"Farfisa Beat" is a song recorded and released by British new-wave band
Squeeze. It was released as a
single
Single may refer to:
Arts, entertainment, and media
* Single (music), a song release
Songs
* "Single" (Natasha Bedingfield song), 2004
* "Single" (New Kids on the Block and Ne-Yo song), 2008
* "Single" (William Wei song), 2016
* "Single", by ...
in
Denmark
)
, song = ( en, "King Christian stood by the lofty mast")
, song_type = National and royal anthem
, image_map = EU-Denmark.svg
, map_caption =
, subdivision_type = Sovereign state
, subdivision_name = Kingdom of Denmark
, establish ...
and
Germany
Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...
in 1980, and
Switzerland in 1981. The song appears on the band's third album, ''
Argybargy
''Argybargy'' is the third studio album by the English new wave band Squeeze. Written and recorded after the band's successful sophomore release, '' Cool for Cats'', the album's lyrics were written by Chris Difford while living with his wife in ...
''.
Background
Farfisa
Farfisa (Fabbriche Riunite di Fisarmoniche) is a manufacturer of electronics based in Osimo, Italy, founded in 1946. The company manufactured a series of compact electronic organs in the 1960s and 1970s, including the Compact, FAST, Professio ...
refers to the manufacturer of the electronic organ that gives this song its distinct sound. Musically, the song revolves around a guitar riff that
Glenn Tilbrook
Glenn Martin Tilbrook (born 31 August 1957) is the lead singer and guitarist of the English band Squeeze, a band formed in the mid-1970s who broke through in the new wave era at the decade's end. He generally wrote the music for Squeeze's son ...
composed. He said of the riff, "I was particularly pleased with that guitar riff, which is a minor point in its favor."
Chris Difford
Christopher Henry Difford (born 4 November 1954) is an English singer, musician, songwriter and record producer. He is a founding member and songwriter of the rock group Squeeze.
Musical career
Born in Greenwich, London, Difford has written l ...
compared the song's music to "a kind of
B-52s, American club sound."
The band's opinion of the song was not high. In an interview, Tilbrook conceded that the song was a filler track. Chris Difford concluded that "the song's crap," explaining, "It's an album filler at best and one of the few which I don't remember recording at all. It was probably just stuck on the album because it was up-tempo."
Reception
In his review of ''Argybargy''
Stephen Thomas Erlewine of
AllMusic
AllMusic (previously known as All Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the databa ...
wrote, that Squeeze "can kick out agreeable throwaways like 'Farfisa Beat' without missing a step" and cited the song as an example of the band having "not yet left their
rock & roll roots behind".
Writer Jim Drury called it "filler."
Track listing
# ''Farfisa Beat'' (2:56)
# ''Here Comes That Feeling'' (2:05)
External links
Squeeze discography at Squeezenet
References
Squeeze (band) songs
1980 singles
Songs written by Glenn Tilbrook
Songs written by Chris Difford
1980 songs
A&M Records singles
{{1980s-rock-song-stub