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Gary Gilmore's Eyes

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"Gary Gilmore's Eyes"
Song
B-side"Bored Teenagers"

"Gary Gilmore's Eyes" is a single by the punk rock band the Adverts. The song reached No. 18 in the UK Singles Chart in September 1977 and earned the band an appearance on Top of the Pops.[1]

It was originally intended to be included on the band's debut album, Crossing the Red Sea with the Adverts, but was dropped at the last minute. It has, however, been included in most reissues of the album.[2]

The song was used in the soundtrack for Shot in the Heart,[3][4] an HBO movie based on the memoir of the same name written by Gary Gilmore's brother, Mikal Gilmore, about his dysfunctional family and the eventual murder and execution.[5]

Background

The song was written from the point of view of a patient who has just had an eye transplant and discovers that he has received the eyes of the executed murderer Gary Gilmore.[6] Gilmore had requested that his eyes be donated to science after his execution as "they'd probably be the only body part usable".[7]

After Gilmore's execution, several of his body parts were removed for possible use as transplants or for study.[8] His corneas were used for transplants.[9][10]

Track listing

1977 release

  1. "Gary Gilmore's Eyes"
  2. "Bored Teenagers"

1983 release

  1. "Gary Gilmore's Eyes"
  2. "New Day Dawning"
  3. "We Who Wait"

Reception

The song was called "anthemic punk" by Matthew Gilbert of The Boston Globe[3] and a "forgotten gem" by David Browne of Entertainment Weekly.[11] Sounds described it as "the sickest and cleverest record to come out of the new wave: Single of the Week".[12][13]

It was later included at No. 12 in Mojo's list of the best punk rock singles of all time.[14]

References

  1. ^ Ford, Matt. "Adverts - Gary Gilmore's Eyes". Chart Stats. Retrieved 14 April 2011.
  2. ^ Thompson, Dave. Gary Gilmore's Eyes at AllMusic
  3. ^ a b Gilbert, Matthew (12 October 2001). "A SEARING TALE OF TWO BROTHERS". The Boston Globe. Retrieved 14 April 2011. The soundtrack rises from abstract notes of angst and irresolution into the anthemic punk of the Adverts' "Gary Gilmore's Eyes," a pounding symbol of the ...
  4. ^ Mills, Bart (12 October 2001). "The Executioner's Brother's Song; Giovann Ribisi tackles role of Gary Gilmore's sibling". The Boston Herald. Retrieved 14 April 2011.
  5. ^ Morrison, Blake (17 July 1994). "A bad case of blood-poisoning: 'Shot in the Heart'". independent.co.uk. The Independent. Retrieved 11 April 2014.
  6. ^ Masley, Ed (27 February 2009). "Hot list: Female New Wave icons". The Arizona Republic. Retrieved 14 April 2011. the Adverts' single "Gary Gilmore's Eyes," in which an eye transplant recipient must come to terms with looking at the world through eyes that once belonged to Gilmore, who'd gone on an infamous killing spree a few years earlier.
  7. ^ Sullivan, Jim (2 November 2003). "Box full of punk-rock aggression". Boston Globe. Retrieved 14 April 2011. ... to the Adverts taking the point of view of a hospital patient who has received the eyes of Gary Gilmore in a transplant; Gilmore, the infamous killer executed by a Utah firing squad, had said he'd donate his eyes to science as they'd probably be the only body part usable.
  8. ^ "Organs donated, body cremated - Gary Gilmore saga over". Associated Press. Salt Lake City, Utah. 18 January 1977. Retrieved 14 April 2011.
  9. ^ Breslin, Jimmy (18 January 1977). "Utah Stuffs Its Dilemma Into a Body Bag". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 14 April 2011. Gilmore's eyes had to be kept in good shape because, upstairs in a surgery room, a team of ophthal- was waiting to remove Gilmore's corneas.
  10. ^ Gillins, Peter (18 January 1977). "Gilmore lived 2 minutes after volley of shots". Time-Union. Warsaw, Indiana. Retrieved 14 April 2011. Gilmore left his corneas to an unnamed eye doctor
  11. ^ Browne, David (5 February 1993). "DiY: We're Desperate - The L.A. Scene (1993)". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved 14 April 2011.
  12. ^ Thompson, Dave (2000). Punk. Ontario: Collector’s Guide Publication. p. 65. ISBN 1-896522-27-0.
  13. ^ Thompson, Dave (12 September 1997). "THE ADVERTS: BORED TEENAGERS". Goldmine (magazine). Retrieved 14 April 2011.
  14. ^ "100 Punk Scorchers". Mojo (magazine). October 2001. Retrieved 14 April 2011.
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