I Get Along (Pet Shop Boys song)
Encyclopedia
"I get along" is a single by the Pet Shop Boys
from their album Release
. A love song, Neil Tennant has also hinted that it can also be interpreted as commentary on the then fraught relationship between British Prime Minister
Tony Blair
and New Labour architect Peter Mandelson
after the latter had to resign again from the British Cabinet
after a second major scandal he was involved in.
The song, like its parent album, also stands in contrast to the Pet Shop Boys' predominantly electronic catalogue of songs, primarily having a pop
/soft rock
feel, opening with a piano, and featuring rock-style guitar and drums (even if synthesised). There is only sparse actual synthesised sounds in the song.
The video, which portrays young actors in a New York
artist's studio and does not draw on the song's political subtext, was directed by Bruce Weber
, who had worked with the band before, most notably for their video for the 1990 single "Being Boring
". It also features a rare appearance of Tennant playing an acoustic guitar
.
UK single releases followed the pattern set by "Home and Dry" previously, with two CD singles and a DVD single. The cover of each displayed a pie chart
, labeled "Fig
. 01", "Fig. 02", and "Fig. 03" respectively. As a non-sequitur, the sectors of the charts are captioned with the personal thoughts of one or more unidentified people.
"I Get Along" is the only Pet Shop Boys single to date with no remixes produced, so a promotional 12" single was not released. In the Pet Shop Boys' fanclub magazine, it is said that David Bowie
and Marilyn Manson
were both approached to do remixes, but there was not enough time for them to be done.
CD: Parlophone / CDRS 6581 United Kingdom
Pet Shop Boys
Pet Shop Boys are an English electronic dance music duo, consisting of Neil Tennant, who provides main vocals, keyboards and occasional guitar, and Chris Lowe on keyboards....
from their album Release
Release (Pet Shop Boys album)
Release is the twelfth studio album, the eighth of entirely new music, by the English electronic music duo Pet Shop Boys. It was first released in 2002....
. A love song, Neil Tennant has also hinted that it can also be interpreted as commentary on the then fraught relationship between British Prime Minister
Prime Minister of the United Kingdom
The Prime Minister of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is the Head of Her Majesty's Government in the United Kingdom. The Prime Minister and Cabinet are collectively accountable for their policies and actions to the Sovereign, to Parliament, to their political party and...
Tony Blair
Tony Blair
Anthony Charles Lynton Blair is a former British Labour Party politician who served as the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 2 May 1997 to 27 June 2007. He was the Member of Parliament for Sedgefield from 1983 to 2007 and Leader of the Labour Party from 1994 to 2007...
and New Labour architect Peter Mandelson
Peter Mandelson
Peter Benjamin Mandelson, Baron Mandelson, PC is a British Labour Party politician, who was the Member of Parliament for Hartlepool from 1992 to 2004, served in a number of Cabinet positions under both Tony Blair and Gordon Brown, and was a European Commissioner...
after the latter had to resign again from the British Cabinet
Cabinet (government)
A Cabinet is a body of high ranking government officials, typically representing the executive branch. It can also sometimes be referred to as the Council of Ministers, an Executive Council, or an Executive Committee.- Overview :...
after a second major scandal he was involved in.
The song, like its parent album, also stands in contrast to the Pet Shop Boys' predominantly electronic catalogue of songs, primarily having a pop
Pop music
Pop music is usually understood to be commercially recorded music, often oriented toward a youth market, usually consisting of relatively short, simple songs utilizing technological innovations to produce new variations on existing themes.- Definitions :David Hatch and Stephen Millward define pop...
/soft rock
Soft rock
Soft rock is a style of music which uses the techniques of rock music to compose a softer, more toned-down sound. Soft rock songs generally tend to focus on themes like love, everyday life and relationships. The genre tends to make heavy use of acoustic guitars, pianos, synthesizers and sometimes...
feel, opening with a piano, and featuring rock-style guitar and drums (even if synthesised). There is only sparse actual synthesised sounds in the song.
The video, which portrays young actors in a New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
artist's studio and does not draw on the song's political subtext, was directed by Bruce Weber
Bruce Weber (photographer)
Bruce Weber is an American fashion photographer and occasional filmmaker. He is most widely known for his ad campaigns for Calvin Klein, Ralph Lauren, Pirelli, Abercrombie & Fitch, Revlon, and Gianni Versace, as well as his work for Vogue, GQ, Vanity Fair, Elle, Life, Interview, and Rolling Stone...
, who had worked with the band before, most notably for their video for the 1990 single "Being Boring
Being Boring
"Being Boring" is a single by the British pop group Pet Shop Boys.As the second single from the 1990 album Behaviour, after "So Hard" which was released before the album, "Being Boring" was not particularly successful upon release, only reaching number twenty in the UK Singles Chart and being the...
". It also features a rare appearance of Tennant playing an acoustic guitar
Acoustic guitar
An acoustic guitar is a guitar that uses only an acoustic sound board. The air in this cavity resonates with the vibrational modes of the string and at low frequencies, which depend on the size of the box, the chamber acts like a Helmholtz resonator, increasing or decreasing the volume of the sound...
.
Single release
The radio edit of "I Get Along" omits the third verse of the song, which partially reprises the first verse.UK single releases followed the pattern set by "Home and Dry" previously, with two CD singles and a DVD single. The cover of each displayed a pie chart
Pie chart
A pie chart is a circular chart divided into sectors, illustrating proportion. In a pie chart, the arc length of each sector , is proportional to the quantity it represents. When angles are measured with 1 turn as unit then a number of percent is identified with the same number of centiturns...
, labeled "Fig
Floating block
A floating block in writing and publishing is any graphic, text, table, or other representation that is unaligned from the main flow of text. Use of floating blocks to present pictures and tables is a typical feature of academic writing and technical writing, including scientific and articles and...
. 01", "Fig. 02", and "Fig. 03" respectively. As a non-sequitur, the sectors of the charts are captioned with the personal thoughts of one or more unidentified people.
"I Get Along" is the only Pet Shop Boys single to date with no remixes produced, so a promotional 12" single was not released. In the Pet Shop Boys' fanclub magazine, it is said that David Bowie
David Bowie
David Bowie is an English musician, actor, record producer and arranger. A major figure for over four decades in the world of popular music, Bowie is widely regarded as an innovator, particularly for his work in the 1970s...
and Marilyn Manson
Marilyn Manson
Marilyn Manson may refer to:* Marilyn Manson , an American rock musician* Marilyn Manson , the American rock band led by the singer of the same name...
were both approached to do remixes, but there was not enough time for them to be done.
CD: Parlophone / CDRS 6581 United KingdomUnited KingdomThe United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
- "I Get Along" (radio edit)
- "Searching for the Face of Jesus"
- "Between Two Islands" (Tennant, Lowe, WareLeon WareLeon Ware is a soul music singer, songwriter and producer. Best known for crafting the hit album, I Want You, originally recorded for Ware, until friend and Motown icon Marvin Gaye was assigned to the album in 1976...
, Ross) - "I Get Along" (music video)
- "Between Two Islands" gives credit to Ware and Ross as it includes a lyric from the Marvin GayeMarvin GayeMarvin Pentz Gay, Jr. , better known by his stage name Marvin Gaye, was an American singer-songwriter and musician with a three-octave vocal range....
song "I Want YouI Want You (Marvin Gaye song)-Background:Madonna recorded a cover version of "I Want You" with British trip-hop group Massive Attack for her ballads compilation album Something to Remember and the Marvin Gaye tribute album Inner City Blues: The Music of Marvin Gaye in 1995...
".
CD: Parlophone / CDR 6581 United Kingdom
- "I Get Along" (radio edit)
- "A Red Letter Day" (live)
- "Love Comes Quickly" (live) (Tennant, Lowe, Hague)
DVD: Parlophone / DVDR 6581 United Kingdom
- "I Get Along/E-Mail" (music video)
- "Friendly Fire"
- "Home and Dry" (Blank & JonesBlank & JonesBlank & Jones is a Cologne, Germany based Trance duo, consisting of the members Jan Pieter Blank , known as Piet Blank; René Runge , better known as DJ Jaspa Jones; and the producer Andy Kaufhold...
vocal)
Chart performance
| Chart | Peak position |
|---|---|
| German Singles Chart Media Control Charts The official music charts in Germany are gathered and published by the company Media Control GfK International on behalf of Bundesverband Musikindustrie... |
31 |
| 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 ... |
18 |