"Mothers Talk" is a song by the British

United Kingdom

The 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...

 band Tears for Fears

Tears for Fears

Tears for Fears are an English new wave band formed in the early 1980s by Roland Orzabal and Curt Smith.Founded after the dissolution of their first band, the mod-influenced Graduate, they were initially associated with the New Wave synthesiser bands of the early 1980s but later branched out into...

.

Written by Roland Orzabal

Roland Orzabal

Roland Jaime Orzabal de la Quintana is an English musician, songwriter and record producer. He is known mainly as a co-founding member of Tears for Fears, of which he is the main songwriter and joint vocalist, but he has also achieved success as a producer of other artists.- Early career :Orzabal...

 and Ian Stanley

Ian Stanley

Ian Stanley is an English musician, songwriter and record producer...

 and sung by Orzabal, it was the band's seventh single release (the first taken from their second LP Songs from the Big Chair

Songs from the Big Chair

Songs from the Big Chair is the second album by the British rock band Tears for Fears. It was released in 1985 on Phonogram Records, and remains their highest selling album to date. The album peaked at no.2 in the UK and reached no.1 in the US...

(1985)) and fifth UK Top 40

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 ...

 chart hit. The song was released well in advance of the LP and showcased the band's edgier sound, as compared to their debut LP The Hurting

The Hurting

The Hurting is the debut album by the British pop band Tears for Fears. It was released on 7 March 1983, and peaked at no. 1 on the UK Album Chart...

(1983). It was also a moderate success internationally.

Background

Along with its b-side "Empire Building", "Mothers Talk" was one of the first Tears for Fears songs to demonstrate a creative use of sampling

Sampling (music)

In music, sampling is the act of taking a portion, or sample, of one sound recording and reusing it as an instrument or a different sound recording of a song or piece. Sampling was originally developed by experimental musicians working with musique concrète and electroacoustic music, who physically...

. The strings

String instrument

A string instrument is a musical instrument that produces sound by means of vibrating strings. In the Hornbostel-Sachs scheme of musical instrument classification, used in organology, they are called chordophones...

 at the beginning of the song were culled from a Barry Manilow

Barry Manilow

Barry Manilow is an American singer-songwriter, musician, arranger, producer, conductor, and performer, best known for such recordings as "Could It Be Magic", "Mandy", "Can't Smile Without You", and "Copacabana ."...

 record, while the drum sample around which "Empire Building" is built was lifted from the Simple Minds

Simple Minds

Simple Minds are a Scottish rock band who achieved worldwide popularity from the mid-1980s to the early 1990s. The band produced a handful of critically acclaimed albums in the early 1980s and best known for their #1 US, Canada and Netherlands hit single "Don't You ", from the soundtrack of the...

 song "Today I Died Again". This was the second Tears for Fears single for which Mercury Records

Mercury Records

Mercury Records is a record label operating as a standalone company in the UK and as part of the Island Def Jam Motown Music Group in the US; both are subsidiaries of Universal Music Group. There is also a Mercury Records in Australia, which is a local artist and repertoire division of Universal...

 would use the picture disc

Picture disc

Picture discs are gramophone records that show images on their playing surface, rather than being of plain black or coloured vinyl.-Development:...

 and coloured vinyl gimmicks as a promotional tool, as well as the first one to feature multiple 12" releases offering different remixes of the track.

Meaning

USA release

While America saw "Everybody Wants to Rule the World

Everybody Wants to Rule the World

"Everybody Wants to Rule the World" is a song by the British New Wave band Tears for Fears.It was the band's ninth single release in the United Kingdom and seventh UK Top 40 chart hit, peaking at number two in April 1985...

" as the first single release from the Songs from the Big Chair LP, "Mothers Talk" was eventually released there as the fourth and final single from the album in April of 1986

1986 in music

This is a list of notable events in music that took place in the year 1986.-January-June:*January 23 – The first induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame takes place...

, peaking at #27 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...

. This version of the song was completely re-recorded by the band after their Big Chair tour wrapped up and was mixed by award-winning producer Bob Clearmountain

Bob Clearmountain

Bob Clearmountain is an award-winning American music engineer, mixer and producer. He has worked with many prominent names in music including Bruce Springsteen , The Rolling Stones , Bryan Adams , Robbie Williams Bob Clearmountain is an award-winning American music engineer, mixer and producer. He...

. In addition to a different picture sleeve, the single featured a cover

Cover version

In popular music, a cover version or cover song, or simply cover, is a new performance or recording of a contemporary or previously recorded, commercially released song or popular song...

 of Robert Wyatt's

Robert Wyatt

Robert Wyatt is an English musician, and founding member of the influential Canterbury scene band Soft Machine, with a long and distinguished solo career...

 "Sea Song" as the B-side.

Song versions

The 7" version of "Mothers Talk" is the same mix of the song found on the Songs from the Big Chair LP, albeit in an edited form. Prior to the release of the "US Remix", two other remixes of the song were done by the band: the "Extended Version" and the "Beat of the Drum Mix". Each of these was the featured track on its own 12" single, with "Empire Building" serving as the sole b-side in each case.

Music videos

Three separate promotional clips were filmed for the song in total. The original version, a performance clip set in a blue toned room and interspersed with shots of a young girl being studied by scientists, was disliked by the band and quickly disowned. A replacement video (directed by Nigel Dick

Nigel Dick

Nigel Dick is an English music video and film director, writer and musician based in Los Angeles, California. He directed the Band Aid video "Do They Know It's Christmas?", as well as over 300 other music videos.Nigel Dick should not be confused with the Australian Dr...

) was then filmed on a shoestring budget in Curt Smith's

Curt Smith

Curt Smith is an English musician. He is best known for forming the band Tears for Fears, along with childhood friend Roland Orzabal. Also a solo artist, he released his third album Halfway, Pleased in May 2008....

 backyard. Both clips were released to UK and European markets in mid-1984. The third and final video was made for the "US Remix" of the song in early 1986 and portrayed a family preparing a bomb shelter for nuclear fallout

Nuclear fallout

Fallout is the residual radioactive material propelled into the upper atmosphere following a nuclear blast, so called because it "falls out" of the sky after the explosion and shock wave have passed. It commonly refers to the radioactive dust and ash created when a nuclear weapon explodes...

, in keeping with the theme of Raymond Briggs' graphic novel When the Wind Blows. An extended mix of the song, featuring an extra verse at the beginning, is exclusive to this version.

Track listings

7": Mercury / IDEA7 (United Kingdom

United Kingdom

The 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...

, Ireland

Ireland

Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...

, South Africa

South Africa

The Republic of South Africa is a country in southern Africa. Located at the southern tip of Africa, it is divided into nine provinces, with of coastline on the Atlantic and Indian oceans...

) / 818 838-7 (Australia

Australia

Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...

, Europe

Europe

Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...

) / 7PP-155 (Japan

Japan

Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...

)

1. "Mothers Talk" (3:53)
2. "Empire Building" (2:49)

7": Mercury / 884 638-7 (United States

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

, Australia, Europe]] / SOV 2366 (Canada

Canada

Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...

) / 7PP-200 (Japan)

1. "Mothers Talk [US Remix]" (4:14)
2. "Sea Song" (3:52)

12": Mercury / IDEA712 (United Kingdom) / 818 838-1 (Europe)

1. "Mothers Talk [Extended Version]" (6:15)
2. "Empire Building" (2:49)

12": Mercury / IDEAR712 (United Kingdom) / 880 248-1 (Australia) / 880 258-1 (Europe)

1. "Mothers Talk [Beat of the Drum Mix]" (8:54)
2. "Empire Building" (2:49)

12": Vertigo / TFF1 (Canada)

1. "Mothers Talk [Short Version]" (3:53)
2. "The Way You Are [Extended Version]" (7:33)
3. "Mothers Talk [Beat of the Drum Mix]" (8:54)
4. "The Marauders" (4:14)
5. "Mothers Talk [Extended Version] (6:15)

CS": Vertigo / TFF 4 1 (Canada)

1. "Mothers Talk [Beat Of The Drum Mix]" - 8:54
2. "The Marauders" - 4:14
3. "Mothers Talk [Extended Version]" - 6:15
4. "Mothers Talk" - 3:53
5. "The Way You Are [Extended Version]" - 7:33

12": Mercury / 884 638-1 (United States, Europe)

1. "Mothers Talk [Beat of the Drum Mix]" (8:54)
2. "Mothers Talk [Extended Version]" (6:15)
3. "Mothers Talk [US Remix]" (4:14)

12": Vertigo / SOVX 2366 (Canada)

1. "Mothers Talk [Beat of the Drum Mix]" (8:54)
2. "Mothers Talk [US Remix]" (4:14)
3. "Sea Song" (3:52)

Chart positions

Chart	Peak Position
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 ...	14
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...	23
New Zealand Singles Chart	50
U.S. 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...	27
Canada Singles Chart	87