This Town Ain't Big Enough for Both of Us
Encyclopedia
"This Town Ain't Big Enough for Both of Us" is a song written by Ron Mael
of the American pop group Sparks
. It is the opening track on their 1974 album Kimono My House
, and was the lead single from the album, reaching number two in the UK singles chart
.
The original idea for the song was that after each verse Russell would sing a movie dialogue cliché
, one of which was "This town ain't big enough for the both of us". They dropped the idea of having different phrases and instead used only the one in the title.
An acoustic version of the song was recorded in 1985 for the B-side of the Change single.
In 1997, Sparks recorded two new versions of the song. The first was an orchestral reworking produced by Tony Visconti
which reinstated a verse Muff Winwood
had cut from the original. The other was for their album Plagiarism
as a collaboration with Faith No More
, which was released as a single and reached number forty in the British singles chart.
Winwood added the distinctive Western movie style gunshots in the studio. It has been claimed that Winwood bet with his friend Elton John
that the song would become a top five hit in the UK charts. Elton John bet that it would not; he lost.
Sparks Vs. Faith No More (1997)
Russell Mael has claimed in reply:
by Siouxsie and the Banshees on their 1987 album Through the Looking Glass, by Heavens Gate on their 1996 album Planet E, and by Theory in Practice
on their 2002 album Colonizing the Sun. British Whale
(recording alias of The Darkness singer/songwriter Justin Hawkins
) released a version as his debut single in August 2005, which reached number 6 in the UK charts.
The track "Arabian Shamuru" on the 1991 Bon Voyage album by Japanese band Mahalik Halili uses almost exactly the same melody as "This Town Ain't Big Enough For Both of Us".
In live concerts
, the electro/dance group Justice
have performed the track, and Arizona
's The Format
also cover it frequently, including it on their 2006 EP
And Now I Hope You're Alright - Live in California
. Portuguese band Humanos
in their concerts performed a live version, mashing it with O Corpo É Que Paga. by Portuguese 1980's icon António Variações
, which is available on their live DVD
Sparks' 1997 album Plagiarism
included two collaborations with Faith No More
- "This Town Ain't Big Enough for the Both of Us" and "Something for the Girl with Everything". Faith No More then performed the song live during their 1997-1998 and reunion tours.
in an episode of the British sitcom
Green Wing
. It is performed by two of the characters, Dr. "Mac" Macartney
and Dr. Alan Statham
, pretending to be Russell Mael
and Ron Mael
respectively.
The original Sparks version of the song is heard in the 2010 movie Kick-Ass
.
Ron Mael
Ronald David Mael , is an American musician and songwriter. He and his younger brother Russell, make up the pop duo Sparks.Ron Mael was born in Culver City, California. Ron plays keyboard and writes most of the songs for Sparks...
of the American pop group Sparks
Sparks (band)
Sparks is an American rock and pop band formed in Los Angeles in 1968 by brothers Ron and Russell Mael , initially under the name Halfnelson...
. It is the opening track on their 1974 album Kimono My House
Kimono My House
-21st Century Edition:-Personnel:*Russell Mael, vocals*Ron Mael, keyboards*Martin Gordon, bass*Adrian Fisher, guitar*Norman "Dinky" Diamond, drums-Other credits:*Recording engineers - Richard Digby-Smith, Tony Platt*Mixdown engineer - Bill Price...
, and was the lead single from the album, reaching number two 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 original idea for the song was that after each verse Russell would sing a movie dialogue cliché
Cliché
A cliché or cliche is an expression, idea, or element of an artistic work which has been overused to the point of losing its original meaning or effect, especially when at some earlier time it was considered meaningful or novel. In phraseology, the term has taken on a more technical meaning,...
, one of which was "This town ain't big enough for the both of us". They dropped the idea of having different phrases and instead used only the one in the title.
An acoustic version of the song was recorded in 1985 for the B-side of the Change single.
In 1997, Sparks recorded two new versions of the song. The first was an orchestral reworking produced by Tony Visconti
Tony Visconti
Anthony Edward Visconti is an American record producer and sometimes a musician or singer.Since the late 1960s, he has worked with an array of performers; his lengthiest involvement with any artist is with David Bowie: intermittently from Bowie's 1969 album Space Oddity to 2003's Reality, Visconti...
which reinstated a verse Muff Winwood
Muff Winwood
Mervyn "Muff" Winwood is an English songwriter and record producer, and the older brother of Steve Winwood. Both were formerly members of the Spencer Davis Group in the 1960s, in which Muff Winwood played bass guitar...
had cut from the original. The other was for their album Plagiarism
Plagiarism (album)
-Personnel:* Russell Mael - Vocals, production, mixing* Ron Mael - Keyboards, production* Tony Visconti, Orchestral, choral arrangements and conducting on "Pulling Rabbits Out Of A Hat", "This Town Ain't Big Enough for Both of Us", "When Do I Get To Sing 'My Way'", "Change", "Something For The Girl...
as a collaboration with Faith No More
Faith No More
Faith No More is an American rock band from San Francisco, California, formed originally as Faith No Man in 1981 by bassist Billy Gould, keyboardist Wade Worthington, vocalist Michael Morris and drummer Mike Bordin. A year later when Worthington was replaced by keyboardist Roddy Bottum, and Mike...
, which was released as a single and reached number forty in the British singles chart.
Winwood added the distinctive Western movie style gunshots in the studio. It has been claimed that Winwood bet with his friend Elton John
Elton John
Sir Elton Hercules John, CBE, Hon DMus is an English rock singer-songwriter, composer, pianist and occasional actor...
that the song would become a top five hit in the UK charts. Elton John bet that it would not; he lost.
Track listing
- 1974 original release.
- "This Town Ain't Big Enough for Both of Us – 3:06
- "Barbecutie – 3:10
Personnel
- Russell MaelRussell MaelRussell Mael is an American singer and songwriter who, with his older brother Ron, is in the band Sparks....
, vocals - Ron MaelRon MaelRonald David Mael , is an American musician and songwriter. He and his younger brother Russell, make up the pop duo Sparks.Ron Mael was born in Culver City, California. Ron plays keyboard and writes most of the songs for Sparks...
, keyboards - Martin GordonMartin GordonMartin Gordon is an English musician, who plays bass guitar and piano.-Biography:Martin Gordon was born in Ipswich, and grew up Hitchin, Hertfordshire...
, bass - Adrian Fisher, guitar
- Norman "Dinky" Diamond, drums
Chart positions
Original release (1974)| Chart | Peak position |
Certifications Music recording sales certification Music recording sales certification is a system of certifying that a music recording has shipped or sold a certain number of copies, where the threshold quantity varies by type and by nation or territory .Almost all countries follow variations of the RIAA certification categories,... (sales thresholds) |
|---|---|---|
| Dutch Top 40 Dutch Top 40 The Dutch Top 40 is a weekly music chart, which started as the "Veronica Top 40", because the offshore radio station Radio Veronica was the first to introduce it. It remained "The Veronica Top 40" until 1974, when the station was forced to stop broadcasting... |
4 | |
| German Media Control Media Control Charts The official music charts in Germany are gathered and published by the company Media Control GfK International on behalf of Bundesverband Musikindustrie... Singles Chart |
12 | |
| Swiss Singles Chart | 7 | |
| U.K. 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 ... |
2 | BPI British Phonographic Industry The British Phonographic Industry is the British record industry's trade association.-Structure:Its membership comprises hundreds of music companies including all four "major" record companies , associate members such as manufacturers and distributors, and hundreds of independent music companies... : Silver |
Sparks Vs. Faith No More (1997)
| Chart | Peak position |
|---|---|
| U.K. 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 ... |
40 |
Musical style
The vocal sound on the single has been criticised as being "stylised". This may be because the song was written without any regard for the vocal style of Russell Mael. Songwriter Ron Mael has explained:
"This Town Ain’t Big Enough For Both of Us” was written in A, and by God it'll be sung in A. I just feel that if you're coming up with most of the music, then you have an idea where it's going to go. And no singer is gonna get in my way.
Russell Mael has claimed in reply:
"When he wrote “This Town Ain’t Big Enough For Both of Us”, Ron could only play it in that key. It was so much work to transpose the song and one of us had to budge, so I made the adjustment to fit in. My voice ain't a "rock" voice. It's not soulful, in the traditional rock way; It's not about "guts". It's untrained, unschooled, I never questioned why I was singing high. It just happened, dictated by the songs. Ron has always written Sparks' lyrics and never transposed them into a rock key for me to sing. He always packed each line with words and I had to sing them as they were.
Cover versions
The song has been coveredCover 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 Siouxsie and the Banshees on their 1987 album Through the Looking Glass, by Heavens Gate on their 1996 album Planet E, and by Theory in Practice
Theory in Practice
Theory in Practice is a Swedish technical death metal band founded in 1995, which borrows heavily from progressive metal. The band writes technical and complex songs consisting of a lot of time and tempo changes. After a year of rehearsals and gigs, they recorded a demo called Submissive in the...
on their 2002 album Colonizing the Sun. British Whale
British Whale
British Whale is the solo alias of the singer/guitarist/keyboardist Justin Hawkins.-History:To date British Whale has released two singles. The first, in 2005, was a cover of Sparks' 1974 UK hit, "This Town Ain't Big Enough for Both of Us". British Whale's version reached #6 in the UK Singles Chart...
(recording alias of The Darkness singer/songwriter Justin Hawkins
Justin Hawkins
Justin David Hawkins is an English musician and singer-songwriter, best known for being the lead singer and lead guitarist of The Darkness, alongside his brother, guitarist Dan Hawkins...
) released a version as his debut single in August 2005, which reached number 6 in the UK charts.
The track "Arabian Shamuru" on the 1991 Bon Voyage album by Japanese band Mahalik Halili uses almost exactly the same melody as "This Town Ain't Big Enough For Both of Us".
In live concerts
Concert
A concert is a live performance before an audience. The performance may be by a single musician, sometimes then called a recital, or by a musical ensemble, such as an orchestra, a choir, or a musical band...
, the electro/dance group Justice
Justice (French band)
Justice is a French electronic music duo consisting of Gaspard Augé and Xavier de Rosnay . The duo is one of the most successful groups on Ed Banger Records and is managed by the label's head, Pedro Winter...
have performed the track, and Arizona
Arizona
Arizona ; is a state located in the southwestern region of the United States. It is also part of the western United States and the mountain west. The capital and largest city is Phoenix...
's The Format
The Format
The Format was an American indie rock band formed by Arizona natives Nate Ruess and Sam Means. The band announced a hiatus on February 4, 2008. Their style can be considered a mixture of indie, alternative, punk and folk music, with elements of 1960s and 1970s pop music...
also cover it frequently, including it on their 2006 EP
Extended play
An EP is a musical recording which contains more music than a single, but is too short to qualify as a full album or LP. The term EP originally referred only to specific types of vinyl records other than 78 rpm standard play records and LP records, but it is now applied to mid-length Compact...
And Now I Hope You're Alright - Live in California
And Now I Hope You're Alright - Live in California
And Now I Hope You're Alright – Live in California is a Live EP by American rock band, The Format. It was released on October 24, 2006 on The Vanity Label...
. Portuguese band Humanos
Humanos
Humanos is the name of a musical band from Portugal formed in 2004. The idea behind it was to bring to light some unreleased songs by a famous Portuguese artist, a singer-songwriter from the 1980s, António Variações....
in their concerts performed a live version, mashing it with O Corpo É Que Paga. by Portuguese 1980's icon António Variações
António Variações
António Joaquim Rodrigues Ribeiro, was a Portuguese singer and songwriter. Despite his short-lived career, due to his premature death at the age of thirty-nine, he would, under the stage name of António Variações, become one of the most culturally significant performing artists of recent...
, which is available on their live DVD
Sparks' 1997 album Plagiarism
Plagiarism (album)
-Personnel:* Russell Mael - Vocals, production, mixing* Ron Mael - Keyboards, production* Tony Visconti, Orchestral, choral arrangements and conducting on "Pulling Rabbits Out Of A Hat", "This Town Ain't Big Enough for Both of Us", "When Do I Get To Sing 'My Way'", "Change", "Something For The Girl...
included two collaborations with Faith No More
Faith No More
Faith No More is an American rock band from San Francisco, California, formed originally as Faith No Man in 1981 by bassist Billy Gould, keyboardist Wade Worthington, vocalist Michael Morris and drummer Mike Bordin. A year later when Worthington was replaced by keyboardist Roddy Bottum, and Mike...
- "This Town Ain't Big Enough for the Both of Us" and "Something for the Girl with Everything". Faith No More then performed the song live during their 1997-1998 and reunion tours.
Cultural references
The song appears in a dream sequenceDream sequence
A dream sequence is a technique used in storytelling, particularly in television and film, to set apart a brief interlude from the main story. The interlude may consist of a flashback, a flashforward, a fantasy, a vision, a dream, or some other element. Commonly, dream sequences appear in many...
in an episode of the British sitcom
Situation comedy
A situation comedy, often shortened to sitcom, is a genre of comedy that features characters sharing the same common environment, such as a home or workplace, accompanied with jokes as part of the dialogue...
Green Wing
Green Wing
Green Wing is a British sitcom set in the fictional East Hampton Hospital. It was created by the same team behind the sketch show Smack the Pony, led by Victoria Pile, and stars Tamsin Greig, Stephen Mangan and Julian Rhind-Tutt....
. It is performed by two of the characters, Dr. "Mac" Macartney
Mac (Green Wing)
Dr Macartney or Dr Mac is a character in the British sitcom Green Wing, played by Julian Rhind-Tutt.- History :Often simply referred to as "Mac", Dr Macartney is a surgeon working in the fictional East Hampton Hospital...
and Dr. Alan Statham
Alan Statham
Alan Statham is a fictional character in the British sitcom Green Wing, played by Mark Heap.- History :Alan is the consultant radiologist at East Hampton Hospital....
, pretending to be Russell Mael
Russell Mael
Russell Mael is an American singer and songwriter who, with his older brother Ron, is in the band Sparks....
and Ron Mael
Ron Mael
Ronald David Mael , is an American musician and songwriter. He and his younger brother Russell, make up the pop duo Sparks.Ron Mael was born in Culver City, California. Ron plays keyboard and writes most of the songs for Sparks...
respectively.
The original Sparks version of the song is heard in the 2010 movie Kick-Ass
Kick-Ass (film)
Kick-Ass is a 2010 superhero comedy film based on the comic book of the same name by Mark Millar and John Romita, Jr. The film was directed by Matthew Vaughn, who co-produced the film with actor Brad Pitt, and co-wrote the screenplay with Jane Goldman...
.