Ulterior Motives (song)
| "Ulterior Motives" | |
|---|---|
| Song by Christopher Saint Booth and Philip Adrian Booth | |
| Genre | Pop[1] |
"Everyone Knows That", also known as "Ulterior Motives", is the name given to a seventeen-second snippet of an early 1980s pop song which remained unidentified for three years. It was uploaded to the song identification website WatZatSong in 2021 by Spanish user carl92.[1][2] The user claimed to have discovered the recording amongst files in an old DVD backup, and speculated it was a leftover from when he was learning how to capture audio.[3]
Since being uploaded in 2021, users have been searching for the full song and information regarding its origin and artist. The Guardian called it "one of the biggest and most enduring musical mysteries on the internet".[4]
In April 2024, Reddit users identified the song as Ulterior Motives by Christopher Saint Booth and Philip Adrian Booth. The song's source was discovered as the obscure pornographic film Angels of Passion.[5]
History
It is unknown when the song was recorded, but it is theorized to have been recorded in the 1980s due to its stylistic similarities to pop music of that time. The snippet of the song was uploaded to WatZatSong on 7 October 2021 by user carl92, who asked for help in identifying the song. He labelled it "Mid 80s, Bad quality" and claimed that he "rediscover[ed] this sample between a bunch of very old files in a DVD backup. Probably I was simply learning how to capture audio and this was a left over."[6] It has since become WatZatSong's "most infamous and enduring submission", receiving the most comments since WatZatSong launched in 2006.[6]
The song gained popularity online in late 2022 and 2023, with a subreddit dedicated to finding the song and its artist being launched in June 2023.[1] On 7 January 2024, two members of the subreddit were interviewed by French commercial TV network TF1.[7]
Online search and possible origins
The search for the song was initially slow to gain traction but gained a dedicated following over time.[1] Possible theorized sources for the song include a 1990s MTV broadcast, a piece of production music or a commercial jingle,[1] while theorized artists have included Roxette, Savage Garden, and Jason Paige.[4] As of late February 2024, users tried to get in contact with "an obscure singer" called White Mike Johnny Glove, "who has a strikingly similar voice" to the one in the recording.[4] Some users said they have analyzed the drum and synth sounds which allowed them to narrow down the release date to after 1983.[8] Users have created reconstructions from the original snippet to have an idea of what the full song could be like.[6] Some have theorized that the song is a hoax, "planted by a troll".[6]
Composition
The LinnDrum drum machine and the Yamaha DX7 synthesizer are theorized to have been used throughout the song.[4]
See also
Notes
References
- ^ a b c d e Klee, Miles (12 November 2023). "Internet Sleuths Want to Track Down This Mystery Pop Song. They Only Have 17 Seconds of It". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 16 November 2023.
- ^ Castro, Bárbara (24 February 2024). "Mistério! Conheça a música "perdida" dos anos 1980 que intriga a internet". IGN Brasil (in Brazilian Portuguese). Retrieved 25 February 2024.
- ^ Raymond, Stephanie (29 February 2024). "Internet is trying to solve the mystery behind a 17-second snippet of a pop song". Audacy. Retrieved 16 March 2024.
- ^ a b c d O'Grady, Carrie (28 February 2024). "Everyone Knows That: can you identify the lost 80s hit baffling the internet?". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 16 March 2024.
- ^ Robinson, Ellie (29 April 2024). "Viral Lost Song 'Ulterior Motives' Found In Obscure '80s Porn Flick". The Music (Australia). Retrieved 29 April 2024.
- ^ a b c d Carey, Gina (25 November 2023). "Can You Help Solve the Origin of This Mystery '80s Pop Song?". Newser. Retrieved 16 March 2024.
- ^ morromocoduto (7 January 2024). ""Everyone Knows That" on Journal de 13 heures (TF1, 7 January 2024)". YouTube.
- ^ "Mystery of lost 80s hit that no one can remember song name or artist for despite everyone recognizing tune". UNILAD. 28 February 2024. Retrieved 16 March 2024.
External links
- "Mid 80s, Bad quality. (Everyone Knows That)". WatZatSong. Archived from the original on 24 March 2024.
- /r/everyoneknowsthat on Reddit