19 (song)
| 19th | |
|---|---|
| Paul Hardcastle | |
| publication | May 1985 |
| Genre (s) | Pop , Electro Funk , New Wave |
| Author (s) | Paul Hardcastle |
| Label | Chrysalis Records |
| Award (s) | Ivor Novello Award |
| album | Paul Hardcastle |
19 is a Paul Hardcastle song written by him, William Coutourie and Jonas McCord. Paul Hardcastle was also the producer . It is an instrumental that is underlaid with spoken word passages taken from a documentary about the Vietnam War . Musically, the song is assigned to Electro Funk and New Wave . The single was released in May 1985 and was a number one hit in 13 countries.
Emergence
When Hardcastle saw the documentary Vietnam Requiem about the Vietnam War on television, he was particularly impressed by the fact that the average age of American soldiers in this war was 19 years, compared to 26 years in World War II . Hardcastle had just set up a recording studio and bought a sampler . While experimenting with the instrument, Hardcastle had recorded the word he had spoken nineteen (English for nineteen ), but did not consider that he would have to hold down the play button to play this recording. Instead, he pressed the key several times in succession, resulting in the staccato ni-ni-ni-nineteen characteristic of the song . Hardcastle combined the electro-funk rhythm with speech samples from the television documentary, which is why their authors William Coutourie and Jonas McCord received credits as songwriters . He backed the chorus with a women's choir. Peter Thomas, the documentary's spokesman, was initially less than enthusiastic about the adoption of his spoken passages, but gave his consent.
Publication and Success
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The single was released in May 1985 on the occasion of the 10th anniversary of the end of the Vietnam War. The piece reached number 1 on the charts in a total of 13 countries, including Germany , Austria , Switzerland , Great Britain , Italy , the Netherlands , Sweden , Norway and New Zealand . The song reached number 15 on the Billboard Hot 100 in June 1985, where the song was Hardcastles only hit. In total, the single sold over four million times worldwide.
The single received a gold record in Germany and the British Ivor Novello Award for the best-selling single of 1985.
Reception and controversy
The lyrics of the song have been viewed as too superficial by parts of the US music press. In August 1985, the columnist for the music magazine Spin , John Leland, described 19 as a "nuisance". He criticized the sole reference to the average age of the soldiers and wrote:
“But that isn't the full reason that the war was unconscionable, and Hardcastle ignores the rest of the story. […] What is Hardcastles point: that we should use older dudes to level Managua? "
“But that's not the real reason the war was so ruthless, and Hardcastle hides the rest of the story. […] What is Hardcastle's argument: that we should let older boys destroy Managua ? "
In fact, the average age of American soldiers was higher. The average age of the American soldiers killed was 23 years.
Unlike in the United States, in Europe the song was understood as an anti-war song. Controversy also made the music video because their makers in excerpts from the documentation Vietnam Requiem of the television channel ABC used that went on the permit. So the video had to be re-cut and the corresponding excerpts replaced by video samples with similar content.
Eventually Hardcastle was sued by Mike Oldfield because the tune of 19 was similar to that of his song Tubular Bells . Oldfield succeeded and received part of the royalties .
Remixes and cover versions
Between 1985 and 1995, five language versions and 22 official mixes were released . Versions of 19 in other languages were also produced, with the samples of the original translated and re-recorded by well-known news anchors in the target language. There was a German version (spoken by Werner Veigel ), a French version (spoken by Yves Mourousi), a Spanish (spoken by Jesus Pozo) and a Japanese version (spoken by Kango Kobayashi).
More cover versions were released:
- 1998: Interactive
- 2003: Criss Source
On April 19, 2010, Hardcastle released a remix of the song, which was directed against the war in Afghanistan since 2001 .
literature
- Lothar Berndorff, Tobias Friedrich: 1000 ultimate chart hits. The most successful songs and their history . Moewig, 2008, ISBN 978-3-86803-272-7 , section 1985, p. 435 .
- Wayne Jancik: One Hit Wonders . Booksurge Publishing, 2008, ISBN 978-1-4196-8764-8 , pp. 434 .
Web links
- Nineteen by Paul Hardcastle at Songfacts.com (English)
Individual evidence
- ↑ a b Wayne Jancik: One Hit Wonders. P. 434.
- ↑ a b c Lothar Berndorff, Tobias Friedrich: 1000 Ultimate Charthits. P. 435.
- ↑ Sources for chart placements: / AT / DE / CH / UK / US , accessed on May 9, 2019.
- ↑ a b Sinead Garvan: 19 reworked for Afghanistan: Paul Hardcastle re-releases anti-war track. BBC , April 3, 2010, accessed May 17, 2013 .
- ^ Gold and platinum databases: DE , query from May 17, 2013.
- ↑ John Leland: Singles - Paul Hardcastle: "19" . In: Spin . August 1985, p. 36 .
- ^ Combat Area Casualty File, Nov. 1993. Center for Electronic Records, National Archives, Washington DC
- ↑ Jim Bessman: Anti-War Clip Provokes Network Wrath . In: Billboard . June 1, 1985, p. 38 f .