"The Animal Song" is a song by Savage Garden

Savage Garden

Savage Garden were an Australian pop rock performance and songwriting duo. Darren Hayes and Daniel Jones formed the group in Brisbane, Queensland in 1994...

, released in February 1999. The song was written for the soundtrack of the film The Other Sister

The Other Sister

The Other Sister is a 1999 romantic comedy film starring Juliette Lewis, Giovanni Ribisi, Diane Keaton, and Tom Skerritt. Garry Marshall directed the film...

, but also appeared on their second studio album, Affirmation, as well as their compilation album, Truly Madly Completely: The Best of Savage Garden

Truly Madly Completely: The Best of Savage Garden

Truly Madly Completely: The Best of Savage Garden is a compilation album released by Australian pop duo Savage Garden. It was released worldwide on 1 November 2005, within the exception of the United States, where it was not available until early 2006....

. It was the band's first song to be produced by Walter Afanasieff

Walter Afanasieff

Walter Afanasieff is a multiple Grammy-award-winning record producer and songwriter. He is best known for his long association with Mariah Carey, for whom he was producer and co-writer for several years, beginning in 1990...

, a producer well-known for his work with Mariah Carey

Mariah Carey

Mariah Carey is an American singer-songwriter, record producer, and actress. She made her recording debut with the release of her eponymous studio album in 1990, under the guidance of Columbia Records executive Tommy Mottola, whom she later married in 1993...

. Walter would later produce the group's Affirmation album, and also Darren Hayes

Darren Hayes

Darren Stanley Hayes is a UK-based Australian singer-songwriter. Hayes was the front man and singer of the pop duo Savage Garden, whose 1997 album Savage Garden peaked at No. 1 in Australia, No. 2 in United Kingdom and No. 3 in United States...

' first solo album, Spin.

Background

The video for the song was directed by Jim Gable. It features Hayes walking through a parade

Parade

A parade is a procession of people, usually organized along a street, often in costume, and often accompanied by marching bands, floats or sometimes large balloons. Parades are held for a wide range of reasons, but are usually celebrations of some kind...

 with intercut scenes from The Other Sister

The Other Sister

The Other Sister is a 1999 romantic comedy film starring Juliette Lewis, Giovanni Ribisi, Diane Keaton, and Tom Skerritt. Garry Marshall directed the film...

with Juliette Lewis

Juliette Lewis

Juliette Lewis is an American actress and musician. She gained international fame for her role in the 1991 thriller Cape Fear for which she was nominated for both an Academy Award and Golden Globe for Best Supporting Actress...

. The song is also used in the "Shamu Rocks" seasonal nighttime show at SeaWorld, America. "The Animal Song" became the group's third Canadian number-one single, topping the singles chart

Canadian Singles Chart

The Canadian Singles Chart is currently compiled by the U.S.-based music sales tracking company, Nielsen SoundScan . The chart is compiled every Wednesday, and is published by Jam! Canoe on Thursdays....

 for three weeks, from 27 March 1999. It also peaked at #3 in Australia and #19 in the US. It later reached #16 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 ...

in summer 1999.

Track listing

• American single / European CD1

1. "The Animal Song" (album version) – 4:39
2. "Santa Monica" (Bittersweet Remix)

• European CD2

1. "The Animal Song" (radio edit) – 3:42
2. "Carry on Dancing" (Ultraviolet Mix)
3. "The Animal Song" (Instrumental Mix) – 4:17
4. "All Around Me" – 4:11
5. "Brake Me Shake Me" (Broken Mix)

• UK CD1

1. "The Animal Song" (radio edit) – 3:42
2. "Carry on Dancing" (Ultraviolet Mix)
3. "The Animal Song" (Instrumental Mix) – 4:17

• UK CD2

1. "The Animal Song" (album version) – 4:39
2. "All Around Me" – 4:11
3. "Brake Me Shake Me" (Broken Mix)

• Japanese single

1. "The Animal Song" (radio edit) – 3:42
2. "The Animal Song" (album version) – 4:39
3. "The Animal Song" (7" vocal mix)
4. "The Animal Song" (instrumental mix) – 4:17
5. "The Animal Song" (a cappella version)

Charts

End-of-year chart (1999)	Position
Australian ARIA Charts	18