On this day, 40 years ago, Bananarama released their third studio album True Confessions. The album would go on to be their most commercially successful album, achieving Gold Sales in the US (and Platinum in Canada), as well as going Top 20 across Europe and Australasia.
Zeitgeist is a word used often, but with True Confessions, Bananarama set the pop world’s imagination ablaze. In four short years the band transformed from DIY girls about town to Bonafide MTV superstars, with a new look and sound to match.
“1986 was a whirlwind for us and it was the year that things ramped up a gear. The success of ‘Venus’ around the world meant we were lucky enough to visit so many countries and meet so many people. It was a year we’ll never forget.” Siobhan
For ‘Venus’, a canny Hi-NRG remake of the 1969 Shocking Blue hit, Bananarama had enlisted the production talents of then relative newcomers, Stock Aitken Waterman. The song had been a firm favourite for the band since their onset, and when they caught wind (via the dancefloor) of SAW’s irrerprescent beat driven production of Dead or Alive’s ‘You Spin Me Round (Like a Record)’, they imagined a global smash.
And what a global smash ‘Venus’ would prove to be: rocketing into the Top 10 in 20 countries, hitting #1 in 6 countries, as well as topping both the US Billboard Top 100 and Billboard Dance Charts.
“’I remember during a True Confessions promo trip to America we went to Prince’s club in Minneapolis. I couldn’t believe it when the DJ put ‘Venus’ on and the whole club ran to the dancefloor, it was amazing.” Sara
1986 also saw the medium of music videos take over the world’s small screens, with MTV reaching its peak, and Bananarama joining with their biggest budget video to date. ‘Venus’ featured the girls costumed as (variously) a bat-winged vampiress (Sara), a she-devil (Siobhan), a French temptress (Keren), and several Greek goddesses. Marking an end with the tomboyish style of their earlier work, the video was sleek, sexy and sophisticated, with a knowing sense of camp and humour entering proceedings.
While the staggering success of ‘Venus’ somewhat overshadowed both its preceding (‘Do Not Disturb’) and following singles (‘More Than Physical’ and ‘A Trick of the Night’), True Confessions hung together well as a cohesive album of hook laden pop. While a swansong farewell to the ongoing collaboration with production duo Jolley & Swain, and heralding a new relationship with Stock Aitken Waterman, It would begin the band’s imperial phase of peerless hit singles, which would lead the band into the Guinness Book of Records for the highest number of chart entries for an all-female group.
“When we originally asked Stock, Aitken and Waterman to produce ‘Venus’ for us, they said it couldn’t be done because you couldn’t have guitars on a pop record! Thankfully, we were very persuasive because it marked the beginning of a wonderful and really successful working relationship!” Keren
To celebrate 40 years of True Confessions London Records is revisiting the album across a multitude of formats.
For the first time ever all three original members of the band have agreed to sign some very special versions of the album. Available exclusively in the Bananarama Offical Store – there are 3 extra CD versions of the album, one featuring Sara, Keren and Siobhan housed in unique individual sleeves. Each version features the original album plus audio from each band member on their recollections around the album (their own True Confessions, as it were), as well as a bonus secret track.
Remastered for 2026, the album is issued on picture disc for the very first time, alongside a limited edition transparent red version (Exclusive to HMV UK Stores). There’s also an expanded double album, housed in a gatefold sleeve. The first disc features the original album, while the second disc revisits ‘Venus’ and ‘More Than Physical’ across a multitude of contemporary and classic remixes, including brand new 2026 remixes by Richard X, The Alias and Luke Mornay. Richard X’s revisit to ‘Venus’ is available to listen/ watch here.
There is a 3CD version which expands further upon the True Confessions story. Disc One takes in the album plus B-sides and more. Disc Two explores the 1986 extended and remix versions, including Ian Levine’s Hi-NRG remixes and SAW/ Phil Harding’s takes on ‘A Trick of the Night’. Disc Three is a treasure trove of new remixes from AMYL, Richard X, The Alias and Luke Mornay alongside rare versions and two previously unreleased extended versions of ‘Promised Land’ and ‘Vicious Circle’.
The official store also features newly minted True Confessions cassette tapes and other formats, alongside reproductions of the original 1986 merchandise and much more. The 40 year anniversary editions of True Confessions London Records are set for release on August 28th, 2026 and available to pre-order now.