Teardrop (song)
Encyclopedia
"Teardrop" is a song by Massive Attack
, which was first released on their 1998 album Mezzanine
. It was released as a single on 27 April 1998. The song became another UK hit for the group, peaking at number 10 on the UK Singles Chart
. The song features vocals by Elizabeth Fraser
of the Cocteau Twins
The song is also known for its use as the theme song, on American TV, of the medical television series House
. The instrumental portions of the song at the beginning and the end which feature a bass drum beat reminiscent of a heartbeat
are used in the opening theme. It was also used in the television commercial for the game Assassin's Creed
and the CSI: Miami
episode, "Mia/NYC NonStop.". It was used in Episode 20 ("Tonight") of Prison Break (Season 1)
, when the prisoners are having final thoughts about their planned escape.
riff picked out in the studio in April 1997, later piano chords and drum beats were added, and at this early demo stage it had the working title "No Don't". Vowles sent the demo to Madonna
as he wanted her to record the vocals for the song (the band had previously worked with her on their 1995 reworking of the song "I Want You
"). However, the two other band members Robert Del Naja
and Grantley Marshall
wanted Elizabeth Fraser
of the band The Cocteau Twins to record the vocals, feeling her ethereal style suited the mournful melody and feel of the piece. Madonna fell in love with the track and was very keen to record the vocals, but was disappointed when the two-to-one vote went in Fraser's favour.
Fraser wrote the song's lyrics and was recording the song when she got the news of the death by drowning on 29 May 1997 of her once-close friend, Jeff Buckley
. "That was so weird ... I'd got letters out and I was thinking about him. That song's kind of about him – that's how it feels to me anyway."
The single peaked at #16 in Australia. It placed number 22 in the Triple J Hottest 100 of All Time in 2009
, and number 23 in the Triple J Hottest 100 of 1998
, the year of its release.
in the womb, singing the song. It was directed by Walter Stern
.
The 12" release contains the same songs but in a different order. The cassette release contains an edited version of the original song, as well as the Scream Team remix and the B-side "Euro Zero Zero", but is missing the remix by Mad Professor.
A new remix bootleg by Bart Classen & Tom Fall Was Made in Fall 2011and is available to download on Bart Classen Facebook for Free
covered the song on his album Hand Built by Robots
. On downloads
alone, Faulkner's version reached #60 in the UK Singles Chart
in August 2007. It was released as an official single on 10 December 2007, and reached #57 on the chart the following week. The version of the album available from the Australian iTunes
Music Store also incorporates an acoustic version.
covered "Teardrop" in his second album In Our Nature
. The single was released across Europe on 12 November 2007. The single features the non-album instrumental B-side "Four Forks Ache." This version was also featured in the medical drama House, M.D. in the episode Wilson's Heart
.
covered "Teardrop" on their 13 April 2010 release "Live from SoHo", an iTunes-only release. The band, signed to Wind-Up Records, released the studio version of the song as a single on 10 August 2010.
covered "Teardrop" during different solo concerts, though he did not release it on any of his albums.
covered "Teardrop" live at BBC Radio 1
. A recorded version was also included as a B-side on their 2004 single "Not a Job".
covered the song at the end of their album "Blast" in 2008, a live performance at the Old Fruitmarket in Glasgow. The performance of this piece is instrumental based chiefly off of Scottish smallpipes
and Highland bagpipes and is merged with a reel titled "Brenda Stubberts".
and is found on their cover album entitled Searching For The Lost Boy. This album was only released as the bonus second album in the 2-CD Deluxe Edition of their 15th studio album entitled Graffiti Soul
, released on 25 May 2009.
singer-songwriter Gary Barlow
's assembled group named The Collective and released as the official single for Children in Need 2011
. Produced by Labrinth
, the performers , consist of: Chipmunk
, Dot Rotten, Ed Sheeran
, Ms. Dynamite
, Mz. Bratt, Tulisa
, Rizzle Kicks
, Tinchy Stryder
and Wretch 32
.
The song was released in the United Kingdom
on 13 November 2011 to a mix of average and poor reviews and entered the charts at number 24 - the worst chart performance of any Children In Need Song in 16 years .
Barlow said of the single, "I think this is a brilliant project. Children In Need has a history of doing upbeat singles with comedians but it's a serious charity doing a lot of hard work for serious causes,"
"It's time to do something with artists who young people actually listen to. I've done these things before, I'm used to doing group situations, I like it - it's a challenge."
On the naming of the project, Barlow asked The Sun newspaper readers to suggest names for his Children In Need all-star supergroup and the newspaper was inundated with suggestions with literally thousands pouring in. After much deliberation, Gary said one name shone out and ‘The Collective’ were born.
Radio 1 Breakfast Show.
The song was performed for the first time at the Children in Need Rocks Manchester
event on Thursday 17 November 2011. It was then performed on the night of Children in Need 2011
Massive Attack
Massive Attack are an English DJ and trip hop duo from Bristol, England consisting of Robert "3D" Del Naja and Grant "Daddy G" Marshall. Working with co-producers, as well as various session musicians and guest vocalists, they make records and tour live. The duo are considered to be of the trip...
, which was first released on their 1998 album Mezzanine
Mezzanine (album)
Mezzanine is the third studio album by English trip hop group Massive Attack, released on 20 April 1998. It was produced by Neil Davidge along with the group. The album was released on Virgin Records....
. It was released as a single on 27 April 1998. The song became another UK hit for the group, peaking at number 10 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 ...
. The song features vocals by Elizabeth Fraser
Elizabeth Fraser
Elizabeth Davidson Fraser is a Scottish singer best known as the vocalist for the pioneer alternative rock group Cocteau Twins...
of the Cocteau Twins
Cocteau Twins
Cocteau Twins were a Scottish alternative rock band active from 1979 to 1997, known for innovative instrumentation and atmospheric, non-lyrical vocals...
The song is also known for its use as the theme song, on American TV, of the medical television series House
House (TV series)
House is an American television medical drama that debuted on the Fox network on November 16, 2004. The show's central character is Dr. Gregory House , an unconventional and misanthropic medical genius who heads a team of diagnosticians at the fictional Princeton-Plainsboro Teaching Hospital in...
. The instrumental portions of the song at the beginning and the end which feature a bass drum beat reminiscent of a heartbeat
Cardiac cycle
The cardiac cycle is a term referring to all or any of the events related to the flow or blood pressure that occurs from the beginning of one heartbeat to the beginning of the next. The frequency of the cardiac cycle is described by the heart rate. Each beat of the heart involves five major stages...
are used in the opening theme. It was also used in the television commercial for the game Assassin's Creed
Assassin's Creed
Assassin's Creed is an award-winning historical third person, stealth action-adventure video game developed by Ubisoft for PlayStation 3, Xbox 360 and Microsoft Windows. The bulk of the game takes place during the Third Crusade, with the plot revolving around a sect known as the Secret Order of...
and the CSI: Miami
CSI: Miami
CSI: Miami is an American police procedural television series, which premiered on September 23, 2002 on CBS. The series is a spin-off of CSI: Crime Scene Investigation....
episode, "Mia/NYC NonStop.". It was used in Episode 20 ("Tonight") of Prison Break (Season 1)
Prison Break (season 1)
-Critical reception:Metacritic gave the season a Metascore—a weighted average based on the impressions of a select 32 critical reviews—of 65, signifying generally favorable reviews. Based on its strong opening, The New York Times dubbed Prison Break "more intriguing than most of the new network...
, when the prisoners are having final thoughts about their planned escape.
Development
"Teardrop" was first developed from a simple harpsichordHarpsichord
A harpsichord is a musical instrument played by means of a keyboard. It produces sound by plucking a string when a key is pressed.In the narrow sense, "harpsichord" designates only the large wing-shaped instruments in which the strings are perpendicular to the keyboard...
riff picked out in the studio in April 1997, later piano chords and drum beats were added, and at this early demo stage it had the working title "No Don't". Vowles sent the demo to 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...
as he wanted her to record the vocals for the song (the band had previously worked with her on their 1995 reworking of the song "I Want You
I Want You (Marvin Gaye song)
-Background:Madonna recorded a cover version of "I Want You" with British trip-hop group Massive Attack for her ballads compilation album Something to Remember and the Marvin Gaye tribute album Inner City Blues: The Music of Marvin Gaye in 1995...
"). However, the two other band members Robert Del Naja
Robert Del Naja
Robert Del Naja , also known as 3D, is an English artist and musician. Initially gaining notoriety as a graffiti artist and member of the Bristol collective known as "The Wild Bunch", Del Naja went on to become a founding member of the band Massive Attack where he is active to this day.-Music:Del...
and Grantley Marshall
Daddy G
Daddy G, , is a British musician and a founding member of the band, Massive Attack.-Music:...
wanted Elizabeth Fraser
Elizabeth Fraser
Elizabeth Davidson Fraser is a Scottish singer best known as the vocalist for the pioneer alternative rock group Cocteau Twins...
of the band The Cocteau Twins to record the vocals, feeling her ethereal style suited the mournful melody and feel of the piece. Madonna fell in love with the track and was very keen to record the vocals, but was disappointed when the two-to-one vote went in Fraser's favour.
Fraser wrote the song's lyrics and was recording the song when she got the news of the death by drowning on 29 May 1997 of her once-close friend, Jeff Buckley
Jeff Buckley
Jeffrey Scott "Jeff" Buckley , raised as Scotty Moorhead, was an American singer-songwriter and guitarist. He was the son of Tim Buckley, also a musician...
. "That was so weird ... I'd got letters out and I was thinking about him. That song's kind of about him – that's how it feels to me anyway."
The single peaked at #16 in Australia. It placed number 22 in the Triple J Hottest 100 of All Time in 2009
Triple J Hottest 100 of All Time, 2009
The Triple J Hottest 100 of All Time was a music poll conducted in 2009 amongst listeners of Australian youth radio network Triple J. Over half a million votes were compiled, with Nirvana's "Smells Like Teen Spirit" collecting the highest number of votes. Voters could submit a list of up to ten...
, and number 23 in the Triple J Hottest 100 of 1998
Triple J Hottest 100, 1998
The 1998 Triple J Hottest 100, announced in January, 1999, was the sixth such countdown of the most popular songs of the year, according to listeners of the Australian radio station Triple J. As in previous years, a CD featuring 36 of the songs was released...
, the year of its release.
Music video
The song's music video featured a plastic foetusFetus
A fetus is a developing mammal or other viviparous vertebrate after the embryonic stage and before birth.In humans, the fetal stage of prenatal development starts at the beginning of the 11th week in gestational age, which is the 9th week after fertilization.-Etymology and spelling variations:The...
in the womb, singing the song. It was directed by Walter Stern
Walter Stern (director)
-Music videos:Stern began his career directing music videos at Control, a small production company based in London.In 1993, he moved to Stigma where he first directed a promo for the band The Prodigy...
.
Track listing
- "Teardrop" (album version) – 5:31
- "Euro Zero Zero" – 5:24
- "Teardrop" (Scream Team Remix) – 6:45
- "Teardrop" (Mad ProfessorMad ProfessorMad Professor is a dub music producer and engineer known for his original productions and remix work. He is considered one of the leading producers of dub music’s second generation and was instrumental in transitioning dub into the digital age. He is a prolific producer, contributing to or...
Mazaruni Instrumental Mix) – 6:24
The 12" release contains the same songs but in a different order. The cassette release contains an edited version of the original song, as well as the Scream Team remix and the B-side "Euro Zero Zero", but is missing the remix by Mad Professor.
A new remix bootleg by Bart Classen & Tom Fall Was Made in Fall 2011and is available to download on Bart Classen Facebook for Free
Newton Faulkner
Newton FaulknerNewton Faulkner
Sam Newton Battenberg Faulkner is an English singer-songwriter and musician from Reigate, Surrey. Known for his guitar playing, which involves rhythmically tapping and hitting his guitar's body, Faulkner came to prominence in 2007, with the release of his debut studio album, Hand Built by Robots...
covered the song on his album Hand Built by Robots
Hand Built by Robots
Hand Built by Robots is the debut studio album by English singer-songwriter Newton Faulkner, released on July 30, 2007 on Ugly Truth Records. Preceded by the single "Dream Catch Me", the album initially charted at #3 in the UK album chart, and subsequently reached #1 in its fourth week. Regarding...
. On downloads
Music download
A music download is the transferral of music from an Internet-facing computer or website to a user's local computer. This term encompasses both legal downloads and downloads of copyright material without permission or payment...
alone, Faulkner's version reached #60 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 ...
in August 2007. It was released as an official single on 10 December 2007, and reached #57 on the chart the following week. The version of the album available from the Australian iTunes
ITunes
iTunes is a media player computer program, used for playing, downloading, and organizing digital music and video files on desktop computers. It can also manage contents on iPod, iPhone, iPod Touch and iPad....
Music Store also incorporates an acoustic version.
José González
José GonzálezJosé González
José González is a Swedish-Argentine indie folk singer-songwriter and guitarist from Gothenburg, Sweden.González is also a member of Swedish band Junip, along with Elias Araya and Tobias Winterkorn.- Biography :...
covered "Teardrop" in his second album In Our Nature
In Our Nature
In Our Nature is the second album by Swedish singer-songwriter José González. It was released September 24, 2007 on Peacefrog Records in the UK and Imperial Recordings in Sweden. It was released September 25, 2007 by Mute Records in the United States....
. The single was released across Europe on 12 November 2007. The single features the non-album instrumental B-side "Four Forks Ache." This version was also featured in the medical drama House, M.D. in the episode Wilson's Heart
Wilson's Heart
"Wilson's Heart" is the sixteenth episode and season finale of the fourth season of House and the eighty-sixth episode overall. It aired on May 19, 2008...
.
Civil Twilight cover
Civil TwilightCivil twilight
Civil twilight can mean:* The brightest phase of twilight.* Civil Twilight , three-piece rock music band who originated in Cape Town, South Africa before moving to the USA.* "Civil Twilight", a song by The Weakerthans from their 2007 album Reunion Tour....
covered "Teardrop" on their 13 April 2010 release "Live from SoHo", an iTunes-only release. The band, signed to Wind-Up Records, released the studio version of the song as a single on 10 August 2010.
Brad Mehldau
Brad MehldauBrad Mehldau
Brad Mehldau is an American jazz pianist. Besides leading his own group, the Brad Mehldau Trio, he has performed with many renowned artists, including Pat Metheny, Wayne Shorter, Larry Grenadier, Peter Bernstein, Jeff Ballard, Joshua Redman, Christian McBride, Michael Brecker, Chris Potter, Kurt...
covered "Teardrop" during different solo concerts, though he did not release it on any of his albums.
Elbow
ElbowElbow (band)
Elbow are an English rock band. They have played together since 1990 and recorded five studio albums, the most recent of which is Build a Rocket Boys!, released in March 2011...
covered "Teardrop" live at BBC Radio 1
BBC Radio 1
BBC Radio 1 is a British national radio station operated by the British Broadcasting Corporation which also broadcasts internationally, specialising in current popular music and chart hits throughout the day. Radio 1 provides alternative genres after 7:00pm including electronic dance, hip hop, rock...
. A recorded version was also included as a B-side on their 2004 single "Not a Job".
Red Hot Chilli Pipers
Celtic rock band Red Hot Chilli PipersRed Hot Chilli Pipers
The Red Hot Chilli Pipers are an ensemble consisting of pipers, guitarists, keyboards, and drummers formed in Scotland in 2004. They entered and won the BBC talent show When Will I Be Famous? They are named after American rock band the Red Hot Chili Peppers....
covered the song at the end of their album "Blast" in 2008, a live performance at the Old Fruitmarket in Glasgow. The performance of this piece is instrumental based chiefly off of Scottish smallpipes
Scottish smallpipes
The Scottish smallpipe, in its modern form, is a bellows-blown bagpipe developed by Colin Ross and others, to be playable according to the Great Highland Bagpipe fingering system. There are surviving examples of similar historical instruments such as the mouth-blown Montgomery smallpipes in E,...
and Highland bagpipes and is merged with a reel titled "Brenda Stubberts".
Simple Minds
The song was also covered by Scottish rock band Simple MindsSimple Minds
Simple Minds are a Scottish rock band who achieved worldwide popularity from the mid-1980s to the early 1990s. The band produced a handful of critically acclaimed albums in the early 1980s and best known for their #1 US, Canada and Netherlands hit single "Don't You ", from the soundtrack of the...
and is found on their cover album entitled Searching For The Lost Boy. This album was only released as the bonus second album in the 2-CD Deluxe Edition of their 15th studio album entitled Graffiti Soul
Graffiti Soul
Graffiti Soul is the fifteenth studio album by the Scottish rock group Simple Minds, released on 25 May 2009.An e-mail announcement by Simple Minds stated that Graffiti Soul was initially written on location in Rome, Sicily, Antwerp and Glasgow...
, released on 25 May 2009.
Track Listing
Searching for the Lost Boys (Graffiti Souls Deluxe Edition Bonus CD)The Collective
The song was covered by BritishBritish people
The British are citizens of the United Kingdom, of the Isle of Man, any of the Channel Islands, or of any of the British overseas territories, and their descendants...
singer-songwriter Gary Barlow
Gary Barlow
Gary Barlow is an English singer-songwriter, pianist and record producer. He is frontman and lead vocalist of pop group Take That and is currently the head judge on the eighth series of The X Factor. Barlow is one of Britain's most successful songwriters...
's assembled group named The Collective and released as the official single for Children in Need 2011
Children in Need 2011
Children in Need 2011 is a campaign held in the United Kingdom to raise money for Children in Need. 2011 marked the 31st anniversary of the appeal which culminated in a live broadcast on BBC One which began on the evening of Friday 18th November and ran until the early hours of Saturday 19th...
. Produced by Labrinth
Labrinth
Timothy McKenzie , better known by his stage name Labrinth, is an English singer-songwriter and record producer. McKenzie is signed to Simon Cowell's record label Syco, becoming the first non-talent show signing in six years...
, the performers , consist of: Chipmunk
Chipmunk
Chipmunks are small striped squirrels native to North America and Asia. They are usually classed either as a single genus with three subgenera, or as three genera.-Etymology and taxonomy:...
, Dot Rotten, Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran
Edward Christopher "Ed" Sheeran is an English singer-songwriter who is currently signed to Asylum / Atlantic Records. Sheeran broke through commercially in June 2011, when his debut single "The A Team" debuted at number 3 on the UK chart.-Early life:Sheeran was born in Halifax, West Yorkshire to...
, Ms. Dynamite
Ms. Dynamite
Niomi Arleen McLean-Daley , who performs as Ms. Dynamite, is a double BRIT Award and three time MOBO Awards winning UK garage, R&B and hip hop singer and rapper.-Biography:...
, Mz. Bratt, Tulisa
Tulisa Contostavlos
Tula Paulinea "Tulisa" Contostavlos is an English singer-songwriter and actress of Greek and Irish descent. She is best known for being a member of the Camden-based hip hop group N-Dubz, with her cousin Dappy and their friend Fazer...
, Rizzle Kicks
Rizzle Kicks
Rizzle Kicks are a Brithop duo from Southend, Essex, consisting of Jordan "Rizzle" Stephens , and Harley "Sylvester" Alexander-Sule...
, Tinchy Stryder
Tinchy Stryder
Kwasi Danquah III , better known by his pseudonyms Tinchy Stryder and Star In The Hood, is a Ghanaian British recording artist, music executive, A&R executive, and businessman...
and Wretch 32
Wretch 32
Jermaine Scott , better known by his stage name Wretch 32 , is a Black British rapper and former Grime MC from Tottenham, London where he grew up the son of a local reggae DJ in the Tiverton Estate. He was a member of the grime collective "Combination Chain Gang", before forming The Movement with...
.
The song was released 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...
on 13 November 2011 to a mix of average and poor reviews and entered the charts at number 24 - the worst chart performance of any Children In Need Song in 16 years .
Music video
The official music video was released in early October 2011, and features Gary Barlow and the members of The collective performing the song directly to the camera whilst shots of children and lyrics from a poem written by a teenager intersperse as the song is performed.Background
Gary Barlow was asked by BBC Children in Need organizers to come-up with an idea for the official single this year and immediately contacted Labrinth (famed for his production on Tinie Tempah’s Pass Out which won Best British Single at The BRIT Awards 2011) to produce it and to assemble the the cream of the UK urban scene including: Chipmunk, Dot Rotten, Ed Sheeran, Ms Dynamite, Mz Bratt, Rizzle Kicks, Tinchy Stryder, Tulisa and Wretch 32.Barlow said of the single, "I think this is a brilliant project. Children In Need has a history of doing upbeat singles with comedians but it's a serious charity doing a lot of hard work for serious causes,"
"It's time to do something with artists who young people actually listen to. I've done these things before, I'm used to doing group situations, I like it - it's a challenge."
On the naming of the project, Barlow asked The Sun newspaper readers to suggest names for his Children In Need all-star supergroup and the newspaper was inundated with suggestions with literally thousands pouring in. After much deliberation, Gary said one name shone out and ‘The Collective’ were born.
Promotion
The track was released to radio at 8am 7 October 2011 and received its first play on the Chris MoylesChris Moyles
Christopher David Moyles is an English radio and television presenter and author, who currently presents The Chris Moyles Show on BBC Radio 1 and Chris Moyles' Quiz Night on Channel 4....
Radio 1 Breakfast Show.
The song was performed for the first time at the Children in Need Rocks Manchester
Children in Need Rocks Manchester
Children in Need Rocks Manchester is a charity music concert held at the MEN Arena in Manchester, England. The concert was organised by Take That singer and The X Factor judge Gary Barlow as one of a series of events to raise money for Children in Need 2011...
event on Thursday 17 November 2011. It was then performed on the night of Children in Need 2011
Track listing
Chart performance
| Chart (2011) | Peak position |
|---|---|
Release history
| Region | Date | Format | Label |
|---|---|---|---|
| United Kingdom | 13 November 2011 | Digital download | Polydor Records |