Andy Bell - Extended Blue Andy Bell

Erasure frontman and electronic pop legend Andy Bell reissues his solo debut 2005 album Electric Blue on 28th August 2026, on limited-edition deluxe triple multicolour blue vinyl.

Retitled Extended Blue, the album will be preceded on 14th August by a very belated third single release from the album: a double A-side featuring brand-new 2026 mixes of ‘Love Oneself’ and ‘Delicious’, both featuring duet vocals from Claudia Brücken. Originally inspired by Donna Summer and Patrick Cowley, the new sixteen-minute remix of Love Oneself pays homage to the glorious late 1970s disco era when the pre-release 12” extended mix was always the most highly anticipated arrival for club DJs and their audiences around the world.

As well as featuring xPropaganda’s Claudia Brücken, Extended Blue features a duet with Scissor Sisters’ Jake Shears on the riotous I Thought It Was You. Meanwhile, all the additional bonus tracks and B-sides from the Electric Blue sessions have been added for the first time on vinyl. The package includes a deluxe booklet with extensive liner notes by Classic Pop writer John Earls, offering insight into the recording of the album in London, featuring new interviews with Andy Bell and producers Philip Larsen and Chris Smith of Manhattan Clique. Sleeve artwork, by designer James McWilliam, includes previously unseen photos from the original 2005 photo session with celebrated British photographer Tim Flach.

Electric Blue was co-written and produced by Manhattan Clique, who dominated the pop-dance club remix world for two decades from the early 2000s, working with the likes of Katy Perry, Britney Spears, Lady Gaga, OneRepublic, Moby and many more. The duo have also worked with many seminal electronic acts including The Human League, Soft Cell, OMD, The B-52s, and of course Erasure.

Featuring the UK Top 40 hit 'Crazy', which also topped dance club charts around the world, Electric Blue appeared destined for international success. However, its release was hampered when its label, Sanctuary Records, effectively imploded at the same time, preventing the album from receiving worldwide promotion and exposure.

Now available on vinyl for the first time since its original release in October 2005, Electric Blue is widely regarded by Erasure fans—and wider lovers of electronic music—as a lost gem: an outstanding album that was simply released at the wrong time.

Andy Bell’s most recent solo album Ten Crowns reached the Top 10 in 2025, while Vince Clarke and Andy are currently recording the next, as yet untitled, Erasure album. Claudia Brücken, as part of xPropaganda, continues to tour and release new material, while Jake Shears is now fronting Scissor Sisters again since their reunion in 2025.

Andy Bell commented: “Blue, blue, electric blue” is one of my favourite expressions from Bowie’s 'Sound and Vision'. We had a blast making this album. There was lots of Divine and the kind of cheeky-ass comments that only straight, gay-friendly, men can make. The music is sublime space-electro-disco and would fit onto any cool playlist. The presence of Ms Brücken - or Mrs Bridges as we like to call her - and Mr Shears only adds to the glamour and the mystique. As for Chris and Phillip, they are very naughty, but ultra-talented boys who know their onions. I’m sure we'll do another one day, when time allows, but as for now here’s to Clique Cheer!

Philip Larsen adds: “We explored so many production ideas and directions working on Electric Blue with Andy. It was always such a pleasure seeing where each song would end up and recording Andy was a dream: soaring vocals, always pinpoint-accurate whilst full of emotion. Revisiting some of the previously-unreleased extended versions has been great fun after all these years. I’m still immensely proud of the album. It’s also from a different time in life, when Andy lived near our Manhattan Loft studio in North London. We would all have dinner together, record the vocals for a song and inevitably go out for a nightcap and dance in Soho afterwards. The songs and productions on this album feel like they have stood the test of time. I’m excited that they can be revisited on this vinyl.”

Comments Chris Smith: “We were never happy with the original vinyl pressing, which was pressed on cheap vinyl. We also had to make a lot of edits to squeeze it on the single vinyl that the label demanded for budget reasons. This went against the 12” extended club concept of the album that we wanted. This version of the album features unheard full-length versions recorded during 2004-5, and although we’ve taken the time to add a little extra sparkle and freshen it all up using new studio technology, the recordings essentially remain the same. With 20 years more experience and better tech, we could have made the album sound more sophisticated. But if we’d done that, we’d have missed some of its passion and energy. The album as it stands captures a moment really well. We all had a such a great time making Electric Blue, with a lot of late nights, hanging out with Claudia, and some totally mad club shows in the UK and Europe. Above all, Andy’s vocals still sound timeless.”