"Join Our Club" is a song by English musical group Saint Etienne, released by Heavenly Records in May 1992 as a double-A side with "People Get Real". Saint Etienne wrote the song after

Heavenly Records Heavenly Recordings is a London-based independent record label founded by Jeff Barrett in 1990. Heavenly released the first albums from Saint Etienne, Beth Orton and Doves, and early singles by Manic Street Preachers. Current Heavenly artists ...

refused to release "People Get Real" as a single. The band deliberately tried to write the most commercial song they could, and it ultimately reached number 21 in the

UK Top 40 The UK Singles Chart (currently titled Official Singles Chart, with the upper section more commonly known as the Official UK Top 40) is compiled by the Official Charts Company (OCC), on behalf of the British record industry, listing the top-s ...

. The lyric alludes to a number of other songs, some recent hits at the time it was written (e.g. "

Smells Like Teen Spirit "Smells Like Teen Spirit" is a song by the American rock band Nirvana. It is the opening track and lead single from the band's second album, ''Nevermind'' (1991), released on DGC Records. The unexpected success of the song propelled ''Neve ...

", “

Justified and Ancient "Justified & Ancient" is a song by British band The KLF. It was featured on their 1991 album, '' The White Room'', but its origins date back to the duo's debut album, ''1987 (What the Fuck Is Going On?)''. The song is best known for its remake ...

,” “

We Got a Love Thang "We Got a Love Thang" is a song by American singer-songwriter CeCe Peniston, originally released in January 1992 as the second single from her debut album, ''Finally'' (1992). The song was co-written by Chantay Savage, and became the second numb ...

”), others older favourites of the group (including

Stevie Wonder Stevland Hardaway Morris ( Judkins; May 13, 1950), known professionally as Stevie Wonder, is an American singer-songwriter, who is credited as a pioneer and influence by musicians across a range of genres that include rhythm and blues, Pop musi ...

's "

Don't You Worry 'bout a Thing "Don't You Worry 'bout a Thing" is a song by American singer-songwriter Stevie Wonder, released as the third single from his sixteenth studio album, ''Innervisions'' (1973). It reached number 16 on the US ''Billboard'' Pop Singles chart, numb ...

" - coincidentally, a hit

cover version In popular music, a cover version, cover song, remake, revival, or simply cover, is a new performance or recording by a musician other than the original performer or composer of the song. Originally, it referred to a version of a song release ...

for

Incognito Incognito is an English adjective meaning "in disguise", "having taken steps to conceal one's identity". Incognito may also refer to: Film and television * ''Incognito'' (1937 film), a Danish film * ''Incognito'' (1997 film), an American crime ...

the following month - and

The Lovin' Spoonful The Lovin' Spoonful is an American rock band popular during the mid- to late-1960s. Founded in New York City in 1965 by lead singer/songwriter John Sebastian and guitarist Zal Yanovsky, the band is widely known for a number of hits, including ...

's " Do You Believe in Magic", which like "Join Our Club" itself is a celebration of the pleasure of listening to music, and whose title is used as a recurring hook). In the UK, it was a between-album single, released between ''

Foxbase Alpha ''Foxbase Alpha'' is the debut studio album by English band Saint Etienne, released on 16 September 1991 by Heavenly Recordings. The album was recorded in a style which drew on the club culture and house music of the time, but also incorpora ...

'' and ''

So Tough ''So Tough'' is the second studio album by British band Saint Etienne, released in 1993. It is their highest-charting album to date, reaching No. 7 on the UK Album Chart. ''So Tough'' is the first Saint Etienne album to feature Sarah Crackn ...

''. "Join Our Club" appeared on the US version of ''So Tough'' (the announcer’s intro mention the “Chicken Soup Mix” with a chuckle), while "People Get Real" appeared on the US release of ''Foxbase Alpha''. Both later were included on '' You Need a Mess of Help to Stand Alone'', a b-side collection in the UK. In 2001, "Join Our Club" was remixed for its inclusion on '' Smash The System: Singles and More'' as the original sounded too 'muddy'. This version also appears on the 2005 version of the same album and '' London Conversations''.

Critical reception

Tim Sendra from

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 databas ...

described the original mix of "Join Our Club" as "a soaring, joyous

disco Disco is a genre of dance music and a subculture that emerged in the 1970s from the United States' urban nightlife scene. Its sound is typified by four-on-the-floor beats, syncopated basslines, string sections, brass and horns, electric pia ...

track that is musically and lyrically wide open." He also said that the Chemically Friendly Zoom Mix "tethers the exuberance to a rock-hard beat and throws in some sped-up heavy metal guitar riffs, salacious talk-overs from

Sarah Cracknell Sarah Cracknell (born 12 April 1967) is an English singer-songwriter and lead singer of the electronic music band Saint Etienne. Career Cracknell's career started with the Windsor-based indie band The Worried Parachutes in 1982. Following the d ...

, and some chopped-up diva vocals." Jim Arundel from ''

Melody Maker ''Melody Maker'' was a British weekly music magazine, one of the world's earliest music weeklies; according to its publisher, IPC Media, the earliest. It was founded in 1926, largely as a magazine for dance band musicians, by Leicester-born ...

'' felt the song "is a damn sight swingier than their previous compositions." Mark Frith from ''

Smash Hits ''Smash Hits'' was a British music magazine aimed at young adults, originally published by EMAP. It ran from 1978 to 2006, and, after initially appearing monthly, was issued fortnightly during most of that time. The name survived as a brand fo ...

'' gave it five out of five and named it Best New Single, commenting, "Hang on a sec. Check outside the window. Is it summer yet? If it is, grab your swimming cossie, crack open the

Lucozade Lucozade is a British brand of soft drink manufactured and marketed by the Japanese company Suntory. Created as "Glucozade" in the UK in 1927 by a Newcastle pharmacist, William Walker Hunter (trading as W. Owen & Son), it was acquired by the B ...

, organise a beach party, get some peanuts in, crack open another Lucozade, jig about a bit and listen to this 14 times. Cool, lush and a thing of great beauty. Readers, love these people."

Track listing

Charts

References

{{authority control Saint Etienne (band) songs 1992 singles Songs written by Bob Stanley (musician) Songs written by Pete Wiggs 1991 songs Heavenly Recordings singles