Crucified (Army of Lovers song)

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"Crucified"
Crucified (Army of Lovers song).jpg
Single by Army of Lovers
from the album Massive Luxury Overdose
B-side"Love Revolution"
ReleasedMay 1991, April 1992 and July 2013
RecordedSonet Studios, Stockholm
Genre
  • Dance pop
  • techno
Length3:32
Songwriter(s)
Producer(s)
  • Alexander Bard
  • Anders Wollbeck
Army of Lovers (1991) singles chronology
"Supernatural"
(1990) 		"Crucified"
(1991) 		"Obsession"
(1991)
Army of Lovers (1992) singles chronology
"Ride the Bullet"
(1992) 		"Crucified"
(1992) 		"Judgment Day"
(1992)
Army of Lovers (2013) singles chronology
"Signed on my Tattoo (feat. Gravitonas)"
(2013) 		"Crucified 2013"
(2013) 		"People are Lonely (Gravitonas feat. Army of Lovers)"
(2014)
Music video
"Crucified" on YouTube
Music video
"Crucified 2013" on YouTube
Alternative Cover
1992 U.K cover
1992 U.K cover
Alternative cover
1992 U.S cover
1992 U.S cover
Alternative cover
2013 cover
2013 cover

"Crucified" is a 1991 song by the Swedish band Army of Lovers. It is the first single from their second album, Massive Luxury Overdose and the seventh single to be released by the band. It was released on May 1991 (in Sweden), February–April 1992 (in the UK and US), and July 2013 (Crucified 2013). It was written by Alexander Bard, Anders Wollbeck and Jean-Pierre Barda and features Barda (vocals, drums), Bard (vocals, computer) and La Camilla (vocals, bass). The song was successful in several European countries, including Belgium, where it reached the number-one,[1] and Germany, Sweden, Austria and Switzerland, where it reached the Top 10. In the United States, "Crucified" became a huge club hit and radio favorite, debuting at number 6 on the Billboard Dance singles chart and spending a total of 14 weeks in the Top 20. The two remixes available on the CD maxi and vinyl 12" maxi are made by Nuzak. The track samples the drum break from James Brown's Funky Drummer.

In 2013, Army of Lovers made a new version of the song, simply called 'Crucified 2013'. It contains new vocals from Dominika Peczynski.[2]

Bard's future music project, Gravitonas uses a sample of this song on the track "Sacrifice" from their 2012 Black Ceremony EP.[citation needed]

Kurt Cobain of the hugely successful alternative rock group Nirvana praised the band in his posthumously published journals, specifically the song "Crucified."[3]

Critical reception[]

AllMusic editor Ned Raggett described the song as a "totally over-the-top disco anthem on all fronts that takes ABBA's winning combination of memorable hooks and harmonies as inspiration and slathers a load of glitter and make-up over the whole thing." He noted further that "having ultracampy lyrical asides like "I cry, I pray, mon dieu" doesn't hurt the sheer giddiness at work, and neither do the "I'm crucified like my saviour" chorus, church organ and twangy Duane Eddy guitar."[4] Larry Flick from Billboard said it is a "super-hot slammin' houser".[5] Bevan Hannah from The Canberra Times wrote, "Judging by the video for their first single release Crucified, their image was carefully plotted, combining cabaret style costumes and graphics with groovy European dance rhythms."[6] Music Week wrote that the song is "a bizarre pop/dance confection, both commercial and camp."[7] James Hamilton from the magazine's RM Dance Update commented that it is "camp and corny party fun from Sweden, this Abba-ishly chorused, phonetic guy rapped, strings swirled and — just to cap it all! — Duane Eddy-ish guitar twanged 0-122bpm jiggly jumper sounds like a pop hit with wide gimmick appeal".[8] Newcastle Evening Chronicle called it a "clever almost choral rock approach on a lively danceable number."[9] They noted "the ebullient bounce" of the track.[10] People Magazine wrote in their review, that "disco goes to church in this hip-hop hallelujah".[11] Sophie Lawrence reviewed the song for Smash Hits, writing, "It's one of those records where you can imagine everyone at a disco dancing around with their hands in the air, isn't it? I like it. It's got a gospel feel and really good harmonies on it."[12]

Chart performance[]

"Crucified" went on becoming very successful on the charts in Europe, peaking at number-one in Belgium. It remains to date one of the bands biggest hits, reaching the Top 10 also in Austria, Germany, Greece, the Netherlands, Spain, Sweden and Switzerland in 1991. In the United Kingdom, the single peaked at number 31 on the UK Singles Chart on February 23, 1992.[13] On the Eurochart Hot 100, it climbed to number 14. Outside Europe, "Crucified" was successful also in the US, where it peaked at number 6 on both the Billboard Dance Club Songs and the Billboard Dance/Electronic Singles Sales.

Music video[]

A music video was made to accompany the song. It was directed by Swedish directors Fredrik Boklund and Martin Persson. The video was uploaded to YouTube in May 2016. As of August 2020, it has got more than 9,2 million views.[14]

Usage in media[]

The music video of "Crucified" was used in an episode of American adult animated sitcom Beavis and Butt-Head.[15]

The song was played in Gabriel Aghion's 1996 film, Pédale douce, and was thus included in the track listing of the soundtrack. It was also played in the film Marock (2005),[citation needed] and was in the video game Just Dance 4 on the Wii.[16]

Covers by other artists[]

The song has been covered by the Swedish band Ghost in their 2013 EP titled If You have Ghost.

Formats and track listings[]

Credits and personnel[]

Charts[]

References[]

  1. ^ Number One hits in Belgium, 1991
  2. ^ Army of Lovers: ‘Crucified 2013′
  3. ^ Felix Burrichter. "Kitsch of the Day | Army of Lovers", tmagazine.blogs.nytimes.com, 18 May 2009. Retrieved 22 February 2014.
  4. ^ "Army of Lovers - Massive Luxury Overdose". AllMusic. Retrieved 2020-02-17.
  5. ^ "DANCETRAX" (PDF). Billboard. 1991-08-24. p. 24. Retrieved 2020-03-31.
  6. ^ Hannah, Bevan (1992-03-05). "Future dag music should be enjoyed". The Canberra Times. p. 15. Retrieved 2020-04-23.
  7. ^ "Mainstream: Singles" (PDF). Music Week. 1992-02-08. p. 6. Retrieved 2020-10-01.
  8. ^ "DJ Directory: Hot Vinyl" (PDF). Music Week, in Record Mirror (Dance Update Supplemental Insert). 1991-08-03. p. 7. Retrieved 2020-10-03.
  9. ^ "ALBUMS/SINGLES". Newcastle Evening Chronicle. 1991-08-13. page 33. Retrieved 2020-03-28.
  10. ^ "ALBUMS/SINGLES". Newcastle Evening Chronicle. 1991-12-03. page 28. Retrieved 2020-03-28.
  11. ^ "Picks and Pans Review: Prime Cuts". People. 1992-06-15. Retrieved 2020-03-10.
  12. ^ Lawrence, Sophie (1991-08-21). "Review: Singles". Smash Hits. p. 41. Retrieved 2020-10-20.
  13. ^ "Official Singles Chart Top 75 23 February 1992 - 29 February 1992". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 2020-09-15.
  14. ^ "Army Of Lovers - Crucified". YouTube. Retrieved 25 August 2020.
  15. ^ "BEAVIS & BUTT-HEAD - ARMY OF LOVERS". YouTube. Retrieved 2020-02-17.
  16. ^ "'Just Dance 4' full track list unveiled". Polygon. Retrieved 7 June 2020.
  17. ^ Ryan, Gavin (2011). Australia's Music Charts 1988–2010. Mt. Martha, VIC, Australia: Moonlight Publishing.
  18. ^ Jump up to: a b "JAHRESHITPARADE 1992" (in German). Top30. Retrieved 2020-01-26.
  19. ^ "Ultratop.be – Army of Lovers – Crucified" (in Dutch). Ultratop 50. Retrieved 24 September 2018.
  20. ^ "Eurochart Hot 100 Singles" (PDF). Music & Media. Retrieved 2018-03-19.
  21. ^ Jump up to: a b c d "Crucified", in various Singles Chart Lescharts.com (Retrieved 10 February 2008)
  22. ^ "Top 10 Greece" (PDF). Music & Media. Retrieved 2018-03-20.
  23. ^ Jump up to: a b "Single top 100 over 1991" (PDF) (in Dutch). Top40. Retrieved 13 April 2010.
  24. ^ "Dutchcharts.nl – Army of Lovers – Crucified" (in Dutch). Single Top 100. Retrieved 24 September 2018.
  25. ^ Salaverri, Fernando (September 2005). Sólo éxitos: año a año, 1959–2002 (1st ed.). Spain: Fundación Autor-SGAE. ISBN 84-8048-639-2.
  26. ^ "Official Charts > Army of Lovers". The Official UK Charts Company. Retrieved 3 November 2016.
  27. ^ "crucified full Official Chart History". The Official UK Charts Company. Retrieved 3 November 2016.
  28. ^ "Top 60 Dance Singles" (PDF). Music Week. 15 February 1992. p. 22. Retrieved 29 September 2020.
  29. ^ "Army of Lovers Crucified Chart History | Billboard". Retrieved 15 July 2019.
  30. ^ "Army of Lovers Crucified Chart History | Billboard". Retrieved 9 October 2019.
  31. ^ "Army of Lovers Crucified 2013 Chart History | Billboard". Retrieved 15 July 2019.
  32. ^ "Army of Lovers Crucified (2013) Chart History | Billboard". Retrieved 9 October 2019.

External links[]

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