"Another Day in Paradise" is a song performed by English recording artist Phil Collins. Produced by Collins along with Hugh Padgham, it was released as the first single from his number-one album ...But Seriously (1989). As with his song for Genesis, "Man on the Corner", the track has as its subject the problem ofhomelessness;[1] as such, the song was a substantial departure from the dance-pop music of his previous album, No Jacket Required (1985).
Collins sings the song from a third-person perspective, observing as a man crosses the street to ignore a homeless woman, and he implores listeners not to turn a blind eye to homelessness because, by drawing a religious allusion, "it's just another day for you and me in paradise". Collins also appeals directly toGod by singing: "Oh lord, is there nothing more anybody can do? Oh lord, there must be something you can say?"
The song was a number-one hit worldwide, and eventually became one of the most successful songs of his solo career. The song gained awards following its release but has also received criticism. It won Collins and Padgham the Grammy Award for Record of the Year at the 1991 awards ceremony, while it was also nominated for Song of the Year, Best Pop Vocal Performance, Male and Best Music Video, Short Form. "Another Day in Paradise" also won an award for Best British Single at the 1990 BRIT Awards. In the United States, it was the final number-one single of the 1980s on the Billboard Hot 100, and the first (and Collins' only) of the 1990s.
Collins and David Crosby's live performance of the song at the 1991 Grammy Awards was released on the 1994 album Grammy's Greatest Moments Volume I.[2] In 2009, Collins' version was listed at 86th on Billboard's Greatest Songs of All Time.[3] "Another Day in Paradise" has since been covered by several artists, including Brandy, and her brother Ray J, Jam Tronik, Axxis, Novecento, and Hank Marvin.
Contents[]
- 2 Reception
- 3 Personnel
- 4 Formats and track listings
- 5 Charts
- 6 Jam Tronik version
- 7 Brandy and Ray J version
- 8 Other covers
- 9 References
- 10 External links
Chart performance[edit][]
The song was another huge hit for Collins. On 23 December 1989, it became his seventh (and to date, final) number-one single in the United States.[1] The song was also the final number-one song of the 1980s in the US, and remained at number one for four weeks, which sometimes classifies the song as a hit from the 1990s as well. It also saw out the 1980s and saw in the 1990s at the top of the German singles chart. The song had already reached number two in the UK in November of that year. The single version is slightly different from the album version in that it uses a shorter intro. David Crosby also appears performing backing vocals.
Reception[edit][]
Writing for the BBC, David Sheppard described the song's lyrics as "cringe-worthy".[4] Caroline Sullivan of The Guardian dismissed the track as "a song that addressed the issue of homelessness with the same insight as Sporty Spice's If That Were Me."[5] Andrew Collins described the song as a "bland redress" for the subject of homelessness in the New Statesman.[6] Singer-songwriter and political activistBilly Bragg was also scathing, claiming: "Phil Collins might write a song about the homeless, but if he doesn't have the action to go with it he's just exploiting that for a subject."[7] Writing for MSN, Hugh Wilson contrasted Collins's concern for the homeless in the song with his concern as a multimillionaire at the prospect of the UK's election of a tax-raising socialist government. Referring to Collins's statement that he would consider leaving the UK with the election of a Labour government, Wilson noted: "It lead to accusations of hypocrisy - Collins is the singer who bemoaned the plight of the homeless in the song Another Day In Paradise, after all. It also made him an easy target when future elections came round."[8]
Personnel[edit][]
[1][2]A prominent bass guitarist,Leland Sklar contributed to "Another Day in Paradise".*Phil Collins — keyboards, vocals, drums
- David Crosby — vocals
- Leland Sklar — bass
- Dominic Miller — guitars
Formats and track listings[edit][]
- 12" single
- "Another Day in Paradise" (album version) – 5:22
- "Another Day in Paradise" (radio edit) – 4:04
- CD maxi single
- "Another Day in Paradise" – 5:15
- "Saturday Night and Sunday Morning" – 1:25
- "Heat on the Street" – 3:59
- 7" single
- "Another Day in Paradise" – 4:48
- "Heat on the Street" – 3:59
Charts[edit][]
Weekly charts[edit][]
|
Year-end charts[edit][]
|
Jam Tronik version[edit][]
| "Another Day in Paradise" | |
|---|---|
| [3] | |
| Single by Jam Tronik | |
| from the album Now That's What I Call Music! 17 | |
| B-side | "Get on The Raze" |
| Released | 1990 |
| Format | CD |
| Recorded | 1990 |
| Genre | Dance-pop, house |
| Length | 4:50 |
| Label | Virgin |
| Producer(s) | Charlie Glas |
Less than six months after the release of the original Phil Collins version, a cover version by dance act Jam Tronik was released in the UK. In April 1990 it reached its peak position of number 19 on the UK Singles Chart. It also featured on volume 17 of the popular UK series Now That's What I Call Music!. Sampled in this version is the drum loop from the 1988 Raze song "Break 4 Love".
Weekly charts[edit][]
| Chart (1990) | Peak
position |
|---|---|
| Belgium (Ultratop 50 Flanders)[25] | 30 |
| Germany (Media Control Charts)[26] | 17 |
| UK Singles (Official Charts Company)[22] | 19 |
Brandy and Ray J version[edit][]
| "Another Day in Paradise" | ||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| [4] | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Single by Brandy and Ray J | ||||||||||||||||||||
| from the album Urban Renewal | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Released | March 17, 2001 (Europe) | |||||||||||||||||||
| Format | Vinyl record, CD single, digital download | |||||||||||||||||||
| Recorded | 2000 | |||||||||||||||||||
| Genre | R&B, pop | |||||||||||||||||||
| Length | 4:32 | |||||||||||||||||||
| Label | Atlantic | |||||||||||||||||||
| Producer(s) | Guy Roche | |||||||||||||||||||
| Certification | Gold(IFPI Germany)[27] | |||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||||
In 2001, siblings Brandy and Ray J covered the song for the Phil Collins tribute album Urban Renewal. Produced by Guy Roche and released as the album'slead single, the cover version became a top ten success in Austria, Germany, Sweden, Switzerland, Belgium, Norway, Ireland, the Netherlands, and the UK, receiving gold certifications in Australia (35,000), Germany (150,000), France (100,000) and Switzerland (25,000). In 2002, this version of the song was included on the European edition of Brandy's Full Moon album.
Formats and tracklistings[edit][]
These are the formats and track listings of major single releases of the 2001 version of "Another Day in Paradise."
- CD-Maxi single
- "Another Day in Paradise" (R&B-Version) – 4:32
- "Another Day in Paradise" (Stargate Mix) – 4:19
- "Another Day in Paradise" (Stargate Classic Club) – 4:22
- "Another Day in Paradise" (Knee Deep Remix) – 6:28
- "Another Day in Paradise" (Black Legend VS. J-Reverse Club Mix) – 7:54
- CD single
- "Another Day in Paradise" (R&B-Version) – 4:32
- "Another Day in Paradise" (Stargate Mix) – 4:19
- The Remixes - 12" maxi
- "Another Day in Paradise" (Knee Deep Remix) – 6:28
- "Another Day in Paradise" (Black Legend vs. J-Reverse Club Mix) – 7:54
Charts[edit][]
| Chart (2001) | Peak
position |
|---|---|
| Australia (ARIA)[28] | 11 |
| Austria (Ö3 Austria Top 40)[29] | 15 |
| Belgium (Ultratop 50 Flanders)[30] | 9 |
| Belgium (Ultratop 50 Wallonia)[31] | 7 |
| Denmark (Tracklisten)[32] | 6 |
| France (SNEP)[33] | 11 |
| Germany (Media Control Charts)[34] | 2 |
| Ireland (IRMA)[35] | 4 |
| Netherlands (Dutch Top 40)[36] | 6 |
| New Zealand (Recorded Music NZ)[37] | 29 |
| Norway (VG-lista)[38] | 4 |
| Sweden (Sverigetopplistan)[39] | 4 |
| Switzerland (Schweizer Hitparade)[40] | 3 |
| UK Singles (Official Charts Company)[41] | 5 |
Other covers[edit][]
- In 1990,[42] the song was covered by the London Symphony Orchestra on their album Soft Rock Symphonies, Vol. II[43]
- In 1992, Dennis Brown included a version of the song on his album "Another Day in Paradise".
- In 1992, Hank Marvin did an instrumental version of the song on his solo album Into the Light.
- In 2001, Serbian rap group CYA sampled this song for their song "To je samo život", which means "That's just life".
- In 2002, German singer Max Raabe and his Palast Orchester did a version of the song in cabaret style.
- In 2003, the song was covered by indie rock band Copeland on their EP "Know Nothing Stays the Same".
- In 2004, the song was sung on the fourth season of Australian Idol by eventual runner-up Jessica Mauboy on the Final 9 Year They Were Born show.
- In 2005, the song was covered by Korean rock band Jaurim on their remake album Cheongchunyaechan (Viva the Youthness).
- In 2006, the song was remixed unofficially as a dance music bootleg by DJ Solstice and promoted as a free promo to DJs, later appearing on YouTube under the name Aftershock Promotions.
- In 2006, the song was sampled by dance band Supafly for their song "Moving too fast".
- In 2007, the song was covered by ska-punk band Reel Big Fish on their album Monkeys for Nothin' and the Chimps for Free.
- In 2008, the song was covered by Big Daddy Weave, a CCM band, on their album What Life Would Be Like.
- In 2008, American Idol Season 7 Runner-Up David Archuleta sang the song during the Top 18 Week (Theme: 1980s).
- In 2011, the song was covered by the charity ensemble Les Enfoires, translated to French and entitled d'Un jour de Plus au Paradis, at their concert Dans l'oeil des Enfoires. It was later released as a single.
- In 2012, an accapella version of the song was performed by Brad Arnold, lead singer of American rock band 3 Doors Down, at the Manchester Academy show of the band's Time of My Life world tour. On the last show of the European segment of the tour, lead singer of Seether, Shaun Morgan, joined Arnold on stage at the Hammersmith Apollo in London to perform an acoustic cover of the song.
- Argentinian singer Miguel Mateos recorded a version of the song that was included on "La 100 FM"'s album.[44]
- Rapper Berner sampled this song for his early 2013 release "Paradise" featuring Wiz Khalifa.
- The Voice contestant Jonny Gray of Austin, Texas, covered the song with an indie tone on November 11, 2013 while also playing acoustic guitar.