"Michael Caine" is a song by English

ska Ska (; ) is a music genre that originated in Jamaica in the late 1950s and was the precursor to rocksteady and reggae. It combined elements of Caribbean mento and calypso with American jazz and rhythm and blues. Ska is characterized by a walki ...

band Madness, released on 30 January 1984 as the

lead single A lead single (also known as a debut single) is the first single to be released from a studio album by an artist or a band, usually before the album itself is released and also occasionally on the same day of the album's release date. Release s ...

from their fifth studio album '' Keep Moving'' (1984). The song was written by

Carl Smyth Cathal Joseph "Carl" Smyth (born 14 January 1959), also known as Chas Smash, is an English singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist. His career spans more than 40 years. Smash came to prominence in the late 1970s as secondary vocalist, trump ...

and

Daniel Woodgate Daniel Mark (Woody) Woodgate (born 19 October 1960) is an English musician, songwriter, composer and record producer. In a career spanning more than 30 years, Woodgate came to prominence in the late 1970s as the drummer for the English ska band ...

, Retrieved on June 27, 2007. and features Smyth on lead vocals in place of usual Madness vocalist

Suggs Graham McPherson (born 13 January 1961), known primarily by his stage name Suggs, is an English singer-songwriter, musician, radio personality and actor from Hastings, England. In a music career spanning 40 years, he came to prominence in the ...

. "Michael Caine" spent eight weeks on the British chart, peaking at number 11.

Lyrical content

The song is about an

informant An informant (also called an informer or, as a slang term, a “snitch”) is a person who provides privileged information about a person or organization to an agency. The term is usually used within the law-enforcement world, where informant ...

during

the Troubles The Troubles ( ga, Na Trioblóidí) were an ethno-nationalist conflict in Northern Ireland that lasted about 30 years from the late 1960s to 1998. Also known internationally as the Northern Ireland conflict, it is sometimes described as an " ...

, and the lyrics suggest a state of paranoia and mental disintegration. It is named after English actor

Michael Caine Sir Michael Caine (born Maurice Joseph Micklewhite; 14 March 1933) is an English actor. Known for his distinctive Cockney accent, he has appeared in more than 160 films in a career spanning seven decades, and is considered a British film ico ...

and includes his vocal samples, recorded specifically for this song. The song's hook, a repetition of Caine introducing himself by name, recalls his role in the spy film ''

The Ipcress File ''The IPCRESS File'' is Len Deighton's first spy novel, published in 1962. The story involves Cold War brainwashing, includes scenes in Lebanon and on an atoll for a United States atomic weapon test, as well as information about Joe One, the ...

'' (1965), in which his character,

Harry Palmer Harry Palmer is the anti-hero protagonist of a number of films based on the unnamed main character, a secret agent, in the spy novels written by Len Deighton. Michael Caine played Harry Palmer in three of the four films based on the four pub ...

, repeats his name while trying to stay sane under

torture Torture is the deliberate infliction of severe pain or suffering on a person for reasons such as punishment, extracting a confession, interrogational torture, interrogation for information, or intimidating third parties. definitions of tortur ...

. When he was approached to appear on the record, Caine initially turned it down, but his daughter on hearing his decision made him change his mind, telling him how popular they were. Speaking of the song's lyrics and the idea behind the use of Caine's name,

told ''

Record Mirror ''Record Mirror'' was a British weekly music newspaper between 1954 and 1991 for pop fans and record collectors. Launched two years after the '' NME'', it never attained the circulation of its rival. The first UK album chart was published in '' ...

'' in 1984, "The record's about informers. If you think of informers who are current news then that's a clue. At the same time, I wouldn't do a song just about Michael Caine – it's not a tribute or anything like that. I was trying to think of who could be used to illustrate it, and his name seemed right – his film ''The Ipcress File'' had the sort of atmosphere I wanted to create – we even used some of the phrases."

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 ...

was also based on ''The Ipcress File'', and featured a lightbulb being shot, as seen in the title sequence from the television spy series ''

Callan Callan is a given name and surname of Irish and Scottish origin. It can derive from Ó Cathaláin, meaning ''descendant of Cathalán''. Callan can also be an Anglicized form of the Gaelic Mac Allin or Mac Callin. Notable people with the name includ ...

''. A photograph of Michael Caine from the 60s is also seen being shredded in the video. The video took longer to complete than usual, due to being shot on 35 mm film as opposed to

16 mm 16 mm film is a historically popular and economical gauge of film. 16 mm refers to the width of the film (about inch); other common film gauges include 8 and 35 mm. It is generally used for non-theatrical (e.g., industrial, edu ...

. As a result,

Mike Barson Michael Barson (born 21 April 1958) is a Scottish-born multi-instrumentalist, songwriter, and composer. In a career spanning more than 40 years, Barson came to prominence in the late 1970s as the keyboard player for the band Madness. Early y ...

is absent for much of the video; he had a plane to catch, and could not stay for the whole filming session.

Critical reception

Upon its release,

Neil Tennant Neil Francis Tennant (born 10 July 1954) is an English musician, singer, songwriter and music journalist, and co-founder of the synth-pop duo Pet Shop Boys, which he formed with Chris Lowe in 1981. He was a journalist for ''Smash Hits'', and ...

of '' Smash Hits'' stated, "This new Madness single is world-weary and melancholy, although it's brightened up by the man himself declaring 'I am Michael Caine' every now and then. I like it, actually." Tony Parsons of ''

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 ...

'' praised the "beautiful, understated melody" and "hesitant, almost shy lyric that is not without flashes of humour" and concluded, "They never sounded less like Madness and they never sounded so good."

Thompson Twins Thompson Twins were a British pop band formed in 1977 in Sheffield. Initially a new wave group, they switched to a more mainstream pop sound and achieved considerable popularity during the mid-1980s, scoring a string of hits in the United Kin ...

' member Joe Leeway, as guest reviewer for ''

'', described it as "more melodic than usual" and "a mysterious 'out in the cold' song" with a "great sax vamp towards the end". Frank Hopkinson of ''

Number One Number One most commonly refers to: * 1 (number) Number One, No. 1, or #1 may also refer to: Music Albums * ''Number 1'' (Big Bang album), and the title song * ''No. 1'' (BoA album), and the title song * ''No.1'' (EP), by CLC * ''n.1 ...

'' noted Smyth's " Bowie-ish vocal" and commented, "Suggs has stepped down for a single that still includes Mike Barson but is stripped of the usual Madness trademarks (including the hum-along tune). I know it's unthinkable, but this one might not even make the top ten!"

Formats and track listings

* 7" single # "Michael Caine" ( Smyth, Woodgate) – 3:39 # "If You Think There's Something" ( Barson) – 3:08 * 12" single # "Michael Caine (extended version)" (Smyth, Woodgate) – 4:08 # "Michael Caine" (Smyth, Woodgate) – 3:39 # "If You Think There's Something" (Barson) – 3:08

Charts

References

External links

* {{authority control 1984 singles Madness (band) songs 1984 songs Stiff Records singles Songs written by Chas Smash Songs written by Dan Woodgate Song recordings produced by Clive Langer Song recordings produced by Alan Winstanley Songs about actors Cultural depictions of British men Cultural depictions of actors Songs about The Troubles (Northern Ireland)