Who remembers ‘Bananarama’?  Till the Spice Girls came along they were the most successful female act in the UK.

Everybody remembers this band in the Stock Aitken and Waterman era, with hits including a cover version of ‘Venus’, ‘Love In The First Degree’ and ‘I Heard A Rumour’ best representing that period.

Before The Hit Factory worked with Bananarama in 1986, some of their early stuff are worthy of placing in pop ’s Camembert stakes.  ‘Cruel Summer’ is one of them.  Though the same song was revived and remixed in 1989, ‘In The Kingdom of the Bland’ has insisted on placing the 1983 original on its cheeseboard.

How does this song warrant its place for ‘This Week’s Cheesy Tune’? Minimalist and catchy chorus and an obvious whiff of 1983 about it.  Oh and it sounds flat in parts, but hey we love it and its hummable.

S.V., 29 September 2008.