"Toy Soldiers" is a song by American singer

Martika Marta Marrero (born May 18, 1969), better known by her stage name Martika ( ), is an American pop singer and actress. She released two internationally successful albums in the late 1980s and early 1990s, which sold over four million copies wor ...

appearing on her 1988 eponymous debut album and released in the United States as the second single from the album on April 26, 1989. It was a number-one ''Billboard''

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hit for two weeks in mid-1989. An edited version of the song is included in the imported version of the album ''Toy Soldiers: The Best of Martika''.

Song overview

Martika wrote the song about a friend who was battling a cocaine addiction. "I was a little hesitant because I had only written two songs before and they were light songs. I came up to

Michael Michael may refer to: People * Michael (given name), a given name * Michael (surname), including a list of people with the surname Michael Given name "Michael" * Michael (archangel), ''first'' of God's archangels in the Jewish, Christian an ...

and said I wanted to write about drugs. It was the first time I got the nerve to write about something that was scary for me to talk about, so I did." According to an episode of

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's ''

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'', in which "Toy Soldiers" was featured, the friend-in-question eventually conquered the addiction.

Composition

The song is performed in the key of

C minor C minor is a minor scale based on C, consisting of the pitches C, D, E, F, G, A, and B. Its key signature consists of three flats. Its relative major is E major and its parallel major is C major. The C natural minor scale is: : Cha ...

with 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 (often ...

of 65 beats per minute in time. The song follows a chord progression of A–B–A–B–Cm–B–Cm–Gm–Cm–B.

Critical reception

Bryan Buss of

AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the databas ...

retrospectively reviewed the ''Martika'' album, stating "the big hit single, 'Toy Soldiers', works with its childlike vocals and lyrics, creating a haunting, effective dichotomy with its subject of drug addiction." Buss also highlighted the song as an album standout by labeling it an AMG Pick Track. Rob Theakston of Allmusic labeled the song as an AMG Pick Track on the 2005 compilation ''Toy Soldiers: The Best of Martika''.

Chart success

The song spent two weeks at number one on the US ''Billboard'' Hot 100 and in New Zealand while peaking within the top ten of the charts in both Australia and the United Kingdom. On ''Billboard''s year-end chart for 1989, "Toy Soldiers" placed number 29. It was Martika's only number-one single in the US, and her highest-ranking single in the United Kingdom. The single was certified gold in the United States by the

Recording Industry Association of America The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) is a trade organization that represents the music recording industry in the United States. Its members consist of record labels and distributors that the RIAA says "create, manufacture, and/o ...

(RIAA). In March and April 2009, VH1 ran a countdown of the ''100 Greatest One-Hit Wonders of the 80s''. "Toy Soldiers" placed at number 67 on the countdown, although Martika had three other top 40 hits: "More Than You Know" (number 18); "I Feel the Earth Move" (number 25); and "Love... Thy Will Be Done" (number 10).

Music video

The video for the song was directed by Jim Shea, who later became a regular in directing country music videos. Martika is seen singing with a waterfall in front of her (this was done by filming her in an empty pool with a water current flowing between her and the camera).

Track listings

7-inch single # "Toy Soldiers" – 4:52 # "Exchange of Hearts" – 4:15 3-inch single # "Toy Soldiers" – 4:52 # "Exchange of Hearts" – 4:15 # "It's Not What You're Doing" – 4:11 12-inch single # "Toy Soldiers" – 4:52 # "It's Not What You're Doing" – 4:11 # "Exchange of Hearts" – 4:15

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Certifications

Release history

Cover versions and sampling

* Martika recorded and produced a Spanish version of "Toy Soldiers" renaming it "Como Un Juguete", though it was not as successful as the original English version. She also recorded the song in Japanese. *

Eminem Marshall Bruce Mathers III (born October 17, 1972), known professionally as Eminem (; often stylized as EMINƎM), is an American rapper and record producer. He is credited with popularizing hip hop in middle America and is critically acclai ...

's 2005 single "

Like Toy Soldiers "Like Toy Soldiers" is a song by American rapper Eminem, from his fifth album ''Encore (Eminem album), Encore'' (2004). The song received positive reviews from Music journalism, music critics, and peaked at number 34 on the Billboard Hot 100, '' ...

" features samples from "Toy Soldiers". A sample of Martika's singing the chorus is used as the chorus of the Eminem version. The subject of the Eminem song is markedly different from the Martika song, concerning violence and murder linked to rap music rather than drug addiction. The sample is played faster than the original version with an added drum beat. The final chorus of Martika's song is used as the chorus of Eminem's version. *

My Vitriol My Vitriol are a British alternative rock band, formed in 1999 in London. The band currently comprises singer and guitarist Som Wardner, drummer Ravi Kesavaram, guitarist Seth Taylor and bassist Tatia Starkey. The band had success with their de ...

covered the song for their 2007 EP ''A Pyrrhic Victory''. *

Silversun Pickups Silversun Pickups is an American alternative rock band from Los Angeles that was formed in 2000. The band is composed of Brian Aubert, Nikki Monninger, Christopher Guanlao, and Joe Lester. The band released their debut EP, '' Pikul'', in July 2 ...

covered the song for a 2020 7" single titled ''Toy Soldiers''. * Amber Van Day's 2020 single ''Kids in the Corner'' features melodic hints from "Toy Soldiers".

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Toy Soldiers (Song) 1989 singles 1988 songs Billboard Hot 100 number-one singles CBS Records singles Martika songs Number-one singles in New Zealand Songs about cocaine Songs written by Martika Songs written by Michael Margules