Belfast Child
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Belfast Child (English for " Belfast Child "), also Ballad of the Streets , is a song by the Scottish rock band Simple Minds from 1989, the lyrics of which were written by the Simple Minds to the music of an Irish folk song.
background
The song is based on the music of the Irish folk song She Moved Through the Fair , but uses a completely new text except for the first line of lyrics “(When) my love said to me” and is one of the many songs that deal with the Northern Ireland conflict. Unlike, say, Sunday Bloody Sunday by U2 refers Belfast Child not a special event. It is more of an atmospheric description of the state of Belfast City . Irish echoes can also be found in the use of the flute so typical of Irish folk music in the interludes and the drum rhythm played by the Irish percussion instrument bodhran , which forms the basis of the long instrumental part in the middle.
Data
Belfast Child was released on January 18, 1989 and comes from the album Street Fighting Years from the same year and reached number 1 in the UK charts , Ireland and the Netherlands . With 6:39 min. It is the fifth longest number 1 hit in the UK charts after Meat Loafs I'd Do Anything for Love (12 min), Oasis ' All Around the World (9:38 min.), The Beatles ' Hey Jude ( 7:11 min.) And USA for Africas We Are the World (7:02 min.).
The single is also known as the Ballad of the Streets EP with the b-side Mandela Day , which premiered on June 11, 1988 during the Nelson Mandela 70th Birthday Tribute Concert .
From March 13, 1989 to July 16, 1989, the single was in the German charts for a total of 18 weeks, with the best ranking at number 3 for 3 weeks.
American violinist Lisa Germano took part in the recordings of Belfast Child and the album Street Fighting Years .
Excerpts from the song were used for a long time in radio and television advertising for the Krombacher beer brand .
In 2014, a version by Sydney Wayser was used for the trailer for the film Exodus: Gods and Kings .
Music video
The video is recorded in black and white and shows the individual performers in changing sequences , as well as concise images of running, jumping children, workers and impressions from Belfast.
Individual evidence
literature
- Yvonne Wasserloos: "Sunday Bloody Sunday" and "Belfast Child". Political Terror and Musical Reflection in the Northern Ireland Conflict of the 1980s. In: Sabine Mecking / Yvonne Wasserloos (Ed.): Music - Power - State. Cultural, social and political change processes in the modern age. Göttingen 2012 pp. 339–370. ISBN 978-3-89971-872-0
Web links
- Official website of Simple Minds
- Yvonne Wasserloos: Belfast Child . In: Song Lexicon . Accessed: June 15, 2014.