"Under the God" is the first official single released by Anglo-American hard rock band Tin Machine, taken from their eponymous debut album in June 1989.
| "Under the God" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Single by Tin Machine | ||||
| from the album Tin Machine | ||||
| B-side | "Sacrifice Yourself" | |||
| Released | June 1989 | |||
| Recorded | Montreux; Nassau, August 1988 - early 1989 | |||
| Genre | Rock | |||
| Length | 4:06 | |||
| Label | EMI | |||
| Songwriter(s) | David Bowie | |||
| Producer(s) | ||||
| Tin Machine singles chronology | ||||
| ||||
Song information
edit"Under the God", which came from a demo originally called "Night Train", was a song that excoriated Neo-Nazism.[1]
Although "Heaven's in Here" was actually the album's first single, it was only released promotionally, which made "Under the God" the first official single, released after the album was already available.[2]
Critical reception
editJerry Smith, reviewer of British music newspaper Music Week, reviewed the single positively, saying that it reminds him of Bowie's "Panic in Detroit" and expressed the assurance that it "should ignite the charts".[3]
Music video
editThe band elected not to create music videos for the album's singles, and instead created a 13-track megamix video for the entire album. The video, directed by Julien Temple, presented edits of each song in vignette form, and included "Under the God" masqueraded as a performance, with the audience storming the stage.[4]
Live performances
edit"Under the God" was performed live on both the 1989 Tin Machine Tour and 1991-92's It's My Life Tour. A live performance of the song, recorded in Sapporo, Japan in 1992, was included on the live album Tin Machine Live: Oy Vey, Baby (1992).
Track listing
edit- 7" version
- "Under the God" (Bowie) – 4:06
- "Sacrifice Yourself" (Bowie, Sales, Sales) – 2:08
- 10"/12"/CD version
- "Under the God" (Bowie) – 4:06
- "Sacrifice Yourself" (Bowie, Sales, Sales) – 2:08
- "The Interview" (An interview with the band) – 12:23
Credits and personnel
editProducers
Musicians
- David Bowie – lead vocals, rhythm guitar
- Reeves Gabrels – lead guitar
- Hunt Sales – drums, backing vocals
- Tony Sales – bass guitar, backing vocals
Chart performance
edit| Chart (1989) | Position |
|---|---|
| Australian Singles Chart[5] | 97 |
| UK Singles Chart[6] | 51 |
| US Billboard Alternative Songs[7] | 4 |
| US Mainstream Rock[8] | 8 |
References
edit- ^ O'Leary, Chris (2019). Ashes to Ashes The Songs of David Bowie 1976–2016. Repeater Books. ISBN 9781912248308.
- ^ Pegg, Nicholas (October 2016). "The Complete David Bowie New Edition: Expanded and Updated". Titan Books.
- ^ Smith, Jerry (24 June 1989). "Review: Tin Machine – Under the God" (PDF). Music Week. London: Spotlight Publications Ltd. p. 25. ISSN 0265-1548. Archived from the original (PDF) on 29 October 2021. Retrieved 20 February 2022 – via World Radio History.
- ^ McLennan, Scott (3 June 2019). "David Bowie & I: Socks, Sax & Sex Shops". Retrieved 6 June 2019.
- ^ Scott, Gavin. "This Week In 1989: July 30, 1989". chartbeats.com.au. Retrieved 1 August 2019.
- ^ "Official Charts > Tin Machine". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 1 August 2019.
- ^ https://www.billboard.com/artist/tin-machine/chart-history/alternative-songs
- ^ "Album Search for "tin machine"". AllMusic.
Notes
edit- Pegg, Nicholas, The Complete David Bowie, Reynolds & Hearn Ltd, 2000, ISBN 1-903111-14-5