Men's Needs
Encyclopedia
"Men's Needs" is the first single from British
indie rock
band The Cribs
' third album Men's Needs, Women's Needs, Whatever
, which was released on 14 May 2007. It was available to listen to on the band's MySpace
page. It was recorded in Vancouver
, British Columbia
in 2006 and was produced by Franz Ferdinand
vocalist and guitarist Alex Kapranos
. The song reached #17 in the UK Singles Chart
, the band's highest chart position. The song was also #3 on the NME
Songs of the Year 2007, named Single of the Year by the Metro (Associated Metro Limited)
paper and finished in the Top 100 Songs in the Rolling Stone
in the United States
.
In 2009, NME
magazine named it as one of the "Songs of the Decade", saying that the song took them "from cult favourites to one of Britain's best loved bands". In October 2011, NME placed it at number 98 on its list "150 Best Tracks of the Past 15 Years".
, depicts the band playing the song in front of a yellow background. A nude woman (censored before the watershed
) licks and kisses vocalist and guitarist Ryan Jarman
, dances and trashes amplifiers, performs household tasks, punches the band members, and generally wreaks havoc. Near the middle of the video, she throws a knife at drummer Ross Jarman
and severs his arm. She then cuts off Ryan's head, which remains in her arms for his guitar solo. Both have their limbs back on their bodies for the third verse. The band being oblivious to all these actions is the concept of this video, tying into the lyrics "Men's needs are lost on me".
The graphic nature of the video led to it being banned from MTV2
before the watershed due to an Ofcom
complaint about the violence in the video being "too shocking for a daytime audience". Three versions of the video exist: the first is the censored described above (with black bars covering the woman's breasts, genitalia and buttocks
), the second shows the woman wearing a leotard
in place of the black bars, the third is the uncensored version. The video has been viewed over 6 and a half million times on YouTube, becoming a near viral phenomenon.
Great Britain
Great Britain or Britain is an island situated to the northwest of Continental Europe. It is the ninth largest island in the world, and the largest European island, as well as the largest of the British Isles...
indie rock
Indie rock
Indie rock is a genre of alternative rock that originated in the United Kingdom and the United States in the 1980s. Indie rock is extremely diverse, with sub-genres that include lo-fi, post-rock, math rock, indie pop, dream pop, noise rock, space rock, sadcore, riot grrrl and emo, among others...
band The Cribs
The Cribs
The Cribs are an English three-piece indie rock band from Wakefield, West Yorkshire. The band consists of twins Gary and Ryan Jarman and their younger brother Ross Jarman. They were subsequently joined by ex-The Smiths and Modest Mouse guitarist Johnny Marr who was made a formal member of the group...
' third album Men's Needs, Women's Needs, Whatever
Men's Needs, Women's Needs, Whatever
Men's Needs, Women's Needs, Whatever is The Cribs' third album, released on 21 May 2007. It reached 13 on the UK Album Charts. Critically acclaimed, it was voted #9 in the annual 'Albums Of The Year' in influential UK music magazine NME, amongst various other end-of-year lists...
, which was released on 14 May 2007. It was available to listen to on the band's MySpace
MySpace
Myspace is a social networking service owned by Specific Media LLC and pop star Justin Timberlake. Myspace launched in August 2003 and is headquartered in Beverly Hills, California. In August 2011, Myspace had 33.1 million unique U.S. visitors....
page. It was recorded in Vancouver
Vancouver
Vancouver is a coastal seaport city on the mainland of British Columbia, Canada. It is the hub of Greater Vancouver, which, with over 2.3 million residents, is the third most populous metropolitan area in the country,...
, British Columbia
British Columbia
British Columbia is the westernmost of Canada's provinces and is known for its natural beauty, as reflected in its Latin motto, Splendor sine occasu . Its name was chosen by Queen Victoria in 1858...
in 2006 and was produced by Franz Ferdinand
Franz Ferdinand (band)
Franz Ferdinand are a Scottish post-punk revival band formed in Glasgow in 2002. The band is composed of Alex Kapranos , Bob Hardy , Nick McCarthy , and Paul Thomson .The band first experienced chart success when their second single, "Take Me Out", reached #3 in...
vocalist and guitarist Alex Kapranos
Alex Kapranos
Alexander Paul Kapranos Huntley , commonly known as Alex Kapranos, is a United Kingdom-based musician who is the lead singer and the guitarist of the Glasgow band Franz Ferdinand.-Early life:...
. The song reached #17 in 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 ...
, the band's highest chart position. The song was also #3 on the NME
NME
The New Musical Express is a popular music publication in the United Kingdom, published weekly since March 1952. It started as a music newspaper, and gradually moved toward a magazine format during the 1980s, changing from newsprint in 1998. It was the first British paper to include a singles...
Songs of the Year 2007, named Single of the Year by the Metro (Associated Metro Limited)
Metro (Associated Metro Limited)
Metro is a free daily newspaper in the United Kingdom published by Associated Newspapers Ltd . It is available from Monday to Friday each week on many public transport services across the United Kingdom.-History:The paper was launched in London in 1999, and can now be found in 14 UK urban centres...
paper and finished in the Top 100 Songs in the Rolling Stone
Rolling Stone
Rolling Stone is a US-based magazine devoted to music, liberal politics, and popular culture that is published every two weeks. Rolling Stone was founded in San Francisco in 1967 by Jann Wenner and music critic Ralph J...
in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
.
In 2009, NME
NME
The New Musical Express is a popular music publication in the United Kingdom, published weekly since March 1952. It started as a music newspaper, and gradually moved toward a magazine format during the 1980s, changing from newsprint in 1998. It was the first British paper to include a singles...
magazine named it as one of the "Songs of the Decade", saying that the song took them "from cult favourites to one of Britain's best loved bands". In October 2011, NME placed it at number 98 on its list "150 Best Tracks of the Past 15 Years".
Music video
The music video, directed by Diane MartelDiane Martel
Diane Martel is a music video director and choreographer.-Choreographer:1989*Bloodhounds of Broadway 1991*"Shiny Happy People" - R.E.M...
, depicts the band playing the song in front of a yellow background. A nude woman (censored before the watershed
Watershed (television)
In television, the term watershed denotes the time period in a television schedule during which programs with adult content can air....
) licks and kisses vocalist and guitarist Ryan Jarman
Ryan Jarman
Ryan James Jarman is the guitarist and vocalist with English rock band The Cribs.-The Cribs:Ryan formed The Cribs in the early 2000s with his identical twin brother Gary and younger brother Ross....
, dances and trashes amplifiers, performs household tasks, punches the band members, and generally wreaks havoc. Near the middle of the video, she throws a knife at drummer Ross Jarman
Ross Jarman
Ross Anthony Jarman is the drummer with English rock band The Cribs.-The Cribs:Ross was born and raised in Wakefield, England....
and severs his arm. She then cuts off Ryan's head, which remains in her arms for his guitar solo. Both have their limbs back on their bodies for the third verse. The band being oblivious to all these actions is the concept of this video, tying into the lyrics "Men's needs are lost on me".
The graphic nature of the video led to it being banned from MTV2
MTV2
MTV2 is a cable network that is widely available in the United States on digital cable and satellite television, and is progressively being added to analogue cable lineups across the nation...
before the watershed due to an Ofcom
Ofcom
Ofcom is the government-approved regulatory authority for the broadcasting and telecommunications industries in the United Kingdom. Ofcom was initially established by the Office of Communications Act 2002. It received its full authority from the Communications Act 2003...
complaint about the violence in the video being "too shocking for a daytime audience". Three versions of the video exist: the first is the censored described above (with black bars covering the woman's breasts, genitalia and buttocks
Buttocks
The buttocks are two rounded portions of the anatomy, located on the posterior of the pelvic region of apes and humans, and many other bipeds or quadrupeds, and comprise a layer of fat superimposed on the gluteus maximus and gluteus medius muscles. Physiologically, the buttocks enable weight to...
), the second shows the woman wearing a leotard
Leotard
A leotard is a skin-tight one-piece garment that covers the torso but leaves the legs free. It was made famous by the French acrobatic performer Jules Léotard ....
in place of the black bars, the third is the uncensored version. The video has been viewed over 6 and a half million times on YouTube, becoming a near viral phenomenon.
External links
- The music video
- The Cribs' official site
- http://www.myspace.com/thecribsThe Cribs' official MySpaceMySpaceMyspace is a social networking service owned by Specific Media LLC and pop star Justin Timberlake. Myspace launched in August 2003 and is headquartered in Beverly Hills, California. In August 2011, Myspace had 33.1 million unique U.S. visitors....
page] - http://www.wichita-recordings.com/The Cribs' record labelRecord labelIn the music industry, a record label is a brand and a trademark associated with the marketing of music recordings and music videos. Most commonly, a record label is the company that manages such brands and trademarks, coordinates the production, manufacture, distribution, marketing and promotion,...
, Wichita RecordingsWichita RecordingsWichita Recordings is an independent record label located in London, founded in 2000 by Mark Bowen and Dick Green. Its most notable signees are Bloc Party, The Cribs, Clap Your Hands Say Yeah, Bright Eyes, My Morning Jacket, Yeah Yeah Yeahs, Her Space Holiday, Los Campesinos! and Peter Bjorn and John...
' site]