Shadow on the Wall

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Shadow on the Wall
Mike Oldfield and Roger Chapman
publication September 1983
length 3:09 (7 ") / 5:07 (12")
Genre (s) Rock , hard rock
Author (s) Mike Oldfield
album Crises

Shadow on the Wall is a rock song by the English musician Mike Oldfield and singer Roger Chapman , which was released as a single on Virgin Records in September 1983 . It is the third single from his album Crises , which was released in May 1983, and the last song on the album. The song reached high chart positions in Europe and became a number one hit in Austria .

Music and lyrics

Musically, Oldfield mixes some hard rock elements into the rock song , such as the distorted two-part electric guitar leads and the equally two-part solo. Roger Chapman's vocals are also very rough. The music video describes an interrogation scene, but the text can be interpreted more generally on a person who is put under pressure and sees no way out, for example in a personal relationship ("Treat me like a prisoner / Treat me like a fool / Treat me like a loser / Use me as a tool ").

Creation and publication

The song was written by Oldfield himself and produced by him with Simon Phillips . The recordings took place from November 1982 to April 1983 in Denham , England. Previously, Oldfield had spoken to Roger Chapman through a friend in his local pub. During the recordings, Oldfield Chapman had the "exhausting" vocal tracks sing in several times until he complained. Afterwards, according to Chapman, Oldfield admitted that he let Chapman do this because he had previously applied to be the bass player in his band Family and was not taken. Shadow on the Wall appeared on the album Crises in May 1983 and was released as the third single from it in September 1983. Apart from a few television appearances, there was no further collaboration between the musicians. The piece was later released on compilation albums such as Collection (2009) and The Platinum Collection (2006).

The single reached high chart positions in Germany (third place), Switzerland (fourth place) and in Austria (first place). In the UK , Shadow on the Wall only made it to 95th place.

Chart placements
Charts Top ranking Weeks
Chart placements
Germany (GfK) Germany (GfK) 3 (20 weeks) 20th
Austria (Ö3) Austria (Ö3) 1 (16 weeks) 16
Switzerland (IFPI) Switzerland (IFPI) 4th (13 weeks) 13
United Kingdom (OCC) United Kingdom (OCC) 95 (2 weeks) 2

Track list

7 "single

  1. Shadow on the Wall (3:09)
  2. Taurus (2:25)

12 "-Maxi

  1. Shadow on the Wall (Extended Version) (5:07)
  2. Taurus (2:25)

Music video

A music video was released for this single. Keith McMillan directed it. It is available on The Wind Chimes (VHS and Laserdisc) and can also be found on the DVD version of Elements - The Best of Mike Oldfield .

Cover versions

Cover versions exist, among others, of the Swedish metal band Arch Enemy and Nanne Grönvall , a singer from the same country.

literature

  • Mike Oldfield: A Man and His Music . Booksurge Llc 2006, ISBN 1-4196-4926-4
  • Mike Oldfield: Changeling - The Autobiography of Mike Oldfield . Virgin Books, 2007, ISBN 0-7535-1307-2

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ a b c d e f https://hitparade.ch/song/Mike-Oldfield-and-Roger-Chapman/Shadow-On-The-Wall-1003
  2. ↑ https://www.popmatters.com/162482-mike-oldfield-two-sides-the-very-best-of-mike-oldfield-2495822419.html
  3. ↑ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_euDhMDDRq4
  4. ^ Mike Oldfield - Shadow on the Wall | Music | SWR1 Baden-Württemberg. March 2, 2016, accessed February 5, 2019 .
  5. ↑ a b c d Chart sources: DE AT CH UK