Pixies

Formation (1984–1986)

Guitarist Joey Santiago and songwriter Black Francis (born Charles Michael Kittridge Thompson IV) met in 1984 when they lived next to each other while attending the University of Massachusetts Amherst. Although Santiago was worried about distractions, he noticed Francis played music and the pair began to jam together. Francis spent six months in Puerto Rico studying Spanish, then returned to Amherst and dropped out of the university. Francis and Santiago spent the following year working in a Boston-area warehouse, with Francis composing songs on his acoustic guitar and writing lyrics on the subway.

Influences

The Pixies are influenced by a range of artists and genres; each member came from a different musical background. When he first started writing songs for the Pixies, Francis says he was listening to nothing but Hüsker Dü, Captain Beefheart, and Iggy Pop; whilst in the run up to recording Come On Pilgrim he listened to R.E.M.'s Murmur a lot, which he described as "hugely influential" to his songwriting. During the making of Doolittle he listened heavily to the Beatles' White Album. He has cited Buddy Holly as a model for his compressed songwriting. Francis did not discover punk rock until he was 16, saying "it was good I didn't listen to these hip records". As a child, he listened mainly to 1960s songs, religious music and Emerson, Lake &...

Legacy

The Pixies' first album, Surfer Rosa, is certified gold, while Doolittle is certified platinum, selling over 1 million copies. The band influenced a number of musicians associated with the alternative rock boom of the 1990s. Gary Smith, who produced Come On Pilgrim, said in 1997:

Alec Eiffel

"Alec Eiffel" is a song by the American alternative rock band Pixies, from their 1991 album Trompe le Monde. The song was written and sung by frontman Black Francis, produced by Gil Norton and recorded during the album's recording sessions.

"Alec Eiffel" was released as a single in France, the United Kingdom, and the United States, and was their third single from the album.

Composition

The song references the French engineer Alexandre Gustave Eiffel, who designed the Eiffel Tower and the Statue of Liberty; Francis thought it was a "fascinating subject" to compose a song about. Francis also mentioned another meaning of the song: "Because of Alexandre Gustave Eiffel, but also because it's funny: in Australia, you often say 'It's a smart Alec' for [sic] a guy who's nice but not very bright."

Critical reception

The British magazine Melody Maker later commented on Francis' songwriting technique and the song itself: "According to Charles, the song started with Eiffel, then he started to [sic] singing the words "Eiffel, rifle, trifle", and suddenly 'everything fell into place'. It's not certain whether lines like 'little Eiffel stands in the archway, even though it doesn't make no sense' are an observation of the lunacy of the architecture or the song itself, which features a Sixties' -style zither!" (Francis is actually singing "keeping low, it don't make no sense", rather than "even though" which answers Melody Maker's question.)

Debaser

"Debaser" is a song by the American alternative rock band Pixies, released in April 1989 as the opening track on their album Doolittle and later as a promotional single following the dissolution of the band.

Releases

The band's 1991 "Head On" single includes a live version of "Debaser" recorded in Chicago on August 9, 1989. The album version of the song was later released as a single in 1997 to promote the Death to the Pixies compilation. A live recording from December 16, 2004 in New York City appears on "Hey" – Live Pixies 2004–2005.

Lyrics and meaning

The lyrics of "Debaser" are based on Un Chien Andalou, a 1929 short film by Luis Buñuel and Salvador Dalí. The film includes a scene in which a woman's eye is apparently cut open by a razor, which is referenced in the lyric "slicin' up eyeballs." According to frontman and songwriter Black Francis:

Dig for Fire

"Dig for Fire" is a song by the American alternative rock band Pixies from their third studio album Bossanova (1990) and was released as a single on November 5, 1990.

Background

"Dig for Fire" was one of the few songs on Bossanova that Francis had written prior to coming into the studio. According to Pixies frontman Black Francis, the song was "a bad Talking Heads imitation."

Release

"Dig for Fire" was released as the second single from Bossanova (1990) on November 5, 1990. Among the B-sides was a version of Neil Young's "Winterlong." "Dig for Fire" reached number 11 on the US Modern Rock Tracks chart and number 62 in the UK.

Music video

The song was promoted with a music video that also featured another Bossanova track, the brief "Allison", a tribute to jazz musician Mose Allison. The combination of the two songs was a compromise, as Elektra wanted a video for "Dig for Fire," while Francis, in calling the song a "bad Talking Heads imitation," pushed for "Allison" instead.

Gigantic

"Gigantic" is a song by the American alternative rock band Pixies, co-written by bassist Kim Deal and lead vocalist/guitarist Black Francis. The song appeared on the band's first full-length studio album, Surfer Rosa, released in 1988.

One of the longest songs on the album, "Gigantic" was released as the band's first single on August 29, 1988.

Lyrics and melody

According to Deal, the main inspiration for the song was the film Crimes of the Heart, in which a white married woman falls in love with a black teenager. The song is credited to Mrs. John Murphy (Kim Deal's pseudonym at the time of Come On Pilgrim and Surfer Rosa).

Cover versions

In 1990, the Australian alternative rock band Tlot Tlot wrote a song called "Sunny Delirious" that sampled the intro of "Gigantic". In 1992, their debut album Pistolbuttsa'twinkle included the song, while their final single, "The Girlfriend Song", included an uptempo punk version of the song recorded live as a B-side.

Here Comes Your Man

"Here Comes Your Man" is a song by the American alternative rock band Pixies, written and sung by the band's frontman Black Francis. Produced by Gil Norton, it was released as the second single from the group's second album Doolittle in June 1989.

Background and recording

Black Francis recalled that he wrote "Here Comes Your Man" around the time he was age 14 or 15. Years later after the Pixies were formed, producer Paul Kolderie noted the group did not want to record "Here Comes Your Man" for its demo "The Purple Tape". The group referred to it as "the Tom Petty song", according to Kolderie. Producer Gary Smith stated that, "There was some reluctance to do 'Here Comes Your Man' because it was too pop, there was something too straight about it." When 4AD label head Ivo Watts-Russell handpicked the track listing for the group's debut release Come on Pilgrim, he intentionally left out "Here Comes Your Man". Watts-Russell stated that he liked the song, but "it felt just too obviously commercial and I didn't...

Composition

"Here Comes Your Man" opens with the Hendrix chord, favored by Pixies guitarist Joey Santiago and was used on "Tame". The acoustic guitar plays a D–G–A chord progression, while Santiago plays a guitar riff which is the result of him double-tracking a 12-string Rickenbacker and a Telecaster.

Release and reception

"Here Comes Your Man" was released as a single in June 1989, and the song's music video received some airplay on MTV. The cover image, chosen by Francis, comes from a photograph that cover designer Simon Larbalestier took of a Bull Terrier for a gallery showing. Pixies rarely played "Here Comes Your Man" at concerts or at promotional events. Music writer Ben Sisario described this stance as "vintage college-rock 'tude—the hit, the pop song, should be avoided as inauthentic, while the aggro, anticommercial song represents legitimacy." Ivo Watts-Russell stated if Black Francis had been possibly persuaded to release the version of the song recorded during the session for the "Gigantic" single—which he described as "totally streamlined and...

In popular culture

The song makes an appearance in the 2009 romantic comedy film (500) Days of Summer, where it is sung by the main character Tom Hansen in a karaoke bar. Other appearances include the films Say It Isn't So (2001), Stuck on You (2003), Deuce Bigalow: European Gigolo (2005), and Daddy's Home (2015). It also appeared in the "Hardly Kirk-ing" episode of The Simpsons (2013), episodes 9 and 10 of Mr. Mercedes (2017), and the series finale of Stranger Things (2025).

Monkey Gone to Heaven

"Monkey Gone to Heaven" is a song by the American alternative rock band Pixies. Recorded in November 1988 during the sessions for the band's 1989 album Doolittle, it was released as a single in March, and included as the seventh track on the album when it was released a month later in April.

The song was written and sung by frontman Black Francis and was produced by Gil Norton. Referencing environmentalism and biblical numerology, the song's lyrics mirrored themes that were explored in Doolittle.

Lyrics and meaning

"Monkey Gone to Heaven"'s main theme is environmentalism. The song mainly deals with humanity's destruction of the sky and ocean and "confusion of man's place in the universe." "On one hand, it's [the ocean] this big organic toilet. Things get flushed and repurified or decomposed and it's this big, dark, mysterious place," Black later said, "It's also a very mythological place where there are octopus's gardens, the Bermuda Triangle, Atlantis, and mermaids." Francis came up with the song's hook, "this monkey's gone to heaven," long before the song itself was written. The line itself forms a basis for the song, which revolves around humanity's relationship with the divine and environmentalism. After Francis set the developing lyrics to...

Recording and production

The band's parts were recorded at Downtown Recorders in Boston, Massachusetts. The string section of "Monkey Gone to Heaven" was recorded while Doolittle was being mixed at Carriage House Studios in Stamford, Connecticut. Gil Norton, the album's producer, was inspired to add a string section to the song after seeing Deal plucking the strings of a grand piano during recording. The production team, led by Norton, asked the studio owner John Montagnese to bring in string players for one evening session. The studio was often used for recording orchestral scores for B-movies such as Missing in Action (1984) and Silver Bullet (1985). Montagnese hired four classical musicians from a local orchestra for the recording, with the session taking place...

Release and music video

"Monkey Gone to Heaven", the first single from Doolittle, was released to radio stations for rotation in April 1989 in the United States. The single reached number five on the US Modern Rock Tracks chart, with the help of Elektra Records' marketing. In the United Kingdom, "Monkey Gone to Heaven" was released on March 27, 1989, and spent three weeks in the UK chart, debuting at number 60.

Reception

In general, "Monkey Gone to Heaven" received a positive critical reaction. British magazine NME, reviewing the UK 7-inch single in March 1989, said: "All the smart bastards are mixing strings with grunge guitars nowadays and the Pixies are no exception. Snarled vocals, sci-fi lyrics, and the usual molten lava flow of guitars burn another crater where your ears used to be. 'Monkey Gone to Heaven' pukes acid and poetry into America's AOR heartland before being splattered by the faster and more direct sting of the second track 'Manta Ray'." Upon the release of Doolittle in April 1989, NME's Edwin Pouncey added: "the wonderful 'Monkey Gone to Heaven' is laced with lush but unobtrusive strings which nibble round the edge of the song and push it...

Planet of Sound

"Planet of Sound" is a song by the American alternative rock band Pixies, from their 1991 album Trompe le Monde. It was written and sung by frontman Black Francis and produced by Gil Norton during the album's recording sessions.

"Planet of Sound" was released as the first single from Trompe le Monde in the US and UK. The single version is a different mix from the one included on the album.

Velouria

"Velouria" is a song by the American alternative rock band Pixies from their third studio album Bossanova (1990). Written and sung by the band's frontman Black Francis, the song was written as a love song rooted in Francis's experience with a girl associated with the Rosicrucians of Northern California.

The lyrics also touched on Francis's interest in UFOs. Musically, the song features surf rock elements as well as a theremin part.

Background and lyrics

Black Francis said of the lyrics to the song in an interview with SongFacts, "It's folklore based; the Rosicrucians of 1920s San Jose California had some pretty interesting ideas." The lyrics allude to the mythical lost continent of Lemuria and the Rosicrucians' belief that its survivors lived beneath Mount Shasta. Francis explained:

Release

"Velouria" was released as the lead single from Pixies' third album, Bossanova (1990), on July 16, 1990. Of the song's B-sides, "I've Been Waiting for You" is a Neil Young cover sung by Kim Deal, while "Make Believe" is a David Lovering-sung track written about Lovering's admitted "obsession" with US singer-songwriter Debbie Gibson. The single was a moderate alternative success, reaching number four on the American alternative charts as well as number 28 in the UK, making it the band's first top 40 UK single.

Critical reception

"Velouria" has received critical acclaim since its release. Entertainment Weekly wrote in a 1990 review that the song is "intense" and "has both strangely shivering guitars and a melodic refrain that cascades over the surface of the music like waves crashing on a devastated beach." The NME wrote during that same year, "By now most of us have heard 'Velouria'. Not as immediate as 'Gigantic' or 'Monkey Gone to Heaven' as far as singles go, but still a delightfully wiggy window to the world of Black Francis and the maddest thing to have been seen on Top of the Pops since the Wombles were Top Ten regulars."

Covers

1999 – The song was covered by Weezer in the tribute album Where Is My Mind? A Tribute to the Pixies. This version was praised by Black Francis as his favorite cover of a Pixies song.

Wave of Mutilation

"Wave of Mutilation" is an alternative rock song by the American band Pixies, and is the third track on their 1989 album Doolittle. Written and sung by the band's frontman Black Francis, the song was inspired by articles about Japanese businessmen committing murder-suicides by driving into the ocean.

The song also references a lyric from the Charles Manson-penned "Cease to Exist", released by the Beach Boys as "Never Learn Not to Love".

Background and lyrics

Written by Pixies frontman Black Francis, "Wave of Mutilation" was inspired by news coverage of murder-suicides occurring in Japan. He explained:

Release

"Wave of Mutilation" was released as the third track on Doolittle in 1989. In addition to the release of the UK Surf version on the "Here Comes Your Man" single, the album recording has appeared on several compilation albums, including Death to the Pixies and Wave of Mutilation: Best of Pixies.

Critical reception

PopMatters described "Wave of Mutilation" as a "jaunty oceanic surge", while AllMusic wrote, "Pixies found the perfect match in the ability of Gil Norton's rock-solid sound production to balance the twist and turns of the band's typically brief tunes, such as 'Wave of Mutilation.'" Salon named it one of the "sleek, tuneful ditties without a pinch of fat" on Doolittle.

Where Is My Mind?

"Where Is My Mind?" is a song by American alternative rock band Pixies, originally released as the seventh track on their 1988 debut album, Surfer Rosa.

Background

The song was written by frontman Black Francis while he attended the University of Massachusetts Amherst, inspired by his experiences while scuba diving in the Caribbean. He said the lyric was sparked by an incident while scuba diving in the Caribbean during his UMass years, recalling a tiny fish persistently following him underwater.

Recording and production

Producer Steve Albini tracked the song during the Surfer Rosa sessions in late 1987. Albini and the band have described an open, try-it-and-see approach in the studio; Black Francis later called Albini's attitude "cavalier" in a way that matched the band's naivety at the time.

Cover versions

Texas rock band Toadies cover "Where Is My Mind" at live shows. The song is also on their 2002 release Best of Toadies: Live From Paradise

Legacy

"Where Is My Mind?" was voted number 29 in the "Hottest 100 of All Time" music poll conducted by Australian radio station Triple J in 2009. In the United Kingdom, it was certified double platinum by the BPI.