Cupid & Psyche 85

In the week that Green Gartside emerges from semi-retirement with a new single, it's fitting that his band's best record should receive a mid-price reissue 14 years after its initial release. Cupid & Psyche 85 is a lost masterpiece of consummate pop, from a band who never quite got the commercial due that their critical notices suggested.

Today, a small percentage of it ('Small Talk' and parts of 'Lover To Fall') sounds a little obvious and sugary, with the ad-soundtrack keyboards resembling a 1990s parody of what 1980s music was like. But on tracks like 'Absolute' or the astonishing 'Perfect Way' - which changes key nine times in five seconds! - the whole sound is underpinned by Scritti's musical trademark, the crystal-clear prickle of glossy funk guitar which became synonymous with their name. This is 45 minutes of brittle, gaudy grooves, funk with most of the blackness rinsed out (not an insult) and splashes of synth cascading on top of each other.

Cupid & Psyche 85 is remembered chiefly for its two big hits. Opening cut 'The Word Girl' is the best white reggae track ever, better even than The Clash's 'Bankrobber' or anything by The Police. 'Wood Beez', with its glittery guitar and urgent synthesiser-bass rhythm, remains one of the finest singles of the 1980s.

In a neat squaring of the circle, Green has just resurfaced with his first release in over a decade, 'Tinseltown To Boogie Down', and a new record deal. But although it's good to have him back, he'll probably never top this one.