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Behind the Wall of Sleep (The Smithereens song)

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"Behind the Wall of Sleep"
Single by The Smithereens
from the album Especially for You
B-side"White Castle Blues"
ReleasedJuly 1986 (July 1986)[1]
RecordedThe Record Plant, New York City
GenrePower pop, alternative rock
Length3:04
LabelEnigma
Songwriter(s)Pat DiNizio
Producer(s)Don Dixon
The Smithereens singles chronology
"Blood and Roses"
(1986) 		"Behind the Wall of Sleep"
(1986) 		"In a Lonely Place"
(1986)

"Behind the Wall of Sleep" is a song by the American alternative rock group The Smithereens, released in 1986. It is the second single released in support of their debut album Especially for You.

Background

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Jean Shrimpton in 1965
Bill Wyman in 1975

Lead singer Pat DiNizio wrote the lyrics to the song on the back of a cocktail napkin on a flight home from Boston to New York City. The Smithereens had shared a bill with the Boston band The Bristols, whose bassist Kim Ernst had caught DiNizio's attention.[2] DiNizio: "My crush on her led me to write that on a very hung-over morning after a party in Boston."[3] The lyrics include references to 1960s model Jean Shrimpton ("She had hair like Jeannie Shrimpton back in 1965") and Rolling Stone bassist Bill Wyman ("She held a bass guitar and she was playing in a band/And she stood just like Bill Wyman/Now I am her biggest fan"). At the time, DiNizio didn't give a lot of thought to the pop imagery in the lyrics, but it "seemed to create a certain interest later on", he said in 1995.[4] The melody came to DiNizio at the same time: "I’m singing the thing to myself for the whole flight, like a mantra, so I don't forget it. Then I get stuck in traffic for two hours and I’m nearly losing my mind, because I knew I had a good song."[2]

Release

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"Behind the Wall of Sleep" was released as the second single from the band's debut album, Especially for You. The track reached number 23 on the US Mainstream Rock Charts, as well as number eight on the UK Indie Charts.

The song was also featured on the compilation Left of the Dial: Dispatches from the '80s Underground.[5]

Formats and track listing

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All songs written by Pat DiNizio, except where noted.

US 7" single (B-75002)
  1. "Behind the Wall of Sleep" – 3:04
  2. "Blood and Roses" – 3:35
US 12" promo single (EPRO-14)
  1. "Behind the Wall of Sleep" – 3:04
  2. "Behind the Wall of Sleep" – 3:04
UK 7" single (Enig 2)
  1. "Behind the Wall of Sleep" – 3:04
  2. "White Castle Blues" (Jim Babjak, Dennis Diken, DiNizio, Mike Mesaros) – 3:59
UK 12" single (Enig 2T)
  1. "Behind the Wall of Sleep" – 3:04
  2. "White Castle Blues" (Babjak, Diken, DiNizio, Mesaros) – 3:59
  3. "Behind the Wall of Sleep (live)" – 3:26
German 7" single (INT 113.721)
  1. "Behind the Wall of Sleep" – 3:22
  2. "Blood and Roses" – 3:35
German 12" single (INT 128.721)
  1. "Behind the Wall of Sleep" – 3:22
  2. "Blood and Roses (live)" – 5:13
  3. "White Castle Blues" (Babjak, Diken, DiNizio, Mesaros) – 3:57

Accolades

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Publication Country Accolade Year Rank
Colin Larkin United Kingdom The All-Time Top 100 Singles[citation needed] 2000 90
Bruce Pollock United States The 7,500 Most Important Songs of 1944–2000[6] 2005 *

(*) designates unordered lists.

Charts

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Chart (1986) Peak
position
US Mainstream Rock (Billboard)[7] 23
Chart (1987) Peak
position
UK Indie Chart[8] 8

Personnel

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The Smithereens
Additional musicians
  • Joe Kernich – piano

References

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  1. ^ "The Smithereens: Behind the Wall of Sleep (USA)". 45cat.com. Retrieved on 20 August 2018.
  2. ^ a b Paphides, Pete (December 13, 2017). "In Praise of The Smithereens' Especially For You". Medium.com. Retrieved November 20, 2018.
  3. ^ Milano, Brett (March 18, 2015). "Rock Interview: Pat DiNizio of the Smithereens, "practically an honorary Boston band"". ArtsFuse.org. Retrieved November 20, 2018.
  4. ^ Best of the Smithereens (Guitar Recorded Versions). Hal Leonard Corporation. 1995. p. 10. ISBN 978-0-793-54453-0.
  5. ^ "Blender :: guide". 2004-12-10. Archived from the original on 2004-12-10. Retrieved 2018-02-14.
  6. ^ Pollock, Bruce (March 18, 2014). Rock Song Index: The 7500 Most Important Songs for the Rock and Roll Era. Routledge. p. 35. ISBN 9781135462963. Retrieved September 16, 2014.
  7. ^ "The Smithereens Chart History (Mainstream Rock)". Billboard. Retrieved January 27, 2016.
  8. ^ Lazell, Barry (1997). Indie Hits 1980–1989. Cherry Red Books. Archived from the original on June 6, 2011. Retrieved September 17, 2014.
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