Outdoor Miner
| "Outdoor Miner" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Single by Wire | ||||
| from the album Chairs Missing | ||||
| B-side | "Practice Makes Perfect" | |||
| Released | 12 January 1979 | |||
| Genre | ||||
| Length | 2:51 | |||
| Label | Harvest | |||
| Songwriter(s) | ||||
| Producer(s) | Mike Thorne | |||
| Wire singles chronology | ||||
| ||||
"Outdoor Miner" is a song written by Colin Newman and Graham Lewis, and performed by the English post-punk band Wire. It was released in January 1979 as the band's fourth single (reaching number 51 in the UK singles chart)[3] and appeared on their second album, Chairs Missing.
Content
The song originally appeared on their 1978 album Chairs Missing. The song is based on Graham Lewis's fascination with the Serpentine leaf miner insect[4] and details the life cycle of the insect.[5] EMI recognised that the song could potentially be a hit single, but were concerned that it was too short,[6] measuring only 1 minute 45 seconds. Unusually the label asked the band to make a longer version for the single. The band added an additional verse and chorus, and a piano solo played by producer Mike Thorne,[6] pushing the length to 2 minutes 51 seconds. EMI were confident that the song could become a hit and commercial breakthrough for the band.[6]
The single soon entered the charts reaching number 51 and the BBC approached EMI and asked them to appear on the long running music show
Reviewing the single for the NME, Charles Shaar Murray wrote "This record is white and shows the dirt. Its surface is injured but rarely hurt. Guitars twang, keyboards ching, a voice intones. It is 3.55, your reviewer groans. It sounds soft and squishy, I can't hear the words. Time passes, how absurd. This group are overrated your correspondent demurs ... sod it I'm bored."[7]
Cover versions
"Outdoor Miner" has been covered by several artists. Notable versions include
Personnel
- Colin Newman – guitars, vocals
- Graham Lewis – bass guitar, vocals
- Bruce Gilbert – guitars
- Robert Gotobed– drums
- Mike Thorne – piano
References
- ^ "Start To Move: A Short History Of 1970s Wire". Clash. 25 May 2018. Retrieved 25 July 2022.
- ISBN 0-7535-0354-9. Archived from the originalon 8 October 2021.
- ^ "Wire | full Official Chart History". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 11 June 2017.
- ^ "Cutting the Stone Out A Personal View of Wire by Stephen Harper". Wirewviews.com. Retrieved 27 August 2016.
- ^ "Tuesday Tunes – Outdoor Miner – Biodiversity in Focus Blog". Biodiversityinfocus.com. Retrieved 27 August 2016.
- ^ ISBN 978-1847727107. Retrieved 27 August 2016.
- ^ Shaar Murray, Charles. "Singles". NME (13 January 1979). IPC: 10.
- ^ a b "The 10 best Wire covers, according to Wire". Dummy. 9 April 2015. Retrieved 27 August 2016.
- ^ "Cover versions of Outdoor Miner". Secondhandsongs.com. Retrieved 27 August 2016.
- ^ a b "VARIOUS ARTISTS A Houseguest's Wish Translations of Wire's "Outdoor Miner"". Words-on-music.com. Retrieved 27 August 2016.
External links
- Lyrics of this song on Wire's official website
- "Outdoor Miner" at Discogs (list of releases)
