"You're History" is a song by British-based pop act

Shakespears Sister Shakespears Sister are an alternative rock, alternative Pop rock, pop and rock musical duo that was formed in 1988 by Irish people, Irish singer-songwriter Siobhan Fahey, a former member of Bananarama. Shakespears Sister was initially a solo a ...

, released in July 1989 as the second single from their debut album, ''

Sacred Heart The Most Sacred Heart of Jesus () is one of the most widely practised and well-known Catholic devotions, wherein the heart of Jesus Christ is viewed as a symbol of "God's boundless and passionate love for mankind". This devotion to Christ is p ...

'' (1989). The song was the first release to present the act as a duo and their first chart hit, reaching number seven in the United Kingdom. Outside the UK, "You're History" reached number five in Finland and entered the top 40 in Australia, Ireland, and New Zealand.

Background

"You're History" is the first release to present Shakespears Sister as a duo comprising

Siobhan Fahey Siobhan Maire Deirdre Fahey (; born 10 September 1958) is an Irish singer whose vocal range is a light contralto. She was a founding member of the British girl group Bananarama, who have had ten top-10 hits including the List of Billboard Hot ...

and

Marcella Detroit Marcella Levy (born June 21, 1952), known professionally as Marcy Levy and (later in her career) Marcella Detroit, is an American singer, songwriter, and guitarist. She co-wrote the 1977 Eric Clapton hit " Lay Down Sally" and released her debut ...

, as opposed to a solo project by Fahey. The single sleeve depicts the two seen from the back with Detroit wielding a guitar; however, an early pressing of the single used an alternate cover depicting only Fahey. Another alternate cover is used for the "Voodoo Remix" single, which is similar to the cover depicting both Fahey and Detroit but features Fahey looking at Detroit instead of straight ahead.

Critical reception

Bill Coleman from ''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertis ...

'' complimented the song's "refreshing hooks", describing it as "danceable pop with a distinctive edge

hat A hat is a Headgear, head covering which is worn for various reasons, including protection against weather conditions, ceremonial reasons such as university graduation, religious reasons, safety, or as a fashion accessory. Hats which incorpor ...

has the goods to seduce programmers with its infectious charm." Alison Mayes from ''

Calgary Herald The ''Calgary Herald'' is a daily newspaper published in Calgary, Alberta, Canada. Publication began in 1883 as ''The Calgary Herald, Mining and Ranche Advocate, and General Advertiser''. It is owned by the Postmedia Network. History ''The C ...

'' felt it's a "stellar turn" on the

album An album is a collection of audio recordings (e.g., music) issued on a medium such as compact disc (CD), Phonograph record, vinyl (record), audio tape (like 8-track cartridge, 8-track or Cassette tape, cassette), or digital distribution, dig ...

, and "a witty, infectious statement of female independence that dispenses with a lover by telling him to go back to sleep and comparing him with the

Dead Sea scrolls The Dead Sea Scrolls, also called the Qumran Caves Scrolls, are a set of List of Hebrew Bible manuscripts, ancient Jewish manuscripts from the Second Temple period (516 BCE – 70 CE). They were discovered over a period of ten years, between ...

Robert Hilburn Robert Hilburn (born September 25, 1939) is an American pop music critic, author, and radio host. As music critic and editor at the ''Los Angeles Times'' from 1970 to 2005, his reviews, essays, and profiles have appeared in publications worldwide ...

from ''

Los Angeles Times The ''Los Angeles Times'' is an American Newspaper#Daily, daily newspaper that began publishing in Los Angeles, California, in 1881. Based in the Greater Los Angeles city of El Segundo, California, El Segundo since 2018, it is the List of new ...

'' wrote, "Though this kind of novelty wears out quickly, the delightfully absurd put-down of an old lover is too much fun to ignore.

is married to Dave Stewart, which may explain some of the

Eurythmic Eurythmic (1916–1925) was a versatile Australian-bred Thoroughbred racehorse who had the ability to produce a brilliant finishing run in staying races and he also won important sprint races, too. At four he won 12 of his 13 starts including the ...

tension in the arrangement." David Giles from ''

Music Week ''Music Week'' is a trade publication for the UK record industry distributed via a website and a monthly print magazine. It is published by Future. History Founded in 1959 as ''Record Retailer'', it relaunched on 18 March 1972 as ''Music We ...

'' said, "Fairly cluttered record built around a wailing bluesy chorus, chugging rhythm and choppy guitar. Tries very hard to be soulful, perhaps ''too'' hard." In a 2014 retrospective review, Pop Rescue stated that both singers are on "great vocal form", complimenting the producer of the song, adding, "I think that’s partly why it stands out." A reviewer from ''

Record Mirror ''Record Mirror'' was a British weekly music newspaper published between 1954 and 1991, aimed at pop fans and record collectors. Launched two years after ''New Musical Express'', it never attained the circulation of its rival. The first UK Album ...

'' declared it as a "mildly eccentric and compelling mature pop song". Richard Lowe from ''

Smash Hits ''Smash Hits'' was a British music magazine aimed at young adults, originally published by EMAP. It ran from 1978 to 2006, and, after initially appearing monthly, was issued fortnightly during most of that time. The name survived as a brand ...

'' complimented it as "fab".

Music video

The accompanying

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 "You're History", the third video directed by English director

Sophie Muller Sophie Luise Elisabeth Muller (born 31 January 1962) is an English music video director who has directed over 300 music videos. She won a Grammy Award for Annie Lennox's 1992 ''Diva'' video album, and an MTV Video Music Award for Lennox's song " ...

for the group, was the first in which Detroit appeared. The video begins with Detroit singing the opening verse of the song in front of a red stage curtain. At the end of the verse, the curtains open and the video continues in a glittering

vaudeville Vaudeville (; ) is a theatrical genre of variety entertainment which began in France in the middle of the 19th century. A ''vaudeville'' was originally a comedy without psychological or moral intentions, based on a comical situation: a drama ...

style with Detroit and Fahey superimposed against various backdrops. A variety of dancers (including a group of

ballerina A ballet dancer is a person who practices the art of classical ballet. Both females and males can practice ballet. They rely on years of extensive training and proper technique to become a part of a professional ballet company. Ballet dancer ...

s), a court jester juggling act, and various musicians also appear in the video, as does Fahey's son, Sam, dressed in a

bumblebee A bumblebee (or bumble bee, bumble-bee, or humble-bee) is any of over 250 species in the genus ''Bombus'', part of Apidae, one of the bee families. This genus is the only Extant taxon, extant group in the tribe Bombini, though a few extinct r ...

costume.

Track listings

* 7-inch and cassette single, European mini-CD single # "You're History" # "Dirty Mind" (live in Leningrad) * CD single # "You're History" # "Heroine" (live in Leningrad) # "Dirty Mind" (live in Leningrad) * 12-inch and Japanese mini-CD single # "You're History" (maximised version) # "Heroine" (live in Leningrad) # "Dirty Mind" (live in Leningrad) * 12-inch "Voodoo Remix" single # "You're History" (Voodoo mix) # "You're History" (7-inch mix) # "Dirty Mind" (live in Leningrad) * Canadian 12-inch single :A1. "You're History" (Voodoo remix) – 6:31 :B1. "You're History" (maximized version) – 6:43 :B2. "You're History" (7-inch edit) – 4:28 * US cassette single :A. "You're History" — 4:27 :B. "Pretty Boy" — 3:38

Personnel

* Siobhan Fahey – vocals * Marcella Detroit – vocals, guitars, keyboards *

Stevie Salas Stevie Salas (born November 17, 1964) is an American guitarist, author, television host, music director, record producer, film composer, and former advisor of contemporary music at the Smithsonian National Museum of the American Indian. Salas ...

– guitar solo * Alan Moulder – remix * Jimmy Iovine – production * Manu Guiot – remix * Mark McGuire – remix * Richard Feldman – production

Charts

References

{{Authority control 1989 singles 1989 songs FFRR Records singles Shakespears Sister songs Song recordings produced by Jimmy Iovine Songs written by Siobhan Fahey Songs written by Marcella Detroit Songs written by Patrick Seymour Songs written by Richard Feldman (songwriter)