Stuck in the Middle With You
Encyclopedia
"Stuck in the Middle with You" (sometimes known as "Stuck in the Middle") is a song written by Gerry Rafferty
and Joe Egan and originally performed by their band Stealers Wheel
.
The song was inspired by a real occasion when the record company and producers were conducting business across Rafferty and Egan at a restaurant table.
's 1972 self-titled debut album
. Gerry Rafferty provided the lead vocals, with Joe Egan singing harmony. The song was conceived initially by the band members as a parody of Bob Dylan
's distinctive lyrical style and paranoia. The band was surprised by the single's chart success. The single sold over one million copies, eventually peaking in 1973 at #6 in the U.S.
Billboard Hot 100
chart and #8 in the UK Singles Chart
.
It was produced by Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller
.
's debut film Reservoir Dogs
. The song was played in the notorious ear-cutting scene in which Mr. Blonde (Michael Madsen
) taunts and tortures a bound police officer while singing and dancing to the song.
In 1996, the song was played in the film Bio-Dome
in a scene when Bud (Pauly Shore
) and Doyle (Stephen Baldwin
) break into a storage room and begin eating all the junk food.
In 2000, the song was used in the American sitcom Malcolm In the Middle
, in the first season's episode "Funeral"; in which Hal (Bryan Cranston
) plays the song loudly on an old record, oblivious to the chaos unfolding around him in the house.
The song was inspired by a real occasion when the record company and producers were conducting business across Rafferty and Egan at a restaurant table.
remade the song on her 1985 album Old Flame. Jeff Healey
recorded a cover version of "Stuck in the Middle With You" in 1995. Bangles member Susanna Hoffs
covered the song on her eponymous 1996 release
. English
singer Louise Redknapp
recorded a cover version in 2001, which reached #4 in the UK in 2001. The Eagles of Death Metal
have also released a cover version of this song on their album, Peace, Love, Death Metal
titled, "Stuck in the Metal". Michael Bublé
also covered it with an upbeat brass arrangement. Collin Raye
released a version of the song on his 2009 album Never Going Back. Keith Urban
did a country-flavored version with his short-lived The Ranch (band)
, which was omitted from their contemporaneous late 90's release but included by the label as a bonus track on the disc's 2004 reissue.
Gerry Rafferty
Gerald "Gerry" Rafferty was a Scottish singer songwriter best known for his solo hits "Baker Street", "Right Down the Line", "Days Gone Down", "Night Owl", "Get It Right Next Time", and with the band Stealers Wheel, "Stuck in the Middle with You". Rafferty was born into a working-class family in...
and Joe Egan and originally performed by their band Stealers Wheel
Stealers Wheel
Stealers Wheel are a Scottish folk rock/rock band formed in Paisley, Renfrewshire in 1972 by former school friends Joe Egan and Gerry Rafferty.The band broke up in 1975 and re-formed without Egan and Rafferty in 2008.-Biography:...
.
The song was inspired by a real occasion when the record company and producers were conducting business across Rafferty and Egan at a restaurant table.
Overview
"Stuck in the Middle" was released on Stealers WheelStealers Wheel
Stealers Wheel are a Scottish folk rock/rock band formed in Paisley, Renfrewshire in 1972 by former school friends Joe Egan and Gerry Rafferty.The band broke up in 1975 and re-formed without Egan and Rafferty in 2008.-Biography:...
's 1972 self-titled debut album
Stealers Wheel (album)
Stealers Wheel is the debut 1972 album by the Scottish folk rock band Stealers Wheel.-Track listing:-Personnel:*Gerry Rafferty - guitar, lead vocals*Joe Egan - keyboards, lead vocals*Paul Pilnick - lead guitar*Tony Williams - bass...
. Gerry Rafferty provided the lead vocals, with Joe Egan singing harmony. The song was conceived initially by the band members as a parody of Bob Dylan
Bob Dylan
Bob Dylan is an American singer-songwriter, musician, poet, film director and painter. He has been a major and profoundly influential figure in popular music and culture for five decades. Much of his most celebrated work dates from the 1960s when he was an informal chronicler and a seemingly...
's distinctive lyrical style and paranoia. The band was surprised by the single's chart success. The single sold over one million copies, eventually peaking in 1973 at #6 in the U.S.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
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...
chart and #8 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 ...
.
It was produced by Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller
Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller
Jerome "Jerry" Leiber and Mike Stoller were American songwriting and record producing partners. Stoller was the composer and Leiber the lyricist. Their most famous songs include "Hound Dog", "Jailhouse Rock", "Kansas City", "Stand By Me" Jerome "Jerry" Leiber (April 25, 1933 – August 22, 2011)...
.
In popular culture
In 1992, "Stuck In the Middle With You" was most famously used in Quentin TarantinoQuentin Tarantino
Quentin Jerome Tarantino is an American film director, screenwriter, producer, cinematographer and actor. In the early 1990s, he began his career as an independent filmmaker with films employing nonlinear storylines and the aestheticization of violence...
's debut film Reservoir Dogs
Reservoir Dogs
Reservoir Dogs is an American crime film marking debut of director and writer Quentin Tarantino. It depicts the events before and after a botched diamond heist, but not the heist itself. Reservoir Dogs stars an ensemble cast: Harvey Keitel, Steve Buscemi, Tim Roth, Michael Madsen, Chris Penn, and...
. The song was played in the notorious ear-cutting scene in which Mr. Blonde (Michael Madsen
Michael Madsen
Michael Søren Madsen is an American actor, poet, and photographer. He has appeared in more than 150 films, most of them small independent films, though he has starred in central roles in such films as Reservoir Dogs, Free Willy, Donnie Brasco, and Kill Bill, in addition to a supporting role in Sin...
) taunts and tortures a bound police officer while singing and dancing to the song.
In 1996, the song was played in the film Bio-Dome
Bio-Dome
Bio-Dome is a 1996 American comedy film directed by Jason Bloom. Bio-Dome was produced by Motion Picture Corporation of America on a budget of $15 million and was distributed theatrically by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer....
in a scene when Bud (Pauly Shore
Pauly Shore
Paul Montgomery "Pauly" Shore is an American comedian and actor who starred in several comedy films in the 1990s and hosted a video show on MTV in the late 1980s and early 1990s...
) and Doyle (Stephen Baldwin
Stephen Baldwin
Stephen Andrew Baldwin is an American actor, director, producer and author. One of the Baldwin brothers, he is known for his roles as William F. Cody in the western show The Young Riders and as Stuart in the movie Threesome...
) break into a storage room and begin eating all the junk food.
In 2000, the song was used in the American sitcom Malcolm In the Middle
Malcolm in the Middle
Malcolm in the Middle is an American television sitcom created by Linwood Boomer for the Fox Network. The series was first broadcast on January 9, 2000, and ended its six-and-a-half-year run on May 14, 2006, after seven seasons and 151 episodes...
, in the first season's episode "Funeral"; in which Hal (Bryan Cranston
Bryan Cranston
Bryan Lee Cranston is an American actor, voice actor, writer and director. He is best known for his roles as Hal the father in the Fox situation comedy Malcolm in the Middle, and Walter White in the AMC drama series Breaking Bad, for which he won three consecutive Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama...
) plays the song loudly on an old record, oblivious to the chaos unfolding around him in the house.
The song was inspired by a real occasion when the record company and producers were conducting business across Rafferty and Egan at a restaurant table.
Cover versions
Country-pop singer Juice NewtonJuice Newton
Judith Kay "Juice" Newton is an American Pop music and Country singer, songwriter and guitarist...
remade the song on her 1985 album Old Flame. Jeff Healey
Jeff Healey
Norman Jeffrey "Jeff" Healey was a blind Canadian jazz and blues-rock vocalist and guitarist who attained musical and personal popularity, particularly in the 1980s and 1990s.-Early life:...
recorded a cover version of "Stuck in the Middle With You" in 1995. Bangles member Susanna Hoffs
Susanna Hoffs
Susanna Lee Hoffs is an American vocalist, guitarist and actress. She is best known as a member of the all-female pop band The Bangles.-Early life:...
covered the song on her eponymous 1996 release
Susanna Hoffs (album)
Susanna Hoffs is the second solo album by Susanna Hoffs. The style of the album is more folk oriented than her earlier work. Columbia Records didn't like the change in style and the disagreement led to Hoffs being dropped by Sony and signing to London Records.The album is much more personal and...
. English
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
singer Louise Redknapp
Louise Redknapp
Louise Elizabeth Redknapp is an English singer and media personality. She was a member of the girl group Eternal from 1992 to 1995, before becoming a solo singer . She has presented several television shows and served as a judge on the UK version of So You Think You Can Dance...
recorded a cover version in 2001, which reached #4 in the UK in 2001. The Eagles of Death Metal
Eagles of Death Metal
Eagles of Death Metal is an American rock band from Palm Desert, California, formed in 1998 by Jesse Hughes and Josh Homme. Despite their band name, Eagles of Death Metal are not a death metal band. Hughes stated that a friend was introducing Josh Homme to the death metal genre...
have also released a cover version of this song on their album, Peace, Love, Death Metal
Peace, Love, Death Metal
Peace, Love, Death Metal is the debut album by Eagles of Death Metal released on March 23, 2004.-Making of the album:Eagles of Death Metal is a garage rock band fronted by Jesse "The Devil" Hughes. The album was recorded primarily by Jesse Hughes Peace, Love, Death Metal is the debut album by...
titled, "Stuck in the Metal". Michael Bublé
Michael Bublé
Michael Steven Bublé is a Canadian singer. He has won several awards, including three Grammy Awards and multiple Juno Awards. His first album reached the top ten in Canada and the UK. He found worldwide commercial success with his 2005 album It's Time, and his 2007 album Call Me Irresponsible was...
also covered it with an upbeat brass arrangement. Collin Raye
Collin Raye
Floyd Collin Wray Floyd Collin Wray Floyd Collin Wray (born August 22, 1959 or 1960,Although multiple online sources all indicate Raye's date of birth as 1959, Raye's MySpace lists his date of birth as 1960. Furthermore, the 2004 Deseret News article cited in this article indicates the singer as...
released a version of the song on his 2009 album Never Going Back. Keith Urban
Keith Urban
Keith Lionel Urban is a New Zealand-born Australian, country music singer, songwriter and guitarist whose commercial success has been mainly in the United States and Australia. Urban was born in New Zealand and began his career in Australia at an early age...
did a country-flavored version with his short-lived The Ranch (band)
The Ranch (band)
-Track listing:-The Ranch:*Keith Urban – lead vocals, lead guitar, acoustic guitar, ganjo, keyboards, hand claps*Jerry Flowers – bass guitar, background vocals, hand claps*Peter Clarke – drums, percussion, hand claps-Guest musicians:...
, which was omitted from their contemporaneous late 90's release but included by the label as a bonus track on the disc's 2004 reissue.