In 1992, when Pet Shop Boys were asked by Derek Jarman to perform at an AIDS charity event at The Haçienda nightclub in Manchester, Chris Lowe of the duo selected "Go West" as the song they would perform (It was originally a song by the Village people)
Though singer Neil Tennant was unable to remember the lyrics during that performance, the two decided to record it as a single
In 1994 the Pet Shop Boys were invited to perform 'Go West' at the Brit Awards. They agreed and brought with them 3 separate choirs of miners. Some of those miners had marched with the gay and lesbian members of LGSM (Lesbians and Gays Support the Miners) in the 1980s (which is another whole story about #LGBT supporting Union workers) . It is one of the great, near-lost music moments
Other members of the colliery choirs said that they didn't know who the Pet Shop Boys were when they performed, but after they had relatives and friends (and remember these guys were from small-town Wales and England) come out to them.
Seeing them on that stage meant they trusted them. some of those old miners who were legit in tears about how being on that stage meant friends told them they were gay, it was world changing for them to have allies
(3/3)