"Pinch Me" is a song by Canadian rock band

Barenaked Ladies Barenaked Ladies is a Canadian rock band formed in 1988 in Scarborough, Ontario. The band developed a following in Canada, with their self-titled 1991 cassette becoming the first independent release to be certified gold in Canada. They reach ...

. It was released as the first single from their 2000 album, ''

Maroon Maroon ( US/ UK , Australia ) is a brownish crimson color that takes its name from the French word ''marron'', or chestnut. "Marron" is also one of the French translations for "brown". According to multiple dictionaries, there are var ...

'', on August 1, 2000. The song became the band's final top-forty hit in the United States, peaking at number 15 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 on November 14, 2000. It also peaked at number two on ''Billboard''s Adult Alternative Songs and Adult Top 40 charts. In Canada, the single reached number four on the ''

RPM Revolutions per minute (abbreviated rpm, RPM, rev/min, r/min, or with the notation min−1) is a unit of rotational speed or rotational frequency for rotating machines. Standards ISO 80000-3:2019 defines a unit of rotation as the dimensionl ...

'' Top Singles chart, becoming the band's most recent top-ten hit in their native country.

Background

The song was co-written by frontmen Steven Page and

Ed Robertson Lloyd Edward Elwyn Robertson (born October 25, 1970) is a Canadian musician, best known as the lead singer, guitarist, and songwriter of the band Barenaked Ladies. He, along with former member Steven Page, founded the group in 1988. As of Page's ...

, but the concept and base for the song came from Robertson. He wrote the song following the "roller-coaster" success of ''Stunt'', and returning to Canada to find people less interested or aware of the success. "I was trying to get to the root of what I was feeling... 'this is all great, but not right here it's not – not where I live, and not in my heart'... It's this notion that you know things are good – they're just not quite good for you." The fundamental guitar riff of the song (through the verses) was based on the song "

Leaving Las Vegas ''Leaving Las Vegas'' is a 1995 American drama film written and directed by Mike Figgis, and based on the semi-autobiographical 1990 novel of the same name by John O'Brien. Nicolas Cage stars as a suicidal alcoholic in Los Angeles who, having ...

" by

Sheryl Crow Sheryl Suzanne Crow (born February 11, 1962) is an American musician, singer, songwriter and actress. Her music incorporates elements of rock, pop, country, folk, and blues. She has released eleven studio albums, five compilations and three li ...

. The recording (and most live performances) is based on a drum loop (along with which drummer

Tyler Stewart Tyler Joseph Stewart (born September 21, 1967) is the drummer for the Canadian music group Barenaked Ladies. Role in Barenaked Ladies Stewart met Steven Page, Ed Robertson, and Jim Creeggan at the Waterloo Busker Carnival in Waterloo, Ontario, C ...

plays). The loop was created by taking the best two bars of Stewart himself playing drums, and then looping them. The song was originally written with the chorus

rap Rapping (also rhyming, spitting, emceeing or MCing) is a musical form of vocal delivery that incorporates "rhyme, rhythmic speech, and street vernacular". It is performed or chanted, usually over a backing beat or musical accompaniment. The ...

as the less prominent "underpinning" half of the vocal, with the melody being more prominent, but as the writing process went along, the rap became the foreground. Noting that the melody line was now the background, they took the lyric and also used it for the

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of the song. According to Ed Robertson, during the Austin, TX concert on July 21, 2012, "Pinch Me" has one of his favorite "fake lyrics". He explained, "Often when we're writing a song, we just put in fake lyrics for a while, just to fill the space, 'cause we know what we want the melody to be, but we haven't finished the lyrics." The original chorus of the song was this: "Doesn't anyone, make a Chelsea bun, like they used to back, in the day? Sticky-sweet, it's a special treat. If Chelsea Buns were men, I'd be gay."

Critical reception

Chuck Taylor, of ''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertise ...

'' magazine, reviewed the song favorably, saying that "the production is tight, and the melody alternates between minimalist verses and Ed Robertson's trademark hyperkinetic delivery." He goes on to say that the "quirky lyric doesn't go for the wit as past hits have, but it still captures the band's friendly side, which had earned it a strong cult following long before it tore up the charts."

Track listings

US CD single # "Pinch Me" (radio edit) # "Powder Blue" US 7-inch single # "Pinch Me" (radio edit) – 3:48 # "

Falling for the First Time "Falling for the First Time" is the third single by Canadian group the Barenaked Ladies from their 2000 album, ''Maroon''. The song was composed by Steven Page and Ed Robertson. The song also appears on the band's 2001 compilation album, '' Disc ...

" (album version) – 3:40 European and Australian CD single # "Pinch Me" # "Pinch Me" (radio edit) # "Inline Bowline" # "Born Human"

Personnel

– lead vocals, acoustic and electric guitars *

Jim Creeggan James Raymond Creeggan (born February 12, 1970) is the bassist for Canadian alternative rock band Barenaked Ladies. Early life Creeggan was born in Scarborough, Ontario. His mother taught piano lessons to neighborhood children, which Creeggan cred ...

– electric bass,

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, backing vocals *

Kevin Hearn Kevin Neil Hearn (born July 3, 1969) is a Canadian musician who is a member of Barenaked Ladies, and his own group, Kevin Hearn and Thin Buckle. He primarily plays keyboards and guitars. He is also a member of Rheostatics. Early life Hearn was ...

–

electric piano An electric piano is a musical instrument which produces sounds when a performer presses the keys of a piano-style musical keyboard. Pressing keys causes mechanical hammers to strike metal strings, metal reeds or wire tines, leading to vibrations ...

, organ, backing vocals *

– drums, backing vocals * Steven Page – acoustic and electric guitars, backing vocals * Rob Menegoni –

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Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Release history

References

{{Authority control 2000 singles 2000 songs Barenaked Ladies songs Music videos directed by Phil Harder Patter songs Reprise Records singles Song recordings produced by Don Was Songs written by Ed Robertson Songs written by Steven Page