2 + 2 = 5 (song)

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"2 + 2 = 5"
Single by Radiohead
from the album Hail to the Thief
Released 17 November 2003
Format CD, DVD
Genre Alternative rock
Art rock
Experimental rock
Length 3:21
Label Parlophone
Producer Nigel Godrich, Radiohead
Radiohead singles chronology
"Go to Sleep"
(2003)		 "2 + 2 = 5"
(2003)		 "Jigsaw Falling into Place"
(2008)
Hail to the Thief track listing
"2 + 2 = 5" (The Lukewarm.)
(1)		 "Sit Down. Stand Up." (Snakes & Ladders)
(2)

"2 + 2 = 5 (The Lukewarm.)" is a song by English alternative rock band Radiohead, released as the third and last single from their sixth album Hail to the Thief in 2003. The song reached number 15 on the UK singles chart.[1]

Contents

[edit] Lyrics and background

The song's title recalls the symbol of unreality from George Orwell's novel Nineteen Eighty-Four.[2] In the book, inhabitants of an authoritarian future state are made to engage in doublethink, replacing their own conscience and beliefs with those imposed from above. At the end of the novel, the protagonist's individuality is demolished, as he avows that two and two are, in fact, five.

With the lyrics "All hail to the thief, but I'm not" and "Don't question my authority" there have been repeated suggestions from many musical critics that the song is based on the controversial election of George W. Bush in 2000. The band have strenuously denied this, saying in one interview, "It would be too easy for us to insult George Bush".[3]

Hail to the Thief lists subtitles, or alternative titles, for each of its songs. The alternative title for "2 + 2 = 5", whose lyrics also include the album's title, is "The Lukewarm.". Singer Thom Yorke has mentioned it as a reference to the works of Dante.[4]

[edit] Musical structure

At the beginning of the song, the listener hears guitarist Jonny Greenwood plugging his guitar in and saying 'We're on.', and lead vocalist Thom Yorke is heard saying "That's a nice way to start, Jonny...".

The song has a change in the time signature from 7/8 to 4/4 at 2:25 into the song.

[edit] Track listings

Promotional single
CD CDRDJ6623
  1. "2 + 2 = 5" - 3:21
12" 12RDJWL6623
  1. "Sktterbrain" (Four Tet remix)
  2. "Remyxomatosis" (Christian Vogel RMX)
Single
CD one CDR6623
  1. "2 + 2 = 5" - 3:21
  2. "Remyxomatosis" (Christian Vogel RMX) - 5:07
  3. "There There" (first demo) - 7:43
CD two CDRS6623
  1. "2 + 2 = 5" - 3:21
  2. "Skttrbrain" (Four Tet remix) - 4:26
  3. "I Will" (Los Angeles version) - 2:14
DVD DVDR6623
  1. "2 + 2 = 5" - 3:21
  2. "Sit Down Stand Up" (Ed Holdsworth's video)
  3. "The Most Gigantic Lying Mouth of All Time" (excerpt)

[edit] See also

[edit] References

  1. ^ "UK Top 40 Chart Archive". http://www.everyhit.com. Retrieved on 2006-10-02. 
  2. ^ Greenplastic.com Song Information
  3. ^ radiohead lyrics & tabs
  4. ^ "Thom Yorke on ‘Hail To The Thief’". XFM online. http://www.xfm.co.uk/Article.asp?id=6459. Retrieved on 2006-10-29. 

[edit] External links

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Radiohead
Colin Greenwood · Jonny Greenwood · Ed O'Brien · Phil Selway · Thom Yorke
Studio albums
Demos and EPs
Compilations
Singles
DVDs
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