"Comedown" is a song by British
rock
Rock most often refers to:
* Rock (geology), a naturally occurring solid aggregate of minerals or mineraloids
* Rock music, a genre of popular music
Rock or Rocks may also refer to:
Places United Kingdom
* Rock, Caerphilly, a location in Wales ...
band
Bush
Bush commonly refers to:
* Shrub, a small or medium woody plant
Bush, Bushes, or the bush may also refer to:
People
* Bush (surname), including any of several people with that name
**Bush family, a prominent American family that includes:
*** ...
, released on 26 September 1995 as the third single from their debut album, ''
Sixteen Stone
''Sixteen Stone'' is the debut studio album by English rock band Bush, released on 6 December 1994 by Trauma and Interscope Records. It became the band's most popular album, peaking at number four on the US ''Billboard'' 200 and boasting numero ...
''.
Composition
Gavin Rossdale
Gavin McGregor Rossdale (born 30 October 1965) is an English guitarist and actor, best known as the lead singer and rhythm guitarist of the rock band Bush. He helped form Bush in 1992; on the band's separation in 2002, he became the lead singer ...
wrote the song about an ex-girlfriend, stating, "It was written in the context of half regret, half celebration and just being objective about the situation of coming down from that high and dealing with those intense emotions." In 2017 he added:
Drummer Robin Goodridge told music publication ''
Modern Drummer
''Modern Drummer'' is a monthly publication targeting the interests of drummers and percussionists. The magazine features interviews, equipment reviews, and columns offering advice on technique, as well as information for the general public. ''Mo ...
'' that the bass line and drum grooves in "Comedown" were borrowed from a song by English band
Massive Attack
Massive Attack are an English trip hop collective formed in 1988 in Bristol by Robert "3D" Del Naja, Adrian "Tricky" Thaws, Andrew "Mushroom" Vowles and Grant "Daddy G" Marshall.
The debut Massive Attack album ''Blue Lines'' was release ...
.
Of the 12 songs featured on ''Sixteen Stone'', "Comedown" was the first to be written, and remains unchanged lyrically from its original form.
Music video
The music video was directed by
Jake Scott
Jacob E. Scott III (July 20, 1945 – November 19, 2020) was an American professional football player who was a free safety and punt returner from 1970 to 1978 for the Miami Dolphins and Washington Redskins of the National Football League (NF ...
in Los Angeles. Scott used a special "fish eye" lens to film some of the scenes, to give a distorted view as if looking through a peep hole.
Commercial performance
"Comedown" remains one of the band's most commercially successful songs, reaching number one on the ''Billboard''
Alternative Songs
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 and number two on the ''Billboard''
Mainstream Rock Tracks
Mainstream Rock is a music chart in ''Billboard'' magazine that ranks the most-played songs on mainstream rock radio stations in the United States, a category that combines the formats of active rock and heritage rock. The chart was launched in Ma ...
chart in late 1995. The song also gave Bush their first American top 40 hit, reaching number 30 on the
''Billboard'' Hot 100 on 4 November 1995.
Track listing
* AUS CD single
6544-95728-2 (cardsleeve version)
*# "Comedown"
*# "Comedown
coustic
* AUS CD single
IND95728 (jewel case version)
*# "Comedown"
*# "Testosterone
P version
P, or p, is the sixteenth letter of the Latin alphabet, used in the modern English alphabet, the alphabets of other western European languages and others worldwide. Its name in English is ''pee'' (pronounced ), plural ''pees''.
History
The ...
*# "
Revolution Blues ive
Appearances in the media
*The song appeared in the video game ''
Guitar Hero 5
''Guitar Hero 5'' (initially referred to as ''Guitar Hero V'') is a 2009 Music video game, music rhythm game, rhythm video game developed by Neversoft and published by Activision. It is the fifth main installment in the Guitar Hero, ''Guitar He ...
'' and TV show ''
Animal Kingdom'' in addition to ''
Rock Band 3
''Rock Band 3'' is a 2010 music video game developed by Harmonix. The game was initially published and distributed by MTV Games and Electronic Arts, respectively, in late October 2010. Mad Catz took over both roles and re-released the title on N ...
'' as downloadable content.
*Along with "
Machinehead", "Comedown" appears in the 1996 film ''
Fear
Fear is an intensely unpleasant emotion in response to perceiving or recognizing a danger or threat. Fear causes physiological changes that may produce behavioral reactions such as mounting an aggressive response or fleeing the threat. Fear ...
''. It can be heard over Nicole's second date with David, after he picks her up from school to play billiards.
*Along with "
Glycerine
Glycerol (), also called glycerine in British English and glycerin in American English, is a simple triol compound. It is a colorless, odorless, viscous liquid that is sweet-tasting and non-toxic. The glycerol backbone is found in lipids known ...
", the band performed the song on ''
Saturday Night Live
''Saturday Night Live'' (often abbreviated to ''SNL'') is an American late-night live television sketch comedy and variety show created by Lorne Michaels and developed by Dick Ebersol that airs on NBC and Peacock. Michaels currently serves a ...
'' in 1995.
*Pro wrestler
Chris Kanyon
Christopher Morgan Klucsarits (January 4, 1970 – April 2, 2010) was an American professional wrestler. He was best known for his appearances with World Championship Wrestling (WCW) and the World Wrestling Federation (WWF) from 1994 to 200 ...
used an instrumental edit of the song in the last days of
World Championship Wrestling
World Championship Wrestling, Inc. (WCW) was an American professional wrestling promotion founded by Ted Turner in 1988, after Turner Broadcasting System, through a subsidiary named Universal Wrestling Corporation, purchased the assets of Nation ...
in 2001.
Chart positions
Cover versions
* In 2010,
Mono Inc
Mono Inc. is a German gothic rock band from Hamburg, founded in 2000.
MONO is a derivative of Monomania (German "Monomanie"), a term from the 19th century psychiatric disease theory, a form of partial insanity conceived as single pathological ...
released an EP with Comedown on it. Comedown was also featured on their Symphonies Of Pain compilation album in 2017.
* In 2012 Robert Cole Band released a cover on the album ''Steel and Glass''.
* In 2014
Mayday Parade
Mayday Parade is an American Rock music, rock band from Tallahassee, Florida. Their debut EP ''Tales Told by Dead Friends'' was released in 2006, and sold over 50,000 copies without any label support. In July 2007, Mayday Parade released their de ...
released a cover for the compilation ''
Punk Goes 90's 2
''Punk Goes 90s Vol. 2'' is the fifteenth compilation album in the '' Punk Goes...'' series and the second installment in the ''Punk Goes '90s'' series, the first being released in 2006. Each artist that appeared on the album was approached by Fe ...
''. It was released as a single.
References
External links
*
{{authority control
1994 songs
1995 singles
Bush (British band) songs
Songs written by Gavin Rossdale
Song recordings produced by Clive Langer
Song recordings produced by Alan Winstanley
Music videos directed by Jake Scott (director)
Interscope Records singles
Trauma Records singles
Atlantic Records singles
Grunge songs