Demolition Man (Grace Jones)
Encyclopedia
"Demolition Man" is a song performed by Grace Jones
, released as a single from her 1981 album Nightclubbing
. The song was written by Sting of The Police
.
. Sting explained this allusion in an interview: "Whatever party's in power in Parliament, if it's a really important vote, you get a one line whip. If it's incredibly important, you have a two-line whip, and something monumentally important is a three-line whip."
documentary, featuring marching Jones's (stand-ins wearing Grace Jones masks). Pictures from the video were later used for the cover art of 1982 single "The Apple Stretching
".
UK Vinyl, 7" (WIP 6673)
U.S. Vinyl, 12", Single, 45 RPM (0-96860)
recorded their own version for their 1981 album, Ghost in the Machine. While Jones' version is a disco-esque synth pop number, The Police recorded the song in a jazzy
hard rock
style, featuring a blistering guitar solo
by Andy Summers
.
The song would later be performed by Sting during his solo career and released as the title track of an EP
in support of the film of the same name
. A live version by him is featured in the game Guitar Hero: World Tour.
album. It was significantly rearranged from The Police
's version, being of a shorter length, featuring slightly altered lyrics and making much use of synthesizers throughout. It was performed as a duet, between then members Steve Waller
and Shona Laing
.
Grace Jones
Grace Jones is a Jamaican-American singer, model and actress.Jones secured a record deal with Island Records in 1977, which resulted in a string of dance-club hits. In the late 1970s, she adapted the emerging electronic music style and adopted a severe, androgynous look with square-cut hair and...
, released as a single from her 1981 album Nightclubbing
Nightclubbing
Nightclubbing is the fifth studio album by Grace Jones, released in 1981. It is the second of three post-disco albums that Jones made at Compass Point Studios in the Bahamas and became Jones' commercial breakthrough and also formed the basis of her groundbreaking concept tour A One Man Show...
. The song was written by Sting of The Police
The Police
The Police were an English rock band formed in London in 1977. For the vast majority of their history, the band consisted of Sting , Andy Summers and Stewart Copeland...
.
Meaning and Composition
The lyric "I'm a three-line whip", often assumed to be a reference to sadomasochism, is in fact an allusion to British constitutional lawConstitutional law
Constitutional law is the body of law which defines the relationship of different entities within a state, namely, the executive, the legislature and the judiciary....
. Sting explained this allusion in an interview: "Whatever party's in power in Parliament, if it's a really important vote, you get a one line whip. If it's incredibly important, you have a two-line whip, and something monumentally important is a three-line whip."
Music video
The song is included in the A One Man ShowA One Man Show
A One Man Show is a music documentary featuring American singer Grace Jones, filmed in 1981–1982. The film was first released in 1982 to promote the album Living My Life and was re-issued on VHS and laserdisc by Island Records, PolyGram and Spectrum Music through the 1980s and early 1990s...
documentary, featuring marching Jones's (stand-ins wearing Grace Jones masks). Pictures from the video were later used for the cover art of 1982 single "The Apple Stretching
The Apple Stretching
"The Apple Stretching/Nipple to the Bottle" is the second and last single from Grace Jones' album Living My Life, her 3rd and last album recorded in the famous Compass Point Studios in Nassau, Bahamas....
".
Track listings
UK Vinyl, 12" (12WIP 6673)- "Demolition Man"
- "Bullshit"
UK Vinyl, 7" (WIP 6673)
- "Demolition Man"
- "Warm LeatheretteWarm Leatherette"Warm Leatherette" is a song by Daniel Miller.-Overview:"Warm Leatherette" was released as the B-side to "T.V.O.D.", the only single by Miller's musical project The Normal. It was the very first release on his Mute Records label, and an early example of the then-burgeoning industrial music genre....
"
U.S. Vinyl, 12", Single, 45 RPM (0-96860)
- "Love Is the DrugLove Is the Drug"Love Is the Drug" is a 1975 single from Roxy Music . Taken from the album Siren it omits the gravel footstep sound effects at the start...
" (Vocal) (7:15) - "Demolition Man" (Vocal) (4:04)
The Police version
Soon after Jones released her version as a single, The PoliceThe Police
The Police were an English rock band formed in London in 1977. For the vast majority of their history, the band consisted of Sting , Andy Summers and Stewart Copeland...
recorded their own version for their 1981 album, Ghost in the Machine. While Jones' version is a disco-esque synth pop number, The Police recorded the song in a jazzy
Jazz fusion
Jazz fusion is a musical fusion genre that developed from mixing funk and R&B rhythms and the amplification and electronic effects of rock, complex time signatures derived from non-Western music and extended, typically instrumental compositions with a jazz approach to lengthy group improvisations,...
hard rock
Hard rock
Hard rock is a loosely defined genre of rock music which has its earliest roots in mid-1960s garage rock, blues rock and psychedelic rock...
style, featuring a blistering guitar solo
Guitar solo
In popular music, a guitar solo is a melodic passage, section, or entire piece of music written for an electric guitar or an acoustic guitar. Guitar solos, which often contain varying degrees of improvisation, are used in many styles of popular music such as blues, jazz, rock and metal styles such...
by Andy Summers
Andy Summers
Andy Summers is an English guitarist born in Poulton-le-Fylde, Lancashire, England. Best known as the guitarist for rock band The Police, he has also recorded twelve solo albums, collaborated with many other artists, toured extensively under his own name, published several books, and composed...
.
The song would later be performed by Sting during his solo career and released as the title track of an EP
Demolition Man (album)
Demolition Man is an EP released by A&M on September 21, 1993 and November 1, 1993 in support of the Sylvester Stallone/Wesley Snipes film Demolition Man. It features a re-recording of The Police song "Demolition Man", as well as several live recordings. The live recordings were recorded at Villa...
in support of the film of the same name
Demolition Man (film)
Demolition Man is a 1993 American, science fiction action film directed by Marco Brambilla, and starring Sylvester Stallone and Wesley Snipes. Sandra Bullock, Nigel Hawthorne, and Denis Leary co-star....
. A live version by him is featured in the game Guitar Hero: World Tour.
Manfred Mann's Earth Band version
A year later, 1982, Manfred Mann's Earth Band released a version, which appeared on their Somewhere in AfrikaSomewhere in Afrika
Somewhere in Afrika is an album released in 1983 by Manfred Mann's Earth Band.- Track listing :Side one#"Tribal Statistics" – 4:16#"Eyes of Nostradamus" – 3:28#"Third World Service" – 5:18#"Demolition Man" – 3:45...
album. It was significantly rearranged from The Police
The Police
The Police were an English rock band formed in London in 1977. For the vast majority of their history, the band consisted of Sting , Andy Summers and Stewart Copeland...
's version, being of a shorter length, featuring slightly altered lyrics and making much use of synthesizers throughout. It was performed as a duet, between then members Steve Waller
Steve Waller
Steven Charles Waller was best known as the lead guitar player and a vocalist for Manfred Mann's Earth Band between 1979 and 1983...
and Shona Laing
Shona Laing
Shona Laing is a New Zealand musician. She has had several hits in her native country, as well as a few minor international hits, most notably " Not a Kennedy" and "Soviet Snow". Laing also contributed to the Manfred Mann's Earth Band album Somewhere in Afrika...
.