"Suicide Is Painless" (or "Song from M*A*S*H") is a song written by
Johnny Mandel
John Alfred Mandel (November 23, 1925June 29, 2020) was an American composer and arranger of popular songs, film music and jazz. The musicians he worked with include Count Basie, Frank Sinatra, Peggy Lee, Anita O'Day, Barbra Streisand, Tony Benn ...
(music) and Michael Altman (
lyrics
Lyrics are words that make up a song, usually consisting of verses and choruses. The writer of lyrics is a lyricist. The words to an extended musical composition such as an opera are, however, usually known as a " libretto" and their writer, ...
) for the 1970 film ''
M*A*S*H
''M*A*S*H'' (Mobile Army Surgical Hospital) is an American media franchise consisting of a series of novels, a film, several television series, plays, and other properties, and based on the semi-autobiographical fiction of Richard Hooker.
Th ...
''. In addition to being performed by characters in the film, it plays during the
title sequence
A title sequence (also called an opening sequence or intro) is the method by which films or television programmes present their title and key production and cast members, utilizing conceptual visuals and sound (often a opening theme song with vi ...
as sung by
The Ron Hicklin Singers
The Ron Hicklin Singers were a group of Los Angeles studio singers contracted and organized by Ron Hicklin. They are mostly known as the real singers behind the background vocals on The Partridge Family recordings.
In Los Angeles studio circles i ...
. An instrumental version is likewise the
theme music
Theme music is a musical composition that is often written specifically for radio programming, television shows, video games, or films and is usually played during the title sequence, opening credits, closing credits, and in some instances at so ...
for the
TV series based on the film, playing over the opening and closing credits.
Background
The song was written for Ken Prymus, the actor playing Private Seidman, to sing during the faux-suicide of Walter "Painless Pole" Waldowski (
John Schuck
Conrad John Schuck Jr. (born February 4, 1940) is an American film, stage and television actor. He is best known for his role as Sgt. Charles Enright in the 1970s crime drama ''McMillan & Wife''. He also played Herman Munster in the late-1980s ...
) in the film's "Last Supper" scene. Director
Robert Altman had two stipulations about the song for composer Johnny Mandel: it had to be called "Suicide Is Painless" and it had to be the "stupidest song ever written". Altman attempted to write the lyric himself, but, upon finding it too difficult for his "45-year-old brain" to write something "stupid" enough, he gave the task to his 15-year-old-son Michael, who reportedly wrote the lyrics in five minutes.
Altman later decided that the song worked so well he would use it as the film's main theme. This more choral version was sung by uncredited session singers
John Bahler
John Bahler (born November 11, 1940; surname also spelled Bähler) is an American vocalist, arranger, conductor, composer and producer. He is the elder brother of singer Tom Bahler, and the husband of Janet Lennon of the Lennon Sisters.
Early c ...
,
Tom Bahler
Thomas Lee Bahler (also spelled Bähler; born June 1, 1943) is an American singer, composer, songwriter, arranger, producer, and author. He is the younger brother of singer, arranger, conductor and composer John Bahler. Bahler is most known for ...
,
Ron Hicklin, and
Ian Freebairn-Smith
Ian Freebairn-Smith (born March 4, 1932) is an American composer, arranger, conductor and group singer in film and TV. He spans from classical to popular music, jazz, choral music, and new music.
Early life and education
Ian Freebairn-Smith was ...
, and was released as a single attributed to "The Mash". Altman said that, while he only made $70,000 for directing the movie, his son had earned more than $1 million for co-writing the song.
Several
instrumental
An instrumental is a recording normally without any vocals, although it might include some inarticulate vocals, such as shouted backup vocals in a big band setting. Through semantic widening, a broader sense of the word song may refer to inst ...
versions of the song were used as the theme for the TV series, but the lyrics were never used in the show. It became a number-one hit in 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 ...
in May 1980.
The song was ranked No. 66 on
AFI's 100 Years...100 Songs.
Track listing
7″ vinyl
* West Germany: CBS / 5009
*UK: CBS / S CBS 8536
*US: Columbia / 4M-45130
ono promo only*US: Columbia / 4S-45130
riginal stereo stock release
Chart performance
Manic Street Preachers version
Welsh
Welsh may refer to:
Related to Wales
* Welsh, referring or related to Wales
* Welsh language, a Brittonic Celtic language spoken in Wales
* Welsh people
People
* Welsh (surname)
* Sometimes used as a synonym for the ancient Britons (Celtic peop ...
alternative rock
Alternative rock, or alt-rock, is a category of rock music that emerged from the independent music underground of the 1970s and became widely popular in the 1990s. "Alternative" refers to the genre's distinction from mainstream or commerci ...
band
Manic Street Preachers
Manic Street Preachers, also known simply as the Manics, are a Welsh rock band formed in Blackwood in 1986. The band consists of cousins James Dean Bradfield (lead vocals, lead guitar) and Sean Moore (drums, percussion, soundscapes), plus ...
released a cover version of "Suicide Is Painless" on September 7, 1992, as "Theme from M.A.S.H. (Suicide Is Painless)". In the UK, it was a
double A-side charity single
A charity record or charity single is a song released by musicians with most or all proceeds raised going to a dedicated foundation or charity.
George Harrison's "Bangla Desh" single in 1971 is commonly acknowledged as the first ever purpose-made ...
to help
The Spastics Society
Scope (previously known as the National Spastics Society) is a disability charity in England and Wales that campaigns to change negative attitudes about disability, provides direct services, and educates the public. The organisation was found ...
, with
the Fatima Mansions
The Fatima Mansions were an Irish rock band formed in 1988 by Cork singer/keyboardist Cathal Coughlan, formerly of Microdisney.
Career
The original line-up consisted of Coughlan, Nick Allum, Jonathan Fell, Zac Woolhouse and Aindrias O'Gruama. ...
' take on
Bryan Adams
Bryan Guy Adams (born 5 November 1959) is a Canadian musician, singer, songwriter, composer, and photographer. He has been cited as one of the best-selling music artists of all time, and is estimated to have sold between 75 million and mor ...
' "
(Everything I Do) I Do It for You
"(Everything I Do) I Do It for You" is a song by Canadian singer-songwriter Bryan Adams. Written by Adams, Michael Kamen, and Robert John "Mutt" Lange, the power ballad was the lead single for both the soundtrack album from the 1991 film '' Rob ...
" as the other A-side. The 12-inch and CD versions of the UK single included "Sleeping with the NME" – an excerpt from a radio documentary recorded in the offices of the ''
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 ...
'' capturing staff's reaction to photographs of guitarist
Richey Edwards
Richard James Edwards (born 22 December 1967 – disappeared 1 February 1995), also known as Richey James or Richey Manic, was a Welsh musician who was the lyricist and rhythm guitarist of the alternative rock band Manic Street Preachers. He w ...
' infamous self-mutilation. The single peaked at number seven 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 ...
spending three weeks in the top 10.
Track listings
7-inch vinyl
* UK: Columbia / 658382 7
* Netherlands: Columbia / COL 658385 7
12-inch vinyl
* UK: Columbia / 658382 6
CD
* UK: Columbia / 658382 2
* Europe: Columbia / 658385 2
* Japan: Epic/Sony / ESCA 5668
Charts
Weekly charts
Year-end charts
Cover recorded versions
*
Ahmad Jamal recorded a new version of the song that replaced the version by The MASH on pressings of the soundtrack album beginning in 1973; the film retained the original version.
*
Bill Evans included an
instrumental
An instrumental is a recording normally without any vocals, although it might include some inarticulate vocals, such as shouted backup vocals in a big band setting. Through semantic widening, a broader sense of the word song may refer to inst ...
jazz cover on his posthumous 1980 album
''You Must Believe in Spring''.
*
Al De Lory recorded "Song from M*A*S*H", an
instrumental
An instrumental is a recording normally without any vocals, although it might include some inarticulate vocals, such as shouted backup vocals in a big band setting. Through semantic widening, a broader sense of the word song may refer to inst ...
jazz piano version for his 1970 album ''Al De Lory Plays Song from M*A*S*H''. This version peaked at No. 7 on the
adult contemporary
Adult contemporary music (AC) is a form of radio-played popular music, ranging from 1960s vocal and 1970s soft rock music to predominantly ballad-heavy music of the present day, with varying degrees of easy listening, pop, soul, R&B, quie ...
chart during the summer of 1970.
*Swedish group
Small Town Singers released a version under the title "Song from M*A*S*H" in 1975. The single peaked at 17th position in Sweden,
Top 100 chart in Australia.
*
Marilyn Manson recorded a cover version which was released on the
soundtrack
A soundtrack is recorded music accompanying and synchronised to the images of a motion picture, drama, book, television program, radio program, or video game; a commercially released soundtrack album of music as featured in the soundtrack ...
to ''
Book of Shadows: Blair Witch 2'' in 2000
References
{{Authority control
1970 singles
1970 songs
1980 singles
American folk songs
American soft rock songs
British soft rock songs
CBS Records singles
Charity singles
Columbia Records singles
Irish Singles Chart number-one singles
M*A*S*H
Manic Street Preachers songs
Marilyn Manson (band) songs
Songs about suicide
Songs about the military
Songs with music by Johnny Mandel
Songs written for films
Comedy television theme songs
UK Singles Chart number-one singles