Candy (Iggy Pop song)
Encyclopedia
"Candy" is a song by Iggy Pop
from his ninth solo album, Brick by Brick
. The song is a duet with Kate Pierson
of The B-52's
, and was released as the album's second single
in September 1990. The song became the biggest mainstream hit of Pop's career, as he reached the US Top 40 chart for the first and only time.
"Candy" was later included on the 1996 compilation Nude & Rude: The Best of Iggy Pop
, as well as the 2005 two-disc
greatest hits
collection, A Million in Prizes: The Anthology
.
Another interpretation of the song is that the male protagonist sings to a prostitute, who gave him "love for free," while the woman explains that she has grown tired of the men "down on the street", and that she just wants love, not games.
. It reached a peak at number 28 in February 1991. To date, it is Pop's only single to appear on the chart. The song was a top five modern rock hit, remaining on the Modern Rock Tracks chart for seventeen weeks. It also reached the top 30 of the Album Rock Tracks chart. Elsewhere, the single reached the top 10 in the Netherlands and Australia, peaking at numbers seven and nine, respectively. However, it was not as commercially successful in the United Kingdom, peaking at number 67.
In 2008, the song was ranked number seven in Spinner.com
's list of the ten best duets ever, and number fourteen in Retrocrush
's list of the 25 greatest duets of all time.
12" Vinyl / CD maxi (Europe)
10" Vinyl limited edition (UK)
7" Vinyl (Germany, France)
punk
band Killer Barbies
and German
rock music
ian Bela B.
in 2002 on Drakkar Records
.
The maxi-CD contains a comic book illustrated by German graphic artist
Schwarwel, titled "Tales of the Killer Barbies," in which Bela appears as Count Bela ("Der Graf" or in English, "The Count," a nickname for Bela).
The band's Sin Is In
album does not include the single version of the song; however, it does contain a John Fryer remix as well as the music video for "Candy."
Comic book version
Iggy Pop
Iggy Pop is an American singer, songwriter, musician, and actor. Though considered an innovator of punk rock, Pop's music has encompassed a number of styles over the years, including pop, metal, jazz and blues...
from his ninth solo album, Brick by Brick
Brick by Brick
Brick by Brick is an album released in June 1990 by the American singer Iggy Pop. After attracting mixed reviews for much of his 1980s output, Pop hired longtime Stooges fan Don Was as producer, who would later produce Avenue B, and opted for a hard-rock sound...
. The song is a duet with Kate Pierson
Kate Pierson
Catherine Elizabeth "Kate" Pierson is an American vocalist and one of the lead singers and founding members of The B-52's. One of the multi-instrumentalists in the band, Pierson played guitar, bass and various keyboard instruments...
of The B-52's
The B-52's
The B-52's are an American rock band, formed in Athens, Georgia in 1976. The original line-up consisted of Fred Schneider , Kate Pierson , Cindy Wilson , Ricky Wilson , and Keith Strickland . Following Ricky Wilson's death in 1985 Strickland switched to guitar...
, and was released as the album's second single
Single (music)
In music, a single or record single is a type of release, typically a recording of fewer tracks than an LP or a CD. This can be released for sale to the public in a variety of different formats. In most cases, the single is a song that is released separately from an album, but it can still appear...
in September 1990. The song became the biggest mainstream hit of Pop's career, as he reached the US Top 40 chart for the first and only time.
"Candy" was later included on the 1996 compilation Nude & Rude: The Best of Iggy Pop
Nude & Rude: The Best of Iggy Pop
Nude & Rude: The Best of Iggy Pop is a 1996 compilation album by Iggy Pop. It was followed by A Million in Prizes: The Anthology.-Track listing:# The Stooges - "I Wanna Be Your Dog"# The Stooges - "No Fun"...
, as well as the 2005 two-disc
Double album
A double album is an audio album which spans two units of the primary medium in which it is sold, typically records and compact discs....
greatest hits
Greatest hits
A greatest hits album is a music compilation album of successful, previously released songs by a particular artist or band...
collection, A Million in Prizes: The Anthology
A Million in Prizes: The Anthology
A Million in Prizes: The Anthology is a 2-disc greatest hits collection of Iggy Pop, released in 2005. It supersedes the compilation Nude & Rude: The Best of Iggy Pop. The title comes from the lyrics of "Lust for Life"...
.
Lyrics
In "Candy", the initial narrator is a man (Pop) who grieves over a lost love. Following the first chorus, the perspective of the woman (Pierson) is heard. She expresses, unbeknownst to the male, that she misses him as well. According to Pop, the lyrics refer to his teenage girlfriend, Betsy. Pop said:Another interpretation of the song is that the male protagonist sings to a prostitute, who gave him "love for free," while the woman explains that she has grown tired of the men "down on the street", and that she just wants love, not games.
Reception
In the United States, "Candy" debuted on November 24, 1990 at number 90 on the Billboard Hot 100Billboard Hot 100
The Billboard Hot 100 is the United States music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine. Chart rankings are based on radio play and sales; the tracking-week for sales begins on Monday and ends on Sunday, while the radio play tracking-week runs from Wednesday...
. It reached a peak at number 28 in February 1991. To date, it is Pop's only single to appear on the chart. The song was a top five modern rock hit, remaining on the Modern Rock Tracks chart for seventeen weeks. It also reached the top 30 of the Album Rock Tracks chart. Elsewhere, the single reached the top 10 in the Netherlands and Australia, peaking at numbers seven and nine, respectively. However, it was not as commercially successful in the United Kingdom, peaking at number 67.
In 2008, the song was ranked number seven in Spinner.com
Spinner.com
Spinner is an AOL Music property, which bills itself as "the ultimate music blog for free MP3s, free CD listening, [and] discovering new artists."...
's list of the ten best duets ever, and number fourteen in Retrocrush
Retrocrush
retroCRUSH has been a web site since March 2001 and is written and operated by Robert Berry. Known for its popular Halloween and scary movie content, galleries of "retro babes" , and thorough coverage of pop culture from many eras of American history, it carries the slogan "The World's Greatest...
's list of the 25 greatest duets of all time.
Track listings
CD Single (US)- "Candy" (single edit) — 4:02
- "Candy" (original single) — 4:19
- "Candy" (less guitar mix) — 4:16
12" Vinyl / CD maxi (Europe)
- "Candy" — 4:14
- "The Undefeated" (acoustic demo version) — 2:38
- "Butt Town" (acoustic demo version) — 2:32
10" Vinyl limited edition (UK)
- "Candy"
- "Pussy Power" (acoustic demo version)
- "My Baby Wants To Rock N' Roll" (acoustic demo version)
7" Vinyl (Germany, France)
- "Candy" — 4:14
- "Pussy Power" (acoustice demo version) — 2:38
Chart performance
| Chart (1990) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| U.S. Billboard Hot 100 | 28 |
| U.S. Billboard Modern Rock Tracks | 5 |
| U.S. Billboard Album Rock Tracks | 30 |
| Dutch Top 40 Dutch Top 40 The Dutch Top 40 is a weekly music chart, which started as the "Veronica Top 40", because the offshore radio station Radio Veronica was the first to introduce it. It remained "The Veronica Top 40" until 1974, when the station was forced to stop broadcasting... |
7 |
| Australian ARIA Singles Chart ARIA Charts The ARIA charts are the main Australian music sales charts, issued weekly by the Australian Recording Industry Association. The charts are a record of the highest selling singles and albums in various genres in Australia. ARIA commenced compiling its own charts in-house from the week ending 26 June... |
9 |
| UK Singles Chart UK Singles Chart The UK Singles Chart is compiled by The Official Charts Company on behalf of the British record-industry. The full chart contains the top selling 200 singles in the United Kingdom based upon combined record sales and download numbers, though some media outlets only list the Top 40 or the Top 75 ... |
67 |
Killer Barbies version
"Candy" was recorded and released as a single by the SpanishSpain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
punk
Punk rock
Punk rock is a rock music genre that developed between 1974 and 1976 in the United States, the United Kingdom, and Australia. Rooted in garage rock and other forms of what is now known as protopunk music, punk rock bands eschewed perceived excesses of mainstream 1970s rock...
band Killer Barbies
Killer Barbies
The Killer Barbies is a Spanish punk band fronted by singer/guitarist Silvia Superstar. After some success in Spain on the independent label Toxic Records, they got an international distribution through the German label Drakkar Records in 2000....
and German
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
rock music
Rock music
Rock music is a genre of popular music that developed during and after the 1960s, particularly in the United Kingdom and the United States. It has its roots in 1940s and 1950s rock and roll, itself heavily influenced by rhythm and blues and country music...
ian Bela B.
Bela B.
Dirk Felsenheimer , better known under his stage name Bela B., is a German musician, singer and songwriter. He is best known for being the drummer and one of the singers in the German band Die Ärzte. In 2006 he released his first solo album entitled Bingo. Bela B...
in 2002 on Drakkar Records
Drakkar Entertainment
Drakkar Entertainment GmbH, also called Drakkar Records or Drakkar Publishing, is a German record label with its headquarters in Witten. It is a joint venture with Bertelsmann Music Group.-History:...
.
The maxi-CD contains a comic book illustrated by German graphic artist
Graphic designer
A graphic designer is a professional within the graphic design and graphic arts industry who assembles together images, typography or motion graphics to create a piece of design. A graphic designer creates the graphics primarily for published, printed or electronic media, such as brochures and...
Schwarwel, titled "Tales of the Killer Barbies," in which Bela appears as Count Bela ("Der Graf" or in English, "The Count," a nickname for Bela).
The band's Sin Is In
Sin Is In
- Track listing :# "Down The Street" S. Garcia/A. Dominguez# "1000 Disparos" S. Garcia/A. Dominguez# "Feeling Alone" S. Garcia/A. Dominguez# "Tu y Yo" S. Garcia/A. Dominguez...
album does not include the single version of the song; however, it does contain a John Fryer remix as well as the music video for "Candy."
Video
Silvia finds a comic book from a stand, where Bela as Count Bela sings to her. She gets hooked on it and sits down to read it. However, her band mates follow her and she has to flee to read the comic book in peace. Later, Count Bela sings in the studio with her. Silvia is also seen as a comic book character.Track listings
- "Candy" feat. Bela B. (Iggy Pop) — 3:59
- "Candy" (Spanish version) (Iggy Pop) — 3:57
Comic book version
- "Candy" feat. Bela B. (Iggy Pop) — 3:59
- "Fui yo" (non-album track) (S. Garcia/A. Dominguez) — 3:29
- "Going Wild" (non-album track) (S. Garcia/A. Dominguez) — 3:11
- "Candy" (Spanish version) feat. Bela B. (Iggy Pop) — 3:57
Other versions
- Heavy metalHeavy metal musicHeavy metal is a genre of rock music that developed in the late 1960s and early 1970s, largely in the Midlands of the United Kingdom and the United States...
band Impaler, with singer Cindi St. Germain, recorded a spoken wordSpoken wordSpoken word is a form of poetry that often uses alliterated prose or verse and occasionally uses metered verse to express social commentary. Traditionally it is in the first person, is from the poet’s point of view and is themed in current events....
version of the song for the 1998 tribute albumTribute albumA tribute album is a recorded collection of cover versions of songs or instrumental compositions. Its concept may be either various artists making a tribute to a single artist, a single artist making a tribute to various artists, or a single artist making a tribute to another single artist.There...
, Pop O.D.: The Songs of Iggy Pop. - Polish rock band HeyHey (band)Hey is a Polish rock band founded in Szczecin in 1991 by guitarist Piotr Banach and lead singer Kasia Nosowska. It is one of the most popular Polish music acts of the 1990s....
recorded a live version of the song for their album MTV Unplugged. It was performed by band's female singer Kasia NosowskaKasia NosowskaKatarzyna Nosowska is the lead singer of the Polish rock band Hey. She is also known for her solo career, which in contrast to Hey's guitar-driven rock delves more into electronica...
and Jacek "Budyń" Szymkiewicz from band Pogodno on male vocals.