Culture Club

Band

Photo: HBO, distributed by Epic Records · Public domain
Active 1981-1986, 1998-2002, 2014-present
Origin London, England
Albums 6
Tracks 65
Most frequent collaborator Steve Levine · 30 tracks
Genres New WaveBlue-Eyed SoulPopReggae
Complete Artist
98%
Authorship

Holds writing credit on 64 of 65 tracks

Did Culture Club write their own songs?

Yes, and as a group. Boy George has a writing credit on 64 of the 65 tracks across six studio albums, Mikey Craig 61, Roy Hay 60 and Jon Moss 54. Fifty-four tracks carry all four names and nobody else.

By the Numbers

6
Studio Albums
65
Tracks Credited
98%
Self-Written
45
Years Active
25
Collaborators

Authorship Breakdown 64 / 65 self-written

Who wrote the songs?

Across all 65 tracks: how many Culture Club wrote alone, how many they co-wrote, and how many were written by others. The bracket marks every track they hold any writing credit on.

Culture Club has a writing credit98%
52%
46%
2%
Sole author34tracks52%
Co-written30tracks46%
Outside writers1tracks2%

Role Fingerprint how they contribute

Lyricist Performer Composer Producer
Culture Club's roles across the catalogue

Share of all 65 tracks where they are personally credited, by role.

Lyricist (words)98%
Composer (music)98%
Producer3%
Performer100%

Member Credit Breakdown share of tracks each member is credited on

Percentage of all 65 tracks, across every album, where each member holds a credit - split by role.

MemberPeriodLyricsMusicProductionPerformance
Boy George 1981-1986, 1998-2002, 2014-present
98%
98%
2%
100%
Mikey Craig 1981-1986, 1998-2002, 2014-present
94%
94%
2%
100%
Roy Hay 1981-1986, 1998-2002, 2014-present
92%
92%
3%
100%
Jon Moss Former 1981-1986, 1998-2002, 2014-2018
83%
83%
2%
100%

Authorship Over Time writing credit per album

Culture Club's writing credit per album, in release order. Hover any bar for the album.

avg 98%
100%
100%
100%
100%
93%
100%
1982Kissing to Be Clever
1983Colour by Numbers
1984Waking Up with the House on Fire
1986From Luxury to Heartache
1999Don't Mind If I Do
2018Life
Early · 100% written
Mid · 100% written
Late · 96% written

Authorship by Decade track-weighted

100%
1980s
Kissing to Be Clever, Colour by Numbers +2 more
93%
1990s
Don't Mind If I Do
100%
2010s
Life

Authorship Spectrum pure performer to complete author

Where Culture Club sits on the scale from a pure performer (0%, sings songs written by others) to a complete author (100%, writes everything). The bright marker is their catalogue authorship score, plotted against other artists on the site.

Culture Club
Other artists on the site

Reference artists spread across the scale, closest by genre and era.

Celine Dion2%
Diana Ross10%
Ricky Martin25%
Rihanna44%
Cyndi Lauper60%
Phil Collins78%
Gwen Stefani88%
98%Culture Club
Pure Performer0%
Songwriter~50%
Complete Author100%

Who Really Wrote the Hits signature songs

Do You Really Want to Hurt Me
Kissing to Be Clever
Written by Boy George, Mikey Craig, Roy Hay, Jon Moss, George Alan O'Dowd, Michael Emile Craig, Jonathan Aubrey Moss
Wrote it
I'll Tumble 4 Ya
Kissing to Be Clever
Written by Boy George, Mikey Craig, Roy Hay, Jon Moss, George Alan O'Dowd, Michael Emile Craig, Jonathan Aubrey Moss
Wrote it
Karma Chameleon
Colour by Numbers
Written by Boy George, Jon Moss, Mikey Craig, Roy Hay, Phil Pickett, George Alan O'Dowd, Jonathan Aubrey Moss, Michael Emile Craig
Co-wrote
Miss Me Blind
Colour by Numbers
Written by Boy George, Mikey Craig, Roy Hay, Jon Moss, George Alan O'Dowd, Michael Emile Craig, Jonathan Aubrey Moss
Wrote it
Church of the Poison Mind
Colour by Numbers
Written by Boy George, Mikey Craig, Roy Hay, Jon Moss, George Alan O'Dowd, Michael Emile Craig, Jonathan Aubrey Moss
Wrote it
It's a Miracle
Colour by Numbers
Written by Boy George, Jon Moss, Mikey Craig, Roy Hay, Phil Pickett, George Alan O'Dowd, Jonathan Aubrey Moss, Michael Emile Craig
Co-wrote
The War Song
Waking Up with the House on Fire
Written by Boy George, Mikey Craig, Roy Hay, Jon Moss, George Alan O'Dowd, Michael Emile Craig, Jonathan Aubrey Moss
Wrote it
Mistake No. 3
Waking Up with the House on Fire
Written by Boy George, Mikey Craig, Roy Hay, Jon Moss, George Alan O'Dowd, Michael Emile Craig, Jonathan Aubrey Moss
Wrote it
Move Away
From Luxury to Heartache
Written by Boy George, Jon Moss, Mikey Craig, Roy Hay, Phil Pickett, George Alan O'Dowd, Jonathan Aubrey Moss, Michael Emile Craig
Co-wrote
God Thank You Woman
From Luxury to Heartache
Written by Boy George, Jon Moss, Mikey Craig, Roy Hay, Phil Pickett, George Alan O'Dowd, Jonathan Aubrey Moss, Michael Emile Craig
Co-wrote
Your Kisses Are Charity
Don't Mind If I Do
Written by Boy George, Roy Hay, Mikey Craig, Jon Moss, John Themis, George Alan O'Dowd, Michael Emile Craig, Jonathan Aubrey Moss
Co-wrote
Cold Shoulder
Don't Mind If I Do
Written by Boy George, Roy Hay, Mikey Craig, Jon Moss, John Themis, George Alan O'Dowd, Michael Emile Craig, Jonathan Aubrey Moss
Co-wrote

Discography 6 albums

All six studio albums. The live albums and compilations sit outside this catalogue.

Collaborator Network who they worked with most

Culture Club65 tracks
SL30Steve Levine, 30 tracks JT21John Themis, 21 tracks FC11Future Cut, 11 tracks PP10Phil Pickett, 10 tracks 10Arif Mardin, 10 tracks LH10Lew Hahn, 10 tracks RS7Richie Stevens, 7 tracks H&6Hay & Culture Club, 6 tracks Y3Youth, 3 tracks CC1Captain Crucial, 1 track MR1Michael Rudetsky, 1 track PS1Paul Staveley O'Duffy, 1 track RS1Ritchie Stevens, 1 track S&1Stevens & O'Duffy, 1 track RH1Roy Hay & Culture Club, 1 track JS1Jonathan Shorten, 1 track ET1Emily Themis, 1 track T&1Themis & Culture Club, 1 track DB1David Bowie, 1 track AP1additional production: Dom T., 1 track RS1Richard Stevens, 1 track IB1Iyiola Babalola, 1 track DL1Darren Lewis, 1 track PS1Phillip Sewell, 1 track

Bubble size = tracks worked on together. SL Steve Levine · JT John Themis · FC Future Cut · PP Phil Pickett · LH Lew Hahn

Photo credits

Portraits in the web and the rail come from Wikimedia Commons. The artist's own photo carries its credit under the picture.

The Authorship Story

Data Insight

The credit is the band, printed as one name. Three of the first four albums simply say "Culture Club", and Colour by Numbers is the record that spells out who that means: George Alan O'Dowd, Mikey Craig, Roy Hay and Jon Moss. Across the whole catalogue George has 64 credits, Craig 61, Hay 60 and Moss 54, which is as even as a four-piece gets. Only two outsiders appear more than twice. Phil Pickett co-wrote ten tracks including "Karma Chameleon", and John Themis thirteen on the two reunion albums, where Moss starts dropping off the credit and the split becomes a three-way one. The 1999 and 2018 records are the only place the pattern moves at all.

Quick Facts

  • Boy George's share64 of the 65 album tracks
  • The even split54 tracks credited to all four and nobody else
  • Outside writersPhil Pickett on ten tracks, John Themis on thirteen
  • Studio albumsSix, from 1982 to 2018
  • Biggest albumColour by Numbers, over 10 million copies worldwide
  • AwardsGrammy Award for Best New Artist, Brit Awards for Best British Group and Best British Single

Creative Fingerprint

A four-way band credit printed as a single name, held almost unbroken across six albums and thirty-six years.

The Story

Culture Club split everything four ways and almost never changed it. Boy George is on 64 of the 65 tracks, and 54 of them carry all four members with nobody else on them.

Awards & Recognition

Grammy Award for Best New Artist, 1984
Brit Award for Best British Group, 1984
Brit Award for Best British Single, 1984, for "Karma Chameleon"

Frequently Asked Questions Culture Club

Did Culture Club write their own songs?
Yes, and as a group. Boy George has a writing credit on 64 of the 65 tracks across six studio albums, Mikey Craig 61, Roy Hay 60 and Jon Moss 54. Fifty-four tracks carry all four names and nobody else.
Who wrote "Karma Chameleon"?
Boy George, Mikey Craig, Roy Hay, Jon Moss and Phil Pickett. It went to number 1 on the Hot 100 in 1984.
Why do the sleeves just say Culture Club?
The band credited songs to itself rather than to individuals. Colour by Numbers is the record that spells the credit out as George Alan O'Dowd, Mikey Craig, Roy Hay and Jon Moss, which is who the band name means on every album.
Who is Phil Pickett?
The keyboard player who co-wrote ten Culture Club tracks, including "Karma Chameleon" and most of From Luxury to Heartache.
How many studio albums did Culture Club release?
Six, from Kissing to Be Clever in 1982 through Life in 2018.
Which Culture Club album sold the most?
Colour by Numbers, which has sold more than 10 million copies worldwide and four million in the US.
Did Culture Club win a Grammy?
Yes, Best New Artist in 1984. They also won Brit Awards that year for Best British Group and Best British Single for "Karma Chameleon".
How many US hits did Culture Club have?
"Karma Chameleon" reached number 1. "Do You Really Want to Hurt Me" and "Time (Clock of the Heart)" both reached number 2, and "Miss Me Blind" number 5.
Is Jon Moss still in the band?
No. He played on the first five albums and half of Life, and left in 2018. The later credits shift towards a three-way split without him.
Who wrote the reunion albums?
The band with John Themis, who has thirteen credits across Don't Mind If I Do in 1999 and Life in 2018, more than any outside writer except Phil Pickett in the eighties.

Sources

Wikipedia: Culture Club Wikipedia: Culture Club discography Wikipedia: Colour by Numbers Wikipedia: Boy George Wikipedia: Mikey Craig Wikipedia: Roy Hay Wikipedia: Jon Moss File:Culture Club (1984 HBO publicity photo) - Wikimedia Commons