"Enid" is a song by the

Canadian Canadians () are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of their being ''C ...

alternative rock group

Barenaked Ladies Barenaked Ladies (BNL) is a Canadian Rock music, rock band which was formed in 1988 in the Toronto suburb of Scarborough, Ontario. The band developed a following in Canada, with their Barenaked Ladies (EP), self-titled 1991 cassette becoming th ...

. It was written by Steven Page and Ed Robertson and released as the lead single from their 1992 debut album, '' Gordon''. The song was successful in their home country, reaching number two on the ''

RPM Revolutions per minute (abbreviated rpm, RPM, rev/min, r/min, or r⋅min−1) is a unit of rotational speed (or rotational frequency) for rotating machines. One revolution per minute is equivalent to hertz. Standards ISO 80000-3:2019 def ...

'' Top Singles chart to become their highest-charting single until " It's All Been Done" reached number one in 1999. "Enid" was Canada's 28th most successful song of 1992.

Background and content

The song's title was inspired by Enid Egers, a waitress at Spanky's Pub in

Moncton Moncton (; ) is the most populous city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of New Brunswick. Situated in the Petitcodiac River Valley, Moncton lies at the geographic centre of the The Maritimes, Maritime Provinces. Th ...

New Brunswick New Brunswick is a Provinces and Territories of Canada, province of Canada, bordering Quebec to the north, Nova Scotia to the east, the Gulf of Saint Lawrence to the northeast, the Bay of Fundy to the southeast, and the U.S. state of Maine to ...

. The band found it interesting that "Enid" spelled backwards is "dine." Although she was the source of the title itself, the main thrust of the song is about Steven Page's first girlfriend. The original studio version has been described as one of the most complex recordings of the band's earlier career by Steven Page in the liner notes for '' Disc One: All Their Greatest Hits.'' It includes a horn section, pedal steel guitar, a cuica and a

pastiche A pastiche () is a work of visual art, literature, theatre, music, or architecture that imitates the style or character of the work of one or more other artists. Unlike parody, pastiche pays homage to the work it imitates, rather than mocking ...

Depeche Mode Depeche Mode are an English electronic music, electronic band formed in Basildon, Essex in 1980. Originally formed with the line-up of Dave Gahan, Martin Gore, Andy Fletcher (musician), Andy Fletcher and Vince Clarke, the band currently consists ...

as an intro (the voice in which is that of producer Michael Phillip Wojewoda).

Music video

The

music video A music video is a video that integrates a song or an album with imagery that is produced for promotion (marketing), promotional or musical artistic purposes. Modern music videos are primarily made and used as a music marketing device intended to ...

was made in 1992 and was the band's second official video. It features the band playing in a room with a red-white-and-blue ball theme, similar to the ''Gordon'' cover. The band stated in '' Barelaked Nadies'' (probably jokingly) that the video was originally supposed to be a parody of the film ''

Delicatessen A delicatessen or deli is a grocery that sells a selection of fine, exotic, or foreign prepared foods. Delicatessens originated in Germany (contemporary spelling: ) during the 18th century and spread to the United States in the mid-19th centur ...

''. One of the video's gimmicks is that the film keeps cutting without the camera being moved, resulting in the band members disappearing and reappearing and moving around in shots. Also in the room are TV screens, showing the band playing in other locations, such as

Kensington Market Kensington Market is a distinctive multicultural neighbourhood in Downtown Toronto, Ontario, Canada. The Market is an older neighbourhood and one of the city's best-known. In November 2006, it was designated a National Historic Sites of Canada, ...

and St. James Park in Toronto. The song was nominated for Single of the Year at the 1993

Juno Awards The Juno Awards (stylized as JUNOS), or simply known as the Junos, are awards presented by the Canadian Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences to recognize outstanding achievements in Canada's music industry. The Grammy Awards are the United S ...

, although it lost to "

Beauty and the Beast "Beauty and the Beast" is a fairy tale written by the French novelist Gabrielle-Suzanne Barbot de Villeneuve and published in 1740 in (''The Young American and Marine Tales''). Villeneuve's lengthy version was abridged, rewritten, and publish ...

" by

Celine Dion Céline Marie Claudette Dion (born 30 March 1968) is a Canadian singer. Referred to as the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, Queen of Power Ballads", Dion's powerful, technically skilled vocals and commercially successful works have had ...

and

Peabo Bryson Robert Peapo "Peabo" Bryson ( ; born April 13, 1951) is an American singer and songwriter. He is known for singing soul ballads (often as a duet with female singers) including the hit singles " Tonight, I Celebrate My Love", "You're Looking Like ...

Personnel

* Steven Page – lead vocals, moronic intro synth * Ed Robertson – acoustic & electric guitars, bionic intro synth, backing vocals *

Jim Creeggan James Raymond Creeggan (born February 12, 1970) is the bassist for Canadian alternative rock band Barenaked Ladies. Early life Creeggan was born in the Toronto suburb of Scarborough, Ontario. His mother taught piano lessons to neighbourhood chi ...

– double bass, backing vocals *

Andy Creeggan Andrew Burnett Creeggan (born July 4, 1971) is a Canadian musician, known for being a former member of the alternative rock band Barenaked Ladies. He was also a member of the trio The Brothers Creeggan, and a solo artist having released three a ...

– cuíca, piano, backing vocals *

Tyler Stewart Tyler Joseph Stewart (born September 21, 1967) is the drummer for the Canadian music group Barenaked Ladies. Early life Stewart was born in Toronto, but was raised in Newmarket, Ontario. He is the son of Sandra Stewart and stepson of Robert Stew ...

– drums * Lewis Melville – pedal steel guitar * Nic Gotham – baritone saxophone * Gene Hardy – tenor saxophone * Chris Howells – trumpet * Tom Walsh – trombone * Michael Phillip Wojewoda – tambourine, teutonic intro vocal

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

References

{{Authority control 1992 singles 1992 songs Barenaked Ladies songs Reprise Records singles Songs written by Ed Robertson Songs written by Steven Page Music videos shot in Toronto