"Last Cup of Sorrow" is the third track from Faith No More's sixth studio album '' Album of the Year''. It was released as a single on August 5, 1997. It placed No. 14 on Mainstream Rock Tracks, No.62 on Australia Top 50, and No. 51 on UK Top 100. The artwork is in a similar style to the original poster art for ''

Vertigo Vertigo is a condition where a person has the sensation of movement or of surrounding objects moving when they are not. Often it feels like a spinning or swaying movement. This may be associated with nausea, vomiting, sweating, or difficulties w ...

''.

Meaning

When asked about the song,

Billy Gould William David Gould (born April 24, 1963 in Los Angeles, California) is an American musician and producer. He is best known as the bassist of Faith No More. Biography Early years Billy said he is of Hungarian descent from his father's side. ...

replied:

Music video

The

music video A music video is a video of variable duration, that integrates a music song or a music album with imagery that is produced for promotional or musical artistic purposes. Modern music videos are primarily made and used as a music marketing device ...

, directed by Joseph Kahn, is based on Alfred Hitchcock's ''

'', a film dealing with

acrophobia Acrophobia is an extreme or irrational fear or phobia of heights, especially when one is not particularly high up. It belongs to a category of specific phobias, called space and motion discomfort, that share both similar causes and options fo ...

. Shooting occurred during 1997 in

San Francisco San Francisco (; Spanish for " Saint Francis"), officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the commercial, financial, and cultural center of Northern California. The city proper is the fourth most populous in California and 17th ...

California California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the m ...

. It features the lead singer,

Mike Patton Michael Allan Patton (born January 27, 1968) is an American singer, producer, film composer and voice actor, best known as the lead vocalist of the alternative metal band Faith No More. Noted for his vocal proficiency, diverse singing techni ...

dressed in the same outfit as James Stewart's character, trailing a blonde played by

Jennifer Jason Leigh Jennifer Jason Leigh (born Jennifer Leigh Morrow; February 5, 1962) is an American actress. She began her career on television during the 1970s before making her film breakthrough as Stacy Hamilton in '' Fast Times at Ridgemont High'' (1982). Sh ...

, respectively dressed the same as ''Vertigo''s female lead Madeleine. Many scenes are recreated from the film, such as the opening rooftop sequence, Madeleine's plunge into San Francisco bay, Mike moving up and down a stepladder, the belltower sequence complete with the famous Hitchcock Zoom and the psychedelic dream sequence. The emphasis is mainly on parody, key moments including drummer

Mike Bordin Michael Andrew Bordin (born November 27, 1962) is an American musician, best known as the drummer for the rock band Faith No More. He has amicably been known as "Puffy", "Puffster" or "The Puff", in reference to the afro hair style he wore in ...

sweeping Mike Patton's head in the dream sequence with a broom (presumedly a reference to ''Vertigos scene where Midge is describing to Scottie that music can clear the cobwebs out of your head like a broom), bassist

cross dressing, Leigh's character being a black wigged sado-masochist, and Leigh fainting when she sees a shadowy figure in the tower, which ends up being drummer Mike Bordin, who at the end of the video casually starts eating a bagel.

Reception

NME ''New Musical Express'' (''NME'') is a British music, film, gaming, and culture website and brand. Founded as a newspaper in 1952, with the publication being referred to as a 'rock inkie', the NME would become a magazine that ended up as a f ...

'' said in June 1997 that the song had "robo-vocals" and "funk-spikiness". '' CMJ'' called it one of ''Album of the Years "best pop songs" in July 1997. The liner notes for the 2003 compilation '' This Is It: The Best of Faith No More'' stated that the song took on "poetic grandeur" following the band's 1998 split. ''

Consequence of Sound ''Consequence'' (previously ''Consequence of Sound'') is an independently owned New York-based online magazine featuring news, editorials, and reviews of music, movies, and television. In addition, the website also features the Festival Outlook ...

'' ranked it as the second greatest Faith No More song in 2015, behind only "

Midlife Crisis A midlife crisis is a transition of identity and self-confidence that can occur in middle-aged individuals, typically 40 to 60 years old. The phenomenon is described as a psychological crisis brought about by events that highlight a person's grow ...

". In his review for the 2016 deluxe edition of ''Album of the Year'', MXDWN's Sean Hall called the song a "roller coaster ride", remarking, "a bell section that sounds surprisingly like wind chimes functions as a lifesaver to which the listener clings to get themselves through the aggressive guitars, dark bass and creepy vocals, which sound as if they are coming through a radio from ''

The Twilight Zone ''The Twilight Zone'' is an American media franchise based on the anthology television series created by Rod Serling. The episodes are in various genres, including fantasy, science fiction, absurdism, dystopian fiction, suspense, horror, sup ...

''."

Track listings

"Blue Vertigo" cover #"Last Cup of Sorrow" (7" Edit) – 3:15 #"Pristina (Billy Gould Mix)" – 4:18 #"Last Cup of Sorrow (Roli Mosimann Mix)" – 6:26 #"Ashes to Ashes (Dillinja Mix)" – 5:30 "Orange Vertigo" cover #"Last Cup of Sorrow" – 4:12 #"Last Cup of Sorrow (Bonehead Mix)" – 4:54 #"She Loves Me Not (Spinna Main Mix)" – 4:41 #"She Loves Me Not (Spinna Crazy Mix)" – 4:41 Japanese track listing #"Last Cup of Sorrow" (7" Edit) – 3:15 #"Pristina (Billy Gould Mix)" – 4:18 #"Last Cup of Sorrow (Roli Mosimann Mix)" – 6:26 #"Ashes to Ashes (Dillinja Mix)" – 5:30 #"Last Cup of Sorrow (Bonehead Mix)" – 4:54 #"She Loves Me Not (Spinna Main Mix)" – 4:41 #"She Loves Me Not (Spinna Crazy Mix)" – 4:41

Charts

Footnotes

{{authority control Faith No More songs 1997 singles Music videos directed by Joseph Kahn Songs written by Billy Gould Songs written by Mike Patton 1997 songs Slash Records singles