Last Resort (song)
| "Last Resort" | |
|---|---|
| Song |
"Last Resort" is the first single from the rock band Papa Roach's first album, Infest.
Music, background and lyrics
The song "Last Resort" is about suicide. In an interview with Songfacts, Papa Roach member Tobin Esperance spoke about the song and its lyrics, saying:
"I think the lyrics had a lot to do with it. Because originally the song was about a friend of ours that we grew up with, and he was going through a rough time in his life. And there was that suicide element to it, just like growing up and the struggles of life and questioning whether or not you want to keep going on, and I think a lot of people connected with that. For the kids who had also gone through those kinds of feelings, those kinds of emotions, the lyrics really helped connect with that song."[6]
Papa Roach vocalist Jacoby Shaddix described the song as a "cry for help". He also said "That song was about one of my best friends, and then 12–13 years later, that song was about me. I found myself in that place, where I was like, "I can't go on this way. I can't do it anymore.""[7] Shaddix said that "Last Resort" is about a roommate he had who tried to commit suicide. Shaddix then said: "We caught him and took him to the hospital and he went into a mental facility and then he came out the other side better. He actually found God through the process, which was kind of crazy. So he's on a whole different path of his life now, which is cool. I'm really proud of him for the changes he's made in his life."[8] "Last Resort" is influenced by hip hop music. Both The Fugees and Wu-Tang Clan influenced the song. Although the song doesn't feature piano, the song was composed with piano. Papa Roach member Tobin Esperance said: "I've written songs on piano – actually, 'Last Resort' with that whole little riff/melody thing, that's done on the piano. And then I just transferred it to the guitar."[6] Speaking about the making of and inspiration behind the song, Esperance said:
"Well, of course at the time we were listening to a lot of Wu Tang Clan, a lot of hip-hop, and a lot of Fugees and a lot of East Coast hip-hop, and we were sampling classical music behind simple pocket grooves. I was playing something on piano and Jacoby came in and started scatting over it. And we just did our typical mixing of a funky kind of hip-hop groove with a punk rock chorus. And that song just came together like that. Jacoby said, 'That's a cool riff, keep playing that noodle' – we called it a noodle. We did it over and over again, and Jacoby put his lyrics to it, and the song just morphed into what it is now. No one ever thought it was going to be a huge, huge hit, but I guess you never expect anything, really, when you're first starting out."[6]
Commercial performance
"Last Resort" achieved mainstream success, peaking at number one on the Modern Rock Tracks chart in August 2000,[9][10] number 56 on the Radio Songs chart in September 2000,[11] and number 57 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart in December 2000.[10] The popularity of "Last Resort" helped Papa Roach's album Infest get certified 3× Platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) in July 2001.[12]
Music video
The music video was directed by Marcos Siega.[13] In the music video, the band performs on a floor surrounded by fans. Throughout the video, the camera zooms in on some fans near the stage and shows them in places that appear to be their rooms. In their rooms, they appear to be possibly depressed. Though it had apparently been claimed that this is meant to show how people might not look depressed but still are, the purpose was more so to show the people being taken from where they didn't want to be to where they did — from lonely despair to the rock show where they could have fun with their friends.[14] There are many posters for radio station 98 Rock. This is the rock station out of Sacramento, California that the band credits for jump starting their career. Inside the Infest album booklet are thanks to DJs of the radio station.[15] About five hundred people, including local fans, came to the shooting of the music video for "Last Resort".[13]
On the MuchMusic version--which utilizes the radio edit, the word "fuck" is completely removed with no replacement. On the MTV and Vevo version, the words "cut", "bleeding", "die", "life" (from the line "if I took my life tonight"), and "suicide" were also muted. After original airings of the video on television, some networks went so far as to additionally censor words such as "suffocation", and even the title of the song itself.
Track listing
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Last Resort" (LP version) | |
| 2. | "Legacy" (clean album version) | |
| 3. | "Dead Cell" (live) | |
| 4. | "Infest" (LP version) |
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Last Resort" | 3:20 |
| 2. | "Broken Home" (Live Radio 1 Evening Session) | 3:46 |
| 3. | "Dead Cell" (Live Radio 1 Evening Session) | 3:08 |
| 4. | "Last Resort" (CD-ROM) |
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Last Resort" | 3:20 |
| 2. | "Last Resort" (Live Radio 1 Evening Session) | 3:22 |
| 3. | "Between Angels and Insects" (Live Radio 1 Evening Session) | 4:21 |
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Last Resort" (clean version) | 3:19 |
| 2. | "Last Resort" (LP version) | 3:19 |
Charts and certifications
Weekly charts
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Year-end charts
Certifications
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References
- ^ "The Ultimate Nu Metal Mixtape". Kerrang!. (November 10th, 2014)
- ^ Diver, Mike (September 6, 2009). "Top Ten - Nu-Metal Anthems". Clash. Retrieved April 8, 2018.
- ^ Grasso, Samantha (March 25, 2017). "Papa Roach joins internet's gag on Paul Ryan after failed Obamacare defeat". The Daily Dot. Billboard Music. Retrieved April 8, 2018.
- ^ Grierson, Tim. "Top 10 Essential Alt-Metal Songs". About.com. Retrieved April 8, 2018.
- ^ Richardson, Sean. "Rage II". Boston Phoenix. Retrieved April 8, 2018.
- ^ a b c "TOBIN ESPERANCE OF PAPA ROACH". Songfacts. Retrieved April 8, 2018.
- ^ "Jacoby Shaddix of Papa Roach". Songfacts. Retrieved April 8, 2018.
- ^ Friedman, David (February 22, 2007). "Papa Roach: Forever-evolving rockers". The News-Times. Retrieved April 8, 2018.
- ^ "Papa Roach - Chart history (Alternative Songs)". Billboard. Retrieved April 8, 2018.
- ^ a b c d e "Artist Chart History - Papa Roach". Billboard. Retrieved April 8, 2018.
- ^ "Papa Roach - Chart history (Radio Songs". Billboard. Retrieved April 8, 2018.
- ^ "American album certifications – Papa Roach – Infest". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved April 8, 2018.
- ^ a b "Papa Roach: Come To Papa". MTV. Archived from the original on August 28, 2001.
- ^ "Loudwire: Papa Roach Play 'Wikipedia: Fact or Fiction?'". Loudwire.com. Retrieved April 8, 2018.
- ^ Papa Roach - Infest (album booklet)
- ^ Kent, David (2006). Australian Chart Book 1993-2005. St Ives, N.S.W.: Australian Chart Book. ISBN 0-646-45889-2.
- ^ "Papa Roach – Last Resort" (in German). Ö3 Austria Top 40.
- ^ "Top RPM Rock/Alternative Tracks: Issue 7280." RPM. Library and Archives Canada.
- ^ "The Irish Charts – Search Results – Last Resort". Irish Singles Chart.
- ^ "Nederlandse Top 40 – week 32, 2000" (in Dutch). Dutch Top 40.
- ^ "Papa Roach – Last Resort" (in Dutch). Single Top 100.
- ^ "Official Scottish Singles Sales Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved April 8, 2018.
- ^ "Papa Roach – Last Resort". Swiss Singles Chart.
- ^ "Official Singles Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company.
- ^ "Official Rock & Metal Singles Chart Top 40". Official Charts Company.
- ^ "Top 100 Single-Jahrescharts 2000" (in German). GfK Entertainment. Retrieved 22 May 2018.
- ^ "The Official UK Singles Chart 2001" (PDF). UKChartsPlus. Retrieved 22 May 2018.
- ^ "British single certifications – Papa Roach – Last Resort". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved 22 May 2018. Select singles in the Format field. Select Gold in the Certification field. Type Last Resort in the "Search BPI Awards" field and then press Enter.
