The Luxury Gap


The Luxury Gap is the second studio album by the English synthpop band Heaven 17. It was originally released in April 1983, on the label Virgin. Recorded under the working title "Ashes and Diamonds", it is the band's best-selling album, peaking at number 4 on the UK Albums Chart – eventually becoming the 17th best-selling album of the year – and certified platinum by the BPI in 1984.
In contrast to their debut album, Penthouse and Pavement, the singles charted strongly, particularly "Temptation" which reached number 2 in the UK Singles Chart and was the 34th biggest selling single of 1983. Other hits included "Come Live With Me" and "Crushed by the Wheels of Industry".
The band performed the album in its entirety on 14 October 2011 at London’s Roundhouse, the first night featured Heaven 17 performing the album in "3-D sound" developed by Ware himself. The show is a sequel of sorts to the Penthouse and Pavement concerts the band played in 2010.
A new deluxe edition of the album in 2012 was promoted with a tour of the UK in October and November followed by some dates in Germany and Belgium. The band played the original album in its entirety followed by a selection of Heaven 17 tracks and two Human League tracks "A Crow and a Baby" and "Being Boiled". A cover version of "You've Lost That Lovin' Feeling", similar to the one recorded by The Human League in 1979, and a cover version of the Associates' track "Party Fears Two" were also performed.

Track listing

All songs written and composed by Glenn Gregory, Ian Craig Marsh, and Martyn Ware.
  1. "Crushed by the Wheels of Industry" – 5:54
  2. "Who'll Stop the Rain" – 3:04
  3. "Let Me Go" – 4:23
  4. "Key to the World" – 3:42
  5. "Temptation" – 3:34
  6. "Come Live with Me" – 4:18
  7. "Lady Ice and Mr Hex" – 3:46
  8. "We Live So Fast" – 3:49
  9. "The Best Kept Secret" – 5:09
The US Arista issue of this album omitted "Who'll Stop the Rain" and "Let Me Go", both of which had appeared on a US-only release titled Heaven 17 in 1982. They were replaced with re-recorded versions of "Let's All Make a Bomb" and "Song With No Name".
Bonus tracks on 2006 remastered edition
;Heaven 17
;Session musicians