"Under the God"
Single by Tin Machine
from the album Tin Machine
B-side"Sacrifice Yourself"
ReleasedJune 1989
RecordedMontreux; Nassau,
August 1988 - early 1989
GenreRock
Length4:06
LabelEMI
Songwriter(s)David Bowie
Producer(s)
Tin Machine singles chronology
"Under the God"
(1989)		 "Tin Machine"
(1989)

"Under the God" is the first official single released by Anglo-American hard rock band Tin Machine, taken from their eponymous debut album in June 1989.

Song information

"Under the God", which came from a demo originally called "Night Train", was a song that excoriated Neo-Nazism.[1]

Although "Heaven's in Here" was actually the album's first single, it was only released promotionally, which made "Under the God" the first official single, released after the album was already available.[2]

Critical reception

Jerry Smith, reviewer of British music newspaper Music Week, reviewed the single positively, saying that it reminds him of Bowie's "Panic in Detroit" and expressed the assurance that it "should ignite the charts".[3]

Music video

The band elected not to create music videos for the album's singles, and instead created a 13-track megamix video for the entire album. The video, directed by Julien Temple, presented edits of each song in vignette form, and included "Under the God" masqueraded as a performance, with the audience storming the stage.[4]

Live performances

"Under the God" was performed live on both the 1989 Tin Machine Tour and 1991-92's It's My Life Tour. A live performance of the song, recorded in Sapporo, Japan in 1992, was included on the live album Tin Machine Live: Oy Vey, Baby (1992).

Track listing

7" version
  1. "Under the God" (Bowie) – 4:06
  2. "Sacrifice Yourself" (Bowie, Sales, Sales) – 2:08
10"/12"/CD version
  1. "Under the God" (Bowie) – 4:06
  2. "Sacrifice Yourself" (Bowie, Sales, Sales) – 2:08
  3. "The Interview" (An interview with the band) – 12:23

Credits and personnel

Producers

Musicians

Chart performance

Chart (1989) Position
Australian Singles Chart[5] 97
UK Singles Chart[6] 51
US Billboard Alternative Songs[7] 4
US Mainstream Rock[8] 8

References

  1. ↑ O'Leary, Chris (2019). Ashes to Ashes The Songs of David Bowie 1976–2016. Repeater Books. ISBN 9781912248308.
  2. ↑ Pegg, Nicholas (October 2016). "The Complete David Bowie New Edition: Expanded and Updated". Titan Books.
  3. ↑ Smith, Jerry (24 June 1989). "Review: Tin Machine – Under the God" (PDF). Music Week. London: Spotlight Publications Ltd. p. 25. ISSN 0265-1548. Archived from the original (PDF) on 29 October 2021. Retrieved 20 February 2022 – via World Radio History.
  4. ↑ McLennan, Scott (3 June 2019). "David Bowie & I: Socks, Sax & Sex Shops". Retrieved 6 June 2019.
  5. ↑ Scott, Gavin. "This Week In 1989: July 30, 1989". chartbeats.com.au. Retrieved 1 August 2019.
  6. ↑ "Official Charts > Tin Machine". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 1 August 2019.
  7. ↑ https://www.billboard.com/artist/tin-machine/chart-history/alternative-songs
  8. ↑ "Album Search for "tin machine"". AllMusic.

Notes

  • Pegg, Nicholas, The Complete David Bowie, Reynolds & Hearn Ltd, 2000, ISBN 1-903111-14-5
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