Кylie Minogue – «Жақсы таныс шайтан» туралы

1990 single by Kylie Minogue
the 1993 UK Eurovision Song Contest entry by Sonia

"Better the Devil You Know" is a song by Australian singer songwriter Kylie Minogue, taken from her third studio album Rhythm of Love (1990). The song was written and produced by Stock Aitken Waterman and was released as the album's lead single on 30 April 1990 by PWL and Mushroom Records. "Better the Devil You Know" is known as the song that re invented Minogue with more sex appeal, as her previous albums were presented with her "girl next door" persona. Her music onwards presented a more independent approach. The song's title is a reference to an idiom. Lyrically, the song was claimed by producer Pete Waterman to be about Minogue's relationship with her then boyfriend, INXS frontman and singer Michael Hutchence. However, that is disputed by the song's primary composer, Mike Stock, who insists he was unaware of Kylie's private life at the time. When it reaches the chorus, the song spans from A Fm A D, and repeats everyline. When it reaches the bridge, the songs chords span from A Fm A F in each line. He added: "The track transferred well onto the dance floor and heralded a long reign for Kylie as the new queen of disco a pop princess". Mike Soutar from Smash Hits felt that Minogue's voice is in "absolutely tip top shape there's no doubt she's a much improved singer these days." Jonathan Bernstein from Spin viewed it as a "knockout" pop single, that "mirrored her evolution from tomboy to dreamboat." Jason Shawahn from About. com said along with "What Do I Have To Do" and "Wouldn't Change A Thing"; "are nothing if not pop masterpieces." Hunter Felt from PopMatters said along with "Je Ne Sais Pas Pourquoi" and "Shocked" are pure pop moments. He then described it "as almost soulful rave ups". In 2014, Matt Dunn of WhatCulture ranked the song at number two in his "15 unforgettable Stock Aitken Waterman singles" list. In 2021, British magazine Classic Pop ranked it number seven in their list of "Top 40 Stock Aitken Waterman songs", adding, "For many the moment Kylie went from virtuous pop star to racy nubile, Better The Devil You Know arrived in a mist of twirling dance pop and palms to the sky goodness, giving her a touch of avant class." In 2024, the same magazine ranked the song at number five in its list of "Top 40 Kylie Minogue songs", and noted that the lyric has drawn attention from darker quarters when vampiric Aussie Nick Cave defined it as "one of pop music's most violent and distressing love lyrics". In 2020, Alexis Petridis of British daily newspaper The Guardian ranked the song at number four in his "Kylie's 30 greatest singles" list, adding that it proves that "Stock Aitken and Waterman could be masterful pop craftsmen" and described it "an effortlessly soaring melody, a perfect updating of disco's cocktail of jubilant music and lyrical heartbreak". In 2023, in the same newspaper, he listed the song at number four in his "Stock Aitken Waterman's 20 greatest songs – ranked! ", adding that it "was a luxurious disco homage The strings on the 12in version are particularly luscious, the lyrics slightly at odds with the utterly jubilant music". In 2023, Robert Moran of Australian daily tabloid newspaper The Sydney Morning Herald ranked the song as Minogue's fifth best song (out of 183), describing it "a classic", and added: "Kylie strains to rise above the wall of sound production (stuttering synths, piano fills, soaring strings and harmonies)".

In the UK, "Better the Devil You Know" became Minogue's fifth non consecutive number two single, being blocked by Adamski's "Killer". The song stayed at number two for two consecutive weeks, and spent a total of 10 weeks in the chart. It was certified silver by the British Phonographic Industry (BPI) having sold 340,000 copies. The song peaked at number four in its third week on the chart and spent a total of thirteen weeks in the Top 50. It was certified gold by the Australian Recording Industry Association (ARIA) with sales exceeding 35,000 copies. However, in New Zealand the song was not a great success, debuting at number thirty four, but falling out from number forty the next week, then re entered at number twenty seven, where it eventually peaked and charted for four weeks. In France, the song debuted at number thirty eight, and after weeks on the chart it peaked at number thirteen for a single week. The song topped the charts in Israel and reached number eleven in Spain.

British pop group Steps had recorded a cover version of "Better the Devil You Know" for their second studio album Steptacular; however, it was later included as the opening track on their third studio album Buzz. The song was released as a double A side single with "Say You'll Be Mine" in December 1999, the third single from Steptacular. A limited edition of the single was released as a digipack that included a doubled sided poster in the sleeve; one side was the group pictured in their dance outfits and the other side shows the group in their costumes and the different scenarios that are shown throughout the music video. Though it did not manage to match the success of the original version, it did chart in some markets, including Australia, the Netherlands, Switzerland, and Belgium. The song features Claire, Lisa and Faye on lead vocals.