Israel (Siouxsie and the Banshees song)

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"Israel"
Siouxsie and the Banshees - Israel.png
Single by Siouxsie and the Banshees
B-side"Red Over White"
Released28 November 1980 (1980-11-28)
Recorded1980
GenrePost-punk
Length4:54
LabelPolydor
Songwriter(s)
Producer(s)
  • Nigel Gray
  • Siouxsie and the Banshees
Siouxsie and the Banshees singles chronology
"Christine"
(1980) 		"Israel"
(1980) 		"Spellbound"
(1981)
Music video
"Israel" on YouTube

"Israel" is a song by English rock band Siouxsie and the Banshees, released as a stand-alone single in 1980 by Polydor Records. The track was written by Siouxsie and the Banshees and co-produced with Nigel Gray, it featured a 30 singer Welsh choir on backing vocals.[1] While touring in Europe in Autumn 1980, the band wanted to write a Christmas song to be released on time for December of that year. They composed it on the road, which was quite unusual for them.[2]

The song became a favourite of several artists including Air's composer Jean-Benoît Dunckel who selected as one of his 10 all-time favourite songs,[3] and the band Ride who selected it as a song of their intro tape during their tours,[4] and producer Howie B. (a frequent collaborator of Björk and Tricky in the 1990s) who included it in a list of songs, representing the music he listened to when he grew up in Glasgow.[5]

Release[]

"Israel" was released as a stand-alone single in between the albums Kaleidoscope (1980) and Juju (1981) on 28 November 1980 by record label Polydor. It peaked at No. 41 on the UK Singles Chart.[6] It was the band's first single to be also released on a 12-inch although the track lengths on both sides of the 12-inch edition were the same as on the 7-inch.

Although it reached No. 73 on the US National Disco Action Top 100 chart as an import,[7] "Israel" did not appear on a Siouxsie and the Banshees album until the release of the Once Upon a Time: The Singles compilation the following year, although some copies of the US release of Juju on PVC Records included a free copy of this single.

The song was remastered in 2002 for the compilation CD The Best of Siouxsie and the Banshees and was also featured as a bonus track on the 2006 Kaleidoscope reissue.

Cover version[]

"Israel" was later covered by Nouvelle Vague on their 2006 album Bande à Part.

Track listing[]

All tracks are written by Siouxsie Sioux, Steven Severin, John McGeoch and Peter Clarke. All tracks produced by Nigel Gray and Siouxsie and the Banshees.

7-inch and 12-inch single[8][9]
No.TitleLength
1."Israel"4:54
2."Red Over White"4:31

Charts[]

Chart (1980) Peak
position
UK Singles (OCC)[6] 41
Billboard US Hot Dance/Disco[7] 73

References[]

  1. ^ Houston, Billy (1980), The File, Phase One, The File [official fanzine]
  2. ^ Paytress, Mark (2003). Siouxsie & the Banshees: The Authorised Biography. Sanctuary. ISBN 1-86074-375-7.
  3. ^ "JDB Ma Compile La Sélection DE Darkel (Jean-Benoît DunckeL de AIR) [His all-time favourite playlist]". Les Inrockuptibles. September 2006. Archived from the original on 29 August 2018. Retrieved 25 August 2018.
  4. ^ "Ride - Venue Music - May 2015 UK Tour". Soundcloud.com. Retrieved 6 May 2014.
  5. ^ "Clash DJ Mix - Howie B"I hope you enjoy the trip..."". Clashmusic. 4 October 2014. Archived from the original on 21 January 2019. Retrieved 22 January 2018.
  6. ^ Jump up to: a b "Official Singles Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 12 July 2018.
  7. ^ Jump up to: a b "Chart History Siouxsie & The Banshees Dance Club Songs". Billboard. Archived from the original on 2 February 2020. Retrieved 2 February 2020.
  8. ^ "Israel" (UK 7-inch single). Siouxsie and the Banshees. Polydor Records. 1980. POSP 205.CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  9. ^ "Israel" (UK 12-inch single). Siouxsie and the Banshees. Polydor Records. 1980. POSPX 205.CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
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