"Ashes" is the second single from Embrace's fourth studio album, Out of Nothing

Out of Nothing

Out of Nothing is the fourth studio album by English rock band Embrace. It was released on 13 September 2004 through Independiente Records. It went straight in at number one on the official UK charts, going double platinum, selling more than 600,000 copies in the UK, making it their best selling...

. This release was publicised by a fan campaign called G.A.T.N.O, or Get Ashes To Number One. The song reached number 11.

The b-side "Flaming Red Hair" started life as a cover version

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 Michael Jackson's

Michael Jackson

Michael Joseph Jackson was an American recording artist, entertainer, and businessman. Referred to as the King of Pop, or by his initials MJ, Jackson is recognized as the most successful entertainer of all time by Guinness World Records...

 "Thriller

Thriller (song)

"Thriller" is a song recorded by American recording artist Michael Jackson, composed by Rod Temperton, and produced by Quincy Jones. It is the seventh and final single from his sixth studio album Thriller. It was released on January 23, 1984 by Epic Records...

". Another b-side "How Come" was originally performed on Jo Whiley's

Jo Whiley

Johanne "Jo" Whiley is a British radio disc jockey and television presenter. She was the host of the long running weekday Jo Whiley Show on Radio 1.-Early life and education:...

 BBC Radio One show.

The track has been heavily associated with football

Football (soccer)

Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a sport played between two teams of eleven players with a spherical ball...

, as it features on the video game FIFA 06

FIFA 06

FIFA 06, also known as FIFA Soccer 06, is a video game developed by EA Canada and published by Electronic Arts based around the game of football. It was released in the United States on 4 October 2005 for the PlayStation 2, Xbox, GameCube, Windows, PlayStation Portable, Game Boy Advance, and...

and was used by Match of the Day

Match of the Day

Match of the Day is the BBC's main football television programme. Typically, it is shown on BBC One on Saturday evenings during the English football season, showing highlights of the day's matches in English football's top division, the Premier League...

as the backing track for its Goal of the Month

Goal of the Month (England)

The Goal of the Month is a monthly segment on BBC's Match of the Day television programme, in honour of the best goal scored each month. The segment has been featured on the programme since the 1970–71 season...

 competitions during seasons 2004/05 and 2005/06. It was also featured in Channel 4's coverage of the Ashes series in the summer of 2005.

The track was played during the credits of the BBC's Formula One

Formula One

Formula One, also known as Formula 1 or F1 and referred to officially as the FIA Formula One World Championship, is the highest class of single seater auto racing sanctioned by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile . The "formula" designation in the name refers to a set of rules with which...

 coverage when Jenson Button

Jenson Button

Jenson Alexander Lyons Button MBE is a British Formula One driver currently signed to McLaren. He was the 2009 World Drivers' Champion.Button began karting at the age of eight and achieved early success, before progressing to car racing in the British Formula Ford Championship and the British...

 became World Champion.

This track was also featured at the end of the Veronica Mars

Veronica Mars

Veronica Mars is an American television series created by Rob Thomas. The series premiered on September 22, 2004, during television network UPN's final two years, and ended on May 22, 2007, after a season on UPN's successor, The CW Television Network. Veronica Mars was produced by Warner Bros...

season two premiere episode "Normal Is the Watchword". The song is heard as Veronica discovers the tragic bus crash, thus sending the season mystery into motion.

The songs "Maybe I Wish", "Flaming Red Hair", and a live version of "How Come" are featured on the B-sides compilation Dry Kids: B-Sides 1997-2005

Dry Kids: B-Sides 1997-2005

Dry Kids: B-sides 1997-2005 is a compilation album of b-sides by English band Embrace, released on 31 October 2005. It features 18 tracks from singles and EPs across their entire career, including a version of "Blind", an early live favourite which was omitted from their debut album The Good Will...

.

In the late summer of 2010, the track gained American notoriety through use in a commercial promoting the video game Madden NFL 11

Madden NFL 11

Madden NFL 11 is an American football video game based on the National Football League published by EA Sports and developed by EA Tiburon. It is the 22nd annual installment in the bestselling Madden NFL video game franchise. It was released on August 10, 2010 in North America, and on August 13 in...

 that primarily aired on ESPN

ESPN

Entertainment and Sports Programming Network, commonly known as ESPN, is an American global cable television network focusing on sports-related programming including live and pre-taped event telecasts, sports talk shows, and other original programming....

.

Track listings

7"

1. "Ashes"
2. "Enough"

CD1

1. "Ashes" - 4:23
2. "Maybe I Wish" - 5:25

CD2

1. "Ashes"
2. "Flaming Red Hair"
3. "How Come" (Live)
4. "Ashes" (Video)