"Party Fears Two" is a song by Scottish
new wave band
the Associates, written by
Billy Mackenzie
William MacArthur Mackenzie (27 March 1957 – 22 January 1997) was a Scottish singer and songwriter, known for his distinctive high tenor voice. He was the co-founder and lead vocalist of post-punk and new wave band the Associates. He also h ...
and
Alan Rankine
Alan Rankine (17 May 1958 – 3 January 2023) was a Scottish musician and record producer best known as keyboardist and guitarist for rock band the Associates, which he co-founded with lead vocalist Billy Mackenzie in the late 1970s.
Early l ...
. It was included on their second studio album ''
Sulk
''Sulk'' is the second studio album by Scottish post-punk and pop band the Associates. It was released on 14 May 1982 on their own Associates imprint of Beggars Banquet Records for the UK and throughout the rest of Europe on WEA Records and i ...
'' (1982) and released as both a 7-inch and 12-inch single with the preceding track on the album, "It's Better This Way" as its
B-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 compan ...
.
Release
The song was originally written in 1979, around a piano riff but both
Alan Rankine
Alan Rankine (17 May 1958 – 3 January 2023) was a Scottish musician and record producer best known as keyboardist and guitarist for rock band the Associates, which he co-founded with lead vocalist Billy Mackenzie in the late 1970s.
Early l ...
and
Billy Mackenzie
William MacArthur Mackenzie (27 March 1957 – 22 January 1997) was a Scottish singer and songwriter, known for his distinctive high tenor voice. He was the co-founder and lead vocalist of post-punk and new wave band the Associates. He also h ...
initially rejected it. Rankine stated: "This was the tail-end of
punk
Punk or punks may refer to:
Genres, subculture, and related aspects
* Punk rock, a music genre originating in the 1970s associated with various subgenres
* Punk subculture, a subculture associated with punk rock, or aspects of the subculture s ...
and it was too tuneful, too pretty. It wasn't hip at that time."
In an interview with ''
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 ...
'' magazine Billy Mackenzie explained the origin of the song title, "My wee brother was at a party watching two girls who wanted to come in. They were smashing windows and attempting to kick the door in with their stiletto heels, which he admired, so he christened them the Party Fears Two and I pinched the title from him." The lyrics begin and end with a reference to a brother but, like most of Mackenzie's lyrics, the words only seem to suggest a mood rather than give any precise meaning. Like a number of songs by Mackenzie "Party Fears Two" finds the singer anxious about appearances, and uncertain of himself. Alan Rankine recalls that Mackenzie spent two years getting the lyrics right for this song.
The end of the song features the sound of three cups being smashed and Billy spitting out his chewing gum.
The song became their first Top 20 and best-known hit, peaking at No. 9 on the
UK Singles Chart
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 ...
,
as well as charting in
Ireland
Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel (Grea ...
at No. 16.
The band performed the song on the
BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC
Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board exam. ...
...
. An instrumental section was used as the