Hold Me, Thrill Me, Kiss Me, Kill Me
Encyclopedia
"Hold Me, Thrill Me, Kiss Me, Kill Me" is a 1995 single by U2
from the Batman Forever
soundtrack album. A number-one single in their home country of Ireland, the single reached number two on the UK Singles Chart
, number sixteen on the Billboard Hot 100
, and number one on the Billboard Album Rock Tracks and Modern Rock Tracks charts. Bono described it as being about "being in a rock band" and "being a star".
. The song's title comes from a play on the classic song "Hold Me, Thrill Me, Kiss Me
" and is actually visible (along with the titles of other discarded demos) on the cover of Zooropa in purple text. The song was played on every show of the PopMart Tour
as part of the encore, and was not played again until the 2010 leg of the U2 360° Tour
, opening the second encore.
It was nominated for a Golden Globe Award for Best Original Song
, losing to "Colors of the Wind
" for Pocahontas
. However, it was also nominated for a Razzie Award for Worst Original Song, losing to "Walk Into the Wind" from Showgirls
.
music video
to the song (interspersed with clips from the film) featured the band performing in Gotham City
, with Bono battling between two of his alter-egos from the Zoo TV Tour
: "The Fly" and "MacPhisto". The band also chases the Batwing
, using a yellow supercar and their guitars as flamethrower
s.
At one brief point of the video, a neon sign
can be seen that reads "Mister Pussey's". An edited version of the video from Universal Music Group
uses the words "Mister Swampy's" for the same sign. In another scene, the band is walking down the street when Bono is run over by a car (driven by Elvis) while reading C.S. Lewis' The Screwtape Letters
. The next scene shows Bono in the hospital flatlining and about to die, when a bolt of red lightning strikes his heart monitor turning his skin white, his shirt red, and causing his fingernails to grow, thus transforming him into MacPhisto. The video ends with an orchestra of Batmen playing the outro on strings. It was directed by Kevin Godley
and Maurice Linnane.
on the first two singles are non-U2 songs.
There was also a single-track CD distributed in the U.S
as part of a Batman Forever gift bag, along with a collectible comic book
, trading card
, and pogs
.
U2
U2 are an Irish rock band from Dublin. Formed in 1976, the group consists of Bono , The Edge , Adam Clayton , and Larry Mullen, Jr. . U2's early sound was rooted in post-punk but eventually grew to incorporate influences from many genres of popular music...
from the Batman Forever
Batman Forever
Batman Forever is a 1995 American superhero film directed by Joel Schumacher and produced by Tim Burton. Based on the DC Comics character Batman, the film is a sequel to Batman Returns , with Val Kilmer replacing Michael Keaton as Batman...
soundtrack album. A number-one single in their home country of Ireland, the single reached number two on the UK Singles Chart
UK Singles Chart
The UK Singles Chart is compiled by The Official Charts Company on behalf of the British record-industry. The full chart contains the top selling 200 singles in the United Kingdom based upon combined record sales and download numbers, though some media outlets only list the Top 40 or the Top 75 ...
, number sixteen on the Billboard Hot 100
Billboard Hot 100
The Billboard Hot 100 is the United States music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine. Chart rankings are based on radio play and sales; the tracking-week for sales begins on Monday and ends on Sunday, while the radio play tracking-week runs from Wednesday...
, and number one on the Billboard Album Rock Tracks and Modern Rock Tracks charts. Bono described it as being about "being in a rock band" and "being a star".
History
"Hold Me, Thrill Me, Kiss Me, Kill Me" has its origins in the sessions for the band's 1993 album, ZooropaZooropa
Zooropa Based on the pronunciations of "zoo" and "Europa". is the eighth studio album by rock band U2. Produced by Flood, Brian Eno, and The Edge, it was released on 5 July 1993 on Island Records. Inspired by the band's experiences on the Zoo TV Tour, Zooropa expanded on many of the tour's themes...
. The song's title comes from a play on the classic song "Hold Me, Thrill Me, Kiss Me
Hold Me, Thrill Me, Kiss Me
"Hold Me, Thrill Me, Kiss Me" was released as single from Gloria Estefan's fourth solo-credited studio album Hold Me, Thrill Me, Kiss Me.-Formats and track listings:Europe CD Maxi Single ...
" and is actually visible (along with the titles of other discarded demos) on the cover of Zooropa in purple text. The song was played on every show of the PopMart Tour
Popmart Tour
The PopMart Tour was a worldwide concert tour by rock band U2. Launched in support of the group's 1997 album, Pop, the tour's concerts were performed in stadiums and parks from 1997 through 1998...
as part of the encore, and was not played again until the 2010 leg of the U2 360° Tour
U2 360° Tour
The U2 360° Tour was a worldwide concert tour by rock band U2. Launched in support of the group's 2009 album No Line on the Horizon, the tour visited stadiums from 2009 through 2011. It was named for a stage configuration that allowed the audience to almost completely surround the stage...
, opening the second encore.
It was nominated for a Golden Globe Award for Best Original Song
Golden Globe Award for Best Original Song
Golden Globe Award for Best Original Song was awarded for the first time in 1962 and has been awarded annually since 1965 by the Hollywood Foreign Press Association.-1960s:...
, losing to "Colors of the Wind
Colors of the Wind
"Colors of the Wind" by composer Alan Menken and lyricist Stephen Schwartz, was the 1995 Oscar-winner for Best Original Song from the Disney animated feature film, Pocahontas. It also won the Golden Globe in the same category as well as the Grammy Award for Best Song Written for a Movie...
" for Pocahontas
Pocahontas (1995 film)
Pocahontas is the 33rd animated feature in the Walt Disney Animated Classics series. It was produced by Walt Disney Feature Animation and was originally released to selected theaters on June 16, 1995 by Walt Disney Pictures...
. However, it was also nominated for a Razzie Award for Worst Original Song, losing to "Walk Into the Wind" from Showgirls
Showgirls
Showgirls is a 1995 American drama film directed by Paul Verhoeven and starring former teen actress Elizabeth Berkley, Kyle MacLachlan, and Gina Gershon...
.
Music video
The animatedAnimation
Animation is the rapid display of a sequence of images of 2-D or 3-D artwork or model positions in order to create an illusion of movement. The effect is an optical illusion of motion due to the phenomenon of persistence of vision, and can be created and demonstrated in several ways...
music video
Music video
A music video or song video is a short film integrating a song and imagery, produced for promotional or artistic purposes. Modern music videos are primarily made and used as a marketing device intended to promote the sale of music recordings...
to the song (interspersed with clips from the film) featured the band performing in Gotham City
Gotham City
Gotham City is a fictional U.S. city appearing in DC Comics, best known as the home of Batman. Batman's place of residence was first identified as Gotham City in Batman #4 . Gotham City is strongly inspired by Trenton, Ontario's history, location, atmosphere, and various architectural styles...
, with Bono battling between two of his alter-egos from the Zoo TV Tour
Zoo TV Tour
The Zoo TV Tour was a worldwide concert tour by rock band U2. Staged in support of their 1991 album Achtung Baby, the tour visited arenas and stadiums from 1992 through 1993...
: "The Fly" and "MacPhisto". The band also chases the Batwing
Batplane
The Batplane, later known as the Batwing, is the fictional aircraft for the comic book superhero Batman. The vehicle was introduced in "Batman Versus The Vampire, I", published in Detective Comics #31 in 1939, a story which saw Batman travel to continental Europe...
, using a yellow supercar and their guitars as flamethrower
Flamethrower
A flamethrower is a mechanical device designed to project a long controllable stream of fire.Some flamethrowers project a stream of ignited flammable liquid; some project a long gas flame. Most military flamethrowers use liquids, but commercial flamethrowers tend to use high-pressure propane and...
s.
At one brief point of the video, a neon sign
Neon sign
Neon signs are made using electrified, luminous tube lights that contain rarefied neon or other gases. They are the most common use for neon lighting, which was first demonstrated in a modern form in December, 1910 by Georges Claude at the Paris Motor Show. While they are used worldwide, neon signs...
can be seen that reads "Mister Pussey's". An edited version of the video from Universal Music Group
Universal Music Group
Universal Music Group is an American music group, the largest of the "big four" record companies by its commanding market share and its multitude of global operations...
uses the words "Mister Swampy's" for the same sign. In another scene, the band is walking down the street when Bono is run over by a car (driven by Elvis) while reading C.S. Lewis' The Screwtape Letters
The Screwtape Letters
The Screwtape Letters is a satirical Christian apologetics novel written in epistolary style by C. S. Lewis, first published in book form in February 1942...
. The next scene shows Bono in the hospital flatlining and about to die, when a bolt of red lightning strikes his heart monitor turning his skin white, his shirt red, and causing his fingernails to grow, thus transforming him into MacPhisto. The video ends with an orchestra of Batmen playing the outro on strings. It was directed by Kevin Godley
Kevin Godley
Kevin Godley is a British musician and music video director.He was born in a family of Jewish descent, and went to North Cestrian Grammar School in Altrincham....
and Maurice Linnane.
Track listings
The song featured singles with three different track listings. Note that the B-sidesA-side and B-side
A-side and B-side originally referred to the two sides of gramophone records on which singles were released beginning in the 1950s. The terms have come to refer to the types of song conventionally placed on each side of the record, with the A-side being the featured song , while the B-side, or...
on the first two singles are non-U2 songs.
There was also a single-track CD distributed in the U.S
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
as part of a Batman Forever gift bag, along with a collectible comic book
Comic book
A comic book or comicbook is a magazine made up of comics, narrative artwork in the form of separate panels that represent individual scenes, often accompanied by dialog as well as including...
, trading card
Trading card
A trading card is a small card, usually made out of paperboard or thick paper, which usually contains an image of a certain person, place or thing and a short description of the picture, along with other text...
, and pogs
Pogs
Pogs is a game that was popularized during the early 1990s. The word "pog" also refers to the discs used to play the game. The name originates from POG, a brand of juice made from passionfruit, orange and guava; the use of the POG bottle caps to play the game pre-dated the game's commercialization...
.
Peak positions
| Chart (1995) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Australian ARIA ARIA Charts The ARIA charts are the main Australian music sales charts, issued weekly by the Australian Recording Industry Association. The charts are a record of the highest selling singles and albums in various genres in Australia. ARIA commenced compiling its own charts in-house from the week ending 26 June... Singles Chart |
1 |
| Austrian Singles Chart | 3 |
| Belgian Singles Chart (Flanders) Ultratop 50 Ultratop 50 singles, often just Ultratop 50, is the weekly chart of fifty best-selling singles in Flanders, Belgium, and is produced and published by the Ultratop organization. The chart has existed since March 31, 1995... |
15 |
| Belgian Singles Chart (Wallonia) Ultratop 40 Ultratop 40 singles, often just Ultratop 40, is the weekly chart of best-selling singles in Wallonia and Brussels Capital Region, the french-speaking parts of Belgium. Its equivalent covering the Flanders region is Ultratop 50. Both charts are produced and published by the Ultratop organization... |
4 |
| Canadian RPM RPM (magazine) RPM was a Canadian music industry publication that featured song and album charts for Canada. The publication was founded by Walt Grealis in February 1964, supported through its existence by record label owner Stan Klees. RPM ceased publication in November 2000.RPM stood for "Records, Promotion,... Top Singles |
3 |
| Canadian RPM Alternative 30 Canadian rock/alternative chart The Canadian rock/alternative chart was first published on June 11, 1995 by RPM magazine under the name Alternative 30. The song which held the number-one spot on this first chart was "More Human than Human" by White Zombie... |
1 |
| Dutch Top 40 Dutch Top 40 The Dutch Top 40 is a weekly music chart, which started as the "Veronica Top 40", because the offshore radio station Radio Veronica was the first to introduce it. It remained "The Veronica Top 40" until 1974, when the station was forced to stop broadcasting... |
9 |
| Finnish Singles Chart | 4 |
| French SNEP Syndicat National de l'Edition Phonographique The Syndicat national de l'édition phonographique is the inter-professional organization which protects the interests of the French record industry... Singles Chart |
10 |
| German Singles Chart | 8 |
| Irish Singles Chart Irish Singles Chart The Irish Singles Chart is Ireland's music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by the Irish Recorded Music Association and compiled on behalf of the IRMA by Chart-Track. Chart rankings are based on sales, which are compiled through over-the-counter retail data captured... |
1 |
| New Zealand RIANZ Recording Industry Association of New Zealand The Recording Industry Association of New Zealand is a non-profit trade association of record producers, distributors and recording artists who sell music in New Zealand... Singles Chart |
1 |
| Norwegian Singles Chart VG-lista VG-listen is a Norwegian record chart. It is weekly presented in the newspaper VG and the Norwegian Broadcasting Corporation program Topp 20. It is considered the primary Norwegian record chart, charting albums and singles from countries and continent around the world. The data is collected by... |
1 |
| Swedish Singles Chart Sverigetopplistan Sverigetopplistan, earlier known as Topplistan and Hitlistan and other names, is since October 2007 the Swedish national record chart, based on sales data from Swedish Recording Industry Association .... |
2 |
| Swiss Singles Chart | 5 |
| UK Singles Chart UK Singles Chart The UK Singles Chart is compiled by The Official Charts Company on behalf of the British record-industry. The full chart contains the top selling 200 singles in the United Kingdom based upon combined record sales and download numbers, though some media outlets only list the Top 40 or the Top 75 ... |
2 |
| US Billboard Hot 100 Billboard Hot 100 The Billboard Hot 100 is the United States music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine. Chart rankings are based on radio play and sales; the tracking-week for sales begins on Monday and ends on Sunday, while the radio play tracking-week runs from Wednesday... |
16 |
| US Billboard Album Rock Tracks Mainstream Rock Tracks Hot Mainstream Rock Tracks is a ranking in Billboard magazine of the most-played songs on mainstream rock radio stations, a category that includes stations that play primarily rock music. Modern rock tracks are counted in the Alternative Songs chart.This chart began with the March 21, 1981, issue... |
1 |
| US Billboard Modern Rock Tracks Modern Rock Tracks Alternative Songs is a music chart in the United States that has appeared in Billboard magazine since September 10, 1988. It lists the 40 most-played songs on modern rock radio stations, most of which are alternative rock songs... |
1 |
| US Billboard Top 40 Mainstream | 23 |
End-of-year charts
| Chart (1995) | Position |
|---|---|
| Australian Singles Chart | 29 |
| Austrian Singles Chart | 25 |
| Belgian (Flanders) Singles Chart | 73 |
| Belgian (Wallonia) Singles Chart | 28 |
| Dutch Top 40 | 76 |
| French Singles Chart | 35 |
| Swiss Singles Chart | 19 |
| US Billboard Hot 100 | 81 |
Certifications
| Country | Certification | Date | Sales certified |
|---|---|---|---|
| France | Silver | November 7, 1995 | 125,000 |
| UK | Gold | August 1, 1995 | 400,000 |
See also
- List of covers of U2 songs - Hold Me, Thrill Me, Kiss Me, Kill Me
- List of number-one singles in Australia during the 1990s
- List of number-one singles of 1995 (Ireland)
- List of number-one singles in 1995 (New Zealand)
- List of number-one hits in Norway
- List of number-one mainstream rock hits (United States)
- Number one modern rock hits of 1995Number one modern rock hits of 1995The following is a comprehensive list of hits that reached number one on the Modern Rock Tracks chart, published by Billboard magazine. In 1995, there were 15 hits that reached peak position, in 52 issues of the magazine....