"George" is a song by New Zealand
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
Headless Chickens
The Headless Chickens was a New Zealand band. Going against the grain of the Dunedin sound that dominated the Flying Nun Records roster at the time, the Headless Chickens made extensive use of electronic instruments in their music.
History
Th ...
, released as the lead single from their third studio album, ''
Greedy'', in 1994. Charting 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 ...
with the
Eskimos in Egypt mix of their 1991 song "
Cruise Control
Cruise control (also known as speed control, cruise command, autocruise, or tempomat) is a system that automatically controls the speed of a motor vehicle. The system is a servomechanism that takes over the throttle of the car to maintain a ste ...
", the single reached number one in the band's native New Zealand for four weeks in 1994 and 1995 and received a gold certification from the
Recording Industry Association of New Zealand
Recorded Music NZ (formerly the Recording Industry Association of New Zealand (RIANZ)) is a non-profit trade association of record producers, distributors and recording artists who sell recorded music in New Zealand. Membership of Recorded Mus ...
(RIANZ). "George" was nominated for Single of the Year at the 1995
New Zealand Music Awards
The Aotearoa Music Awards (previously called the New Zealand Music Awards), conferred annually by Recorded Music NZ, honour outstanding artistic and technical achievements in the recording industry. The awards are among the most significant that ...
, losing to
Purest Form
Purest Form were a New Zealand vocal harmony group. They are best known for their television commercial for the Rainbow's End amusement park and for their 1994 cover of Split Enz's song "Message to My Girl".
Purest Form were the first all- Polyn ...
's "
Message to My Girl
"Message to My Girl" is a song by New Zealand art rock group Split Enz. It was released in January 1984 as the second single from their eighth studio album '' Conflicting Emotions''.
In 2001 the song was voted by members of APRA as the 36th be ...
".
In 1997, the song was released in Australia, where it peaked at number 67 on the
ARIA Singles Chart
The ARIA Charts are the main Australian music sales charts, issued weekly by the Australian Recording Industry Association. The charts are a record of the highest selling songs and albums in various genres in Australia. ARIA became the offici ...
.
Music video
The music video for "George" was directed by Stephen McGlashan and Marcus Ringrose.
It features the band performing the song in black-and-white while various coloured, ominous clips are show, including one of a tattooed man crawling across concrete.
NZ On Screen
NZ On Screen is a state-funded online promotional showcase of New Zealand television and film. Funded by NZ On Air, it provides free worldwide access to NZ-produced television, film and music videos. Content is streamed and the webpages provide ...
called the video "strong", noting how the tone matches the song's "menacing" lyrics.
The song's video, along with the clip for the
Eskimos in Egypt mix of "
Cruise Control
Cruise control (also known as speed control, cruise command, autocruise, or tempomat) is a system that automatically controls the speed of a motor vehicle. The system is a servomechanism that takes over the throttle of the car to maintain a ste ...
", was nominated for Best Video at 1995
New Zealand Music Awards
The Aotearoa Music Awards (previously called the New Zealand Music Awards), conferred annually by Recorded Music NZ, honour outstanding artistic and technical achievements in the recording industry. The awards are among the most significant that ...
but lost to the video for
Supergroove
Supergroove is a New Zealand funk rock music group. Their debut album ''Traction (album), Traction'' was released in 1994. The group disbanded in 1997 but reformed in 2007.
History
The band was founded on New Year's Eve 1989/1990, having pre ...
's "
Can't Get Enough".
Track listing
CD and cassette single
# "George"
# "
Cruise Control
Cruise control (also known as speed control, cruise command, autocruise, or tempomat) is a system that automatically controls the speed of a motor vehicle. The system is a servomechanism that takes over the throttle of the car to maintain a ste ...
" (Eskimos in Egypt mix)
# "Bestiary"
# "Milton Babbit's Rarotongan Holiday"
Credits and personnel
Credits are taken from the CD single and the ''
Greedy'' liner notes.
Studios
* Recorded in September 1994 at
York St. Studios (
Parnell, Auckland, New Zealand)
* Mastered at York Street Mastering (Auckland, New Zealand)
Headless Chickens
* Headless Chickens – writing, production
**
Fiona McDonald
Fiona Maude McDonald (born 1965) is a New Zealand pop singer and television personality.
Singer
McDonald's first involvement with music came through singing jingles for Auckland student radio station bFM. From that work she was asked to joi ...
– vocals, cover photo
**
Chris Matthews
Christopher John Matthews (born December 17, 1945) is an American political commentator, retired talk show host, and author. Matthews hosted his weeknight hour-long talk show, ''Hardball with Chris Matthews'', on America's Talking and later on M ...
– guitars, samples, loops, keyboards
** Grant Fell – bass guitar
** Bevan Sweeney – drums
Other personnel
*
Malcolm Welsford
Malcolm Welsford is a New Zealand Record Producer and is best known for his work with Shihad, The Feelers and Supergroove.
Early career
Welsford's professional recording career began in 1984 at a small largely unknown Studio called Frontier Stud ...
– production, engineering
* Nick Treacy – assistant engineering
* Gavin Botica – mastering
* Ward Four – artwork design
Charts
Certifications
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:George (Song)
1994 singles
1994 songs
Black-and-white music videos
Flying Nun Records singles
Headless Chickens songs
Number-one singles in New Zealand