Jump to content

Vienna (Ultravox song)

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

This is an old revision of this page, as edited by Invisigoth67 (talk | contribs) at 16:22, 29 July 2009 (→‎Music video: +file, +grave of Schweighofer). The present address (URL) is a permanent link to this revision, which may differ significantly from the current revision.

For other uses, see Vienna (disambiguation).
"Vienna"
Song
B-side"Passionate Reply"
"Herr X" (12" single only)

"Vienna" is Ultravox's third single and the title track from their fourth album. The single was released on Chrysalis Records on 15 January 1981, and is legendary for spending 4 consecutive weeks at #2 in the UK Singles Chart without ever getting to #1[1]. "Vienna" was kept off the UK #1 slot by John Lennon's "Woman" for a week, and then most famously by Joe Dolce's novelty song, "Shaddap You Face", for a further 3 weeks[2], although "Vienna" did sell more copies than the latter, ranking as the 5th best selling UK single for 1981. It also won single of the year at the UK Brit awards for 1981. It is recognizable for Midge Ure's loud straining vocals. It remains to this date Ultravox's signature song, being their most commercially successful release and is often performed live by Ure on solo performances.

Background

"Vienna" is a ballad filled with piano and violin compositions. The song is regarded as a staple of the New Romantic music and fashion that was popular in the early 1980s. The song takes inspiration from the 1948 film The Third Man, which is based around the Austrian capital Vienna.

Music video

The grave of Carl Schweighofer in 2009

The music video, directed by Russell Mulcahy,[3] is particularly evocative of The Third Man. It was Ultravox' second video, after "Passing Strangers" (also with Mulcahy), and cost £6000–£7000, footed by the band after Chrysalis refused to fund it.

It may come as a surprise to know that approximately half of it was shot on locations in central London, mainly at Covent Garden and also in the old Kilburn Gaumont Theatre in North London (sadly, now a Bingo hall). The embassy party scene was in some house we’d rented in town. Can’t remember where, but I do remember that it took the crew a long time to set up the lights to prepare for filming. So long that we all got impatient with waiting and dipped into the many cases of wine we’d laid on for refreshment after the shoot. By the time the crew was ready to film, we were all well partying for real.

The other half was in Vienna. We did it on the cheap. There was just us and Nick, our trusty camera man. We took an early morning flight to Vienna, ran round like loonies in and out of taxis as we filmed, and soon discovered that, due to it being the winter off-season, many of the splendid places we’d been counting upon filming were either shut for redecorating or covered with webs of scaffolding. “What do you mean it’s ‘closed for repairs’?!” We finished up in the cemetery for the shots with the statue which had been used for the single’s cover (a gentleman who made pianos for the rich and famous of his time, I believe), did the sunset shot, and then dashed back to London to start editing.

— Warren Cann, Explaining the location details to Jonas Wårstad[4]

The gravestone that is shown in the video and on the single cover is part of the grave of Carl Schweighofer and is located on the Zentralfriedhof in Vienna. Schweigehofer was a famous Austrian piano manufacturer.

B-sides

The B-side to the single is "Passionate Reply", a light, poppy synthpop song similar to many tracks on the Vienna album. The 12" single also features "Herr X", a version of the Kraftwerk-esque album track "Mr. X" sung entirely in German by Warren Cann with the aid of native German producer Conny Plank. Both tracks were included on the remastered CD version of the Vienna album as bonus tracks. Like the compilation album, the singles have songs by Ultravox and by Midge Ure.

Reissue

"Vienna"
Song
B-side"Wastelands",
"The Voice",
"One Small Day",
"Hymn",
"Answers to Nothing",
"Call of the Wild"

In 1993 "Vienna" was re-released by Chrysalis, to promote the Midge Ure/Ultravox greatest hits compilation If I Was: The Very Best of Midge Ure & Ultravox. This reissue peaked at #13 in the UK Singles Chart[5].

Track listings

All songs written and composed by Warren Cann, Chris Cross, Billy Currie and Midge Ure, except where noted.

1981

7" vinyl
  • UK, Australia: Chrysalis / CHS 2481
  • Germany, Netherlands: Chrysalis / 102 905
Side one
No.TitleLength
1."Vienna" (Single edit)4:37
Side two
No.TitleLength
1."Passionate Reply"4:17
12" vinyl
  • UK, France: Chrysalis / CHS 12 2481
  • Germany: Chrysalis / 600 352-213
  • Netherlands: Chrysalis / 12.2481
Side one
No.TitleLength
1."Vienna"4:53
Side two
No.TitleLength
1."Passionate Reply"4:17
2."Herr X"5:49

1993

CD
  • UK: Chrysalis / CDCHS 3936
  • UK: Chrysalis / CDCHSS 3936 ("Limited edition collectors pack CD1 of a 2CD set", with space for the second CD)
No.TitleWriter(s)ArtistLength
1."Vienna" Ultravox4:37
2."Answers to Nothing"UreMidge Ure3:40
3."The Voice" Ultravox4:24
4."Wastelands"Ure, Daniel MitchellMidge Ure4:22
  • UK: Chrysalis / CDCHS 3937
No.TitleWriter(s)ArtistLength
1."Vienna" Ultravox4:37
2."Call of the Wild"UreMidge Ure4:18
3."One Small Day" Ultravox4:27
4."Hymn" Ultravox4:24

Chart performance

Chart (1981) Peak
position
UK Singles Chart[1] 2
Australian ARIA Singles Chart 11
Austrian Singles Chart[6] 8
Belgian Singles Chart 1
Dutch GfK chart[7] 1
Dutch Top 40[8] 1
German Singles Chart 14
Irish Singles Chart[9] 1
New Zealand Singles Chart 2
South African Singles Chart 8
Swedish Singles Chart[10] 7
Chart (1993) Peak
position
UK Singles Chart[5] 13
Irish Singles Chart[9] 20

Vienna 92

"Vienna"
Song
B-side"Systems of Love"

In April 1992, a re-recorded version of "Vienna", by a new Ultravox line-up, was released as a single in Germany. This line-up consisted of original Ultravox member Billy Currie on keyboards, violin and percussion, and Tony Fenelle on vocals, guitar and percussion. The backing vocals on B-side "Systems of Love" were performed by Alison Limerick and Jackie Williams. The single did not chart.

Track listings

12" vinyl
  • Germany: ZYX / 6767-12
Side one
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Vienna 92" (Goodnight Vienna remix)Warren Cann, Chris Cross, Billy Currie, Midge Ure7:31
Side two
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Vienna 92" (The classic mix)Cann, Cross, Currie, Ure4:35
2."Systems of Love"Currie, Rod Gammons, Tony Fenelle4:31
CD
  • Germany: ZYX / 6767-8
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Vienna 92" (The classic mix)Cann, Cross, Currie, Ure4:35
2."Vienna 92" (Goodnight Vienna remix)Cann, Cross, Currie, Ure7:31
3."Systems of Love"Currie, Gammons, Fenelle4:31

Cover versions

The song has been covered by various artists since its release:

Media references

It was jokingly suggested on "A Song for Europe", an episode of TV sitcom Father Ted, that "Vienna" was written and performed by a priest called Father Benny Cake who changed his name so that nobody would know he was a priest, presumably referring to Ure.[11]

In 2008, "Vienna" was used in the BBC trailer for Ashes to Ashes. It appeared in the first episode when Alex Drake initially arrived in 1981, and again in the sixth episode. It is a running theme.

During a fictitious flashback scene on the Kath & Kim episode "The Hidden Truth", Sharon mentions her plans to attend a 'Blitz Night' and sings a few notes from "Vienna".

References

  1. ^ a b "Chart Stats - Ultravox - Vienna". Retrieved 26 July 2009 (2009-07-26). {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help)
  2. ^ "Chart Stats - All The Number Ones - 1980's". Retrieved 26 July 2009 (2009-07-26). {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help)
  3. ^ Garcia, Alex S. "Ultravox - Vienna (version 1: concept)". Music Video Database. Retrieved 26 July 2009 (2009-07-26). {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help)
  4. ^ Wårstad, Jonas (1997). "Ultravox: The Story" (PDF). pp. 44–45. Retrieved 26 July 2009 (2009-07-26). {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help)
  5. ^ a b "Chart Stats - Ultravox - Vienna (1993)". Retrieved 26 July 2009 (2009-07-26). {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help)
  6. ^ "Ultravox - Vienna - austriancharts.at [[:Template:De icon]]". Retrieved 26 July 2009 (2009-07-26). {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help); URL–wikilink conflict (help)
  7. ^ "dutchcharts.nl - Ultravox - Vienna [[:Template:Nl icon]]". Retrieved 26 July 2009 (2009-07-26). {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help); URL–wikilink conflict (help)
  8. ^ "Nederlandse Top 40 - Week 15, 1981 [[:Template:Nl icon]]". Retrieved 26 July 2009 (2009-07-26). {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help); URL–wikilink conflict (help)
  9. ^ a b "irishcharts.ie search results". Retrieved 26 July 2009 (2009-07-26). {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help)
  10. ^ "swedishcharts.com - Ultravox - Vienna". Retrieved 26 July 2009 (2009-07-26). {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help)
  11. ^ Father Ted (25 August 1999 (1999-08-25)). "Priests we merely hear about". Father Ted Canonical Priest List. Retrieved 26 July 2009 (2009-07-26). {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= and |date= (help)
Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Vienna_(Ultravox_song)&oldid=304904256"