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Trevor Horn Defined ’80s Music, Then Kept Going


The prolific producer has worked with everyone from Grace Jones to Leann Rimes.

Even if you don’t immediately recognize his name, you know the hits he helped shape, for stars like ABC (“Poison Arrow”), Frankie Goes to Hollywood (“Relax”), Malcolm McLaren (“Duck Rock”), Grace Jones (“Slave to the Rhythm”), Pet Shop Boys (“Left to My Own Devices”), and Art of Noise (“Close to the Edit”). And before that, Horn’s band the Buggles scored a British chart-topper with “Video Killed the Radio Star,” whose lyrics anticipated the entire music-video revolution, making it the natural choice to be the first clip ever played on MTV. But three years later they brought you back to produce the 90125 album, which became their biggest seller due to the hit “Owner of a Lonely Heart.” At the same time, the group, as well as fans like me, thought that song was a total sellout.

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