"Possibly Maybe" is a song by

Björk Björk Guðmundsdóttir ( , ; born 21 November 1965), known mononymously as Björk, is an Icelandic singer, songwriter, composer, record producer, and actress. Noted for her distinct voice, three-octave vocal range, and eccentric public per ...

, released as the fifth single from her second album '' Post'' (1995). It is a song with deep electronic tones and soft beats that reflects on potential love. Released in the United Kingdom as the fifth single from the album, it reached number 13 on the UK Singles Chart in November 1996. There were three different single releases. This was the first Björk single to be released in three parts; two of these three parts are rarities in the music world in that their A-side is not the first track. The first CD came with a slipcase that could also house the other two. The song has been covered by numerous other artists.

Background

The song details different stages of a breakup. Björk has said it was "the first unhappy song I wrote… I felt ashamed writing a song that was not giving hope". The melancholic piece was dedicated to her broken relationship with Stéphane Sednaoui, who, curiously, also directed the video. Rumours have persisted that Björk recorded the song in the nude, although this has not been publicly commented on. Björk was sued by British electronic musician Scanner for the uncleared sample of telephones ringing (from his album ''Mass Observation'') at the start of the track. The situation caused her record label, One Little Indian, to retire all current copies of ''Post'' in the shops, and release a new version of the album that included a version of "Possibly Maybe" without the sample. Later on, when the issue was solved, the single version of the song included the sample again, as it appears in the music video. The B-side of single was "Vísur Vatnsenda-Rósu", taken from the 1994 album '' Chansons des mers froides'' by

Hector Zazou Hector Zazou (11 July 1948 – 8 September 2008) was a prolific French composer and record producer who worked with, produced, and collaborated with an international array of recording artists. He worked on his own and other artists' albums, inclu ...

. A short

making-of https://www Googlefinans.co= In filmmaking, behind-the-scenes (BTS), also known as the making-of, the set, or on the set, is a documentary film that features the production of a film or television program. This is often referred to as the EPK ( ...

was recorded as part of the album.

Critical reception

British magazine ''

Music Week ''Music Week'' is a trade publication for the UK record industry distributed via a website and a monthly print magazine. It is published by Future. History Founded in 1959 as ''Record Retailer'', it relaunched on 18 March 1972 as ''Music We ...

'' rated the song four out of five, adding that "this gorgeous

ballad A ballad is a form of verse, often a narrative set to music. Ballads were particularly characteristic of the popular poetry and song of Great Britain and Ireland from the Late Middle Ages until the 19th century. They were widely used across Eur ...

from ''Post'' is released with some diverse, and weird, mixes as a taster for the upcoming mixes album ''Telegram''."

Music video

The accompanying

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 ...

for "Possibly Maybe" was directed by French artist Stéphane Sednaoui, for a song that is about his failed relationship with Björk. The singer and the director had previously worked together in the music video for " Big Time Sensuality". In the clip, she appears "as a goddess, floating out from a numinous light-streaked background." It shows Björk in a variety of different rooms in an apartment. She is primarily shown in a large, stylish bedroom with modern décor. These scenes are intercut with shots in ultra-violet lighting (which subsequently causes everything to appear in day-glo colours). She is also shown in three other rooms: submerged in the bathtub of a bathroom; an Asian-themed room; and a room full of stereo equipment. These scenes are intercut with an angelic image of her dressed all in white, floating out of a blue sky with the sun behind her. The majority of objects appearing in the video were Björk's own. Sednaoui is known for having a particularly filmic technique for each of his clips; in "Possibly Maybe", the use of

blacklight A blacklight, also called a UV-A light, Wood's lamp, or ultraviolet light, is a lamp that emits long-wave ( UV-A) ultraviolet light and very little visible light. One type of lamp has a violet filter material, either on the bulb or in a se ...

ing "makes Björk glow sensuously and perversely". It was conceived in a

theatrical Theatre or theater is a collaborative form of performing art that uses live performers, usually actors to present experiences of a real or imagined event before a live audience in a specific place, often a stage. The performers may communic ...

way: nearly all of the scenes were filmed in the same space, which is transformed with changes in the ''

mise en scène Mise or Miše may refer to: * Mise (mythology), a deity addressed in the ''Orphic Hymns'' * Ante Miše (born 1967), Croatian footballer * Jerolim Miše (1890–1970), Croatian painter, teacher, and art critic * MISE, an abbreviation for Mean integ ...

''. The style of "Possibly Maybe"'s scenery and Björk's wardrobe reference East Asian imagery, and a Japanese traditional doll is featured as Björk's only accompaniment; as a silent witness, it is the object on which the protagonist casts reflections on her own identity. Short interviews with both Stéphane and Björk discussing the video are included on the Stéphane Sednaoui '' Directors Label'' DVD. The music video was included along with all of ''Post''s music videos on the 1998 video release '' Volumen'', and its 2002 reissue '' Volumen Plus''. They also appear on ''Greatest Hits – Volumen 1993–2003'', a release that includes the videos featured on ''Volumen'' and ''Volumen Plus''.

Live performances

The track was performed during the Post tour, a performance of which can be found on the 1998 live

DVD The DVD (common abbreviation for digital video disc or digital versatile disc) is a digital optical disc data storage format. It was invented and developed in 1995 and first released on November 1, 1996, in Japan. The medium can store any ki ...

VHS VHS (Video Home System) is a discontinued standard for consumer-level analog video recording on tape cassettes, introduced in 1976 by JVC. It was the dominant home video format throughout the tape media period of the 1980s and 1990s. Ma ...

'' Live at Shepherds Bush Empire'', a fan-club only concert held at the end of the tour. To support the release of ''Post'', the song was performed on the UK TV show Later... with Jools Holland on 17 June 1995 with

pedal steel guitar The pedal steel guitar is a console steel guitar with pedals and knee levers that change the pitch of certain strings, enabling more varied and complex music to be played than with other steel guitar designs. Like all steel guitars, it can play ...

ist

BJ Cole Brian John Cole (born 17 June 1946) is an English pedal steel guitarist, who has long been active as a session and solo musician. Coming to prominence in the early 1970s with the band Cochise, Cole has played in many styles, ranging from main ...

. This performance was featured on Björk's 2003 DVD release ''

Later Later may refer to: * Future The future is the time after the past and present. Its arrival is considered inevitable due to the existence of time and the laws of physics. Due to the apparent nature of reality and the unavoidability of the futur ...

''. Björk also performed the track on

TFI Friday ''TFI Friday'' (Thank Four it's Friday) is an entertainment show that was broadcast on Channel 4 television in the United Kingdom. It was produced by Ginger Productions, written by Danny Baker, and hosted by Chris Evans, for the first five ...

on 1 November 1996 to promote the official single release. The track was also included on a 1996 ChildLine charity album release, whose cover-art featured a parody of the ''Post'' cover. In support of this album, Björk performed the song on

Top of the Pops ''Top of the Pops'' (''TOTP'') is a British record chart television programme, made by the BBC and broadcast weekly between 1January 1964 and 30 July 2006. The programme was the world's longest-running weekly music show. For most of its histo ...

. Björk's then manager Netty Walker noted later that it "was the worst performance I've ever seen her do." A live performance recorded for US TV show ''

Reverb In acoustics, reverberation (commonly shortened to reverb) is a persistence of sound after it is produced. It is often created when a sound is reflected on surfaces, causing multiple reflections that build up and then decay as the sound is a ...

'' in 2001 included a performance of "Possibly Maybe". The track has been performed on Björk's subsequent tours, the Homogenic tour and the Vespertine world tour, the latter version of which appears on the 2002 DVD release '' Live at Royal Opera House''. After 2001, the song was not performed live until 2 March 2012 at the

Roseland Ballroom The Roseland Ballroom was a multipurpose hall, in a converted ice skating rink, with a colorful ballroom dancing pedigree, in New York City's Theater District, New York, theater district, on 52nd Street (Manhattan), West 52nd Street in Manhattan ...

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

during her

Biophilia tour The Biophilia tour was the seventh concert tour by Icelandic musician Björk. The tour was centered on her multimedia project and studio album ''Biophilia (album), Biophilia'' (2011). The tour premiered at the Manchester International Festival an ...

, using only a hang drum and a Tesla coil.

Track listings

The release features remixes by Talvin Singh, Mark Bell from LFO,

Dallas Austin Dallas L. Austin (born December 29, 1970) is an American songwriter, record producer, and film producer from Columbus, Georgia. Biography Early life During a 2019 interview with DJ Vlad, Dallas Austin detailed previously unknown or unconfir ...

, Trevor Morais (who was the drummer on the Post tour),

Photek Rupert Parkes (born 6 September 1971), known as Photek, is a Los Angeles-based British electronic music DJ/record producer, and TV and film score composer. Photek was born and raised in Ipswich, Suffolk, England. Photek has contributed music ...

and Plaid. The single was planned to coincide with Björk's tour dates in

South America South America is a continent entirely in the Western Hemisphere and mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a considerably smaller portion in the Northern Hemisphere. It can also be described as the southern Subregion#Americas, subregion o ...

and

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the Southern Africa, southernmost country in Africa. Its Provinces of South Africa, nine provinces are bounded to the south by of coastline that stretches along the Atlantic O ...

in October 1996, although the South American concerts were cancelled only two shows in due to Björk suffering from

laryngitis Laryngitis is inflammation of the larynx (voice box). Symptoms often include a hoarse voice and may include fever, cough, pain in the front of the neck, and trouble swallowing. Typically, these last under 2 weeks. Causes Laryngitis is cat ...

. Two live tracks ("Possibly Maybe" and "Hyperballad") recorded at

Wembley Arena Wembley Arena () (originally the Empire Pool, currently known as OVO Energy, OVO Arena Wembley for sponsorship reasons) is an indoor arena next to Wembley Stadium in Wembley, Greater London, England. The 12,500-seat facility is Greater Lond ...

as part of a ''

'' show are included on CD3. UK CD1 (193TP7CD; released 28 October 1996) # "Possibly Maybe" – 5:04 # "Possibly Maybe" (Lucy Mix) (also featured on ''

Telegram Telegraphy is the long-distance transmission of messages where the sender uses symbolic codes, known to the recipient, rather than a physical exchange of an object bearing the message. Thus flag semaphore is a method of telegraphy, whereas pi ...

'') – 3:03 # "Possibly Maybe" (Calcutta Cyber Cafe Mix) – 5:33 # "Possibly Maybe" (Dallas Austin Mix) – 4:50 UK CD2 (193TP7CDL; released 28 October 1996) # "Cover Me" ( Dillinja Mix) – 6:22 # "One Day" (Trevor Morais Mix) – 7:01 # "Possibly Maybe" (Calcutta Cyber Cafe Dub Mix) – 4:56 # " I Miss You" (Photek Mix) – 5:53 UK CD3 (193TP7CDT; released 28 October 1996) # " Big Time Sensuality" (Plaid Mix) – 5:21 # " Vísur Vatnsenda-Rósu" – 4:20 # "Possibly Maybe" (live at Wembley Arena) – 4:53 # "

Hyperballad "Hyperballad" (sometimes written as "Hyper-Ballad") is a song by the Icelandic musician Björk, released as the fourth single from her second solo album, '' Post'' (1995). It was written by Björk and co-produced by her long time collaborator N ...

" (Over the Edge Mix) (live at Wembley Arena) – 4:56 UK and US 12-inch single (193TP12TD) # "Possibly Maybe" (Calcutta Cyber Cafe Mix) # "I Miss You" (Dobie Rub Part One – Sunshine Mix) European CD single (MUMTT 86) # "Possibly Maybe" (single version) – 5:04 # "Cover Me" (Dillinja Mix) – 6:22 European 12-inch single (193TP12TDM) # " Enjoy" (The Beats Mix) – 6:57 # "Possibly Maybe" (Lucy Remix) – 3:03

Personnel

Credits adapted from ''Posts liner notes. *

– production, keyboards *

Nellee Hooper Paul Andrew "Nellee" Hooper (born 15 March 1963) is a British record producer, remixer and songwriter known for his work with many major recording artists beginning in the late 1980s. He also debuted as a motion picture music composer with Scot ...

– production * Marius de Vries – programming, keyboards *

Howie B Howard Simon Bernstein (born 18 April 1963, Glasgow, Scotland) is a Scottish musician, producer and DJ who has worked with artists including Björk, U2, Tricky, Siouxsie and the Banshees, Soul II Soul, Robbie Robertson, Elisa, Mukul Deo ...

ernstein – mixing,

engineering Engineering is the practice of using natural science, mathematics, and the engineering design process to Problem solving#Engineering, solve problems within technology, increase efficiency and productivity, and improve Systems engineering, s ...

* Oswald "Wiz" Bowe – assistant engineering

Charts

Covers

The track was covered by

Final Fantasy is a Japanese fantasy Anthology series, anthology media franchise created by Hironobu Sakaguchi which is owned, developed, and published by Square Enix (formerly Square (video game company), Square). The franchise centers on a series of fanta ...

and Ed Droste for music website

Stereogum ''Stereogum'' is a daily Internet publication that focuses on music news, reviews, interviews, and commentary. The site was created in January 2002 by Scott Lapatine. ''Stereogum'' was one of the first MP3 blogs and has received several awar ...

's 2008 online tribute to ''Post''. As Droste has stated, "Björk is probably my most listened to and adored artist thus far in my life". Michael Armstrong interpreted the song as an instrumental lullaby for the ''Rockabye Baby! Lullaby Renditions of Björk'' tribute album. London Resonance Quartet created another instrumental cover for tribute album ''Violently''. Italian singer Serena Fortebraccio recorded a version for the album ''In A Shape Of A Girl … Playing On Björk's Heartbeat''. The artists, who released "Possibly Maybe" covers on their own releases include prog-rock band The Roots of Orchis, Polish jazz singer Monika Borzym, hip-hop artist Mumbls, jazz-funk bands Spirit Tuck and The Poma-Swank and the acts such as Wino Willy, Sallow, LumpyPork and others.

Samples

A sample of this song was used in the bumpers for

VH1 VH1 (originally an initialism for Video Hits One) is an American basic cable television network that launched on January 1, 1985, and is currently owned by the MTV Entertainment Group unit of Paramount Global's networks division based in New Y ...

's 'Insomniac Music Theater' late night music video block from the song's release until the program was cancelled in 2005 and renamed 'Nocturnal State'.

DJ Shadow Joshua Paul Davis (born June 29, 1972 in San Jose, California, San Jose, California), better known by his stage name DJ Shadow, is an American DJ and record producer. His debut studio album, ''Endtroducing.....,'' was released in 1996. He uses l ...

sampled this song for the track "Mutual Slump" from his debut album '' Endtroducing.....''.

References

External links

Possibly Maybe webpage

Stéphane Sednaoui official website

Björk on Discogs.com
{{Authority control 1995 songs 1996 singles Björk songs Downtempo songs Music videos directed by Stéphane Sednaoui One Little Independent Records singles Song recordings produced by Björk Song recordings produced by Nellee Hooper Songs written by Björk Chill-out music songs UK Independent Singles Chart number-one singles