| "Zombie" | |||||
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| Single by The Cranberries from the album No Need to Argue |
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| Released | 1994 | ||||
| Format | CD | ||||
| Recorded | 1994 | ||||
| Genre | Rock | ||||
| Length | 5:05 | ||||
| Label | Island Records | ||||
| The Cranberries singles chronology | |||||
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"Zombie" is a protest song by the Irish band The Cranberries from the 1994 album No Need to Argue. It is about the conflicts in Northern Ireland known as "The Troubles", with references to the Easter Rising of 1916. It features a heavy guitar riff which is uncharacteristic of the band's usual sound.
Contents |
Tracks on the single
- Zombie (4 Min Edit, excludes the guitar solo at the end)
- Away (Non Album, Later used in the movie Clueless)
- I Don't Need (Non Album)
Recording information
"Zombie" was recorded at the Windmill Lane Studios in Dublin in 1994. It was written during the Cranberries' English Tour in 1993, in memory of two boys, Jonathan Ball and Tim Parry, who were killed in an IRA bombing in Warrington, Cheshire (North-West England) on 20 March 1993.
Recognitions
"Zombie" is one of the band's biggest singles, reaching #3 in their native Ireland, and having a total chart run of 11 weeks. The song reached #14 in the UK (with a total chart run of six weeks), and topped the U.S. Modern Rock chart for six weeks, it also appeared the French Top 50 for nine weeks (with 19 weeks in the Top 10) and the German Top 100 for one week (with a total chart run of 27 weeks), both in 1995; and also reaching number 2 in Austria, Sweden and Switzerland. Zombie was number 1 in Australia for 8 weeks. The single has sold 2 million copies alone, and the song, since its release in late 1994, has been performed on every live tour. "Zombie" also won the band a MTV Europe Music Award for best song in 1995. In 1995, a techno cover version by French duo A.D.A.M. featuring Amy reached #16 in the UK singles chart, with a total chart run of eleven weeks. Gibraltarian Flamenco Metal band Breed 77 also covered the song as a b-side to their 2007 digital download single "Look At Me Now". They decided to record the song due to an extremely positive response after playing the song on tour. It has also been performed by Dilana Robichaux on the American reality TV series Rockstar: Supernova. "Zombie" also topped the Australian music countdown Triple J Hottest 100 in 1994.
Music video
"Zombie" was released as a music video in 1995. The video was directed by Samuel Bayer, and produced by Doug Friedman and H.S.I. Productions. In the video, Dolores O'Riordan is covered in gold paint surrounded by children. She is reminiscent of the classic image of Saint Sebastian. The video also contains shots of British soldiers on patrol in Northern Ireland. The video production crew gained the full cooperation of the unsuspecting British troops by posing as a documentary film crew. The soldiers were told the documentary was to be about the day to day operations of various peace keeping forces.
Popular culture
- Andy Bernard sings this song in "The Return," an episode in the third season of "The Office" to annoy his co-workers.
- Claus Wärner sings this song while playing his guitar, drunk, on an store shelf to the zombies that have overtaken the mall in the "Radio Pleppo" episode named "ZOMBIES!"
- In the online MMORPG The Kingdom of Loathing, when a "zobmie" or "zmobie" (the game's versions of zombies) is killed, the player sometimes receives cranberries as a reward. The information about the cranberries advises the player not to let them "linger."
Covers
- In 1995, a group A.D.A.M. featuring Amy covered the song in dance form.
- In 2006, Dallas rock band Miser covered the song.
- In 2007, Gibraltarian Flamenco Metal band Breed 77 covered the song.
- In 2007, Andrew Spencer & The Vamprockerz is an electronic group and are the latest group to cover the song.
- In 2007, argentine rap-core band Timmy O'Tool covered the song on their third album Sigo Acá De Pie.
External links
- The "Zombie" page in the Antiwar Songs website with lyrics and translations in 19 languages
| Preceded by "Short Dick Man" by 20 Fingers featuring Gillette |
French (SNEP) number one single March 4, 1995 - April 29, 1994 |
Succeeded by "Pour que tu m'aimes encore" by Céline Dion |
| Preceded by Denis Leary Asshole |
Triple J Hottest 100 #1s 1994 |
Succeeded by Oasis Wonderwall |
| Preceded by "What's The Frequency, Kenneth?" by R.E.M. |
Billboard Modern Rock Tracks number-one single November 5, 1994 - December 3, 1994 |
Succeeded by "About a Girl (live)" by Nirvana |
