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Missionary Man (Eurythmics song)
Encyclopedia
"Missionary Man" is a song by the British pop music
duo Eurythmics
. It was taken from their sixth album, Revenge, and continued the band's rock/R&B musical style of the time and featured Jimmy Zavala on harmonica.
In the band's native UK, it was the fourth single to be taken from the album and peaked at number 31. It was more successful in the United States, where it was the first single to be taken from the album and peaked at number 14 on the Billboard Hot 100 (becoming their last main US Top 20 hit to date). It also made the Top 10 of the Billboard Hot Dance/Club Play chart, and it received extensive airplay on American rock radio, reaching number 1 on the Billboard Mainstream Rock Tracks
, Eurythmics' only song to top this chart. The single was also a top ten hit in Australia.
"Missionary Man" earned Eurythmics a Grammy Award
for "Best Rock Vocal Performance - Group".
UK 12"
US 7"
US 12"
The music video
for "Missionary Man" was another in a long line of innovative clips from Eurythmics. Directed by Willy Smax, it featured stop-animation techniques similar to those used in Peter Gabriel
's acclaimed "Sledgehammer
" promo video from earlier in 1986. The video received heavy play from MTV
and was nominated for Best Video at the MTV Video Awards.
Pop music
Pop music is usually understood to be commercially recorded music, often oriented toward a youth market, usually consisting of relatively short, simple songs utilizing technological innovations to produce new variations on existing themes.- Definitions :David Hatch and Stephen Millward define pop...
duo Eurythmics
Eurythmics
Eurythmics were a British pop rock duo, formed in 1980, currently disbanded, but known to reunite from time to time. Consisting of members Annie Lennox and David A...
. It was taken from their sixth album, Revenge, and continued the band's rock/R&B musical style of the time and featured Jimmy Zavala on harmonica.
In the band's native UK, it was the fourth single to be taken from the album and peaked at number 31. It was more successful in the United States, where it was the first single to be taken from the album and peaked at number 14 on the Billboard Hot 100 (becoming their last main US Top 20 hit to date). It also made the Top 10 of the Billboard Hot Dance/Club Play chart, and it received extensive airplay on American rock radio, reaching number 1 on the Billboard Mainstream Rock Tracks
Mainstream Rock Tracks
Hot Mainstream Rock Tracks is a ranking in Billboard magazine of the most-played songs on mainstream rock radio stations, a category that includes stations that play primarily rock music. Modern rock tracks are counted in the Alternative Songs chart.This chart began with the March 21, 1981, issue...
, Eurythmics' only song to top this chart. The single was also a top ten hit in Australia.
"Missionary Man" earned Eurythmics a Grammy Award
Grammy Award
A Grammy Award — or Grammy — is an accolade by the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences of the United States to recognize outstanding achievement in the music industry...
for "Best Rock Vocal Performance - Group".
Track listings
UK 7"- A: "Missionary Man" [single edit]
- B: "The Last Time" [Live at The Roxy in Los Angeles]
UK 12"
- A: "Missionary Man" [extended version]
- B: "The Last Time" [Live at The Roxy in Los Angeles]
US 7"
- A: "Missionary Man" [single edit]
- B: "Take Your Pain Away"
US 12"
- A: "Missionary Man" [extended version]
- B: "Take Your Pain Away"
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...
for "Missionary Man" was another in a long line of innovative clips from Eurythmics. Directed by Willy Smax, it featured stop-animation techniques similar to those used in Peter Gabriel
Peter Gabriel
Peter Brian Gabriel is an English singer, musician, and songwriter who rose to fame as the lead vocalist and flautist of the progressive rock group Genesis. After leaving Genesis, Gabriel went on to a successful solo career...
's acclaimed "Sledgehammer
Sledgehammer (song)
"Sledgehammer" is a song by British musician Peter Gabriel from his 1986 album So. It hit number one in Canada on 21 July 1986 where it spent four weeks; number one on the Billboard Hot 100 chart in the United States on 26 July 1986; and number four in the UK singles chart, thanks in part to a...
" promo video from earlier in 1986. The video received heavy play from MTV
MTV
MTV, formerly an initialism of Music Television, is an American network based in New York City that launched on August 1, 1981. The original purpose of the channel was to play music videos guided by on-air hosts known as VJs....
and was nominated for Best Video at the MTV Video Awards.
Chart performance
| Chart (1986/1987) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Belgian Singles Chart | 16 |
| Canadian Singles Chart | 13 |
| Dutch Singles Chart | 77 |
| French Singles Chart | 74 |
| Irish Singles Chart | 13 |
| New Zealand Singles Chart | 12 |
| UK Singles Chart | 31 |
| U.S. Billboard Hot 100 | 14 |
| U.S. Billboard Dance/Club Play Songs Chart | 6 |
| U.S. Billboard Hot Dance Music/Maxi-Singles Sales Chart | 18 |
| U.S. Billboard Maintstream Rock Chart | 1 |
Cover versions
- SwedishSwedenSweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
doom metalDoom metalDoom metal is an extreme form of heavy metal music that typically uses slower tempos, low-tuned guitars and a much "thicker" or "heavier" sound than other metal genres...
band Left Hand Solution recorded a cover of the song and released it as a single in 1999. It was also later included on their 2001 album Light Shines Black. An audio sample can be heard here. - A capella choir Artists In Resonance, from the University of CaliforniaUniversity of CaliforniaThe University of California is a public university system in the U.S. state of California. Under the California Master Plan for Higher Education, the University of California is a part of the state's three-tier public higher education system, which also includes the California State University...
, recorded a cover of the song for their 2005 album On AiR. An audio sample can be heard here.
Live cover performances
- The DirtbombsThe DirtbombsThe Dirtbombs are an American garage rock band based in Detroit, Michigan, notable for blending diverse influences such as punk rock and soul while featuring a dual bass guitar, dual drum and guitar lineup...
, a Detroit garage rock band, recorded a live cover of the song in 2006 and released it as a limited edition 45 rpm record. - British pop artist MikaMika (singer)Mika is a British singer-songwriter.After recording his first extended play, Dodgy Holiday EP, Mika released his first full-length studio album, Life in Cartoon Motion, on Island Records in 2007. Life in Cartoon Motion sold more than 5.6 million copies worldwide and helped Mika win a Brit...
performed the song live with an intro sung by backing vocalist Saranayde.