"Situation" is a 1982 single by British
synth-pop
Synth-pop (short for synthesizer pop; also called techno-pop; ) is a music genre that first became prominent in the late 1970s and features the synthesizer as the dominant musical instrument. It was prefigured in the 1960s and early 1970s b ...
band
Yazoo. The song was released in the UK as the B-side to Yazoo's debut single "
Only You", which went to number two on the UK singles chart. Released as a single in North America, the song peaked at number 73 on the
''Billboard'' Hot 100 chart in the US, and hit the top 40 in Canadian charts, peaking at number 31. In late-summer 1982 it became Yazoo's first song to top the
''Billboard'' Hot Dance Club Play chart, remaining at number one on this chart for four weeks. It also crossed over to the
Black Singles chart, peaking at number 31.
Its most well-known version is the U.S. 12-inch remix by
François Kevorkian
François Kevorkian (; born 10 January 1954), also known by the stage name François K, is a French DJ, producer, remixer and label owner of Armenian descent and based in the United States of America, who started his career DJing in clubs such ...
. This version was included on the U.S. version of Yazoo's debut album ''
Upstairs at Eric's'' (1982), and it is the version of the song which receives the most radio airplay in the United States (where the song, despite its modest showing on the Hot 100, is still played on alternative, variety-hits and dance-oriented radio stations).
In 1990, and again in 1999, the song was remixed by several noted DJs, including
Peter Rauhofer
Peter Rauhofer (29 April 1965 – 7 May 2013) was an Austrian-American disc jockey (DJ), remixer and producer who formerly worked under the moniker Club 69 as well as Size Queen. A native of Vienna, Austria, he was famous for a variety of his ...
and
Richard "Humpty" Vission. The 1999 remixes were released to dance clubs. In October of the same year, this renewed interest in the song sent "Situation" to number one on the ''Billboard'' Hot Dance Club Play chart for a second time.
In 2006, ''Slant'' ranked the song at number 64 in its list of the "100 Greatest Dance Songs".
The song was heavily sampled in
the Saturdays
The Saturdays are an English-Irish girl group based in London, England. The group formed during the summer of 2007 and has been on hiatus since 2014. The lineup consists of Frankie Bridge, Una Healy, Rochelle Humes, Mollie King, and Vanessa Whi ...
' 2008 debut single "
If This Is Love
"If This Is Love" is the debut single by English-Irish girl group The Saturdays from their debut album, ''Chasing Lights'' (2008). It was co-written by Joe Belmaati, Michaela Breen, Vince Clarke, Mich Hansen, Alison Moyet, John Reid, Remee and I ...
". Moyet's laugh at the start of the track has been sampled on several different recordings, including the 1995 smash dance hit "
Macarena
"Macarena" is a song by Spanish pop duo Los del Río, originally recorded for their 1993 album '' A mí me gusta''. A dance remix by the electropop group Fangoria was a success in Spain, and a soundalike cover version by Los del Mar became ...
" by
Los del Río
Los del Río (, "those from the river"), also known as the Del Rios, are a Spanish Latin pop and dance duo formed in Dos Hermanas, Andalusia, in 1962. Consisting of Antonio Romero Monge (born 17 February 1940) and Rafael Ruiz Perdigones (born ...
. The song was also interpolated by
Heidi Montag
Heidi Blair Pratt (née Montag; born September 15, 1986) is an American reality television personality and singer. In 2006, Montag came to prominence after being cast in the MTV reality television series ''The Hills (TV series), The Hills''. Th ...
for the 2009 single "Body Language."
Tom Jones
Tom Jones may refer to:
Arts and entertainment
*Tom Jones (singer) (born 1940), Welsh singer
*Tom Jones (writer) (1928–2023), American librettist and lyricist
*''The History of Tom Jones, a Foundling'', a novel by Henry Fielding published in 1 ...
covered the song on his 1994 album ''
The Lead and How to Swing It
''The Lead and How to Swing It'' is the 33rd studio album by Welsh singer Tom Jones, released in 1994. It includes the singles "If I Only Knew", which reached number 11 in the UK singles chart, and "I Wanna Get Back with You", featuring Tori Amos ...
''.
Versions
The original version's first chorus does not have the response lyrics. The 7-inch version skips to the verses before the first chorus with response lyrics.
Track listings
1982 release
* UK 7-inch single (Mute Records 7MUTE020)
#"Only You" – 3:11
#"Situation" – 2:22
* UK 12-inch single (Mute 12MUTE020)
#"Only You" – 3:11
#"Situation (Extended Version)" – 5:18
* US 7-inch single (Sire Records 7-29953)
#"Situation" – 3:44
#"Situation (Dub Version) – 3:13
* US 12-inch single (Sire 0-29950)
#"Situation" – 5:40
#"Situation (Dub Version)" – 5:45
1990 remixes
* 7-inch single (Mute Records YAZ4)
#"Situation (Deadline Mix Edit)"
#"State Farm (Madhouse Mix Edit)"
* 12-inch single (Mute 12YAZ4 / Sire/Warner Bros. 21812-0)
#"Situation (The Aggressive Attitude Mix)"
#"Situation (Deadline Mix)"
#"State Farm (Madhouse Mix)"
* CD single (Mute CDYAZ4 / Sire/Warner Bros. 21812-2)
#"Situation (Single Remix)"
#"State Farm (Madhouse Mix Edit)"
#"Situation (The Aggressive Attitude Mix)"
#"Situation (Space Dub)"
1999 remixes
* 12-inch single (Mute 12YAZ6)
#"Situation (Club 69 Speed Mix)"
#"Situation (Richard "Humpty" Vission Visits The Dub)"
#"Situation (Richard "Humpty" Vission Instrumental)"
* 12-inch single (Mute L12YAZ6)
#"Situation (Dave Ralph's Tea Freaks English Breakfast Mix)
#"Situation (Club 69 Speed Dub)"
* CD single (Mute CD YAZ 6)
#"Situation (Club 69 Radio Mix)"
#"Situation (Club 69 Speed Mix)"
#"Situation (Richard 'Humpty' Vission Visits the Dome Mix)"
#"Situation (Dave Ralph's Tea Freaks English Breakfast Mix)"
#"Situation (Deadline Mix)"
#"State Farm (Madhouse Mix)"
#"Situation (Daniel Miller/Mark Saunders 12-inch Mix)"
#"State Farm (Play-Doh Dub)"
#"Situation (Original US Dub)"
Accolades
(*) indicates the list is unordered.
Charts
Original version
Weekly charts
Year-end charts
Situation '90
1999 remixes
See also
*
List of number-one dance singles of 1982 (U.S.)
*
List of number-one dance singles of 1999 (U.S.)
These are the ''Billboard'' Hot Dance/Disco Club Play and Maxi-Singles Sales number-one hits of 1999.
See also
* 1999 in music
*List of number-one dance hits (United States)
*List of artists who reached number one on the U.S. Dance chart
Ref ...
References
External links
*
*
{{Authority control
1982 songs
1982 singles
1990 singles
1999 singles
Mute Records singles
Songs written by Alison Moyet
Songs written by Vince Clarke
Song recordings produced by Eric Radcliffe
Song recordings produced by Daniel Miller
Song recordings produced by Vince Clarke
Yazoo (band) songs
Dance-rock songs