| "Voices Carry" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
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| Single by'Til Tuesday | ||||
| from the albumVoices Carry | ||||
| B-side | "Are You Serious?" | |||
| Released | March 28, 1985 (1985-03-28) | |||
| Recorded | 1985 | |||
| Studio | R.P.M. Sound Studios (New York City) | |||
| Genre | ||||
| Length | 4:20 | |||
| Label | Epic | |||
| Songwriters |
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| Producer | Mike Thorne | |||
| 'Til Tuesday singles chronology | ||||
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| Music video | ||||
| "Voices Carry" onYouTube | ||||
"Voices Carry" is a song by the Americanrock band'Til Tuesday. It was produced byMike Thorne for the band's debutstudio album,Voices Carry (1985).[1] The accompanying music video, directed by D.J. Webster, received wide exposure onMTV and positive reactions from critics. It was nominated for numerous awards and is thought to be the reason behind the song's success. It was released in North America in March 1985. "Voices Carry" became the band's highest-charting single and their only top ten hit in the U.S., peaking at number eight on theBillboard Hot 100. Internationally it reached the top twenty in Canada and Australia.
One claim for the inspiration for the song says that an argument between Michael Hausman and bandmate/former girlfriendAimee Mann inspired the song's lyrics,[2] but producer Mike Thorne disputes this and states the lyrics originally had Mann singing to another woman and that the gender was changed due to pressure fromEpic Records.[3]Ministry frontmanAl Jourgensen claims that the song was inspired by a brief relationship he had with Mann while living in Boston.[4] Mann later stated that she wrote the song about a female acquaintance, and wrote the song from a male's point of view. Mann also stated that the rewritten verse in the studio version that begins with "He wants me but only part of the time" was based "on something I was going through with a relationship at the time."[5]
"Voices Carry" was recorded in 1985 at RPM Sound Studios inNew York.[6] The song is about past sour relationships,[7] and was originally written and sung byAimee Mann as to a woman.[6] 'Til Tuesday rehearsed that format inBoston the previous summer, butEpic was unhappy with the lyrics; they thought that it was a "very powerful, commercial song", and wanted to remove the lesbian components to appeal to the mainstream market.[6]
Despite the pressure to replace the lyrics, producerMike Thorne thought that "it didn't matter any to the impact of the song itself", though the band eventually changed the gender of the love interest.[6] At the beginning, 'Til Tuesday and Thorne were undecided between "Love in a Vacuum" and "Looking Over My Shoulder" to be released as the first single, but ultimately Epic'sartist and repertoire (A&R) executive Dick Wingate chose "Voices Carry", because it "define[d] precisely the band and its style".[6] According to Thorne, his contract stated that he had the right to be the first toremix the song for the7" single release. He was then told that it had been remixed byBob Clearmountain; about this he commented, "not what the rules were ... but it sounded pretty good, as well it might coming from one of the finest American engineer/producers".[6]
"Voices Carry" received generally positive reviews from pop music critics. In a review of the band's second albumWelcome Home,David Wild fromRolling Stone magazine said that their "debut [album],Voices Carry, had its icy charms", calling the song "wonderfully eerie".[8]Allmusic's Stewart Mason said that "'Voices Carry' is one of the most distinctive radio singles of its era"; he also praised the production saying that it "does wonders both for Mann's breathy voice and the ... chorus, which brilliantly releases the tension that builds throughout the stark, paranoid verses".[9] Joe Viglione also from Allmusic, in a review of their debut album said that the song is "captivating", and praised its production saying that Mike Thorne did an "excellent work".[10] Phillip Mottaz of The Tripwire believed that the song "has everything that makes a song fun and effective", and felt that it is a "testament to honest production and emotional quality".[11]
Dennis Hunt of theLos Angeles Times said that Mann has "a distinct naturalism [that] governs her vocals" and that "the frailty, roughness and lack of great range in her voice ... [is] genuinely appealing", adding that if she were a "polished singer, songs like 'Voices Carry' ... wouldn't be half as appealing";[12] while Robert Hilburn of the same newspaper said that Mann "exhibits winning vocal authority on record", adding that the "only thing she needs is anotherDave Stewart to give her more tailored and absorbing arrangements and material".[13] Lynn Van Matre of theChicago Tribune said that "much of the group's material falls into thedance rock category", adding that the "bluesy title cut, ... 'Voices Carry', was particularly impressive".[14] Brent Mann, in his book99 Red Balloons... called it "the quintessentialNew Wave song", and felt that "Mann's cool, dark lead vocals were right in step with the style".[15]
"Voices Carry" was released in the United States in March 1985. It first appeared on theBubbling Under Hot 100 Singles chart at number four, the next week it debuted at number eighty-one on theBillboard Hot 100.[16] It reached a peak position of number eight in its fourteenth week, and stayed twenty-one weeks on the chart,[17] becoming the band's first and only top ten single in the United States.[18] The success of the single helped theirdebut album reach the top twenty on theBillboard 200 chart,[19] and pushed it past thegold mark.[7]
In Canada, the single entered theRPM singles chart in June 1985 at number ninety-four,[20] peaked at number fifteen for two weeks in August 1985,[21] stayed twenty-two weeks in total,[22] and was certified gold by theCanadian Recording Industry Association (CRIA).[23] In Australia, "Voices Carry" entered theKent Music Report on June 17, 1985; it peaked at number fifteen, and spent fourteen weeks on the chart.[24]
The music video for "Voices Carry" was directed by D.J. Webster,[25] and filmed atDorchester'sStrand Theater, Davio's Restaurant, and W. Brookline St in Boston.[26] The video inserts several spoken or silent short, dramatic scenes on top of the song. The band's lead singer,Aimee Mann, plays a musician with anabusive boyfriend, played by actor Cully Holland.[27] He demeans her music "hobby", demands she change her look to fit his respectable, 1980s professional caste lifestyle and demands, "Why can't you for once do something for me?"[25] before essentially forcing himself upon her. The conclusion shows them formally dressed in an eliteCarnegie Hall audience, the boyfriend giving Mann a disgusted look when he finds a visibly counter-culturerattail peeking from her black lace cap. Finally having enough, Mann begins singing the song in her seat, increasing in volume and creating a scene. Her character is no longer submissive as she defiantly stands to belt the final lyrics, "He said, shut up! He said, shut up! Oh God, can't you keep it down?...".[28]
The success of the single was largely attributed to the video,[29] which received wide exposure onMTV and local Boston UHF music video channel V-66,[7][30] along with positive reactions from critics and nominations to numerous awards. Keith Thomas ofKnight Ridder newspapers called the video "a clever and stunning effort". Praising the dialogue and acting he said that it "looks better than mostfeature films", adding that "everything about the clip is grand".[28]Robert Hilburn of theLos Angeles Times also praised Mann's acting, saying that she appears "marvelously charismatic" in it,[13] while Dennis Hunt from the same newspaper said that it was "cleverly conceived".[12] Debbie del Condo of theOrlando Sentinel called it the "Most Memorable Video of 1985", and added that she will "keep waiting for their next video".[31] In his bookTotally awesome 80s, authorMatthew Rettenmund called it a "great story video".[32] Author Brent Mann in his book99 Red Balloons..., called the video "pure New Wave" and added that it was "perfect for MTV andVH1 consumption".[15]
At the1985 MTV Video Music Awards, the band won the award forBest New Artist in a video.[33] The same year, at the Fourth AnnualAmerican Video Awards, Mann was named the Best Female Performer in a video for "Voices Carry".[34] The video was placed number forty onSlant Magazine's 2003 list of the "100 Greatest Music Videos",[25] and was listed onPitchfork's "100 Awesome Music Videos", in 2006.[35]
The 2012 music video for "Labrador", the second single from her albumCharmer, features a satirical shot-for-shot remake of "Voices Carry" video within the framing device of Mann having been forced to shoot the video after inadvertently signing complete control of the video over to directorTom Scharpling. The video featuresJon Wurster as the Wall Street boyfriend,Jon Hamm as Scharpling, andTed Leo in a cameo.[36]
These are the formats and track listings of major single releases of "Voices Carry":
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American hardcore punk bandGang Green covered the song on their 1986 albumAnother Wasted Night.
American singerTiffany covered the song on her compilation albumGreatest Hits of the '80s and Beyond, released on May 30, 2011. The album included a string of '80s song covers.
On July 30, 2018, singer/songwriterSky Ferreira released a demo of her cover on SoundCloud.[41][42] Ferreira later released a more produced '(Alternative Version)' which appeared on YouTube.[43]
On August 28, 2024, American actress and singer/songwriterKate Hudson released her cover version of the song.[44] Hudson had previously performed the song onThe Howard Stern Show in May 2024.[45]
