Bitch (Meredith Brooks song)

"Bitch"
Single by Meredith Brooks
from the album Blurring the Edges
Released	July 21, 1997 (UK)
Format	7" vinyl, CD single
Genre	Pop rock, alternative rock
Length	4:08 (Album Version) 3:58 (Edit)
Writer(s)	Meredith Brooks Shelly Peiken
Meredith Brooks singles chronology
- "Bitch" (1997) "I Need" (1997)

"Bitch", also known by its censored title "Nothing In Between", is a song that was released by Meredith Brooks in 1997 from her album Blurring the Edges.

History

The song was co-written by Brooks, and by Shelly Peiken. Initially, some radio stations preferred not to mention the name of the song and would instead refer to it as "a song by Meredith Brooks". However, with time, its name became more commonplace to announce on the air. Later on, different remixes of the song became popular in dance clubs.

Brooks has stated in interviews that "Bitch" was almost omitted from the album, reportedly because of the song's strong language which could have prevented it from becoming a radio hit.

Success

The song steadily rose on the Billboard charts, eventually peaking at number 2. It debuted and peaked at number six on the UK Singles Chart on 27 July 1997 and stayed in the top ten for four weeks. The song was also a big hit in Oceania, where it reached number two in Australia and four in New Zealand. It ranked at number 79 on VH1's 100 Greatest Songs of the '90s.

Music video

A music video was released to promote the single.

Parodies

American comedian Mark Eddie composed a parody titled "Dick", which appears on his indie release Rock N Roll Cuts Part 2. The song features stereotypical behavior and attitude of "white trash" males, as indicated by the line "I'm a loser, I'm a creep; I sleep around with sheep".

American comedy music group Raymond and Scum parodied the song as "Blair Witch", a parody about the 1999 film, The Blair Witch Project.

In 2000, Australian comedian Chris Franklin released a parody of the song titled "Bloke" with the lyrics changed to reflect the stereotypical Australian male lifestyle. It debuted at number 15 on the ARIA Charts before eventually reaching the number one spot and staying there for two weeks, becoming the twelfth highest selling single of the year and receiving double platinum certification (140,000+ copies shipped). The song was later nominated for 2 ARIA Awards for 'Best Comedy Release' and 'Highest Selling Single', failing to win both.

Censorship

Due to its particularly strong language, the song was heavily censored when played on the radio. Also, due to the explicit title, the song was given the alternative title "Nothing in Between". This was the title used in various Asian countries, including Malaysia, when it was first released.

This version was used in the short-lived reality show Chasing Farrah, starring Farrah Fawcett.

Official versions

1. Edit 3:58
2. Transistor Mix 4:07
3. Madgroove Mix 3:45
4. E-Team Funky Bitch Edit 3:05
5. Todd Terry's In-House Mix)
6. Untied Mix

Charts

Peak positions

Chart (1997)	Peak Position
Australian ARIA Singles Chart	2
UK Singles Chart	6
New Zealand RIANZ Singles Chart	4
Irish Singles Chart	12
Belgian Singles Chart (Flanders)	5
Norwegian Singles Chart	5
French SNEP Singles Chart	42
Swiss Singles Chart	10
U.S. Billboard Hot Adult Top 40 Tracks	14
U.S. Billboard Hot Dance Club Play	34
U.S. Billboard Modern Rock Tracks	4
U.S. Billboard Mainstream Top 40 (Pop Songs)	1
U.S. Billboard Hot 100	2

End of year charts

End of year chart (1997)	Position
U.S. Billboard Hot 100	15

References

Preceded by "MMMBop" by Hanson

Billboard Top 40 Mainstream number-one single July 19 - August 9, 1997

Succeeded by "How Bizarre" by OMC