up? Is it mentioned in a book?

[@khv_dv_jungle]

@@huntress2538 даже нам видно, что Криса не видно, пока не дошло до кадра с его уходом

[@Malvina-qd4mi]

​@@elenatriaen el libro pet shop boys vs América cuentan todo esto

[@elenatria]

@@Malvina-qd4mi thank you.

[@CruceEntertainment]

Neil carrying on and doing the interview: “oh well, F him”

[@TellMeWhereItHurts1977]

Where The Streets Have No Karma😪

[@JiriKluzo]

Pet shop boys vs. America 10:0

[@Etrangier]

As I have read, that was just the straw that broke the camel's back of many problems that came before. Behavior at the time was a commercial failure, the Performance tour was very expensive and at that time they had seriously considered ending the group. There were already similar bands breaking up, such as The Human League, Soft Cell, Depeche Mode getting into drug problems and New Order breaking up in 1993. They saw breaking up as a natural decision. In fact, Neil Tennant at that time started the Electronic side project with Bernard Summers and Johnny Marr. It was only later that they realized that critics were praising Behavior, despite it not having sold much, and they decided to continue together. Very was a totally opposite album in terms of rhythms, because they couldn't have endured another commercial failure. That was the first time they thought about separating. The other was in 2000, but that's another story.

[@istara]

What was the reason behind considering a split in 2000?

[@Etrangier]

@@istara In the middle of the 1999 Nightlife Tour, the businessman who was promoting the tour declared "bankruptcy" and from one moment to the next they found themselves without money and in debt. They had placed a lot of commercial expectations on "Nightlife", but they did not make any money on the tour. Then they seriously considered ending the band.

[@istara]

@@Etrangier Thank you for explaining! And thank goodness for all of us that they didn't end it.

[@Lightblue2222]

Would have been funny if he walked back on for the interview after. Lol

[@jordyndisimone666]

A u 2 classic

[@gonzaloreyes8782]

Jim Carey already exist at this time?

[@EnjoyableHandful]

he had been in a handful of films, incl ones w Nicolas Cage and Clint Eastwood, and at that time was starring on the hit tv show "In Living Color"

[@davidbull7210]

There's a clip of him on TV in 1984. He'd been around several years at this point

[@MargauxHemingway]

He already had done a vampire movie in the mid 80s and was a comic in t.v's Living Color.

[@khv_dv_jungle]

нельзя продавать уважение к себе. Пошли они эти чарты в Ж****. И кстати , его видно на камеру, только когда он уходил. Явно обделили. Я за Криса🔥

[@user-qp9so2zo1z]

Sorry but pet shop boys write much better songs than u2. Why would they use these u.s tv opportunities to play covers?

[@PositivelyPam]

They said they wanted to turn a rock song into a disco record and it's also mashed up with I Can't Take My Eyes Off Of You.

[@trueceremonies5292]

Excellent point!

[@paulsmartialarts]

It was the single they were promoting at the time. They were also supposed to perform How Do You Expect.... but Chris happened.

[@MITOMANOx]

Is that Julia Child?

[@PositivelyPam]

No, that's Shelley Winters.

[@TheHungaryPSB]

:)

[@markhardcastle9820]

Chris being a diva again. Shock. Can’t stay around to support his band mate when the direction isn’t to his liking, throws a strip and walks off. Done it at least 4 times.

[@rediscoveryrecords1348]

Anyone defending Chrisfor walking off is out of their small skull. Can you imagine anyone saying they want to redo a performance in front of a live audience because they were not shown enough in the cameras? Please

[@cherrypopma1]

Maybes because their called Pet Shop Boys not Pet Shop Boy CL had every right to do one!!!

[@USAPethead]

Actually, re-doing the musical performances is not uncommon for these talk shows. I've read this from people who have been in the audience for these talk shows, and I've also heard Stephen Colbert talking about it in an interview. It isn't a big deal at all, I dont know why the Tonight Show wouldn't have just let them do it again.

[@USAPethead]

That said, it does seem like a shitty thing to do to Neil while he's performing, so I'm not necessarily defending Chris here, just point out that re-taping the song shouldn't have been an issue.

[@khv_dv_jungle]

Он волен решать. В этом их дух

[@khv_dv_jungle]

Шоу тогда нужно заранее ставить так, чтоб уважать обоих

[@kennethames4429]

Dude walks off stage and NOTHING changed sonically. Sad.

[@Face-Lice]

didn't he walk off stage after the song was over?

[@Face-Lice]

10 people on stage stood almost still. What awful choreography and decisions.

[@tshandy1]

Awkward.