"Bird in Flight" is a song by the

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ide ...

new wave band Toyah, fronted by

Toyah Willcox Toyah Ann Willcox (born 18 May 1958) is an English musician, actress, and TV presenter. In a career spanning more than 40 years, Willcox has had eight top 40 singles, released over 20 albums, written two books, appeared in over 40 stage plays an ...

, released as a single in

1980 Events January * January 4 – U.S. President Jimmy Carter proclaims a grain embargo against the USSR with the support of the European Commission. * January 6 – Global Positioning System time epoch begins at 00:00 UTC. * January 9 – ...

Safari Records Safari Records was a British independent record label based in London, England, and operating between 1977 and 1985. Safari Records was formed early in 1977 by Tony Edwards (former co-manager of Deep Purple), Andreas Budde (the son of German musi ...

Background

The song was written by

, Charlie Francis,

Joel Bogen Joel Bogen (born 3 September 1958) is an English rock and punk guitarist. He worked with Toyah Willcox from the late 1970s to 1983 as the guitar player in her eponymous band and was the co-writer on nearly all of the material they recorded. B ...

, Peter Bush and Steve Bray, and was produced by

Matt Dangerfield Matt may refer to: *Matt (name), people with the given name ''Matt'' or Matthew, meaning "gift from God", or the surname Matt *In British English, of a surface: having a non-glossy finish, see gloss (material appearance) *Matt, Switzerland, a mu ...

. Willcox explained that it is "a song of rebellion and getting personal freedom, and not being met with negativity for something you passionately believe", revealing that she wrote it in rebellion against her mother. In 2011, the singer reflected: "I find the lyric excruciatingly wrong. But that might be because I'm older and wiser and prefer what I write today. That said, the Toyah band play it beautifully and they have given it a light, optimistic feel that really lifts the whole set. It dances into the venue and tickles your ears. I just need to ignore the lyric... It's so bloody wrong". In the UK, "Bird in Flight" was released as a

double A-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 company ...

single with the song "Tribal Look", inspired by the

Maasai Maasai may refer to: * Maasai people *Maasai language * Maasai mythology * MAASAI (band) See also * Masai (disambiguation) * Massai Massai (also known as: Masai, Massey, Massi, Mah–sii, Massa, Wasse, Wassil or by the nickname "Big Foot" Mas ...

tribe. Toyah promoted the single with the eponymous UK tour from January to March 1980. ''

NME ''New Musical Express'' (''NME'') is a British music, film, gaming, and culture website and brand. Founded as a newspaper in 1952, with the publication being referred to as a 'rock inkie', the NME would become a magazine that ended up as a f ...

'' gave "Bird in Flight" a positive review, describing it as a

Patti Smith Patricia Lee Smith (born December 30, 1946) is an American singer, songwriter, poet, painter and author who became an influential component of the New York City punk rock movement with her 1975 debut album '' Horses''. Called the "punk poe ...

-influenced "good pop song" with a "desirable spacy atmosphere". Neither track was featured on an album at the time, though both were added to the 2002 reissue of ''

Sheep Farming in Barnet ''Sheep Farming in Barnet'' is the debut studio album by the English new wave band Toyah, fronted by Toyah Willcox, released in 1979 by Safari Records. Background The album was produced by Steve James and future band member Keith Hale. The al ...

'', and also on the 2005 compilation album ''The Safari Singles Collection Part 1: 1979–1981''.

Track listing

* 7" single :A. "Bird in Flight" (

, Charlie Francis,

, Peter Bush, Steve Bray) – 3:59 :B. "Tribal Look" (Willcox, Francis, Bogen, Bush, Bray) – 3:22

Personnel

– vocals *

– guitar * Charlie Francis – bass * Steve Bray – drums * Peter Bush – keyboards

Charts

References

External links

Lyrics of this song
at

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Official audio stream
on

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The official Toyah website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bird In Flight 1980 singles 1980 songs Toyah (band) songs Songs written by Toyah Willcox Songs written by Joel Bogen Safari Records singles