Crazy (Seal song)
Encyclopedia
"Crazy" is a song written by English
soul
artist Seal
(music and lyrics) and producer Guy Sigsworth
(music only). The song was produced by Trevor Horn
for Seal's debut album Seal
(1991). Seal's debut single
, "Crazy" is one of his biggest hits, reaching the top five in the United Kingdom
and the top ten in the United States
. It since has been covered by several artists, including Alanis Morissette
, whose version was released as a single from her album The Collection
(2005) and the British metal band Panic Cell.
-heavy beats and wah-wah pedal
guitars. Its floating, ambient stylings established a sound years before "The Politics of Dancing" by Paul Van Dyk
or William Orbit
's work with Madonna
and All Saints
. Orbit produced a remix of the track for the single release. Seal's vocals are deeply melodic and soulful, at times with a characteristic rasp, while at others soaring high above the backing track.
In the United Kingdom
the song was released as the first single from the album Seal in November 1990 (see 1990 in music
) and peaked at number two on the UK Singles Chart
in January 1991 and is Seal's biggest solo hit there. The single sold over 200,000 copies, thus earning a BPI
Silver certification. It won Seal a number of awards including the 1992 Ivor Novello award for songwriting.
The single was released in the United States in 1991, debuting at number eighty-three on the Billboard Hot 100
in mid-June; it peaked at number seven in late August and remained on the chart for nineteen weeks, until October. It reached the top five on the Modern Rock Tracks
chart and the top twenty on the Hot Dance Music/Maxi-Singles Sales chart. It was the most commercially successful single from Seal and was Seal's biggest hit in the U.S. until "Kiss from a Rose
", which reached #1 in 1995. In August 2003 an acoustic version of "Crazy" charted at number four on Billboards Hot Digital Tracks
chart.
The single's music video
, directed by Big TV!, features multiple re-creations of Seal himself performing the song against a white background. A female dancer appears just before the bridge
of the song, and at the end Seal holds a dove while snow falls on him.
The song is heard in a Baywatch
episode, in the trailer for the film The Basketball Diaries
(1995) and featured in a scene in Spike Lee
's Clockers (1995). It is also heard in the middle of "True Calling," the second episode of Season 6 of TV's Cold Case. It was also used as a theme song for the ABC-TV series Murder One
(1995–96).
Seal is seen singing this song on an episode of the ABC
series Eli Stone
.
The middle break of the song In a Sky Full of People, Only some want to fly, isn't that Crazy? is repeated towards the end of Seal's 1996 hit "Fly Like an Eagle (song)
".
The song is the fourth track on Just Say Anything, volume five of the Just Say Yes collection.
The hard rock band Talisman
covered the song on their 1996 album Life
, and a version by power metal band Iron Savior
is included as a bonus track on their 2002 album Condition Red
.
British heavy metal band Panic Cell covered the song for their 2010 album Fire It Up. They have also been performing it live at various live shows. It has also been announced that the song will be the first single taken from the new album.
The Greek
artist Helena Paparizou, best known for winning the Eurovision Song Contest 2005
, covered the song in her album Iparhi Logos released in 2006.
Two cover versions were released in 2003: one by punk covers band Me First and the Gimme Gimmes
on their 2003 album Take a Break, and another by alternative metal band Mushroomhead
as a hidden track on their 2003 album XIII
. In 2004, the song was covered by Brooklyn Bounce
.
The song is also a staple cover during live performances by New York City based jamband U-Melt.
Indie rock band Yeasayer
performed it on Triple J
in their Like a Version
segment on Friday February 11, 2011.
Alanis Morissette
covered this song in 2005, released as a Maxi-single with two versions.
World Championship Wrestling
used a version of this song for The Outsiders theme and for the 1996 WCW Fall Brawl
.
An animated seal sings this song at a party in the animated movie Robbie the Reindeer
: Hooves of Fire
.
CD Maxi-Single
7"
covered the song for a Gap
advertisement in 2005, and a James Michael-produced remix
of her version, which was originally produced by Morissette's longtime collaborator Glen Ballard
, was released as a single from her greatest hits
album Alanis Morissette: The Collection
(2005). Her version is briefly heard over an establishing shot
of Central Park
in the 2006 film The Devil Wears Prada
. Morissette said of the cover, "it's poking fun - not only at how I've been perceived but also at what I've accurately been perceived as." She called the main line in the song, "You're never going to survive/Unless you get a little crazy", "one of the simplest, yet most profound statements."
), Morissette's cover was less successful than Seal's original; it failed to chart on the Hot 100, instead debuting and peaking at number four on the Bubbling Under Hot 100 Singles
chart (which comprises the most popular songs yet to enter the Hot 100) in late November. It was another top ten hit for Morissette on the Adult Top 40 chart and was popular in nightclub
s, becoming Morissette's second top ten Hot Dance Club Play
hit after "Eight Easy Steps
" (2004). It reached number twenty-nine in Canada
and the top forty across much of Continental Europe
, but in the United Kingdom
it became Morissette's lowest peaking single, reaching sixty-five.
2. "Crazy" (Eddie Baez Coo Coo Club Mix)(Edit)
3. "Crazy" (Monk Mix Of Meds) (Edit)
4. "Crazy" (Interstate Mix) (Edit)
, who directed the video for Morissette's "Everything" (2004), and shot in Los Angeles
, California
in the week ending 24 September. In it Morissette is seen walking the streets at night, performing the song in a club and obsessively following a man (played by Chris William Martin
) and his girlfriend. Eventually, Morissette confronts the man at a party. During an 22 October appearance on the UK television show popworld
, Morissette said the video's final shot, which is of a photo showing her and the woman close together, is supposed to reveal to the audience (who, before this point, are meant to believe the man is her ex-boyfriend) that she was actually following the woman.
Maxi Single
Single
English people
The English are a nation and ethnic group native to England, who speak English. The English identity is of early mediaeval origin, when they were known in Old English as the Anglecynn. England is now a country of the United Kingdom, and the majority of English people in England are British Citizens...
soul
Soul music
Soul music is a music genre originating in the United States combining elements of gospel music and rhythm and blues. According to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, soul is "music that arose out of the black experience in America through the transmutation of gospel and rhythm & blues into a form of...
artist Seal
Seal (musician)
Seal Henry Olusegun Olumide Adeola Samuel , known simply as Seal, is a British soul and R&B singer-songwriter, of Nigerian and Brazilian background. Seal has won numerous music awards throughout his career, including three Brit Awards—winning Best British Male in 1992, four Grammy Awards, and an...
(music and lyrics) and producer Guy Sigsworth
Guy Sigsworth
Guy Sigsworth is a U.K. based composer, producer and songwriter. In his career to date he has worked with many famous artists, including Seal, Björk, Goldie, Madonna, Britney Spears, Kate Havnevik, Bebel Gilberto, Mozez, David Sylvian and Alanis Morissette...
(music only). The song was produced by Trevor Horn
Trevor Horn
Trevor Charles Horn CBE is an English pop music record producer, songwriter, musician and singer. He was born in Houghton-le-Spring in north-east England....
for Seal's debut album Seal
Seal (1991 album)
Seal is Seal's eponymous 1991 debut album and contained the UK singles: "Killer" , "Crazy", "Future Love Paradise", "The Beginning" and "Violet"...
(1991). Seal's debut 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...
, "Crazy" is one of his biggest hits, reaching the top five in the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
and the top ten in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. It since has been covered by several artists, including Alanis Morissette
Alanis Morissette
Alanis Nadine Morissette is a Canadian-American singer-songwriter, guitarist, record producer, and actress. She has won 16 Juno Awards and seven Grammy Awards, was nominated for two Golden Globe Awards and also shortlisted for an Academy Award nomination...
, whose version was released as a single from her album The Collection
Alanis Morissette: The Collection
- Album :- Single :- External links :*...
(2005) and the British metal band Panic Cell.
Style and success
The song's signature is a keyboard mantra that continually swells and swirls, driven by bassBass guitar
The bass guitar is a stringed instrument played primarily with the fingers or thumb , or by using a pick....
-heavy beats and wah-wah pedal
Wah-wah pedal
A wah-wah pedal is a type of guitar effects pedal that alters the tone of the signal to create a distinctive effect, mimicking the human voice...
guitars. Its floating, ambient stylings established a sound years before "The Politics of Dancing" by Paul Van Dyk
Paul van Dyk
Matthias Paul, better known by his stage name Paul van Dyk is a German Grammy Award-winning Electronic Dance Music DJ, musician and record producer...
or William Orbit
William Orbit
William Orbit is an English musician, composer and record producer, perhaps best known to most for his work on Madonna's album Ray of Light. He has also co-produced several unreleased Madonna songs originally recorded for other albums...
's work with Madonna
Madonna (entertainer)
Madonna is an American singer-songwriter, actress and entrepreneur. Born in Bay City, Michigan, she moved to New York City in 1977 to pursue a career in modern dance. After performing in the music groups Breakfast Club and Emmy, she released her debut album in 1983...
and All Saints
All Saints (band)
All Saints were a British/Canadian girl group. Founded in 1993 as All Saints 1.9.7.5, the group consisted of founding members Melanie Blatt and Shaznay Lewis, and sisters Nicole Appleton and Natalie Appleton...
. Orbit produced a remix of the track for the single release. Seal's vocals are deeply melodic and soulful, at times with a characteristic rasp, while at others soaring high above the backing track.
In the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
the song was released as the first single from the album Seal in November 1990 (see 1990 in music
1990 in music
This is a list of notable events in music that took place in the year 1990.-Events:*January 21 – MTV's Unplugged premieres on cable television with British band Squeeze...
) and peaked at number two on the 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 ...
in January 1991 and is Seal's biggest solo hit there. The single sold over 200,000 copies, thus earning a BPI
British Phonographic Industry
The British Phonographic Industry is the British record industry's trade association.-Structure:Its membership comprises hundreds of music companies including all four "major" record companies , associate members such as manufacturers and distributors, and hundreds of independent music companies...
Silver certification. It won Seal a number of awards including the 1992 Ivor Novello award for songwriting.
The single was released in the United States in 1991, debuting at number eighty-three on the Billboard Hot 100
Billboard 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...
in mid-June; it peaked at number seven in late August and remained on the chart for nineteen weeks, until October. It reached the top five on the Modern Rock Tracks
Modern Rock Tracks
Alternative Songs is a music chart in the United States that has appeared in Billboard magazine since September 10, 1988. It lists the 40 most-played songs on modern rock radio stations, most of which are alternative rock songs...
chart and the top twenty on the Hot Dance Music/Maxi-Singles Sales chart. It was the most commercially successful single from Seal and was Seal's biggest hit in the U.S. until "Kiss from a Rose
Kiss from a Rose
"Kiss from a Rose" is a song from Seal's second eponymous album Seal . The song was first released as a single in July 1994. Re-released in 1995, it was included on the Batman Forever film soundtrack, helping it top the charts in the U.S. and Australia. It took the 1996 Grammy Awards for both...
", which reached #1 in 1995. In August 2003 an acoustic version of "Crazy" charted at number four on Billboards Hot Digital Tracks
Hot Digital Tracks
The Hot Digital Tracks chart is a song popularity chart that ranks the best selling digital tracks in the United States according to Billboard magazine...
chart.
The single's music video
Music video
A music video or song video is a short film integrating a song and imagery, produced for promotional or artistic purposes. Modern music videos are primarily made and used as a marketing device intended to promote the sale of music recordings...
, directed by Big TV!, features multiple re-creations of Seal himself performing the song against a white background. A female dancer appears just before the bridge
Bridge (music)
In music, especially western popular music, a bridge is a contrasting section which also prepares for the return of the original material section...
of the song, and at the end Seal holds a dove while snow falls on him.
The song is heard in a Baywatch
Baywatch
Baywatch is an American action drama series about the Los Angeles County Lifeguards who patrol the beaches of Los Angeles County, California, starring David Hasselhoff. The show ran in its original title and format from 1989 to 1999, sans the 1990-1991 season, of which it was not in production...
episode, in the trailer for the film The Basketball Diaries
The Basketball Diaries
The Basketball Diaries is a 1978 memoir written by author and musician Jim Carroll. It is an edited collection of the diaries he kept between the ages of twelve and sixteen...
(1995) and featured in a scene in Spike Lee
Spike Lee
Shelton Jackson "Spike" Lee is an American film director, producer, writer, and actor. His production company, 40 Acres & A Mule Filmworks, has produced over 35 films since 1983....
's Clockers (1995). It is also heard in the middle of "True Calling," the second episode of Season 6 of TV's Cold Case. It was also used as a theme song for the ABC-TV series Murder One
Murder One (TV series)
Murder One is an American legal drama series that first aired on the ABC network in the United States in 1995. The series was created by Steven Bochco, Charles H. Eglee, and Channing Gibson.-Premise:...
(1995–96).
Seal is seen singing this song on an episode of the ABC
American Broadcasting Company
The American Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network. Created in 1943 from the former NBC Blue radio network, ABC is owned by The Walt Disney Company and is part of Disney-ABC Television Group. Its first broadcast on television was in 1948...
series Eli Stone
Eli Stone
Eli Stone is an American TV series, and also the name of the title character.San Francisco lawyer Eli Stone begins to see things, which leads him to discover a brain aneurysm...
.
The middle break of the song In a Sky Full of People, Only some want to fly, isn't that Crazy? is repeated towards the end of Seal's 1996 hit "Fly Like an Eagle (song)
Fly Like an Eagle (song)
"Fly Like an Eagle" is a song written by Steve Miller and by Steve Miller Band guitarist Steve McCarty on the album Fly Like an Eagle. The song went to number 2 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart during the week of January 8, 1977. The single edit can be found on Greatest Hits . The song has an...
".
The song is the fourth track on Just Say Anything, volume five of the Just Say Yes collection.
Cover versions
Most recently, indie rock/pop artist Brian Eaton covered the song on his 2011 album "Graphic Nature."The hard rock band Talisman
Talisman (band)
Talisman was a Swedish hard rock band characterized by an international melodic/powerful sound.-1980s - Getting together:Talisman was formed by bass player Marcel Jacob, who had previously played with Rising Force, John Norum Group and Power.While Jacob was playing with John Norum, he started...
covered the song on their 1996 album Life
Life (Talisman album)
Life was the 4th studio album by hard rock band Talisman released on 23 August 1995 on Polydor Records.This album was written in Jeff Scott Soto's house over a couple weeks time in March 1995...
, and a version by power metal band Iron Savior
Iron Savior
Iron Savior is a German power metal band that formed in Hamburg, Germany in 1996. Following a period of several years working behind the scenes in music production, multi-instrumentalist and producer/engineer Piet Sielck joined with former Helloween bandmate Kai Hansen and then-drummer for Blind...
is included as a bonus track on their 2002 album Condition Red
Condition Red (album)
Condition Red is the fourth studio album by the German power metal band Iron Savior. It continues the science fiction story that the band introduced on their debut album Iron Savior and continued on Unification, the Interlude EP, and Dark Assault.- Track listing :- Personnel :Iron Savior* Piet...
.
British heavy metal band Panic Cell covered the song for their 2010 album Fire It Up. They have also been performing it live at various live shows. It has also been announced that the song will be the first single taken from the new album.
The Greek
Greeks
The Greeks, also known as the Hellenes , are a nation and ethnic group native to Greece, Cyprus and neighboring regions. They also form a significant diaspora, with Greek communities established around the world....
artist Helena Paparizou, best known for winning the Eurovision Song Contest 2005
Eurovision Song Contest 2005
The Eurovision Song Contest 2005 was the 50th Eurovision Song Contest, which was held at the Palace of Sports, Kiev, Ukraine. The winner was Greece's My Number One, written by Christos Dantis and Natalia Germanou and performed by Swedish-born Greek singer Elena Paparizou, who scored 230 points,...
, covered the song in her album Iparhi Logos released in 2006.
Two cover versions were released in 2003: one by punk covers band Me First and the Gimme Gimmes
Me First and the Gimme Gimmes
Me First and the Gimme Gimmes is a punk rock supergroup and cover band that formed in 1995. The Gimmes work exclusively as a cover band. The band is named after a children's book of the same name by Gerald G. Jampolsky and Diane V. Cirincione...
on their 2003 album Take a Break, and another by alternative metal band Mushroomhead
Mushroomhead
Mushroomhead is an American industrial metal band from Cleveland, Ohio. Formed in 1993 in Cleveland Warehouse District, the band's music can be described as a synthesis of alternative music, heavy metal, and electro-industrial...
as a hidden track on their 2003 album XIII
XIII (album)
XIII is the fifth major label album by industrial metal band Mushroomhead, released in 2003. The album debuted at No. 40 on the Billboard 200 and sold 400,000 copies worldwide...
. In 2004, the song was covered by Brooklyn Bounce
Brooklyn Bounce
Brooklyn Bounce is one of several pseudonyms used by German trance producers Matthias Menck and Dennis Bohn . They have also produced music under the names Mental Madness Productions and Beatbox feat. Rael...
.
The song is also a staple cover during live performances by New York City based jamband U-Melt.
Indie rock band Yeasayer
Yeasayer
-History:The band's three core members, Chris Keating, Ira Wolf Tuton, and Anand Wilder, first came to attention after appearing at the SXSW festival in early 2007. Their first single consisted of a double A-side of the tracks "Sunrise" and "2080"...
performed it on Triple J
Triple J
triple j is a nationally networked Australian radio station intended to appeal to listeners between the ages of 18 and 30. The government-funded station is a division of the Australian Broadcasting Corporation...
in their Like a Version
Like A Version
Like a Version is a segment on the Australian radio station Triple J. It was created by Mel Bampton as part of the Mel in the Morning program. Currently the segment pops up whenever artists are available and willing to do it, though mainly on the Breakfast show...
segment on Friday February 11, 2011.
Alanis Morissette
Alanis Morissette
Alanis Nadine Morissette is a Canadian-American singer-songwriter, guitarist, record producer, and actress. She has won 16 Juno Awards and seven Grammy Awards, was nominated for two Golden Globe Awards and also shortlisted for an Academy Award nomination...
covered this song in 2005, released as a Maxi-single with two versions.
World Championship Wrestling
World Championship Wrestling
World Championship Wrestling, Inc. was an American professional wrestling promotion which existed from 1988 to 2001. Based in Atlanta, Georgia, it began as a regional promotion affiliated with the National Wrestling Alliance , named Jim Crockett Promotions until November 1988, when Ted Turner and...
used a version of this song for The Outsiders theme and for the 1996 WCW Fall Brawl
Fall Brawl
Fall Brawl was an annual pay-per-view in World Championship Wrestling held in the month of September from 1993 through 2000. The name was derived from the fall edition of Clash of the Champions, called "Fall Brawl"...
.
An animated seal sings this song at a party in the animated movie Robbie the Reindeer
Robbie the Reindeer
Robbie the Reindeer is a series of three animated comedy television specials shown on BBC One at Christmas, filmed in aid of Comic Relief. Written by Kevin Cecil and Andy Riley, the programmes are based on the story of Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer, with Robbie as Rudolph's son and the tenth of...
: Hooves of Fire
Hooves of Fire
Hooves of Fire is one of three animated BBC Christmas comedy television specials, filmed using stop motion techniques, and presented in aid of Comic Relief.- Story :...
.
Track listing
CD- "Crazy" — 4:30
- "Crazy" (extended version) — 5:59
- "Krazy" — 6:26 (producers: Trevor HornTrevor HornTrevor Charles Horn CBE is an English pop music record producer, songwriter, musician and singer. He was born in Houghton-le-Spring in north-east England....
, Tim SimenonTim SimenonTim Simenon is a musician, composer, record producer, and label boss, most famous for his work as Bomb the Bass.-Debut:Tim Simenon's music career began aproper in the mid 1980s, DJing at London's Wag Club...
)
CD Maxi-Single
- "Crazy" (7" Mix) — 4:30
- "Crazy" (William Orbit Mix) — 5:25
- "Crazy" (Acoustic Version / Instrumental Version) — 6:57
- "Crazy" (A Cappella Mix) — 3:27
- "Sparkle" (Extended Version) — 6:23
- "Krazy" — 6:27
- "Crazy" (Do You Know The Way To L.A. Mix) — 3:50
- "Crazy" (Chick On My Tip Mix) — 6:47
7"
- "Crazy" — 4:30
- "Sparkle" — 3:36
Peak positions
| Chart (1991) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Australian ARIA Singles Chart | 9 |
| Austrian Singles Chart | 5 |
| Canadian Singles Chart RPM (magazine) RPM was a Canadian music industry publication that featured song and album charts for Canada. The publication was founded by Walt Grealis in February 1964, supported through its existence by record label owner Stan Klees. RPM ceased publication in November 2000.RPM stood for "Records, Promotion,... |
9 |
| 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... |
1 |
| Eurochart Hot 100 | 1 |
| French SNEP Singles Chart | 5 |
| German Singles Chart | 2 |
| Irish Singles Chart | 6 |
| Italian Singles Chart | 9 |
| New Zealand Singles Chart | 8 |
| Norwegian Singles Chart | 3 |
| Swedish Singles Chart | 1 |
| Swiss Singles Chart | 1 |
| 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 ... |
2 |
| U.S. Billboard Hot 100 Billboard 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... |
7 |
| U.S. Billboard Modern Rock Tracks Modern Rock Tracks Alternative Songs is a music chart in the United States that has appeared in Billboard magazine since September 10, 1988. It lists the 40 most-played songs on modern rock radio stations, most of which are alternative rock songs... |
5 |
| U.S. Billboard Hot Dance Music/Maxi-Singles Sales | 17 |
| Chart (2003) | Peak position |
| U.S. Billboard Hot Digital Tracks Hot Digital Tracks The Hot Digital Tracks chart is a song popularity chart that ranks the best selling digital tracks in the United States according to Billboard magazine... |
4 |
End of year charts
| End of year chart (1991) | Position |
|---|---|
| Australian Singles Chart | 46 |
| Austrian Singles Chart | 19 |
| 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... |
5 |
| Swiss Singles Chart | 5 |
| UK Singles Chart | 38 |
| U.S. Billboard Hot 100 | 75 |
Chart successions
Background
Alanis MorissetteAlanis Morissette
Alanis Nadine Morissette is a Canadian-American singer-songwriter, guitarist, record producer, and actress. She has won 16 Juno Awards and seven Grammy Awards, was nominated for two Golden Globe Awards and also shortlisted for an Academy Award nomination...
covered the song for a Gap
Gap (clothing retailer)
The Gap, Inc. is an American clothing and accessories retailer based in San Francisco, California, and founded in 1969 by Donald G. Fisher and Doris F. Fisher. The company has five primary brands: the namesake Gap banner, Banana Republic, Old Navy, Piperlime and Athleta. As of September 2008,...
advertisement in 2005, and a James Michael-produced remix
Remix
A remix is an alternative version of a recorded song, made from an original version. This term is also used for any alterations of media other than song ....
of her version, which was originally produced by Morissette's longtime collaborator Glen Ballard
Glen Ballard
Glen Ballard is an American songwriter and record producer, best known for co-writing and producing Alanis Morissette's Jagged Little Pill , which won Grammy Award for "Best Rock Album", and "Album of the Year" amongst others, and is ranked by the Rolling Stone amongst The 500 Greatest Albums of...
, was released as a single from her greatest hits
Greatest hits
A greatest hits album is a music compilation album of successful, previously released songs by a particular artist or band...
album Alanis Morissette: The Collection
Alanis Morissette: The Collection
- Album :- Single :- External links :*...
(2005). Her version is briefly heard over an establishing shot
Establishing shot
An establishing shot in filmmaking and television production sets up, or establishes the context for a scene by showing the relationship between its important figures and objects...
of Central Park
Central Park
Central Park is a public park in the center of Manhattan in New York City, United States. The park initially opened in 1857, on of city-owned land. In 1858, Frederick Law Olmsted and Calvert Vaux won a design competition to improve and expand the park with a plan they entitled the Greensward Plan...
in the 2006 film The Devil Wears Prada
The Devil Wears Prada (film)
The Devil Wears Prada is a 2006 comedy-drama film, a loose screen adaptation of Lauren Weisberger's 2003 novel of the same name. It stars Anne Hathaway as Andrea Sachs, a recent college graduate who goes to New York City and gets a job as a co-assistant to powerful and demanding fashion magazine...
. Morissette said of the cover, "it's poking fun - not only at how I've been perceived but also at what I've accurately been perceived as." She called the main line in the song, "You're never going to survive/Unless you get a little crazy", "one of the simplest, yet most profound statements."
Chart performances
Released in the U.S. in mid-October 2005 (see 2005 in music2005 in music
-Events:*During the year 2005, 12 rock music albums scored number 1 in the USA. This was the first time even ten albums have scored number 1 since 1996.-January:...
), Morissette's cover was less successful than Seal's original; it failed to chart on the Hot 100, instead debuting and peaking at number four on the Bubbling Under Hot 100 Singles
Bubbling Under Hot 100 Singles
The Bubbling Under Hot 100 Singles is a chart published weekly by Billboard magazine in the United States. It lists the top 25 singles below number 100 that have not yet charted on the Billboard Hot 100. Sometimes, however, singles halt their progress on this chart, and never appear on the Hot 100...
chart (which comprises the most popular songs yet to enter the Hot 100) in late November. It was another top ten hit for Morissette on the Adult Top 40 chart and was popular in nightclub
Nightclub
A nightclub is an entertainment venue which usually operates late into the night...
s, becoming Morissette's second top ten Hot Dance Club Play
Hot Dance Club Play
The Hot Dance Club Songs chart is a weekly national survey of the songs that are most popular in U.S. dance clubs...
hit after "Eight Easy Steps
Eight Easy Steps
"Eight Easy Steps" is a rock song written by Alanis Morissette for her sixth studio album So-Called Chaos. The album's opening track, it was released in 2004 as the So-Called Chaoss third single...
" (2004). It reached number twenty-nine in Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
and the top forty across much of Continental Europe
Continental Europe
Continental Europe, also referred to as mainland Europe or simply the Continent, is the continent of Europe, explicitly excluding European islands....
, but in the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
it became Morissette's lowest peaking single, reaching sixty-five.
Maxi Single track listing
1. "Crazy" (Claude Le Gache Club Mix) (Edit)2. "Crazy" (Eddie Baez Coo Coo Club Mix)(Edit)
3. "Crazy" (Monk Mix Of Meds) (Edit)
4. "Crazy" (Interstate Mix) (Edit)
Music video
The single's video was directed by Meiert AvisMeiert Avis
Meiert Avis is an Irish music video and commercial director. Avis has directed videos for artists such as Bob Dylan, Bruce Springsteen, U2, Avril Lavigne, Jennifer Lopez, New Found Glory and Josh Groban amongst many others....
, who directed the video for Morissette's "Everything" (2004), and shot in Los Angeles
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
, California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
in the week ending 24 September. In it Morissette is seen walking the streets at night, performing the song in a club and obsessively following a man (played by Chris William Martin
Chris William Martin
Chris William Martin , also known as Corky Martin, is a Gemini Award-nominated Canadian actor...
) and his girlfriend. Eventually, Morissette confronts the man at a party. During an 22 October appearance on the UK television show popworld
Popworld
Popworld was a British television programme that was broadcast on Channel 4, offering pop news, trivia, gossip, interviews and music videos, as well as musical performances from the most recent top artists....
, Morissette said the video's final shot, which is of a photo showing her and the woman close together, is supposed to reveal to the audience (who, before this point, are meant to believe the man is her ex-boyfriend) that she was actually following the woman.
Remixes
- "Crazy" (Glen BallardGlen BallardGlen Ballard is an American songwriter and record producer, best known for co-writing and producing Alanis Morissette's Jagged Little Pill , which won Grammy Award for "Best Rock Album", and "Album of the Year" amongst others, and is ranked by the Rolling Stone amongst The 500 Greatest Albums of...
mix) - "Crazy" (Tony KanalTony KanalTony Kanal is an English musician, record producer and songwriter. Kanal is the bassist for the American rock band No Doubt...
mix) - "Crazy" (Claude Le Gache club mix)
- "Crazy" (Claude Le Gache club edit)
- "Crazy" (Eddie Baez coo coo club mix)
- "Crazy" (Eddie Baez coo coo club edit)
- "Crazy" (Monk's mix of meds)
- "Crazy" (Monk's mix of meds edit)
- "Crazy" (Interstate full length mix)
- "Crazy" (Interstate full length mix)
- "Crazy" (Claude Le Gache mixshow)
- "Crazy" (William OrbitWilliam OrbitWilliam Orbit is an English musician, composer and record producer, perhaps best known to most for his work on Madonna's album Ray of Light. He has also co-produced several unreleased Madonna songs originally recorded for other albums...
Mix) - "Crazy" (MushroomheadMushroomheadMushroomhead is an American industrial metal band from Cleveland, Ohio. Formed in 1993 in Cleveland Warehouse District, the band's music can be described as a synthesis of alternative music, heavy metal, and electro-industrial...
Heavy metal tribute)
Singles
Brazilian Digital Single (UOL Megastore)Maxi Single
| "Crazy" (Claude Le Gache Club Mix) (Edit) |
| "Crazy" (EddieEdit) Baez Coo Coo Club Mix) |
| "Crazy" (Monk Mix Of Meds) (Edit) |
| "Crazy" (Interstate Mix) (Edit) |
Single
Charts
| Chart (2005) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Canada Top 50 Singles | 29 |
| U.S. Billboard Bubbling Under Hot 100 Singles Bubbling Under Hot 100 Singles The Bubbling Under Hot 100 Singles is a chart published weekly by Billboard magazine in the United States. It lists the top 25 singles below number 100 that have not yet charted on the Billboard Hot 100. Sometimes, however, singles halt their progress on this chart, and never appear on the Hot 100... |
4 |
| U.S. Billboard Pop 100 Pop 100 The Pop 100 was a songs chart that debuted in February 2005 and was released weekly by Billboard magazine in the United States until its discontinuation in 2009... |
95 |
| U.S. Billboard Adult Top 40 | 10 |
| Italy Top 50 Singles | 3 |
| Austria Top 75 Singles | 20 |
| Czech republic Singles Chart | 22 |
| Switzerland Top 100 Singles | 31 |
| Germany Top 100 Singles | 38 |
| Sweden Top 60 Singles | 57 |
| UK Top 75 Singles | 65 |
| Chart (2006) | Peak position |
| U.S. Billboard Hot Dance Club Play Hot Dance Club Play The Hot Dance Club Songs chart is a weekly national survey of the songs that are most popular in U.S. dance clubs... |
6 |