"Superman's Song" is the first single of

Canadian Canadians (french: Canadiens) are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of ...

folk-rock group

Crash Test Dummies Crash Test Dummies are a Canadian rock band from Winnipeg, Manitoba. The band is most identifiable through Brad Roberts (vocals, guitar) and his distinctive bass-baritone voice. The band members have fluctuated over the years, but its best kno ...

, appearing on their 1991 debut album ''

The Ghosts That Haunt Me ''The Ghosts That Haunt Me'' is the 1991 debut album by the Canadian folk rock group Crash Test Dummies. It featured their hit "Superman's Song". The artwork featured on the cover, and throughout the liner notes, is by 19th-century illustrator ...

''. The single was the group's first hit, reaching number four in Canada, number 56 in the United States and number 87 in Australia. It was featured in the pilot of the Canadian TV series ''

Due South ''Due South'' is a Canadian crime comedy-drama television series created by Paul Haggis, and produced by Alliance Communications from its premiere on April 26, 1994, to its conclusion after four seasons on March 14, 1999. The series starred P ...

''. The song was covered by

Lucy Wainwright Roche Lucy Wainwright Roche (born December 16, 1981) is an American singer-songwriter. Preceded by two EPs, ''8 Songs'' and ''8 More'', Roche released her debut album, ''Lucy'' in October 2010. In 2013, she starred as Jeri in the ''Stuff You Should Kno ...

, daughter of

Loudon Wainwright III Loudon Snowden Wainwright III (born September 5, 1946) is an American singer-songwriter and occasional actor. He has released twenty-six studio albums, four live albums, and six compilations. Some of his best-known songs include "The Swimmin ...

and

Suzzy Roche Suzzy Roche ( ; born September 29, 1956) is an American singer and actress best known for her work with the vocal group The Roches, alongside sisters Maggie and Terre. Suzzy is the youngest of the three, and joined the act in 1977. She is the aut ...

The Roches The Roches were an American vocal trio of sisters Maggie, Terre and Suzzy Roche, from Park Ridge, New Jersey. Career In the late 1960s, eldest sister Maggie (October 26, 1951 – January 21, 2017) and middle sister Terre (pronounced "Terry" ...

, on her second EP ''8 More''. It also has been covered by

Nataly Dawn Natalie Dawn Knutsen Conte (born October 29, 1986), known by her stage name Nataly Dawn, is an American singer-songwriter and musician. She is one half of the duo Pomplamoose with her husband Jack Conte and has released four studio albums and f ...

Meaning

Brad Roberts has stated that "Superman's Song" is an "analysis of

political philosophy Political philosophy or political theory is the philosophical study of government, addressing questions about the nature, scope, and legitimacy of public agents and institutions and the relationships between them. Its topics include politics, ...

" and that the way the song was written alleviated some of the seriousness of the topic. He explained the meaning of the song in a 1992 interview: :''"Superman as cast in "Superman's Song" is obviously a left-wing political figure. His activity in the community is intrinsic to his being. Superman is being juxtaposed against Tarzan, who is kind of a

laissez-faire ''Laissez-faire'' ( ; from french: laissez faire , ) is an economic system in which transactions between private groups of people are free from any form of economic interventionism (such as subsidies) deriving from special interest groups ...

capitalist type who retreats to the forest, and rejects the idea of community. He wants to live in a so-called animal state, and he doesn't have to be bothered with any kind of political realities."'' The line "Hey Bob," is in reference to songwriter and friend of the band, Robert “Bobby” Mitchell.

Music video

The

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 device ...

for the song was directed by Dale Heslip and features the band singing at a funeral for Superman attended by various aging superheroes. Some depicted are a middle-aged

Wonder Woman Wonder Woman is a superhero created by the American psychologist and writer William Moulton Marston (pen name: Charles Moulton), and artist Harry G. Peter. Marston's wife, Elizabeth Holloway Marston, Elizabeth, and their life partner, Olive Byr ...

-like character,

The Green Hornet The Green Hornet is a superhero created in 1936 by George W. Trendle and Fran Striker, with input from radio director James Jewell. Since his 1930s radio debut, the character has appeared in numerous serialized dramas in a wide variety of med ...

, and possibly

Green Lantern Green Lantern is the name of several superheroes appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. They fight evil with the aid of rings that grant them a variety of extraordinary powers, all of which come from imagination, fearlessness, ...

(

Alan Scott Alan Scott is a superhero appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics, and the first character to bear the name Green Lantern. He fights evil with the aid of a magical ring which grants him a variety of powers. He was created by Ma ...

). It won the MuchMusic Video Award for Best Video in 1991.

Track listing

# "Superman's Song" - 4:31

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

References

{{Authority control 1991 debut singles 1991 songs Arista Records singles Crash Test Dummies songs Rock ballads Songs about fictional male characters Songs written by Brad Roberts Superman music