"Roam" is a song by American new wave band

the B-52's The B-52s, originally presented as the B-52's (with an errant apostrophe; used until 2008), are an American band formed in Athens, Georgia, in 1976. The original lineup consisted of Fred Schneider (vocals, percussion), Kate Pierson (vocals, k ...

released as the third single from their fifth studio album, ''

Cosmic Thing ''Cosmic Thing'' is the fifth studio album by American New wave music, new wave band the B-52's, released in 1989 by Reprise Records. It contains the hit singles "Love Shack", "Roam" and "Deadbeat Club". The music video for "Love Shack" won the a ...

'' (1989). The vocals are sung by Kate Pierson and

Cindy Wilson Cynthia Leigh Wilson (born February 28, 1957) is an American musician and one of the vocalists, songwriters and founding members of New wave music, new wave rock band the B-52s. She is noted for her distinctive contralto voice and also plays per ...

. The B-52's worked with a co-writer, Robert Waldrop, who penned the lyrics. Released as a single in 1989, "Roam" peaked at number three on the US ''Billboard'' Hot 100 and entered the top 10 in Canada, Ireland, and New Zealand.

Release

The "Roam" single was released with a variety of song's remixes as well as live tracks recorded at Cleveland Music Hall.

Reception

"Roam" became the band's second and final US top-10 hit, peaking at number three on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 in March 1990 and spending 20 weeks on the chart. It was certified gold 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 April 1990. Worldwide, the song became a top-10 success in Canada, Ireland, and New Zealand, peaking at numbers four, nine, and two, respectively. In February 1991, the B-52's were nominated for a

Grammy Award The Grammy Awards, stylized as GRAMMY, and often referred to as The Grammys, are awards presented by The Recording Academy of the United States to recognize outstanding achievements in music. They are regarded by many as the most prestigious ...

for Best Pop Vocal Performance by a Duo or Group for "Roam".

Music video

The

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 ...

for "Roam" was directed by

Adam Bernstein Adam Bernstein (born May 7, 1960) is an American film director, music video director and television director. For his work on the television show '' Fargo'' in 2014, he received a nomination for the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Directin ...

and produced by Jonna Mattingly, with Zack Winestine serving as the

director of photography The cinematographer or director of photography (sometimes shortened to DP or DOP) is the person responsible for the recording of a film, television production, music video or other live-action piece. The cinematographer is the chief of the camera ...

. Filmed in New York City, the video contains plentiful animations and

stock footage Stock footage, and similarly, archive footage, library pictures, and file footage is film or video footage that can be used again in other films. Stock footage is beneficial to filmmakers as it saves shooting new material. A single piece of stock ...

Track listings

US maxi-CD single # "Roam" (7-inch remix) – 5:11 # "Roam" (radio mix) – 4:13 # "Roam" (12-inch remix) – 8:17 # "Bushfire" (LP version) – 4:56 # "Roam" (extended remix) – 5:25 # "Roam" (instrumental) – 5:27 US and Australian 12-inch single :A1. "Roam" (extended remix) – 5:27 :A2. "Roam" (instrumental) – 5:25 :B1. "Roam" (12-inch remix) – 8:17 :B2. "Bushfire" (LP version) – 4:56 US 7-inch and cassette single :A. "Roam" (edit) – 4:05 :B. "Bushfire" (LP version) – 4:56 UK 7-inch, CD, and cassette single # "Roam" (edit) # "

Whammy Kiss "Whammy Kiss" is the second single released by the B-52's from their third studio album ''Whammy!'' (1983). The song reached number nine on the U.S. Hot Dance Club Play chart, along with the album tracks "Legal Tender Legal tender is a form ...

" (live) # " Dance This Mess Around" (live) UK 12-inch single :A1. "Roam" (radio mix) – 4:13 :A2. "Roam" (12-inch remix) – 8:17 :B1. "Roam" (12-inch extended mix) – 5:25

Credits and personnel

Credits are lifted from the ''

'' album booklet. Studios * Recorded digitally and mixed analog at Skyline Studios (New York City) * Mastered at

Masterdisk Masterdisk is an American multimedia company in New York, located at 8 John Walsh Boulevard in Peekskill. They provide production services such as audio mastering, vinyl cutting and enhanced CD and DVD production. Their clients include such n ...

(New York City) Personnel * The B-52's – music **

Fred Schneider Frederick William Schneider III (born July 1, 1951) is an American singer-songwriter and frontman of the rock band the B-52s, of which he is a founding member. Schneider is well known for his '' sprechgesang'', which he developed from reciting ...

– vocals ** Kate Pierson – vocals **

Keith Strickland Julian Keith Strickland (born October 26, 1953) is an American singer-songwriter, composer, musician, multi-instrumentalist, and one of the founding members of the B-52s. He was born in Athens, Georgia. Originally the band's drummer, Strickland ...

– guitar * Robert Waldrop – lyrics * Sara Lee – bass guitar * Richard Hilton – keyboard, programming * Leroy Clouden – drums *

Nile Rodgers Nile Gregory Rodgers Jr. (born September 19, 1952) is an American musician, songwriter, guitarist and record producer. The co-founder of Chic, he has written, produced, and performed on records that have sold more than 750 million albums and 1 ...

– production, mixing * Budd Tunick – production management * Tom Durack – mixing, engineering * Ed Brooks – second engineering * Keith Freedman – second engineering * Paul Angelli – second engineering *

Patrick Dillett Patrick may refer to: *Patrick (given name), list of people and fictional characters with this name * Patrick (surname), list of people with this name People *Saint Patrick (c. 385–c. 461), Christian saint * Gilla Pátraic (died 1084), Patrick ...

– second engineering *

Bob Ludwig Robert Carl Ludwig (born December 11, 1944), is a retired American mastering engineer. He mastered recordings on all the major recording formats for all the major record labels, and on projects by more than 1,300 artists, including Led Zeppeli ...

– mastering

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Certifications

Cover versions

In 2023 the Bonvoy loyalty program for

Marriott International Marriott International, Inc. is an American multinational corporation, multinational company that operates, franchises, and licenses lodging brands that include hotel, residential, and timeshare properties. Marriott International owns over 37 ho ...

released a series of ads featuring re-recorded and remixed versions of the song as part of their "Roam Around the World" campaign. The songs were produced by W Hotels Global music director Leah Chisholm (aka LP Giobbi) and featured vocals by Amelia Rae.Interview with LP Giobbi

References

{{Authority control 1989 songs 1989 singles 1990 singles The B-52's songs Reprise Records singles Song recordings produced by Nile Rodgers Songs written by Cindy Wilson Songs written by Fred Schneider Songs written by Kate Pierson Songs written by Keith Strickland Music videos directed by Adam Bernstein