Solsbury Hill (song)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| "Solsbury Hill" | ||
|---|---|---|
| Image:Solsburyhill gabriel.jpg | ||
| Single by Peter Gabriel | ||
| from the album Peter Gabriel | ||
| Released | 1977 (UK) | |
| Format | vinyl record (7") | |
| Recorded | 1976 | |
| Genre | Rock | |
| Length | 4:21 | |
| Label | Atco Records / Charisma Records | |
| Producer(s) | Bob Ezrin | |
| Chart positions | ||
| ||
| Peter Gabriel singles chronology | ||
| - - | "Solsbury Hill" (1977) | "Modern Love" (1977) |
| "Solsbury Hill" | ||
|---|---|---|
| Image:Erasure single solsburyhill.jpg | ||
| Single by Erasure | ||
| from the album Other People's Songs | ||
| Released | January 6, 2003 | |
| Format | CD Single DVD single | |
| Recorded | 2002 | |
| Genre | Synth pop | |
| Length | 04:22 | |
| Label | Mute Records | |
| Writer(s) | Peter Gabriel | |
| Producer(s) | Gareth Jones, Erasure | |
| Chart positions | ||
| ||
| Erasure singles chronology | ||
| "Moon & the Sky" (2001) | "Solsbury Hill" (2003) | "Make Me Smile (Come Up and See Me)" (2003) |
"Solsbury Hill" is a song by British musician Peter Gabriel, about spending a moment of reflection atop Solsbury Hill in Somerset, England. Gabriel wrote the song after his departure from the prog rock band Genesis, of which he had been the lead singer since its inception, explaining the reasons behind his departure. It was his debut single. The single reached the Top 70 on the Billboard Hot 100.
It was used for the soundtracks of the 2001 film Vanilla Sky, and the 2004 film In Good Company. A cover version by Erasure became a hit in 2003. Sarah McLachlan has also covered the song.
It was also used in the trailers for Big Fish and the popular satirical trailer for Stanley Kubrick's The Shining features the first verse.
The song uses the rare septuple (7/4) meter time signature for a vast majority of the song. Only the last line of each chorus is 8/4.
[edit] Erasure version
"Solsbury Hill" was recorded by British synth pop duo Erasure in 2003 for their cover versions album Other People's Songs. The track was chosen for the album by Erasure member Vince Clarke. Clarke and singer Andy Bell turned the song into a mid-tempo electronic dance tune, displaying the signature Erasure "sound". The only major change made to the structure of the song was the modification of the 7/4 time signature to a more basic 4/4.
Mute Records released the song as a single in the UK and the U.S. "Solsbury Hill" returned Erasure to the top-ten of the UK singles chart for the first time in nine years. It also peaked at number twenty-nine in Germany.
[edit] Erasure track listings
CD single #1 (CDMUTE275)
- "Solsbury Hill"
- "Tell It To Me"
- "Searching"
CD single #2 (LCDMUTE275)
- "Solsbury Hill" (37b Mix)
- "Solsbury Hill" (Manhattan Clique Extended Remix)
- "Ave Maria"
DVD single (DVDMUTE275)
- "Solsbury Hill" (Single Mix)
- "Video Killed the Radio Star" (37b Mix)
- Short Film: Dr Jeckyll And Mistress Hyde
[edit] External links
- http://www.solsburyhill.org
- 'Shining' spoof trailer, portraying it as a heart-warming romantic comedy. Features snippet of 'Solsbury Hill'.
- http://www.writersforliteracy.org/solsburyhill.mp4.zip An mp4 video showing how to play the basic melody of "Solsbury Hill" on the guitar. This mp4 video file is viewable on Macs, Windows and video iPods. (About 35.2 megabytes in file size and about 4 minutes in duration.)
- http://www.solsburyhill.org/essays/car.htm#solsbury Solsbury Hill song explained on SolsburyHill.org
