This World Over
"This World Over" | ||||
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![]() Cover art of 7-inch single | ||||
Single by XTC | ||||
from the album The Big Express | ||||
Released | 29 October 1984 (1984-10-29) | |||
Recorded | 1984 | |||
Label | Virgin | |||
Songwriter(s) | Andy Partridge | |||
Producer(s) | David Lord, XTC | |||
XTC singles chronology | ||||
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Music video | ||||
"This World Over" on YouTube | ||||
"This World Over" is a song by the English rock band XTC, written by Andy Partridge, and the second single from their 1984 album The Big Express. It reached number 99 on the UK Singles Chart during a one-week stay.
Background and lyrics
"This World Over" is a song protesting the use of nuclear weapons[1] as a reaction to recent speeches by Ronald Reagan, which instigated Partridge's fears of another Cold War.[2] According to Partridge, "My first child was on the way and [I] just thought that, if I survived, how terrible it would be to have to tell her what life used to be like, that there was once a place called London and it was a fantastic place but it's not there anymore."[2] It is one of two politically-charged songs on the album, the other being "Reign of Blows".[3]
Recording
All of the drum sounds are pre-recorded samples.[2] One of the guitar parts is a slew of sustained feedback notes played through a Marshall amplifier. The "high stratospheric squeaking noises in the last verse", Partridge said, are viola harmonics played by session musician Stuart Gordon, who "saws the bow over at a harmonic point, very whistly, and that was put into a [Roland] Chorus Echo. Glorious, reminiscent of birds and ... grand things."[4]
Reception
In the magazine Smash Hits, guest writer Morrissey penned a review of the song that stated "XTC have stepped back from music industry machinations and are making better records."[5]
Charts
Chart (1985) | Peak position |
---|---|
UK Singles (OCC)[6] | 99 |
References
- ^ Jennings, Dave (18 October 2014). "XTC: The Big Express – A Thirtieth Anniversary Celebration – album reappraisal". Louder Than War. Retrieved 24 October 2018.
- ^ a b c Farmer 1998, p. 169.
- ^ Farmer 1998, pp. 169, 171.
- ^ Gregory, Dave; Moulding, Colin; Partridge, Andy (November 1984). "Recording The Big Express". One Two Testing (16).
- ^ Morrissey (October 1984). "Singles Reviewed By". Smash Hits. p. 19.
- ^ "Official Singles Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 1 March 2021.
Works cited
- Farmer, Neville (1998). XTC: Song Stories: The Exclusive Authorized Story Behind the Music. London: Helter Skelter Publishing. ISBN 190092403X.
External links
- "This World Over" on Chalkhills
- v
- t
- e
- Andy Partridge
- Colin Moulding
- Terry Chambers
- Barry Andrews
- Dave Gregory
- White Music
- Go 2
- Drums and Wires
- Black Sea
- English Settlement
- Mummer
- The Big Express
- 25 O'Clock
- Skylarking
- Psonic Psunspot
- Oranges & Lemons
- Nonsuch
- Apple Venus Volume 1
- Wasp Star (Apple Venus Volume 2)
- Waxworks: Some Singles 1977–1982
- Beeswax: Some B-Sides 1977–1982
- The Compact XTC
- Chips from the Chocolate Fireball
- Explode Together: The Dub Experiments 78-80
- Rag and Bone Buffet: Rare Cuts and Leftovers
- Drums and Wireless: BBC Radio Sessions 77–89
- Fossil Fuel: The XTC Singles 1977–92
- Upsy Daisy Assortment
- Transistor Blast: The Best of the BBC Sessions
- Coat of Many Cupboards
- Apple Box
- Psurroundabout Ride
- "Statue of Liberty"
- "This Is Pop?"
- "Life Begins at the Hop"
- "Making Plans for Nigel"
- "Generals and Majors"
- "Towers of London"
- "Sgt. Rock (Is Going to Help Me)"
- "Respectable Street"
- "Senses Working Overtime"
- "Ball and Chain"
- "Wonderland"
- "Love on a Farmboy's Wages"
- "Thanks for Christmas"
- "All You Pretty Girls"
- "This World Over"
- "Wake Up"
- "Grass"
- "The Meeting Place"
- "Dear God"
- "Mayor of Simpleton"
- "King for a Day"
- "The Disappointed"
- "The Ballad of Peter Pumpkinhead"
- "Easter Theatre"
- A Testimonial Dinner: The Songs of XTC
- Fuzzy Warbles
- Great Aspirations
- Homespun
- Homegrown
- Take Away / The Lure of Salvage
- Waspstrumental
- XTC: This Is Pop
- Planet England