You Might Think
Encyclopedia
"You Might Think" is a single
by The Cars
from their fifth studio album, Heartbeat City
, which came out in 1984. The track was written by Ric Ocasek, and produced by Mutt Lange and The Cars. Ocasek sang lead vocals.
The track was the first single to be released off Heartbeat City. Thanks in part to a striking video, "You Might Think" became a substantial hit in the US (peaking at #7) and in Canada (peaking at #8). It also peaked at #1 on the Mainstream Rock Tracks
chart in the US, the first song by the band to do so. In the UK, however, the track only made it to #88 on the pop charts.
In 2011 Weezer
remade the song for Cars 2
and its movie soundtrack.
is one of the first videos to use computer graphics
. The video features band leader Ric Ocasek and model Susan Gallagher in a series of encounters. Ocasek appears in her bathroom mirror, in her mouth, as a fly, and as the Robot Monster
, among other incarnations.
"You Might Think" won the first MTV Video Music Award
for Video of the Year
and was nominated for five more awards (best special effects, best art direction, viewer's choice, best concept video, and most experimental video) at the 1984 MTV Video Music Awards
. The video also won five awards (best overall, best conceptual, most innovative, best editing, and best special effects) at Billboard
's 1984 Video Music Awards and four awards (best achievement in music video, best editor in music video, best engineer in music video, and best camera in music video) at the Videotape Production Association's 1985 Monitor Awards.
Jeff Stein, and Alex Weil
and Charlie Levi of VFX company Charlex, directed and produced the video. Danny Rosenberg and Bill Weber served both as editors and video engineers, Kevin Jones was the lighting director, Danny Ducovny the cinematographer and Bob Ryzner the art director. The video cost $80,000 to make which was almost triple the average music video budget of the time.
The model in the video is often mistaken for Ocasek's future wife, Paulina Porizkova
. Porizkova appears in the video of "Drive
".
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...
by The Cars
The Cars
The Cars are an American rock band that emerged from the early New Wave music scene in the late 1970s. The band consisted of lead singer and rhythm guitarist Ric Ocasek, lead singer and bassist Benjamin Orr, guitarist Elliot Easton, keyboardist Greg Hawkes and drummer David Robinson...
from their fifth studio album, Heartbeat City
Heartbeat City
Heartbeat City is the fifth studio album by American rock band The Cars, released in 1984.Heartbeat City contains a total of five American Top 40 singles, two of which were Top 10 as well, reaching #3 and #7, respectively...
, which came out in 1984. The track was written by Ric Ocasek, and produced by Mutt Lange and The Cars. Ocasek sang lead vocals.
The track was the first single to be released off Heartbeat City. Thanks in part to a striking video, "You Might Think" became a substantial hit in the US (peaking at #7) and in Canada (peaking at #8). It also peaked at #1 on the 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...
chart in the US, the first song by the band to do so. In the UK, however, the track only made it to #88 on the pop charts.
In 2011 Weezer
Weezer
Weezer is an American alternative rock band. The band currently consists of Rivers Cuomo , Patrick Wilson , Brian Bell , and Scott Shriner . The band has changed lineups three times since its formation in 1992...
remade the song for Cars 2
Cars 2
Cars 2 is a 2011 American computer-animated action film produced by Pixar, and it is the sequel to the 2006 film, Cars. In the film, race car Lightning McQueen and tow truck Mater head to Japan and Europe to compete in the World Grand Prix, but Mater becomes sidetracked with international espionage...
and its movie soundtrack.
Music video
The music videoMusic 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...
is one of the first videos to use computer graphics
Computer graphics
Computer graphics are graphics created using computers and, more generally, the representation and manipulation of image data by a computer with help from specialized software and hardware....
. The video features band leader Ric Ocasek and model Susan Gallagher in a series of encounters. Ocasek appears in her bathroom mirror, in her mouth, as a fly, and as the Robot Monster
Robot Monster
Robot Monster is a 1953 American science fiction film made in 3-D by Phil Tucker. It is frequently considered one of the worst films ever made.- Plot :...
, among other incarnations.
"You Might Think" won the first MTV Video Music Award
MTV Video Music Awards
An MTV Video Music Award , is an award presented by the cable channel MTV to honor the best in music videos...
for Video of the Year
MTV Video Music Award for Video of the Year
The MTV Video Music Award for Video of the Year is the main award handed out at the yearly MTV Video Music Awards. It was first awarded in , when The Cars won it, and has been given out since. Eminem has been the most nominated solo artist, male solo artist, and act in this category, having been...
and was nominated for five more awards (best special effects, best art direction, viewer's choice, best concept video, and most experimental video) at the 1984 MTV Video Music Awards
1984 MTV Video Music Awards
The 1984 MTV Video Music Awards aired live on September 14, 1984, honoring the best music videos from May 2, 1983, to May 2, 1984. The show was hosted by Dan Aykroyd and Bette Midler at the Radio City Music Hall in New York City....
. The video also won five awards (best overall, best conceptual, most innovative, best editing, and best special effects) at Billboard
Billboard (magazine)
Billboard is a weekly American magazine devoted to the music industry, and is one of the oldest trade magazines in the world. It maintains several internationally recognized music charts that track the most popular songs and albums in various categories on a weekly basis...
's 1984 Video Music Awards and four awards (best achievement in music video, best editor in music video, best engineer in music video, and best camera in music video) at the Videotape Production Association's 1985 Monitor Awards.
Jeff Stein, and Alex Weil
Alex Weil
Alex Weil is the founder and executive creative director of the New York City based digital design and production studio Charlex. He was awarded the "Video of the Year" MTV Video Music Award in 1984 for directing "You Might Think" by The Cars, and also wrote and directed the SIGGRAPH award-winning...
and Charlie Levi of VFX company Charlex, directed and produced the video. Danny Rosenberg and Bill Weber served both as editors and video engineers, Kevin Jones was the lighting director, Danny Ducovny the cinematographer and Bob Ryzner the art director. The video cost $80,000 to make which was almost triple the average music video budget of the time.
The model in the video is often mistaken for Ocasek's future wife, Paulina Porizkova
Paulina Porizkova
Pavlína Pořízková-Ocasek is a Czech model and actress. At the age of eighteen years, she became the first woman from Central Europe to grace the cover of the Sports Illustrated swim-suit issue. She was the second woman to be featured on the swim-suit issue's front cover consecutive times...
. Porizkova appears in the video of "Drive
Drive (The Cars song)
"Drive" is a 1984 song by The Cars, the third single from the band's Heartbeat City album and their biggest international hit. It was written by Ric Ocasek and produced by Robert John "Mutt" Lange with the band. Lead vocals were by Cars bassist Benjamin Orr....
".
Track listing
- 7"
- "You Might Think"
- "Heartbeat City"
- 12"
- "You Might Think"
- "Let's Go"
- "I Refuse"
Charts
| Chart (1984) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Canadian RPM 100 RPM (magazine) RPM was a Canadian music industry publication that featured song and album charts for Canada. The publication was founded by Walt Grealis in February 1964, supported through its existence by record label owner Stan Klees. RPM ceased publication in November 2000.RPM stood for "Records, Promotion,... |
8 |
| Dutch Singles Chart 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... |
49 |
| New Zealand Singles Chart Recording Industry Association of New Zealand The Recording Industry Association of New Zealand is a non-profit trade association of record producers, distributors and recording artists who sell music in New Zealand... |
27 |
| Swedish Singles Chart Sverigetopplistan Sverigetopplistan, earlier known as Topplistan and Hitlistan and other names, is since October 2007 the Swedish national record chart, based on sales data from Swedish Recording Industry Association .... |
20 |
| 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 ... |
88 |
| US Billboard Hot 100 Billboard Hot 100 The Billboard Hot 100 is the United States music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine. Chart rankings are based on radio play and sales; the tracking-week for sales begins on Monday and ends on Sunday, while the radio play tracking-week runs from Wednesday... |
7 |
| US Billboard Top Rock Tracks | 1 |
External links
- Music video for "You Might Think" on VH1 ClassicVH1 ClassicVH1 Classic is a television network, launched on May 8, 2000. It is operated as part of MTV Networks, a subsidiary of Viacom and primarily features music videos and concert footage from the 1970s through the mid-1990s, though it formerly included a wider range of genres and time periods...
website