"Elephant Stone" is a song by the English

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

the Stone Roses The Stone Roses were an English Rock music, rock band formed in Manchester in 1983. One of the pioneering groups of the Madchester movement in the late 1980s and early 1990s, the band's classic and most prominent lineup consisted of vocalist I ...

. It was the third single released by the group and their first release on Silvertone Records. Originally released in October 1988, it showcases the group's growing confidence and incorporation of dance rhythms. The song was written by singer

Ian Brown Ian George Brown (born 20 February 1963) is an English singer and multi-instrumentalist. He was the lead singer of the alternative rock band The Stone Roses from their formation in 1983. Following the split in 1996, he began a solo career, re ...

and guitarist

John Squire Jonathan Thomas "John" Squire (born 24 November 1962)Larkin, Colin (ed.) (1998) ''The Virgin Encyclopedia of Indie & New Wave'', Virgin Books, is an English musician, songwriter and painter. He was the guitarist for The Stone Roses, a rock ba ...

. It was inserted as an additional track into the tracklisting of U.S. pressings of the band's debut album in 1989.

Background

The single was produced by New Order bassist

Peter Hook Peter Hook (born Woodhead; 13 February 1956) is an English musician, best known as the bassist and co-founder of the rock bands Joy Division and New Order. Hook often used the bass as a lead instrument, playing melodies on the high strings wi ...

in his own studio. It was initially scheduled for release on

Rough Trade Records Rough Trade Records is an independent record label based in London, England. It was formed in 1976 by Geoff Travis who had opened a record store off Ladbroke Grove. Having successfully promoted and sold records by punk rock and early post-pun ...

and remixed by John Leckie following a deal with Silvertone Records. "Elephant Stone" was released in two alternate versions; the original ran for nearly five minutes and featured an extended drum intro and more prominent bass playing, while the later, shorter cut ran for three minutes and included layers of wah-wah guitar. On its original release it failed to make the chart, but reached #8 on re-release in March 1990. The B-side "Full Fathom Five" (named after a

Jackson Pollock Paul Jackson Pollock (; January 28, 1912August 11, 1956) was an American painter and a major figure in the abstract expressionist movement. He was widely noticed for his " drip technique" of pouring or splashing liquid household paint onto a hor ...

painting) is essentially an alternate single mix of "Elephant Stone" played in reverse. John Squire on the hidden meaning of "Elephant Stone", "What is about? Love and Death... War and Peace... Morecambe and Wise..." Squire also said about "Elephant Stone", "It's about a girl... who I don't see any more..." The song is said to reference

William George Keith Elphinstone Major-General William George Keith Elphinstone CB (26 January 1782 – 23 April 1842) was an officer of the British Army during the 19th century. Biography Early life and military career He was born in Scotland in 1782, the son of William Fu ...

and his disastrous retreat from Afghanistan (during which he died) in 1842; the allusion presumably being made that the suitors heartbreak at being dropped by his girlfriend equates to Elphinstone's defeat. Although released as a non-album single, the track did appear on the US release of the band's debut album ''

The Stone Roses The Stone Roses were an English Rock music, rock band formed in Manchester in 1983. One of the pioneering groups of the Madchester movement in the late 1980s and early 1990s, the band's classic and most prominent lineup consisted of vocalist I ...

'' and also on some post-1989 reissued UK editions of the album. It has also appeared on the compilation albums '' Turns into Stone'', '' The Complete Stone Roses'' and ''

The Very Best of The Stone Roses ''The Very Best of The Stone Roses'' is a compilation album released by Silvertone Records in 2002. It features most of their singles plus album tracks including "Breaking into Heaven" and "This is the One", all of which were remastered for th ...

''.

Track listing

1988 release

7" vinyl (Silvertone ORE 1) :''catalogue number in black'' # "Elephant Stone" – 3:00 # "The Hardest Thing in the World" – 2:39 12" vinyl (Silvertone ORE T 1) :''catalogue number in black'' # "Elephant Stone" – 4:51 # "Elephant Stone" (7" version) – 3:00 # "Full Fathom Five" ( John Leckie mix) – 2:56 # "The Hardest Thing in the World" – 2:39

1990 reissue

7" vinyl (Silvertone ORE 1) :''catalogue number in red'' # "Elephant Stone" – 3:00 # "The Hardest Thing in the World" – 2:39 12" vinyl (Silvertone ORE T 1) :''catalogue number in red'' # "Elephant Stone" – 4:51 # "Elephant Stone" (7" version) – 3:00 # "Full Fathom Five" ( John Leckie mix) – 2:56 # "The Hardest Thing in the World" – 2:39 Cassette (Silvertone ORE C 1), CD (Silvertone ORE CD 1) # "Elephant Stone" – 4:51 # "Full Fathom Five" (longer version) – 3:20 # "The Hardest Thing in the World" – 2:39 # "Elephant Stone" (7" version) – 3:00

Charts

References

External links

The Definitive Stone Roses Discography entry
{{authority control 1988 singles The Stone Roses songs Songs written by John Squire 1988 songs Song recordings produced by John Leckie Songs written by Ian Brown UK Independent Singles Chart number-one singles