"Inbetweener" is a song by English Britpop band Sleeper, written by the band's vocalist and guitarist Louise Wener. It was the third single to be released from their debut album Smart in 1995. It was their breakthrough single,[1] crashing daytime radio playlists and reaching number 16 on the UK Singles Chart.
| "Inbetweener" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Single by Sleeper | ||||
| from the album Smart | ||||
| Released | 9 January 1995 | |||
| Genre | Britpop | |||
| Length | 3:18 | |||
| Label | Indolent | |||
| Songwriter(s) | Louise Wener | |||
| Producer(s) | Paul Corkett | |||
| Sleeper singles chronology | ||||
| ||||
Louise Wener stated that "Inbetweener" was a reference to her upbringing in an English commuter town: "it's about where people live and what they do in suburbia, and it's about unfulfiled dreams".[2]
Release
editIndolent released "Inbetweener" across four single formats on 9 January 1995.[3] A week later, "Inbetweener" debuted at number 16 on the UK singles chart and spent a further three weeks on the charts.[4] According to Louise Wener, the record label had not pressed enough copies, so when the demand for the single was higher than expected, they could not restock record shops fast enough, resulting in a substantially lower chart position than indicated by the midweeks.[5] Indolent reported to Billboard that the single sold 34,000 units in three weeks.[6] The album release of Smart followed on 13 February.[6]
The music video for "Inbetweener" was notable for featuring UK daytime television presenter Dale Winton (then of Supermarket Sweep fame) in a cameo appearance.[7] He peers over shelves and shakes pipes of Pringles as if they're musical shakers, while the band perform in the supermarket aisles. For the North American market, Arista funded a second video shoot for the song.[8]
Track listings
editAll tracks were written by Louise Wener.
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|
Charts
edit| Chart (1995) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Scotland (OCC)[9] | 13 |
| UK Singles (OCC)[4] | 16 |
References
edit- ^ Austin, William (1997). Sleeper: Burn All The Negatives (1st ed.). London: Chameleon Books. pp. 37–42. ISBN 0233991603.
- ^ Wener, Louise (1 December 1994). the album. GORGEOUS AND FULLY EQUIPPED fanzine. Retrieved 29 November 2018.
- ^ "New Releases: Singles". Music Week. 7 January 1995. p. 13.
- ^ a b "Official Singles Chart Top 100; 15 January 1995 – 21 January 1995". The Official Charts Company. Retrieved 29 November 2018.
- ^ Wener, Louise (2010). Different for Girls: A girl's own true-life adventures in pop (1st ed.). London: Ebury Press. ISBN 978-0091936518.
- ^ a b Sexton, Paul (11 February 1995). "Arista's Sleeper Awakens Interest; U.K. Group Seen as "International Band"". Billboard. Retrieved 29 November 2018.
- ^ "Does Rock 'N' Roll Kill Braincells?! – Louise Wener, Sleeper". 10 February 2019.
- ^ Trakin, Janet (1 May 1995). Power Pop Dreams. Hits magazine. Retrieved 26 November 2018.
- ^ "Official Scottish Singles Sales Chart Top 100; 15 January 1995 – 21 January 1995". The Official Charts Company. Retrieved 29 November 2018.
