"Word Is Out" is a song by Australian singer and songwriter Kylie Minogue, recorded for her fourth studio album Let's Get to It (1991). Written and produced by English production team Mike Stock and Pete Waterman, without Matt Aitken whom had left the SAW team by then, it was released as the lead single to the record on 26 August 1991. A departure from her previous music, the track aimed to replicaate the swing beat sound, with "New York City" by American R&B group Guy serving as the main plot track.[3] The artwork for the cover was photographed by Ellen Von Unwerth in 1991 for the British edition of Esquire.
The track did receive favorable reviews from music critics and has gone on to be named one of Minogue's most underrated singles.[4] In the United Kingdom, the track broke her streak of top-10 hits when it debuted at number 16 on the singles chart there. The track did however crack the top ten in Minogue's native Australia and Ireland but had no success in mainland Europe.
Critical reception
Chris True from AllMusic chose the track as one of Let's Get to It's track picks.[5]Larry Flick from Billboard commented, "Folks who think Kylie Minogue is too light for them may change their minds when they hear "Word Is Out". With a little help from remixer Tony King, she has eschewed the frothy hi-NRG tone of past hits in favor of an easy paced-house sound, replete with disco-flavored strings and percussion."[6] On Michael Wilton's review of the second night of her Anti Tour in Sydney, Australia—where she performed an a cappella rendition of the song—for musicOMH, he stated that "Word is Out" is "wildly underrated."[4] Writing Minogue's biography for her special on Australianmusic videoprogramRage, they stated: "While in the past, her material had always been high energy, 'Word Is Out' showcased a far more seductive side to Kylie that many had suspected was there."[7] In another hand, Nick Griffiths from Select called it one of the "odd songs" in the album.[8]Sophie Lawrence reviewed it for Smash Hits, writing, "Sounds like Madonna's "La Isla Bonita" a bit, doesn't it? She's just been brilliant ever since "Better The Devil You Know". You could listen to this 100 times and never get bored."[9] In 2023, Robert Moran of Australian daily tabloid newspaper The Sydney Morning Herald ranked the song as Minogue's 168th best song (out of 183).[10]
Commercial performance
The song was released as the first single in the summer of 1991 and was a top-20 hit in the United Kingdom, reaching number 16 and ending Minogue's run of 13 consecutive UK top-10 hits.[3] In Australia, with the more laid back Summer Breeze Mix as the main mix, it peaked at number 10, becoming Minogue's 10th single to chart within the top 10. The Summer Breeze Mix received a UK release on a one-sided limited edition 12-inch vinyl single that has an engraved autograph on the B-side, making it highly collectable for fans.
Music video
Directed by James Lebon, it was filmed in London's famous Camden market and featured British television presenter Davina McCall as one of Minogue's dancers.[11] An Australian version of the video later appeared on her 2002 (also the updated version in 2003) Greatest Hits DVD as one of the bonus features.[12] The video was criticised by both Mike Stock and Pete Waterman, who felt the aesthetic allusions to street prostitution alienated Kylie's fanbase and contributed to the single's underwhelming chart performance.[3]
^Word Is Out (Australian cassette single sleeve). Kylie Minogue. Mushroom Records. 1991. C11046.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
^Word Is Out (Australian 12-inch single sleeve). Kylie Minogue. Mushroom Records. 1991. X14215.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
^Word Is Out (UK 7-inch single vinyl disc). Kylie Minogue. PWL Records. 1991. PWL 204.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
^Word Is Out (UK cassette single sleeve). Kylie Minogue. PWL Records. 1991. PWMC 204.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
^Word Is Out (UK 12-inch single sleeve). Kylie Minogue. PWL Records. 1991. PWLT 204.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
^Word Is Out (UK CD single disc notes). Kylie Minogue. PWL Records. 1991. PWCD 204.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
^Word Is Out (Japanese CD single liner notes). Kylie Minogue. PWL Records. 1991. ALCB-371.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
