| "The Ship Song" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 7" single cover | ||||
| Single byNick Cave and the Bad Seeds | ||||
| from the albumThe Good Son | ||||
| A-side | "The Ship Song" | |||
| B-side | "The Train Song" | |||
| Released | 12 March 1990 (1990-03-12) | |||
| Recorded | 8 October – 28 October 1989 | |||
| Studio | Cardan Studios (São Paulo) | |||
| Genre | Alternative rock | |||
| Length | 5:14 | |||
| Label | Mute | |||
| Songwriter | Nick Cave | |||
| Producer | The Bad Seeds | |||
| Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds singles chronology | ||||
| ||||
| Music video | ||||
| "The Ship Song" onYouTube | ||||
"The Ship Song" is a song written byNick Cave (lyrics and music),[1] originally performed by the Australianrock bandNick Cave and the Bad Seeds on their sixth studio albumThe Good Son (1990). It was released byMute Records as the first single from the album on 12 March 1990, as aCD single,7" vinyl and a12" vinyl release. The song reached #84 on theUK Singles Charts.[2][3]
The music video for the song was directed byJohn Hillcoat.[4]
In May 2001 "The Ship Song" was selected byAustralasian Performing Right Association (APRA) as one of theTop 30 Australian songs of all time.[5]
"The Ship Song" is widely regarded as one of Cave's best songs. In 2020,Far Out ranked the song number seven on their list of the 20 greatest Nick Cave songs,[6] and in 2023,Mojo ranked the song number five on their list of the 30 greatest Nick Cave songs.[7]
TheSydney Opera House, with agencythe Monkeys, achieved the collaboration ofNeil Finn,Kev Carmody,Sarah Blasko,John Bell,Martha Wainwright,Katie Noonan,Paul Kelly,Teddy Tahu Rhodes,the Temper Trap,Angus & Julia Stone,Concrete Blonde, andDaniel Johns, withOpera Australia,the Australian Ballet,Bangarra Dance Theatre, theSydney Symphony Orchestra, and theAustralian Chamber Orchestra, to perform and record a reinterpretation of "The Ship Song" over some months in 2010–2011. Titled "The Ship Song Project", the recording was to promote theSydney Opera House.[8]
The track listing for the single is:[9]
Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds
Technical
| Chart (1990) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Australia (ARIA)[11] | 138 |
| Format | Country | Label | Catalogue No. | Year |
| CD single | UK | Mute | CD MUTE 108 | 12 March 1990 |
| 7" single | UK | Mute | MUTE 108 | 12 March 1990 |
| 12" single | UK | Mute | 12 MUTE 108 | 12 March 1990 |
| 12" single (promotional) | UK | Mute | P12 MUTE 108 | 12 March 1990 |
| CD single | Germany | Mute International | INT 826.930 | March 1990 |
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