Better Do Better
Encyclopedia
"Better Do Better" is the fifth single from Indie
band Hard-Fi
, taken from their debut album Stars of CCTV
. It was released on 27 February 2006 where it reached #14 in the UK singles chart
sharing a similar chart success with all the other singles released from Stars of CCTV
. The video was directed by Richard Skinner with Alex Smith acting as cinematographer
. The Maxi CD
version of the single contains exclusive U-MYX
software to create your own personalized mix of Hard to Beat
. The song features in the Torchwood
episode Small Worlds
.
album, this song has a much darker feel which is most probably due to what the song is about and features saxophones and trumpets played by Kellie Santin and Nick Etwell. The track is about a relationship that's over. However it appears as if the girlfriend of Richard Archer
wants to get back together after having an affair. The lyrics suggest he will have none of this "I'll tell you how it's gonna be, don't you never, ever come near me".
The b-side Polish Love Song was recorded in one take backstage at the Kansas City
Grand Emporium. The song pleads the case for illegal immigrant workers coming from Eastern Europe
.
Like all of the Hard-Fi releases, various formats carried subtle changes to differentiate them on the shelf. Making them all collectable. Better Do Better's delete message was in various stages of completion on the CD cover and 7" sleeve.
. It entered the UK singles chart at #14 and the UK download chart at #28 on April 18, 2006, it then dropped to #33, then #46 before dropping to #64 in its last week.
Indie (music)
In music, independent music, often shortened to indie music or "indie" is a term used to describe independence from major commercial record labels or their subsidiaries, and an autonomous, Do-It-Yourself approach to recording and publishing....
band Hard-Fi
HARD-Fi
Hard-Fi are an English indie rock band formed in Staines, Surrey in 2003. The band's members are Richard Archer , Ross Phillips , Kai Stephens and Steve Kemp .They achieved chart success with their third single, "Hard to Beat" and then followed by other successful singles such as...
, taken from their debut album Stars of CCTV
Stars of CCTV
Stars of CCTV is the debut album by English indie rock band Hard-Fi. It was first released on 4 July 2005 on Necessary/Atlantic and Warner Music UK...
. It was released on 27 February 2006 where it reached #14 in 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 ...
sharing a similar chart success with all the other singles released from Stars of CCTV
Stars of CCTV
Stars of CCTV is the debut album by English indie rock band Hard-Fi. It was first released on 4 July 2005 on Necessary/Atlantic and Warner Music UK...
. The video was directed by Richard Skinner with Alex Smith acting as cinematographer
Cinematographer
A cinematographer is one photographing with a motion picture camera . The title is generally equivalent to director of photography , used to designate a chief over the camera and lighting crews working on a film, responsible for achieving artistic and technical decisions related to the image...
. The Maxi CD
Maxi single
A maxi single or maxi-single is a music single release with more than the usual two tracks of an a-side song and a b-side song.-The first maxi singles:...
version of the single contains exclusive U-MYX
U-MYX
U-MYX is a music format launched in 2004 which allows a user to arrange and create their own mix of songs by known music artists. The U-MYX Software is available on CDs and as digital downloads from U-MYX's own digital store. Digital U-MYX Sales are UK Chart eligible and count towards the...
software to create your own personalized mix of Hard to Beat
Hard to Beat
"Hard to Beat" is the third single from indie band Hard-Fi, from their album Stars of CCTV. Despite being released as third single it was Hard-Fi's first top ten single, reaching #9 in the UK, and was released on 20 June 2005...
. The song features in the Torchwood
Torchwood
Torchwood is a British science fiction television programme created by Russell T Davies. The series is a spin-off from Davies's 2005 revival of the long-running science fiction programme Doctor Who. The show has shifted its broadcast channel each series to reflect its growing audience, moving from...
episode Small Worlds
Small Worlds (Torchwood)
"Small Worlds" is an episode of the British science fiction television series Torchwood. It is the fifth episode of the first series, which was broadcast on 12 November 2006...
.
History
Compared to the rest of the Stars of CCTVStars of CCTV
Stars of CCTV is the debut album by English indie rock band Hard-Fi. It was first released on 4 July 2005 on Necessary/Atlantic and Warner Music UK...
album, this song has a much darker feel which is most probably due to what the song is about and features saxophones and trumpets played by Kellie Santin and Nick Etwell. The track is about a relationship that's over. However it appears as if the girlfriend of Richard Archer
Richard Archer
Richard John "Rich" Archer is an English singer-songwriter and guitarist. He is the lead vocalist, guitarist, principal songwriter and main composer of indie rock band Hard-Fi. Hard-Fi have produced several top 10 hits and two #1 albums. The influence of Archer's hometown of Staines is often...
wants to get back together after having an affair. The lyrics suggest he will have none of this "I'll tell you how it's gonna be, don't you never, ever come near me".
The b-side Polish Love Song was recorded in one take backstage at the Kansas City
Kansas City, Missouri
Kansas City, Missouri is the largest city in the U.S. state of Missouri and is the anchor city of the Kansas City Metropolitan Area, the second largest metropolitan area in Missouri. It encompasses in parts of Jackson, Clay, Cass, and Platte counties...
Grand Emporium. The song pleads the case for illegal immigrant workers coming from Eastern Europe
Eastern Europe
Eastern Europe is the eastern part of Europe. The term has widely disparate geopolitical, geographical, cultural and socioeconomic readings, which makes it highly context-dependent and even volatile, and there are "almost as many definitions of Eastern Europe as there are scholars of the region"...
.
Design
The single was created, designed and photographed by Aaron Hinchion and Matt Gibbins of communications agency ALBION. The CD cover opens up to give a bigger insight to the story told in the music. For Better Do Better it was about placing the phone in the appropriate context. The phone sits on a pub table and shows us that Tina is being deleted from the contacts list. The Tina mentioned on some of the sleeves formed a subplot throughout all the single releases, most notably on the cover for Better do Better, which probably suggests the girl in the song is "Tina". She later became a bit of a talking point both in the music press and on the fan forums. The Hard-Fi CCTV camera icon also appeared subtly on every cover in different forms.Like all of the Hard-Fi releases, various formats carried subtle changes to differentiate them on the shelf. Making them all collectable. Better Do Better's delete message was in various stages of completion on the CD cover and 7" sleeve.
Maxi CD
HARD06CD- Better Do Better
- Polish Love Song
- Better Do Better (Video)
- Hard To Beat (U-MYXU-MYXU-MYX is a music format launched in 2004 which allows a user to arrange and create their own mix of songs by known music artists. The U-MYX Software is available on CDs and as digital downloads from U-MYX's own digital store. Digital U-MYX Sales are UK Chart eligible and count towards the...
Format)
Charts
Better Do Better has been listed for 4 weeks on the UK Singles ChartUK 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 ...
. It entered the UK singles chart at #14 and the UK download chart at #28 on April 18, 2006, it then dropped to #33, then #46 before dropping to #64 in its last week.
| Chart (2005) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| UK Singles Chart | 14 |
| UK Download Chart | 28 |