Green Gartside, recording as Scritti Politti, started out as a sort of avant-pop Situationist philosopher, incorporating avant-garde political theory into his deconstructed synthpop. But by the time he recorded Cupid & Psyche 85, his ironic appropriations of romantic pop tropes were starting to sound less ironic and more straightforward. Here the glistening Stratocaster licks and compressed drums serve as candy coating on lyrics that occasionally make sly theological references (“The Word Girl”) and gently swipe at the rich (“Lover to Fall”), but mostly this is hey-baby-hey-baby music, and it’s among the best ever made. And there’s an outstanding cameo by Ranking Ann on the skanking “Flesh and Blood.”