Burning The Ground Exclusive
NEW 2026 Transfer
NEW Meticulous Audio Restoration
For the next entry in Ladies Of The 80s: Soundtrack Edition, we are leaving behind the bright pop of “Whole Wide World” and entering a much colder, darker, and more unsettling world.
“Sexcrime (Nineteen Eighty-Four)” was released in 1984 as the first single from Eurythmics’ soundtrack album 1984 (For The Love Of Big Brother), created for Michael Radford’s film adaptation of George Orwell’s Nineteen Eighty-Four. The movie starred John Hurt as Winston Smith, Suzanna Hamilton as Julia, and Richard Burton in his final film role as O’Brien.
Although Eurythmics was a duo, there was no leaving Annie Lennox out of this series. Her voice, image, and commanding presence helped make Eurythmics one of the most recognizable acts of the decade. On “Sexcrime,” she sounds fierce, nervous, controlled, and ready to explode, often within the same few seconds.
The song was written by Annie Lennox and Dave Stewart and produced by Stewart. Its title comes directly from Orwell’s fictional language of Newspeak. In the world of Nineteen Eighty-Four, even private desire can become an offense against the state. Romance, sex, and personal loyalty are dangerous because they create bonds that exist outside the control of Big Brother.
Eurythmics turned that idea into one of their hardest and most mechanical singles.
“Sexcrime” is built around pounding electronic percussion, stabbing synthesizers, sampled fragments of Annie’s voice, and Dave Stewart’s processed repetition of “nineteen eighty-four.” Annie’s vocals are cut into small pieces and fired through the track like another rhythm instrument. The effect is tense, hypnotic, and slightly disturbing.
It sounds like a pop song created inside the Ministry of Truth.
There is also a physical urgency to the record. Beneath all the cold machinery, Annie sings like someone trying to protect the final pieces of her private life. When she reaches the line about pulling down the bricks one by one and leaving a hole in the wall, the song briefly turns from fear toward resistance.
That was one of Eurythmics’ greatest strengths during this period. They could make electronic music sound cold and deeply human at the same time.
The song’s video carried the Orwellian mood even further. Filmed at London’s Battersea Power Station, it placed Annie Lennox and Dave Stewart inside a bleak industrial setting filled with harsh lighting, smoke, rain, surveillance imagery, and scenes from the movie. The location could hardly have been more appropriate for the song’s oppressive atmosphere.
The story behind the soundtrack was nearly as tense as the music.
Virgin Films commissioned Eurythmics to create music for the movie, while director Michael Radford had already been working with composer Dominic Muldowney on a traditional orchestral score. Radford objected when much of Muldowney’s work was replaced with Eurythmics’ electronic music. The Eurythmics later stated that they had accepted the assignment in good faith and were unaware of the disagreement between the director and the film company. Different releases of the movie have since appeared with different combinations of the two scores.
The controversy may have complicated the movie’s release, but 1984 (For The Love Of Big Brother) remains a fascinating Eurythmics album. Much of it is instrumental, experimental, and far removed from the direct pop sound of hits such as “Sweet Dreams (Are Made Of This)” and “Here Comes The Rain Again.”
“Sexcrime” was the album’s most obvious single, although there was nothing particularly safe about it.
In the UK, the record became Eurythmics’ sixth consecutive Top 10 single, reaching number four and spending fifteen weeks on the chart. The album reached number 23 on the UK Albums Chart.
The reception in the United States was very different. Many American radio programmers and video outlets reacted to the title without understanding its meaning within Orwell’s novel. The single stalled at number 81 on the Billboard Hot 100, but club audiences were far more welcoming. It reached number two on Billboard’s dance chart.
Once again, the clubs were ahead of the radio.
For this post, I am returning to the US 12-inch promotional release. The record opens with the nearly eight-minute Extended Mix, followed on the B-side by the Single Version and “I Did It Just The Same.”
The Extended Mix gives the mechanical rhythm more room to build. Annie’s sampled vocals move in and out of the arrangement while the percussion, synthesizers, and processed voices create a sense that the listener is being watched from every direction. It is not a traditional extended mix filled with new melodies or a warm dance-floor groove. Instead, it takes the song’s nervous tension and stretches it into something even more severe.
The B-side, “I Did It Just The Same,” also draws its title and subject matter from Orwell’s novel. It is another dark electronic piece that fits naturally beside “Sexcrime” and helps make the 12-inch feel like a small extension of the soundtrack album rather than a standard pop single. The US promotional pressing contains the Extended Mix, Single Version, and “I Did It Just The Same.”
I previously posted this record in January 2018. That transfer was itself an update of an even earlier Burning The Ground post, but eight years have passed, and my equipment and restoration work have changed considerably since then.
For the new 2026 edition, I returned to the vinyl and created an entirely new transfer from the beginning. This is not a remaster of the 2018 files. It is a fresh recording followed by meticulous audio restoration, with special attention given to preserving the sharp electronic attack, deep percussion, vocal samples, and cold atmosphere of the original production.
“Sexcrime (Nineteen Eighty-Four)” is not the easiest or most comforting Eurythmics single. It is harsh, strange, repetitive, and confrontational.
That is exactly why it remains so exciting.
More than four decades later, the song still sounds like a warning being transmitted from somewhere just beyond the telescreen.
Big Brother is watching.
Annie Lennox is fighting back.
SIDE A:
Sexcrime (Nineteen Eighty•Four) (Extended Version) 7:59
SIDE B:
Sexcrime (Nineteen Eighty•Four) (Single Version) 3:58
I Did It Just The Same 3:27
VINYL GRADE:
Vinyl: Near Mint
Sleeve: Near Mint
| Chart Performance – Eurythmics: Sexcrime (Nineteen Eighty Four) (1984–1985) | Peak Position |
|---|---|
| Australia (Kent Music Report) | 5 |
| Belgium (Ultratop 50 Flanders) | 3 |
| Canada Top Singles (RPM) | 18 |
| Europe (European Top 100 Singles) | 7 |
| France (SNEP) | 7 |
| Ireland (IRMA) | 4 |
| Italy (Musica e dischi) | 19 |
| Netherlands (Dutch Top 40) | 10 |
| Netherlands (Single Top 100) | 12 |
| New Zealand (Recorded Music NZ) | 8 |
| Norway (VG-lista) | 9 |
| Sweden (Sverigetopplistan) | 3 |
| Switzerland (Schweizer Hitparade) | 6 |
| UK Singles Chart | 4 |
| US Billboard Hot 100 | 81 |
| US Billboard Dance Club Songs | 2 |
| West Germany (GfK) | 3 |
RELEASE INFORMATION:
Label: RCA – JW-13957, RCA – PW-13957
Format: Vinyl, 12″, 33 ⅓ RPM, Promo, Stereo
Country: US
Released: 1984
Genre: Electronic, Pop
Style: Synth-pop
CREDITS:
- Composed By [Composer] – Lennox*, Stewart*
- Lacquer Cut By – JA*
- Mixed By – David A. Stewart, Eric Thorngren
- Producer [Produced By] – David A. Stewart
NOTES:
Mix names on the sleeve are “Extended Mix” and “Single Mix” and on the labels are “Extended Version” and “Single Version”.
Taken from the motion picture soundtrack album: 1984
Buy the 12″ at DISCOGS
VINYL TRANSFER & AUDIO RESTORATION:
-DjPaulT
for BURNING THE GROUND
THE GEAR:
Turntable: Technics SL-1200MK7
Cartridge/Stylus: Ortofon Concorde Music Black
Phono Pre-amp: Pro-Ject Tube Box DS2
Phono Tubes: Genalex Gold Lion 12AX7 ECC83/B759 Gold Pins Vacuum Tube – Matched Pair
Audio Interface: MOTU M4
Turntable Isolation Platform: ISO-Tone™ Turntable Isolation Platform
Platter: Pro Spin Acrylic Mat
Stabilizer: Pro-Ject Record Puck
Record Cleaning: VPI HW 16.5 Record Cleaning Machine
Cleaning Solution: Turgikleen Record Cleaning Solution
Scanner: Epson Workforce WF-7610 Professional Printer/Scanner
SOFTWARE:
Recording/Editing: Adobe Audition 25 (Recording)
Down Sampling/Dither: iZotope RX Advanced 2
Artwork Editor: Adobe Photoshop CS5
Click Removal: Manual
FLAC/MP3 Conversion: dBpoweramp
M3U Playlist: Playlist Creator
RESTORATION NOTES:
All vinyl rips are recorded @ 32bit/float
FLAC (Level Eight)
Artwork scanned at 600dpi
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