"Female of the Species" is a song by the English rock band Space, released as their fourth single, and second single proper from their debut album Spiders

Spiders (album)

Spiders is the debut album by Space, released on September 16, 1996, peaking at #5 in the UK album charts and later going platinum. "Money", "Kill Me", "Neighbourhood", "Female of the Species", "Me and You Versus the World" and "Dark Clouds" were released as singles.-Track listing:# "Neighbourhood"...

on May 27, 1996, reaching #14 in the UK charts. It was the band's only entry on any music chart in the U.S. when it peaked at #15 on the Hot 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 in late 1996.

A live staple since pre-Spiders concerts, Female of the Species, their most well-known song, has brought them critical and commercial attention.

About the song

Written and sung by frontman Tommy Scott in tribute to his late father, who was reported to dislike his son's taste of music, "Female of the Species" is a funky, upbeat Latin-flavoured number with feel-good sounding vibes and vocals reminiscent of lounge singers

Lounge music

Lounge music is a retrospective description of music popular in the 1950s and 1960s. It is a type of mood music meant to evoke in the listeners the feeling of being in a place — a jungle, an island paradise, outer space, et cetera — other than where they are listening to it...

 such as Perry Como

Perry Como

Pierino Ronald "Perry" Como was an American singer and television personality. During a career spanning more than half a century he recorded exclusively for the RCA Victor label after signing with them in 1943. "Mr...

 and Frank Sinatra

Frank Sinatra

Francis Albert "Frank" Sinatra was an American singer and actor.Beginning his musical career in the swing era with Harry James and Tommy Dorsey, Sinatra became an unprecedentedly successful solo artist in the early to mid-1940s, after being signed to Columbia Records in 1943. Being the idol of the...

 combined with keyboardist Franny Griffiths

Franny Griffiths

Franny Griffiths is a keyboardist, producer and remixer, who is best known for being a member of the band, Space. He also plays guitar, melodica and piano. His main influences are Kraftwerk, hip-hop, Can, various electro bands and Crass...

' trademark sound effects and Scott's dark humoured lyrics. When the song was performed at later concerts, Scott usually walked into the audience to shake the front concert-goers by the hand.

The song's distinctive style and lyrics led to it being used in TV and films, including the theme song to the UK drama Cold Feet

Cold Feet

Cold Feet is a British comedy-drama television series produced by Granada Television for the ITV network. The series was created and principally written by Mike Bullen as a follow-up to his award-winning 1997 Comedy Premiere of the same name. The storyline follows three couples experiencing the...

, the 1997 film The Matchmaker

The MatchMaker (1997 film)

The MatchMaker is a 1997 film comedy film set in Ireland.-Plot:Marcy Tizzard is assistant to Senator John McGlory from Boston, Massachusetts...

starring Janeane Garofalo; and during the end credits of the popular movie Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery

Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery

Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery is a 1997 American science fiction/action-comedy film and the first film of the Austin Powers series. It was directed by Jay Roach and written by Mike Myers who also stars in the title role. Myers also plays Dr. Evil, Austin Powers' arch-enemy...

. It gained further popularity in the UK when used in a 1998 advert (with a cameo appearance by Quentin Crisp

Quentin Crisp

Quentin Crisp , was an English writer and raconteur. He became a gay icon in the 1970s after publication of his memoir, The Naked Civil Servant.- Early life :...

) for the bodyspray "Impulse

Impulse (body mist)

Impulse is a bodyspray manufactured by Fabergé which was part of Unilever, an Anglo-Dutch company based in Rotterdam, Netherlands, and London, United Kingdom...

".

The song's name is a reference to the 1911 Rudyard Kipling

Rudyard Kipling

Joseph Rudyard Kipling was an English poet, short-story writer, and novelist chiefly remembered for his celebration of British imperialism, tales and poems of British soldiers in India, and his tales for children. Kipling received the 1907 Nobel Prize for Literature...

 poem "The Female of the Species

The Female of the Species (Kipling poem)

"The Female of the Species" poem by Rudyard Kipling originally published in 1911. The title and refrain has been used as a title for at least three other works "The Female of the Species" poem by Rudyard Kipling originally published in 1911. The title and refrain has been used as a title for at...

", which has as its refrain

Refrain

A refrain is the line or lines that are repeated in music or in verse; the "chorus" of a song...

: "The female of the species is more deadly than the male."

Track listing

• CD:

1. "Female of the Species"
2. "Looney Tune"
3. "Give Me Something"
4. "Female of the Species" (Instrumental)

• 12":

1. "Female of the Species" (D'Still'd Remix)
2. "Female of the Species" (Radio Edit)
3. "Female of the Species" (Full On Remix)
4. "Give Me Something"

External links

• "Female of the Species" article