"Butterfly on a Wheel" is a song released by English

gothic rock Gothic rock (also called goth rock or simply goth) is a style of rock music that emerged from post-punk in the United Kingdom in the late 1970s. The first post-punk bands which shifted toward dark music with gothic overtones include Siouxsie a ...

band the Mission in January 1990. It was the first of three singles to be released from their third studio album, ''

Carved in Sand ''Carved in Sand'' is the third regular studio album by The Mission, released in 1990. It reached #7 in the UK Albums Chart, making it the second of two top ten albums and overall best-selling album in the band's career. Four singles were releas ...

'' (199). It peaked at 12 on the

UK Singles Chart The UK Singles Chart (currently titled Official Singles Chart, with the upper section more commonly known as the Official UK Top 40) is compiled by the Official Charts Company (OCC), on behalf of the British record industry, listing the top-s ...

and reached the top 50 in Ireland, the Netherlands, and New Zealand, as well as on the US ''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertise ...

Modern Rock Tracks Alternative Airplay (formerly known as Modern Rock Tracks (1988–2009) and Alternative Songs (2009–2020)) is a music chart in the United States that has appeared in ''Billboard'' magazine since September 10, 1988. It ranks the 40 most-played ...

chart, where it reached number 23.

Background

The song was recorded along with 17 others for the ''

'' sessions at Jacobs Studios in 1989. The overriding theme in the song was the break up of a romance and the lyrics telling the person that they would be healed in time. Many have stated that the song was written about

Julianne Regan Julie-Ann "Julianne" Regan (born 30 June 1962) is an English-Irish singer, songwriter, and musician. She achieved success in the late 1980s and early 1990s as the lead singer of the band All About Eve. AllMusic describes Regan as "certainly on ...

, the singer with

All About Eve ''All About Eve'' is a 1950 American Drama (film and television), drama film written and directed by Joseph L. Mankiewicz, and produced by Darryl F. Zanuck. It is based on the 1946 short story "The Wisdom of Eve" by Mary Orr, although Orr does ...

, who had recently broken up with The Mission's guitarist,

Simon Hinkler Simon Thomas Hinkler (born 13 November 1959) is an English guitarist, keyboard player, songwriter and producer from Sheffield, most notable for being the lead guitarist for the British rock group The Mission from 1986 to 1990. Early musical ...

. This was later confirmed by Hussey himself in the liner notes for their ''Anthology'' compilation album released in 2006 by Phonogram. The name was taken from a 1960s editorial by

William Rees-Mogg William Rees-Mogg, Baron Rees-Mogg (14 July 192829 December 2012) was a British newspaper journalist who was Editor of ''The Times'' from 1967 to 1981. In the late 1970s, he served as High Sheriff of Somerset, and in the 1980s was Chairman of th ...

who questioned the severity of the prison sentences applied to members of

The Rolling Stones The Rolling Stones are an English rock band formed in London in 1962. Active for six decades, they are one of the most popular and enduring bands of the rock era. In the early 1960s, the Rolling Stones pioneered the gritty, rhythmically d ...

for minor drug offences. Released on

New Year's Day New Year's Day is a festival observed in most of the world on 1 January, the first day of the year in the modern Gregorian calendar. 1 January is also New Year's Day on the Julian calendar, but this is not the same day as the Gregorian one. Wh ...

1990, the song peaked at No. 12 in the UK charts and stayed in the top 40 for four weeks. It was released on vinyl (7-inch, 10-inch, and 12-inch extended play) and on a compact disc single. Its

B-side The A-side and B-side are the two sides of phonograph records and cassettes; these terms have often been printed on the labels of two-sided music recordings. The A-side usually features a recording that its artist, producer, or record compan ...

is "The Grip of Disease", with extended versions also offering remixes of Kingdom Come (from the 1988 album "''

Children A child ( : children) is a human being between the stages of birth and puberty, or between the developmental period of infancy and puberty. The legal definition of ''child'' generally refers to a minor, otherwise known as a person younger ...

)''" and Butterfly on a Wheel.

Critical reception

The Orlando Times ''The Orlando Times'' is a weekly newspaper published in Orlando, Florida, and surrounding counties. The newspaper was founded by publisher Dr. Calvin Collins and several of his colleagues on July 5, 1976. According to the paper's website, the ...

'' described the song as a "poor imitation of

Simple Minds Simple Minds are a Scottish rock band formed in Glasgow in 1977. They have released a string of hit singles, becoming best known internationally for "Don't You (Forget About Me)" (1985), which topped the '' Billboard'' Hot 100 in the United St ...

, fraught with such spiritual observations". They also awarded the album it was culled from one star out of five. Conversely, the

Orange County Register ''The Orange County Register'' is a paid daily newspaper published in California. The ''Register'', published in Orange County, California, is owned by the private equity firm Alden Global Capital via its Digital Fiest/Media News subsidiaries. ...

stated that "both ''Butterfly on a Wheel'' and ''Sea of Love'' (the fourth track from Carved in Sand) show what The Mission UK can do if they cut down on the bombast". The track was also described as being a vehicle to "show off ayneHussey's offbeat romanticism". The

South Wales Echo The ''South Wales Echo'' is a daily tabloid newspaper published in Cardiff, Wales and distributed throughout the surrounding area. It has a circulation of 7,573. Background The newspaper was founded in 1884 and was based in Thomson House, C ...

said that "The Mish have really outdone themselves this time, dumping their goth mish mash for a truly wonderful song, swathed in iridescent melody."

Personnel

* Craig Adams – bass guitar * Mick Brown – drums *

– guitar, keyboards *

Wayne Hussey 250px, Hussey performing at the M'era Luna Festival in 2004. Jerry Wayne Hussey (born 26 May 1958) is an English musician who was born in Bristol, England. He is best known as the lead singer of The Mission, and the guitarist with The Sisters ...

– vocals, guitar

Charts

References

Sources

External links

Butterfly on a Wheel at Allmusic
{{Authority control 1990 songs 1990 singles Mercury Records singles Phonogram Records singles Songs written by Wayne Hussey