Porcelain (song)
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"Porcelain" is a song by American
electronic Electronic may refer to: *Electronics, the science of how to control electric energy in semiconductor * ''Electronics'' (magazine), a defunct American trade journal *Electronic storage, the storage of data using an electronic device *Electronic co ...
musician
Moby Richard Melville Hall (born September 11, 1965), known professionally as Moby, is an American musician, songwriter, singer, producer, and animal rights activist. He has sold 20 million records worldwide. AllMusic considers him to be "among the ...
. It was released as the sixth single from his fifth
studio album An album is a collection of audio recordings issued on compact disc (CD), vinyl, audio tape, or another medium such as digital distribution. Albums of recorded sound were developed in the early 20th century as individual 78 rpm records c ...
'' Play'' on April 25, 2000. Written by Moby, who also performs vocals on the recording, "Porcelain" is a melancholic song with lyrics reflecting on the breakup of a relationship. It features a lush musical backing that incorporates reversed strings and various synthesized elements. While Moby initially expressed disdain over the song and its production, he was eventually talked into including it on ''Play''. One of the most successful singles from ''Play'', "Porcelain" became a top five hit in the United Kingdom and entered various other national record charts. Contributing to the song's commercial exposure was its use in several forms of media, including a notable placement in the 2000 film '' The Beach''. Music critics have highlighted "Porcelain" as a standout track on ''Play'', and it has also been included on several year-end and all-time lists of the best songs. Two different
music video A music video is a video of variable duration, that integrates a music song or a music album with imagery that is produced for promotional or musical artistic purposes. Modern music videos are primarily made and used as a music marketing devic ...
s were produced for "Porcelain", directed by
Jonas Åkerlund Hans Uno Jonas Åkerlund (; born 10 November 1965) is a Swedish film director, screenwriter, music video director, and drummer. His video for Madonna's song " Ray of Light" won a Grammy Award for Best Music Video, Short Form, and a record of fiv ...
and
Nick Brandt Nick Brandt (born 1964) is an English photographer. Brandt's work generally focuses on the rapidly disappearing natural world, as a result of environmental destruction, climate change and humans' actions. Background and early career Born in 19 ...
.


Background and composition

"Porcelain" was written and produced by Moby for his fifth
studio album An album is a collection of audio recordings issued on compact disc (CD), vinyl, audio tape, or another medium such as digital distribution. Albums of recorded sound were developed in the early 20th century as individual 78 rpm records c ...
'' Play'' (1999). Moby recorded the song, and the rest of ''Play'', in his apartment in
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's
Little Italy Little Italy is a general name for an ethnic enclave populated primarily by Italians or people of Italian ancestry, usually in an urban neighborhood. The concept of "Little Italy" holds many different aspects of the Italian culture. There are ...
neighborhood. According to him, the song's lyrics were inspired by a personal experience: "I was involved with this really, really wonderful woman, and I loved her very much. But I knew deep in my heart of hearts that we had no business being romantically involved. So, it's sort of about being in love with someone but knowing you shouldn't be with them." Moby initially disliked "Porcelain", finding his production "mushy" and his vocals "really weak". He recalled that he "couldn't imagine anyone else wanting to listen to it" and had to be talked into including the song on ''Play''. Andy Gensler of ''
The Hollywood Reporter ''The Hollywood Reporter'' (''THR'') is an American digital and print magazine which focuses on the Hollywood film, television, and entertainment industries. It was founded in 1930 as a daily trade paper, and in 2010 switched to a weekly large ...
'' described "Porcelain" as a "lush"
downtempo Downtempo (or downbeat) is a broad label for electronic music that features an atmospheric sound and slower beats than would typically be found in dance music. Closely related to ambient music but with greater emphasis on rhythm, the style may b ...
track. The song features vocals performed by Moby, and introspective, wistful lyrics that describe "loving someone, but having to break up with them anyway." Composed in the key of
E major E major (or the key of E) is a major scale based on E, consisting of the pitches E, F, G, A, B, C, and D. Its key signature has four sharps. Its relative minor is C-sharp minor and its parallel minor is E minor. Its enharmonic equiva ...
and running at a
tempo In musical terminology, tempo ( Italian, 'time'; plural ''tempos'', or ''tempi'' from the Italian plural) is the speed or pace of a given piece. In classical music, tempo is typically indicated with an instruction at the start of a piece (ofte ...
of 96 beats per minute, "Porcelain" follows a constant four-chord progression (Gm−B−Fm−A) in the B
mixolydian mode Mixolydian mode may refer to one of three things: the name applied to one of the ancient Greek ''harmoniai'' or ''tonoi'', based on a particular octave species or scale; one of the medieval church modes; or a modern musical mode or diatonic sc ...
, with the exception of a
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midway through the song. The music incorporates several layered elements, including a reversed
sample Sample or samples may refer to: Base meaning * Sample (statistics), a subset of a population – complete data set * Sample (signal), a digital discrete sample of a continuous analog signal * Sample (material), a specimen or small quantity of ...
of strings from the Ernest Gold composition "Fight for Survival" (from his soundtrack for the 1960 film ''
Exodus Exodus or the Exodus may refer to: Religion * Book of Exodus, second book of the Hebrew Torah and the Christian Bible * The Exodus, the biblical story of the migration of the ancient Israelites from Egypt into Canaan Historical events * E ...
''), synthesizer chords, piano and cello lines, vocal samples, and a drum machine rhythm. Pilar Basso performs additional vocals on the song.


Release

The sixth single from ''Play'', "Porcelain" was first released to radio on April 25, 2000, then issued as a physical single on June 12, 2000. Like other tracks from the album, "Porcelain" was licensed for use in numerous commercials and films. English director
Danny Boyle Daniel Francis Boyle (born 20 October 1956) is an English director and producer. He is known for his work on films including '' Shallow Grave'', '' Trainspotting'' and its sequel '' T2 Trainspotting'', '' The Beach'', ''28 Days Later'', '' S ...
featured "Porcelain" in his 2000 film '' The Beach'', with Moby later crediting the film with significantly raising exposure of the song. "Porcelain" was also notably featured in commercials for the
Volkswagen Polo The Volkswagen Polo is a supermini car ( B-segment) produced by the German car manufacturer Volkswagen since 1975. It is sold in Europe and other markets worldwide in hatchback, saloon, and estate variants throughout its production run. Histor ...
, Bosch, and
France Télécom Orange S.A. (), formerly France Télécom S.A. (stylized as france telecom) is a French multinational corporation, multinational telecommunications corporation. It has 266 million customers worldwide and employs 89,000 people in France, and 5 ...
. "Porcelain" became one of the most successful singles from ''Play'', and Moby has since referred to it as "probably the most signature song" on the album. It debuted at its peak position of number five 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 ...
. The single also charted in numerous other European countries, including France, Germany, Ireland, the Netherlands, and Switzerland. In Canada, "Porcelain" peaked at number 50 on the '' RPM'' national singles chart, while in the United States, it placed on several genre-specific ''
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 adverti ...
'' charts tracking popular records in
dance Dance is a performing art form consisting of sequences of movement, either improvised or purposefully selected. This movement has aesthetic and often symbolic value. Dance can be categorized and described by its choreography, by its repertoire ...
and rock markets.


Critical reception and legacy

''
Entertainment Weekly ''Entertainment Weekly'' (sometimes abbreviated as ''EW'') is an American digital-only entertainment magazine based in New York City, published by Dotdash Meredith, that covers film, television, music, Broadway theatre, books, and popular ...
''s David Browne deemed "Porcelain" a standout track on ''Play'', praising it as a "gorgeous" song anchored by Moby's "plaintive" vocal performance. ''
Chicago Sun-Times The ''Chicago Sun-Times'' is a daily newspaper published in Chicago, Illinois, United States. Since 2022, it is the flagship paper of Chicago Public Media, and has the second largest circulation among Chicago newspapers, after the '' Chicago ...
'' critic
Jim DeRogatis James Peter DeRogatis (born September 2, 1964) is an American music critic and co-host of '' Sound Opinions''. DeRogatis has written articles for magazines such as '' Rolling Stone'', ''Spin'', '' Guitar World'' and '' Modern Drummer'', and for ...
found the song "emotional and gripping" and remarked that if it "didn't move you (in every sense of the word), then you probably had no pulse." Alexandra Marshall of
MTV MTV (Originally an initialism of Music Television) is an American cable channel that launched on August 1, 1981. Based in New York City, it serves as the flagship property of the MTV Entertainment Group, part of Paramount Media Networks, a di ...
described "Porcelain" as "a lush little snippet which sounds like a basement tape from a
Magnetic Fields A magnetic field is a vector field that describes the magnetic influence on moving electric charges, electric currents, and magnetic materials. A moving charge in a magnetic field experiences a force perpendicular to its own velocity and to ...
EP." The ''
Birmingham Evening Mail The ''Birmingham Mail'' (branded the ''Black Country Mail'' in the Black Country) is a tabloid newspaper based in Birmingham, England but distributed around Birmingham, the Black Country, and Solihull and parts of Warwickshire, Worcestershire a ...
'' said that the song's "sweeping melody and atmospheric vocals" create a "distinctive soundscape". Naming it the 26th best single of 2000,
Playlouder Playlouder was a digital music and media company. providing news, reviews, and other music-related content. It also claimed to be the world's first music service provider— an Internet service provider bundling access to music content along with ...
referred to "Porcelain" as ''Play''s "most crushingly heavenly track" and stated that "familiarity made it no less of a glorious single." It was voted by critics as the 56th best single of 2000 in ''
The Village Voice ''The Village Voice'' is an American news and culture paper, known for being the country's first alternative newsweekly. Founded in 1955 by Dan Wolf, Ed Fancher, John Wilcock, and Norman Mailer, the ''Voice'' began as a platform for the cr ...
''s year-end Pazz & Jop poll. In 2003, '' Q'' listed "Porcelain" as one of the 1,001 best songs of all time. The
Rock and Roll Hall of Fame The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame (RRHOF), sometimes simply referred to as the Rock Hall, is a museum and hall of fame located in downtown Cleveland, Ohio, United States, on the shore of Lake Erie. The museum documents the history of rock music and ...
featured the track in its exhibit "The Songs That Shaped Rock and Roll". Liana Jonas of
AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All Music Guide and AMG) is an American online database, online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on Musical artist, musicians and Music ...
referred to "Porcelain" as "a groundbreaking recording", noting that the song's commercial success "helped bring
electronica Electronica is both a broad group of electronic-based music styles intended for listening rather than strictly for dancing and a music scene that started in the early 1990s in the United Kingdom. In the United States, the term is mostly used to ...
music into the limelight." Moby named his 2016 memoir after the song. Later, "Porcelain" was prominently sampled on rapper
ASAP Rocky Rakim Athelaston Mayers (born October 3, 1988), known professionally as ASAP Rocky ( ; stylized as A$AP Rocky), is an American rapper, music producer and record executive. Born and raised in Harlem, he embarked on his musical career as a membe ...
's 2018 song " ASAP Forever", with Moby being credited as a featured artist on the track. For his 19th studio album ''
Reprise In music, a reprise ( , ; from the verb 'to resume') is the repetition or reiteration of the opening material later in a composition as occurs in the recapitulation of sonata form, though—originally in the 18th century—was simply any repe ...
'' (2021), Moby recorded a new version of "Porcelain" featuring
Jim James James Edward Olliges Jr. (born April 27, 1978), professionally known as Jim James or Yim Yames, is an American vocalist, guitarist, producer, and primary songwriter of the rock band My Morning Jacket. He has also released several solo albums. ...
of
My Morning Jacket My Morning Jacket is an American rock band formed in Louisville, Kentucky in 1998. The band consists of vocalist/guitarist Jim James, bassist Tom Blankenship, drummer Patrick Hallahan, guitarist Carl Broemel, and keyboardist Bo Koster. The ...
on vocals, which was released as the first single from the album on March 26, 2021.


Music videos

Two separate
music video A music video is a video of variable duration, that integrates a music song or a music album with imagery that is produced for promotional or musical artistic purposes. Modern music videos are primarily made and used as a music marketing devic ...
s were produced for "Porcelain". The first version, directed by
Jonas Åkerlund Hans Uno Jonas Åkerlund (; born 10 November 1965) is a Swedish film director, screenwriter, music video director, and drummer. His video for Madonna's song " Ray of Light" won a Grammy Award for Best Music Video, Short Form, and a record of fiv ...
, is primarily a simple
closeup A close-up or closeup in filmmaking, television production, still photography, and the comic strip medium is a type of shot that tightly frames a person or object. Close-ups are one of the standard shots used regularly with medium and long s ...
of a human eye; various images are reflected onto the eye throughout the entire video, including Moby performing the song, people smiling, and a piano being played. This version only aired in European markets and was not released in the US until its inclusion on the 2001 video album ''Play: The DVD''. The second video, directed by
Nick Brandt Nick Brandt (born 1964) is an English photographer. Brandt's work generally focuses on the rapidly disappearing natural world, as a result of environmental destruction, climate change and humans' actions. Background and early career Born in 19 ...
, follows a driverless 1972 Cadillac DeVille, in which Moby is a passenger, as it travels through a city and a countryside, passing various people in slow motion. The car drives through a field, a forest, past cattle, and finally down a hillside going into the distance.


Track listing

* CD single (CDMute252) # "Porcelain" (single version) – 3:32 # "Flying Over the Dateline" – 4:48 # "Summer" – 5:55 * Cassette single (CMute252) # "Porcelain" (single version) – 3:32 # "Porcelain" (
Torsten Stenzel Torsten Stenzel is a German musician, songwriter, composer and producer. Classically trained from an early age his roots are within the field of Electronic Dance Music. His interest for music first started at age 5 when he received piano lesson ...
's Vocaldubmix) – 8:22 # "Summer" – 5:55 * CD single – remixes (LCDMute252) # "Porcelain" (Clubbed to Death version by
Rob Dougan Robert Don Hunter Dougan () is an Australian composer, known for his genre-blending music. Mixing elements of orchestral music, trip hop, and bluesy vocals, his work is tangentially relatable to electronic music. He is known primarily for his ...
) – 6:36 # "Porcelain" (Futureshock instrumental) – 8:21 # "Porcelain" (Torsten Stenzel's edited remix) – 4:49 * 12-inch single – remixes (12Mute252) # "Porcelain" (Torsten Stenzel's remix) – 9:05 # "Porcelain" (Force Mass Motion remix) – 8:32 * 12-inch single – remixes (L12Mute252) # "Porcelain" (Futureshock instrumental) – 8:21 # "Porcelain" (Futureshock beats) – 3:59 # "Porcelain" (Clubbed to Death variation by Rob Dougan) – 6:36 * 12-inch single (63881-27650-1) # "Porcelain" (Clubbed to Death variation by Rob Dougan) – 6:36 # "Porcelain" (album version) – 4:01 # "Porcelain" (Futureshock remix) – 8:35 # "Porcelain" (Futureshock beats) – 3:59 * "
Honey Honey is a sweet and viscous substance made by several bees, the best-known of which are honey bees. Honey is made and stored to nourish bee colonies. Bees produce honey by gathering and then refining the sugary secretions of plants (primar ...
" / "Porcelain" CD single (MUSH019852) # "Honey" (remix edit; featuring
Kelis Kelis Rogers-Mora (; born August 21, 1979), known mononymously as Kelis, is an American singer, songwriter and a professionally trained chef. At age 14, she was admitted to New York's Fiorello H. LaGuardia High School of Music & Art and Perform ...
) – 3:13 # "Porcelain" (album mix) – 4:01 # "Honey" (Fafu's 12" mix; featuring Kelis) – 6:19 # "Porcelain" (Clubbed to Death variation by Rob Dougan) – 6:36 # "Honey" (Moby's 118 mix) – 4:48 * Digital single – remixes (ANJ396D) # "Porcelain" ( Above & Beyond remix) – 6:41 # "Porcelain" (
Arty Arty may refer to: People * Arty (Queen), 8th century BC wife of Pharaoh Shebitku * Arty (musician) (born 1989), Russian record producer and DJ born Artem Stolyarov * Arty Ash, stage name of British actor Arthur Richard Dodge (1895–1954) * A n ...
remix) – 3:31 * Digital single – remix (SHA120S1) # "Porcelain" (Pola & Bryson remix) – 5:27 * Digital EP – remixes (ROCKD025) # "Porcelain" (
Timo Maas Timo Maas (born July 27, 1969, Bückeburg, West Germany) is a German DJ/ producer and remixer whose career in electronic music spans well over 30 years. His remix of Azzido Da Bass's single "Dooms Night" helped launch his career in 2000. In ...
& James Teej's Broken China dub) – 9:16 # "Porcelain" (Sebastian Mullaert's Transformation mix) – 13:27


Charts


Weekly charts


Year-end charts


Certifications


Release history


Notes


References


External links

* {{Authority control 1999 songs 2000 singles Moby songs Songs written by Moby Song recordings produced by Moby Mute Records singles V2 Records singles Music videos directed by Jonas Åkerlund Music videos directed by Nick Brandt