"Mercy Street" is a song written by English musician

Peter Gabriel Peter Brian Gabriel (born 13 February 1950) is an English musician, singer, songwriter, record producer, and activist. He rose to fame as the original lead singer of the progressive rock band Genesis. After leaving Genesis in 1975, he launched ...

from his 1986 album '' So''.

Background and recording

The song was inspired by the personal and

confessional A confessional is a box, cabinet, booth, or stall in which the priest in some Christian churches sits to hear the confessions of penitents. It is the usual venue for the sacrament in the Roman Catholic Church and the Lutheran Churches, but sim ...

works of the American poet

Anne Sexton Anne Sexton (born Anne Gray Harvey; November 9, 1928 – October 4, 1974) was an American poet known for her highly personal, confessional verse. She won the Pulitzer Prize for poetry in 1967 for her book '' Live or Die''. Her poetry details ...

, who wrote a play titled ''Mercy Street'' and a poem titled "45 Mercy Street". It features two harmonious Gabriel vocals; one a shadow vocal an octave below the main vocal. Intended to give a sensual, haunting effect, he could only capture this effect upon waking up. The song is based around the

Forró The term forró (*) refers to a musical genre, a rhythm, a dance and the event itself where forró music is played and danced. Forró is an important part of the culture of the Northeastern Region of Brazil. It encompasses various dance type ...

drum rhythm, which Gabriel recorded in Brazil. Originally the rhythm was used in an early incarnation of the song, titled "Don’t Break This Rhythm" (later released as a B-side to ''

Sledgehammer A sledgehammer is a tool with a large, flat, often metal head, attached to a long handle. The long handle combined with a heavy head allows the sledgehammer to gather momentum during a swing and apply a large force compared to hammers designed t ...

''), but he became dissatisfied with it. He then changed the song to include an English

folk Folk or Folks may refer to: Sociology *Nation *People * Folklore ** Folk art ** Folk dance ** Folk hero ** Folk music *** Folk metal *** Folk punk *** Folk rock ** Folk religion * Folk taxonomy Arts, entertainment, and media * Folk Plus or Fol ...

melody and strapped on lyrics based on Anne Sexton’s work. Piano playing by

Richard Tee Richard Edward Tee (born Richard Edward Ten Ryk; November 24, 1943 – July 21, 1993) was an American pianist, studio musician, singer and arranger, who had several hundred studio credits and played on such notable hits as "In Your Eyes", "Slip ...

was added to the song, but Gabriel felt it made the song too complex arrangement-wise, so it was removed from the final mix (although his contributions were credited). A video was created for "Mercy Street", though the song was not released as a single.

Reception

NME ''New Musical Express'' (''NME'') is a British music, film, gaming, and culture website and brand. Founded as a newspaper in 1952, with the publication being referred to as a 'rock inkie', the NME would become a magazine that ended up as a f ...

'' listed the song as one of the "10 Most Depressing Songs Ever", describing it as a "beautifully produced number" featuring Gabriel's "usual sensitivity". They concluded "it isn't until you're a few listens in that you understand how devastating the whole thing is."

Personnel

* Djalma Correa –

surdo The surdo is a large bass drum used in many kinds of Brazilian music, such as Axé/Samba-reggae and samba, where it plays the lower parts from a percussion section. It is also notable for its association with the cucumbi genre of the Ancient Near ...

conga The conga, also known as tumbadora, is a tall, narrow, single-headed drum from Cuba. Congas are staved like barrels and classified into three types: quinto (lead drum, highest), tres dos or tres golpes (middle), and tumba or salidor (lowest). ...

triangle A triangle is a polygon with three Edge (geometry), edges and three Vertex (geometry), vertices. It is one of the basic shapes in geometry. A triangle with vertices ''A'', ''B'', and ''C'' is denoted \triangle ABC. In Euclidean geometry, an ...

Larry Klein Larry Klein (born March 17, 1956) is an American musician, songwriter, and record producer. He is based in Los Angeles. He began his career as a bassist, playing with jazz artists Willie Bobo, Freddie Hubbard, Carmen McRae, Joe Henderson, Bobby ...

– bass guitar *

– piano *

Mark Rivera Mark Rivera (born May 24, 1953) is an American saxophonist, multi-instrumentalist, singer, musical director and corporate entertainment provider who is mostly known for his work with Billy Joel. In addition to playing soprano, alto, tenor and b ...

– processed saxophone *

– vocals, CMI,

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, piano, CS-80

Release details and cover versions

As well as appearing on side two of ''So'', "Mercy Street" was released (remixed by

William Orbit William Mark Wainwright (born 15 December 1956),"William Orbit." ''Contemporary Musicians''. Vol. 30. Farmington Hills, MI: Gale, 2000. Retrieved via ''Biography in Context'' database, 7 May 2017. Available onlinvia ''Encyclopedia.com'' known ...

) on Gabriel's 1992 CD-single "

Blood of Eden "Blood of Eden" is the third single from English rock musician Peter Gabriel's 1992 album '' Us'', featuring backing vocals by Sinéad O'Connor. It narrowly failed to enter the UK top 40, peaking at number 43. The single has two B-side tracks: ...

". It was also reinterpreted by Gabriel on his 2011 orchestral album '' New Blood''. The song was covered by many artists including: Grammy award winning Jamaican reggae band

Black Uhuru Black Uhuru is a Jamaican reggae group formed in 1972, initially as Uhuru ( Swahili for 'freedom'). The group has undergone several line-up changes over the years, with Derrick "Duckie" Simpson as the mainstay. They had their most successful per ...

on their 1993 release ''

Mystical Truth ''Mystical Truth'' is a studio album by the Jamaican reggae band Black Uhuru. It was released in 1993 through Mesa Recordings. The album peaked at number 6 on the US '' Billboard'' World Albums chart and was nominated for Grammy Award for Best Re ...

''.

Herbie Hancock Herbert Jeffrey Hancock (born April 12, 1940) is an American jazz pianist, keyboardist, bandleader, and composer. Hancock started his career with trumpeter Donald Byrd's group. He shortly thereafter joined the Miles Davis Quintet, where he help ...

on his 1996 album '' The New Standard''.

Miriam Stockley Miriam Arlene Stockley (born 15 April 1962) is a British singer. She was born in Johannesburg, South Africa, and her work is influenced by the African music of her home country. Her distinctive ''vocal warm up#Vocalise, vocalise'' style gained in ...

on her 1999 album ''Miriam''. Christy Baron on her 2000 Chesky release, ''Steppin' ''.

Solveig Slettahjell Solveig Slettahjell (born 2 April 1971 in Bærum, Norway) is a Norwegian jazz singer, known for her soulful, seductive voice. Career Slettahjell had her record debut with the album ''Slow Motion Orchestra'' (2003), contains jazz standards lik ...

on her 2005 album (with

Knut Reiersrud Knut Reiersrud (born 12 February 1961) is a Norwegian blues guitarist. His work also incorporates elements of Norwegian traditional music and African music. Reiersrud has recorded and played with David Lindley, the Blind Boys Of Alabama, Rickie ...

and In the Country), ''Trail of Souls''.

Richard Shindell Richard Shindell (born August 3, 1960) is an American folk singer, songwriter, producer, and musician. Shindell grew up in Port Washington, New York, and now lives in Buenos Aires, Argentina, with his wife, Lila Caimari, a university professo ...

on his 2007 album of covers ''

South of Delia ''South of Delia'' is the seventh solo album by American folk singer-songwriter Richard Shindell. ''South of Delia'' is a cover album. Although he himself is sometimes described as a "songwriter's songwriter," covers are not new to Shindell. ...

''.

Fever Ray Karin Elisabeth Dreijer (born 7 April 1975) is a Swedish singer-songwriter and record producer. Dreijer was one half of the electronic music duo the Knife, formed with their brother Olof Dreijer. Dreijer released their debut solo album under ...

released this song as a single August 2010.

Elbow The elbow is the region between the arm and the forearm that surrounds the elbow joint. The elbow includes prominent landmarks such as the olecranon, the cubital fossa (also called the chelidon, or the elbow pit), and the lateral and the media ...

have also released a version of the song on the album ''

And I'll Scratch Yours ''And I'll Scratch Yours'' (originally announced as ''I'll Scratch Yours'') is a compilation album developed by the English rock musician Peter Gabriel. Initially slated for release in 2010, the album was released on 24 September 2013. The origi ...

''. The studio album features Peter Gabriel songs from artists he covered on the companion album ''

Scratch My Back ''Scratch My Back'' is the eighth studio album (and fifteenth album overall) by English musician Peter Gabriel, his first in eight years. It was released in February 2010. The album, recorded at Air Lyndhurst and Real World Studios during 2009, ...

''.

References

External links

Anne Sexton's poems
at

Poetry Foundation The Poetry Foundation is an American literary society that seeks to promote poetry and lyricism in the wider culture. It was formed from ''Poetry'' magazine, which it continues to publish, with a 2003 gift of $200 million from philanthropist Rut ...

{{authority control Peter Gabriel songs Songs written by Peter Gabriel Song recordings produced by Daniel Lanois 1986 songs