Pink (song)
| "Pink" | ||||||||||
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| Single by Aerosmith | ||||||||||
| from the album Nine Lives | ||||||||||
| Released | 1997 1999 (re-issue) |
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| Format | Cassette, CD | |||||||||
| Recorded | 1996 | |||||||||
| Genre | Rock | |||||||||
| Length | 3:55 | |||||||||
| Label | Columbia | |||||||||
| Writer(s) | Steven Tyler, Richie Supa, Glen Ballard | |||||||||
| Producer | Kevin Shirley | |||||||||
| Aerosmith singles chronology | ||||||||||
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"Pink" is a song by American hard rock band Aerosmith. It was written by Steven Tyler and professional songwriters Richie Supa and Glen Ballard. It was released as the third major single from Nine Lives in 1997.
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[edit] Chart positions
First played by Daytona, Florida rock station 95.7 WHOG-FM afternoon personality "Iron Dave" Adams before being released as a single, the song reached #27 on the Billboard Hot 100, #38 in the United Kingdom, and #19 in Latvia. It also topped the Mainstream Rock Tracks chart for 4 weeks.
The band re-released the song in the United Kingdom in 1999. The re-released version did much better, reaching #13 there.
[edit] Song structure
The song is highlighted by a harmonica performance by Steven Tyler at the beginning, as well as a strong bass rhythm throughout the song, and a mix of acoustic guitars and jangling electric guitars throughout the verses. Many of the lines in the verses start with the word "Pink" (i.e. "Pink is my favorite crayon", "Pink is the love you discover", "Pink it's the color of passion," etc.). The song is also highly suggestive, in that the origin of the fascination with pink stems from the admiration of a woman's reproductive organs -- particularly the inner side of the outer lips; the "pink in the middle."
[edit] Music video
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This section requires expansion. |
The music video for the song used CGI to morph characters' faces to other bodies. A variety of random characters mixed in with band members towards the camera, morphing into different characters in the process (e.g., Joe Perry as a centaur, Brad Whitford as a little boy, a skeleton and a rabbit in overalls (Steven Tyler). It was directed by Doug Nichol.[1]
Two versions of the music video exist. There are noticeable differences in each version. In the more-adult version, for example, there is a woman dressed in a blue jumpsuit walking towards the camera. For a brief second, either on purpose or by accident, the top, unzipped portion of the jumpsuit is pulled away revealing her right breast. There is another instance where a woman's breasts are briefly fully revealed when a woman, painted blue and green, does a pirouette.
In the other less-adult version, Steven Tyler and Joe Perry are presented as a two-headed man and only the coverup portion of the breast reveal scene (above) is present.
[edit] Live in concert
The song has gained notoriety as a fan favorite and a live gem, and remains one of the only songs from Nine Lives consistently played on Aerosmith tours to this day, along with "Falling in Love (Is Hard on the Knees)".
[edit] Covers and other versions
A different version of the song, The South Beach Re-Mix, was included on the career-spanning compilation O, Yeah! Ultimate Aerosmith Hits.
Japanese edition of the "Pink" single from 'Nine Lives' features six tracks: three mixes of "Pink" (Album Version, The South Beach Mix & Live from the Howard Stern Radio Show), plus live versions of "Falling In Love (Is Hard On The Knees)" & "Walk This Way" recorded in March 1997. As well, there is a techno remix of "Falling in Love (Is Hard On The Knees)" titled Moby Fucked Remix.
It is a bonus playable song in the video game Guitar Hero: Aerosmith, and the only track of Nine Lives present in the game. In the Wii and PlayStation 2 versions of this game, the word "high" (in "Pink gets me high as a kite") is removed.
[edit] Awards
The song won the band their fourth and most recent Grammy award in 1999, for Best Rock Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal.
Additionally, the video won an MTV Video Music Award for Best Rock Video in 1998.[2]
[edit] External links
- Like red but not quite The TFL approved fanlisting for 'Pink' by Aerosmith
[edit] References
- ^ "Doug Nichol - Videography". Partizan. http://www.partizan.com/partizan/musicvideos/?doug_nichol/videography. Retrieved 2009-08-18.
- ^ "Madonna, Prodigy, Will Smith, Aerosmith Win Big At Video Music Awards" MTV news, September 10, 1998.
| Preceded by "Listen" by Collective Soul |
Billboard Mainstream Rock Tracks number-one single September 6, 1997 – September 27, 1997 |
Succeeded by "Touch, Peel and Stand" by Days of the New |
