"I've Seen It All" is a song recorded by Icelandic singer
Björk
Björk Guðmundsdóttir ( , ; born 21 November 1965), known mononymously as Björk, is an Icelandic singer, songwriter, composer, record producer, and actress. Noted for her distinct voice, three-octave vocal range, and eccentric public per ...
for the ''
Dancer in the Dark
''Dancer in the Dark'' is a 2000 musical psychological tragedy film written and directed by Lars von Trier. It stars Icelandic musician Björk as a factory worker who suffers from a degenerative eye condition and is saving for an operation to p ...
'' soundtrack, ''
Selmasongs'' (2000). It was written by the singer, along with
Sjón
image:Sjon litteratureXchange-2019 DSC09264.jpg, 260px, Sjón at LiteratureXchange Festival ín Aarhus (Denmark 2019)
Sigurjón Birgir Sigurðsson (born 27 August 1962), known as Sjón ( ; ; meaning "sight" and being an abbreviation of his firs ...
and
Lars von Trier
Lars von Trier (né Trier; born 30 April 1956) is a Danish film director and screenwriter.
Beginning in the late-1960s as a child actor working on Danish television series ''Secret Summer'', von Trier's career has spanned more than five decad ...
(who also directed the film). It was released as the first promotional single from ''Selmasongs'' on 21 July 2000, by
One Little Indian Records. The song features vocals from
Radiohead
Radiohead are an English rock band formed in Abingdon-on-Thames, Abingdon, Oxfordshire, in 1985. The band members are Thom Yorke (vocals, guitar, piano, keyboards); brothers Jonny Greenwood (guitar, keyboards, other instruments) and Colin Gre ...
frontman
Thom Yorke. It was nominated for an
Academy Award
The Academy Awards, commonly known as the Oscars, are awards for artistic and technical merit in film. They are presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) in the United States in recognition of excellence ...
for Best Original Song. Lyrically, it speaks of one coming to terms with the fact that they are going
blind.
The version from the soundtrack album ''
Selmasongs'' is a duet with
Radiohead
Radiohead are an English rock band formed in Abingdon-on-Thames, Abingdon, Oxfordshire, in 1985. The band members are Thom Yorke (vocals, guitar, piano, keyboards); brothers Jonny Greenwood (guitar, keyboards, other instruments) and Colin Gre ...
singer
Thom Yorke while the version performed in the film ''
Dancer in the Dark
''Dancer in the Dark'' is a 2000 musical psychological tragedy film written and directed by Lars von Trier. It stars Icelandic musician Björk as a factory worker who suffers from a degenerative eye condition and is saving for an operation to p ...
'' is a duet with actor
Peter Stormare.
Background
Björk invited
Radiohead
Radiohead are an English rock band formed in Abingdon-on-Thames, Abingdon, Oxfordshire, in 1985. The band members are Thom Yorke (vocals, guitar, piano, keyboards); brothers Jonny Greenwood (guitar, keyboards, other instruments) and Colin Gre ...
singer
Thom Yorke to record vocals in the album version. This new version was recorded over a four-day span in March 2000, with Björk recording her vocals in Las Vegas.
In an interview with ''
Time Out'' magazine, she said: "It was my idea to work with Thom. We spent four days in Spain just singing as and when we felt like it. He's a very pure soul and I know he doesn't do things lightly. So it was great that he agreed". The song was made available for download through Björk's website on 21 July 2000.
Reception
Alexandra Flood from
MTV gave a positive review, saying "The centerpiece of the record is, "I've Seen It All", her duet with Radiohead's Thom Yorke. Björk describes the song as Selma's manifesto. It's a beautiful and eerie track, the pair's vocals careening over a techno beat, but just under a lovely set of strings. It's a minor masterpiece".
On the other hand, Ryan Schreiber from ''
Pitchfork
A pitchfork or hay fork is an agricultural tool used to pitch loose material, such as hay, straw, manure, or leaves. It has a long handle and usually two to five thin tines designed to efficiently move such materials.
The term is also applie ...
'' said "the paired vocalists also seem an odd match here; when Björk's soaring, intense delivery meets Yorke's general disinterest, the chemistry is far from convincing".
Accolades
Music videos
There are two
music video
A music video is a video that integrates a song or an album with imagery that is produced for promotion (marketing), promotional or musical artistic purposes. Modern music videos are primarily made and used as a music marketing device intended to ...
s for this single. The main version of the video is an excerpt from the film ''
Dancer in the Dark
''Dancer in the Dark'' is a 2000 musical psychological tragedy film written and directed by Lars von Trier. It stars Icelandic musician Björk as a factory worker who suffers from a degenerative eye condition and is saving for an operation to p ...
'' in which Björk,
Peter Stormare and others sing the song on a train. The second version was directed by
Floria Sigismondi and was an interactive "webeo" (a web animation) for an
MTV promotion. Björk appeared with her face painted and the viewer could change the scenes and special effects by clicking on the video. A third version was going to be directed by
M/M Paris, but there were several problems with the distribution of the song, and finally the video was cancelled. Later, the idea for this video was used for the "
Hidden Place" video.
Live performances
"I've Seen It All" was performed by Björk and the
Brodsky Quartet for the very first time in December 1999 at the
Union Chapel in London, almost a year before it was released. Björk performed "I've Seen It All" at the
73rd Academy Awards, where the song was nominated for
Best Original Song, with a 55-piece orchestra wearing her
swan dress. She said before performing on the show, "I'm really excited
o perform I won many awards
ndI've been to a lot of
wardshows. This is the most exciting one for me. I'm not just gonna go and grab a fancy frock. It's about singing, so it's a completely different headspace, which is sort of why I'm doing it. I'm really excited. Really, really excited". ''Billboard'' ranked it as the ninth "most awesome" Oscar performance of all time, saying that Björk's "outfit may have cemented her place in Oscar lore, but Bjork's performance was just as memorable, and refreshingly unconventional".
Cover versions
"I've Seen It All" has been covered by
Bonnie 'Prince' Billy in his 2007 album ''
Ask Forgiveness''. It was covered by Tristan Tzara on their 2001 album Omorina Nad Evropom. It was also covered by the jazz organ trio Karl Orgeltríó and singers
Ragnar Bjarnason and
Salka Sól Eyfeld in 2017.
Credits and personnel
Credits adapted from Björk's official website.
*
Björk
Björk Guðmundsdóttir ( , ; born 21 November 1965), known mononymously as Björk, is an Icelandic singer, songwriter, composer, record producer, and actress. Noted for her distinct voice, three-octave vocal range, and eccentric public per ...
– vocals, songwriting, production, choir arrangement
*
Sjón
image:Sjon litteratureXchange-2019 DSC09264.jpg, 260px, Sjón at LiteratureXchange Festival ín Aarhus (Denmark 2019)
Sigurjón Birgir Sigurðsson (born 27 August 1962), known as Sjón ( ; ; meaning "sight" and being an abbreviation of his firs ...
– songwriting
*
Lars von Trier
Lars von Trier (né Trier; born 30 April 1956) is a Danish film director and screenwriter.
Beginning in the late-1960s as a child actor working on Danish television series ''Secret Summer'', von Trier's career has spanned more than five decad ...
– songwriting
*
Thom Yorke – vocals
*
Vince Mendoza – arrangement, orchestration, conduction
*
Guy Sigsworth – arrangement
*
Mark Bell – production
*
Mark "Spike" Stent – mixing
References
{{authority control
2000 singles
Björk songs
Thom Yorke songs
Songs written by Björk
2000 songs
Songs with lyrics by Sjón
Music videos directed by Floria Sigismondi
Song recordings produced by Björk
Male–female vocal duets
Works by Lars von Trier
Dancer in the Dark
One Little Independent Records singles