"The Cutter" is a 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...

 released by the band Echo & the Bunnymen

Echo & the Bunnymen

Echo & the Bunnymen are an English post-punk band, formed in Liverpool in 1978. The original line-up consisted of vocalist Ian McCulloch, guitarist Will Sergeant and bass player Les Pattinson, supplemented by a drum machine. By 1980, Pete de Freitas had joined as the band's drummer, and their debut...

 in 1983. It is the second single released from their 1983 Porcupine

Porcupine (album)

Porcupine is the third studio album by the British post-punk band Echo & the Bunnymen. First released on 4 February 1983, it became the band's highest charting release when it reached number two on the UK Albums Chart despite initially receiving poor reviews...

album.

The single was released on the Korova

Korova (record label)

Korova is a record label, distributed by the Warner Elektra Asylum group of record companies.The imprint was founded in 1979 as an outlet for Echo & the Bunnymen, with its first album release being their debut Crocodiles...

 label

Record label

In 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,...

 in the United Kingdom on 14 January 1983 as both a 7"

Gramophone record

A gramophone record, commonly known as a phonograph record , vinyl record , or colloquially, a record, is an analog sound storage medium consisting of a flat disc with an inscribed, modulated spiral groove...

 and 12"

12-inch single

The 12-inch single is a type of gramophone record that has wider groove spacing compared to other types of records. This allows for louder levels to be cut on the disc by the cutting engineer, which in turn gives a wider dynamic range, and thus better sound quality...

 single. The 7" was available as a limited edition

Special edition

The terms special edition, limited edition and variants such as deluxe edition, collector's edition and others, are used as a marketing incentive for various kinds of products, originally published products related to the arts, such as books, prints or recorded music and films, but now including...

 which was packaged with a cassette

Compact Cassette

The Compact Cassette, often referred to as audio cassette, cassette tape, cassette, or simply tape, is a magnetic tape sound recording format. It was designed originally for dictation, but improvements in fidelity led the Compact Cassette to supplant the Stereo 8-track cartridge and reel-to-reel...

 containing tracks from their August 1979 John Peel

John Peel

John Robert Parker Ravenscroft, OBE , known professionally as John Peel, was an English disc jockey, radio presenter, record producer and journalist. He was the longest-serving of the original BBC Radio 1 DJs, broadcasting regularly from 1967 until his death in 2004...

 session which featured the drum machine

Drum machine

A drum machine is an electronic musical instrument designed to imitate the sound of drums or other percussion instruments. They are used in a variety of musical genres, not just purely electronic music...

, Echo. The extra track on the b-side

A-side and B-side

A-side and B-side originally referred to the two sides of gramophone records on which singles were released beginning in the 1950s. The terms have come to refer to the types of song conventionally placed on each side of the record, with the A-side being the featured song , while the B-side, or...

 of the 12" release, "Zimbo", is a live recording from the first WOMAD

World of Music, Arts and Dance

WOMAD is an international arts festival. The central aim of WOMAD is to celebrate the world's many forms of music, arts and dance.-History:...

 festival in July 1982 and features the Royal Drummers of Burundi.

The song was covered

Cover version

In popular music, a cover version or cover song, or simply cover, is a new performance or recording of a contemporary or previously recorded, commercially released song or popular song...

 by the Dutch musician Solex

Solex

Solex was a French manufacturer of carburetors and the powered bicycle VéloSoleX.The Solex company was founded by Marcel Mennesson and Maurice Goudard to manufacture vehicle radiators...

 on the 2001 compilation album Matador 2001: Draw Me a Riot which came free with the April 2001 edition of The Wire

The Wire (magazine)

The Wire is a British avant garde music magazine, founded in 1982 by jazz promoter Anthony Wood and journalist Chrissie Murray. The magazine initially concentrated on contemporary jazz and improvised music, but branched out in the early 1990s to various types of experimental music...

magazine. A version of the song, performed by Lagartija Nick, is included on the 2005 Spanish tribute album Play the Game: Un Tributo a Echo & The Bunnymen.

Formats and track listing

All tracks written by Ian McCulloch

Ian McCulloch (singer)

Ian Stephen McCulloch is an English singer, born in Liverpool, and is best known as the frontman for the rock group Echo & the Bunnymen.-Career:...

, Will Sergeant

Will Sergeant

Will Sergeant is an English guitarist, best known for being a member of Echo & the Bunnymen. Born in the centre of Liverpool, he grew up in the suburb of Melling and attended nearby Deyes High School...

, Les Pattinson

Les Pattinson

Les Pattinson is an English musician, best known for his work as the bassist and co-writer of the Liverpool based band, Echo & the Bunnymen....

 and Pete de Freitas

Pete de Freitas

Pete Louis Vincent de Freitas was a musician and producer, best known as a drummer with Echo & the Bunnymen, and whose drumming skills have been compared to Dave Grohl's....

 except where noted.

UK 7" single (KOW 26)

1. "The Cutter" – 3.53
2. "Way Out and Up We Go" – 3.57

UK 12" single (KOW 26T)

1. "The Cutter" – 3.53
2. "Way Out and Up We Go" – 3.59
3. "Zimbo" (live with the Royal Drummers of Burundi) – 4.52

UK Cassette (KOW 26C)
Limited edition

Special edition

The terms special edition, limited edition and variants such as deluxe edition, collector's edition and others, are used as a marketing incentive for various kinds of products, originally published products related to the arts, such as books, prints or recorded music and films, but now including...

 free with the UK 7" single (KOW 26).

1. "The Cutter"
2. "Villiers Terrace"
3. "Ashes to Ashes" ("Stars Are Stars")
4. "Monkeys"
5. "Read It in Books" (McCulloch, Julian Cope
   Julian Cope
   Julian Cope is a British rock musician, author, antiquary, musicologist, poet and cultural commentator...
   
   )

Belgium 7" single (24.9919-7)

1. "The Cutter" – 3.52
2. "Way Out and Up We Go" – 4.01

Chart positions

Chart (1983)	Peak position
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 ...	8
Irish Singles Chart Irish Singles Chart The Irish Singles Chart is Ireland's music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by the Irish Recorded Music Association and compiled on behalf of the IRMA by Chart-Track. Chart rankings are based on sales, which are compiled through over-the-counter retail data captured...	10

External links

• Promotional video at the band's official website