Elegantly Wasted (song)

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"Elegantly Wasted"
Single by INXS
from the album Elegantly Wasted
B-side"Need You Tonight"
Released10 March 1997 (1997-03-10)
RecordedMid-1996[1][2]
GenreAlternative rock[3]
Length
  • 4:32 (album version)
  • 3:53 (single edit)
LabelMercury
Songwriter(s)
Producer(s)Bruce Fairbairn
INXS singles chronology
"The Strangest Party (These Are the Times)"
(1994) 		"Elegantly Wasted"
(1997) 		"Everything"
(1997)

"Elegantly Wasted" is the title track and first single released from the album Elegantly Wasted by Australian band INXS. The single was released in Europe, Japan, Australia, South Africa, Canada, and the United States.

Background[edit]

The song is said to have been written after Michael Hutchence and Bono from U2 went out for a "night on the town".[4]

Released as a single on 10 March 1997, the song became the band's fourth and final number-one single in Canada, topping the RPM 100 Hit Tracks chart for three weeks in May and June 1997. In the United States, the song did not chart on the Billboard Hot 100 due to rules in place at the time regarding commercial releases, but it did reach number 27 on the Billboard Hot 100 Airplay chart. The song also peaked at number 48 in the band's native Australia and reached the top 40 in Iceland, Switzerland, and the United Kingdom.

Lyrical content[edit]

After an argument with Noel Gallagher of Oasis, Hutchence added some additional vocals to the chorus, which the rest of the band were unaware of until months after the album's release. When listening for it, the chorus can either be heard as "I am elegantly wasted" or "I am better than Oasis".[4] This was further to an altercation between Hutchence and the Gallagher brothers at the 1996 Brit Awards. At the awards, Noel Gallagher collected an award from Hutchence by saying, "Has-beens should not be presenting awards to gonna-be's." It was also reported that Liam and Hutchence had a scuffle backstage with Hutchence throwing a fire extinguisher at Liam following some disparaging remarks he made about his then-lover Paula Yates.[5]

B-sides[edit]

The B-sides on the first CD single included INXS's biggest hit "Need You Tonight", a 1995 mix of "Original Sin" by Chris & James and a remix of album track "I'm Only Looking" from Full Moon, Dirty Hearts by David Morales. The second CD single included three remixes of "Elegantly Wasted" by dance artists Shagsonic and G-Force.

Music video[edit]

Directed by English music director Walter Stern, the video was shot over two days in January 1997,[6][7] and features the band wandering around an airport terminal as the awaiting passengers begin to watch and interact with the band. A small set was built in Los Angeles to resemble the interiors of an airport with extras being brought in to play the passengers.[6] The video also includes snippets and brief clips taken from the Elegantly Wasted video shoot which were photographed and used for the album's cinematic cover art.

Track listings[edit]

Australasian and UK CD1, Japanese CD single[8][9]

  1. "Elegantly Wasted" (radio edit) – 3:53
  2. "Need You Tonight" – 3:01
  3. "Original Sin" (Epic Adventure) – 9:37
  4. "I'm Only Looking" (The Morales Bad Yard mix) – 8:17

Australasian and UK CD2[10]

  1. "Elegantly Wasted" (radio edit) – 3:53
  2. "Elegantly Wasted" (Shagsonic remix) – 7:56
  3. "Elegantly Wasted" (Shagsonic dub) – 8:25
  4. "Elegantly Wasted" (G-Force and Seiji Remix) – 6:36

UK cassette single and European CD single[11][12]

  1. "Elegantly Wasted" (radio edit) – 3:53
  2. "Need You Tonight" – 3:01

Charts[edit]

Release history[edit]

Region Date Format(s) Label(s) Ref(s).
United Kingdom 10 March 1997
  • CD
  • cassette
 Mercury [38][39]
United States Radio [40]
Japan 9 April 1997 CD [41]

References[edit]

  1. ^ "April 1996". Inebsitexsweb.com. Retrieved 31 January 2023.
  2. ^ Frankie (26 November 2002). "INXS". Everything2.com. Retrieved 31 January 2023.
  3. ^ "The 79 Best Alternative Rock Songs of 1997". Spin. 25 April 2017. Retrieved 27 December 2021.
  4. ^ a b INXS; Bozza, Anthony (2005). INXS: Story to Story: The Official Autobiography. Atria Books. p. 252–253. ISBN 978-0-7432-8404-2.
  5. ^ "INXS – Elegantly Wasted". Song Facts. Retrieved 14 December 2014.
  6. ^ a b Elegantly Wasted commentary – "I'm Only Looking – The Best of INXS" – Retrieved 5 June 2016
  7. ^ "January 1997". An Excess of INXS. Archived from the original on 27 July 2008. Retrieved 28 May 2023.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
  8. ^ Elegantly Wasted (Australasian & UK CD1 liner notes). INXS. Mercury Records. 1997. INXCD 28, 574 309-2.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  9. ^ Elegantly Wasted (Japanese CD single liner notes). INXS. Mercury Records. 1997. PHCR-8396.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  10. ^ Elegantly Wasted (Australasian & UK CD2 liner notes). INXS. Mercury Records. 1997. INXDD 28, 574 293-2.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  11. ^ Elegantly Wasted (UK cassette single sleeve). INXS. Mercury Records. 1997. INXMC 28.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  12. ^ Elegantly Wasted (European CD single liner notes). INXS. Mercury Records. 1997. INT 574 292-2.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  13. ^ "INXS – Elegantly Wasted". ARIA Top 50 Singles. Retrieved 30 January 2019.
  14. ^ "INXS – Elegantly Wasted" (in Dutch). Ultratip. Retrieved 30 January 2019.
  15. ^ "Top RPM Singles: Issue 3217." RPM. Library and Archives Canada. Retrieved 30 January 2019.
  16. ^ "Top RPM Adult Contemporary: Issue 3211." RPM. Library and Archives Canada. Retrieved 30 January 2019.
  17. ^ "Top RPM Rock/Alternative Tracks: Issue 3209." RPM. Library and Archives Canada. Retrieved 30 January 2019.
  18. ^ "Eurochart Hot 100 Singles" (PDF). Music & Media. Vol. 14, no. 14. 5 April 1997. p. 16. Retrieved 15 April 2020.
  19. ^ "INXS – Elegantly Wasted" (in German). GfK Entertainment charts. Retrieved 30 January 2019.
  20. ^ "Íslenski Listinn Topp 40 (1.5. '97 – 7.5. '97)". Dagblaðið Vísir (in Icelandic). 2 May 1997. p. 20. Retrieved 2 October 2019.
  21. ^ "INXS – Elegantly Wasted" (in Dutch). Single Top 100. Retrieved 30 January 2019.
  22. ^ "Official Scottish Singles Sales Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 30 January 2019.
  23. ^ "INXS – Elegantly Wasted". Swiss Singles Chart. Retrieved 30 January 2019.
  24. ^ "Official Singles Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 30 January 2019.
  25. ^ "INXS Chart History (Radio Songs)". Billboard. Retrieved 25 January 2021.
  26. ^ "INXS Chart History (Adult Alternative Songs)". Billboard. Retrieved 8 December 2019.
  27. ^ "INXS Chart History (Adult Pop Songs)". Billboard. Retrieved 8 December 2019.
  28. ^ "INXS Chart History (Alternative Airplay)". Billboard. Retrieved 8 December 2019.
  29. ^ "INXS Chart History (Mainstream Rock)". Billboard. Retrieved 8 December 2019.
  30. ^ "INXS Chart History (Pop Songs)". Billboard. Retrieved 8 December 2019.
  31. ^ "RPM '97 Year End Top 100 Hit Tracks". RPM. Retrieved 30 January 2019 – via Library and Archives Canada.
  32. ^ "RPM '97 Year End Top 100 Adult Contemporary Tracks". RPM. Retrieved 30 January 2019 – via Library and Archives Canada.
  33. ^ "RPM '97 Year End Top 50 Alternative Tracks". RPM. Retrieved 30 January 2019 – via Library and Archives Canada.
  34. ^ "Romanian Top 100 Singles Airplay – Top of the Year 1997" (in Romanian). Romanian Top 100. Archived from the original on 22 January 2005. Retrieved 4 May 2020.
  35. ^ "Best of '97: Modern Rock Track". Airplay Monitor. Vol. 5, no. 52. 26 December 1997. p. 30.
  36. ^ "Best of '97: Top 40/Mainstream Singles". Airplay Monitor. Vol. 5, no. 52. 26 December 1997. p. 38.
  37. ^ "Best of '97: Triple A Tracks". Airplay Monitor. Vol. 5, no. 52. 26 December 1997. p. 28.
  38. ^ "Elegantly Wasted" (PDF). Music & Media. Vol. 14, no. 11. 15 March 1997. p. 2. Retrieved 15 April 2020.
  39. ^ "New Releases: Singles". Music Week. 8 March 1997. p. 34.
  40. ^ Taylor, Chuck (15 March 1997). "Mercury's INXS 'Elegantly' Returns from Its Time Off". Billboard. Vol. 109, no. 11. p. 24.
  41. ^ "エレガントリー・ウエイステッド | INXS" [Elegantly Wasted | INXS] (in Japanese). Oricon. Retrieved 9 September 2023.
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