"Stupefaction" is a song written by rock musician

Graham Parker Graham Thomas Parker (born 18 November 1950) is an English singer-songwriter, who is best known as the lead singer of the British band The Rumour, Graham Parker & the Rumour. Life and career Early career (1960s–1976) Parker was born in Hack ...

and performed by Graham Parker and

the Rumour The Rumour was an English rock band in the late 1970s and early 1980s. They are best known as the backup band for Graham Parker, whose early records (from 1976 to 1980) were credited to Graham Parker & The Rumour. However, The Rumour also ...

for their 1980 studio album ''

The Up Escalator ''The Up Escalator'' is an album by Graham Parker and the Rumour, released on 23 May 1980 by Stiff Records as LP (SEEZ 23) and as cassette (ZSEEZ 23). In the USA, the album was released by Arista. Released after Parker's successful 1979 album ' ...

''. Inspired by Parker's time spent in

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the wor ...

, the song features sardonic lyrics that were based on an observation by Parker and his manager in the city. "Stupefaction" was released as the debut single from ''The Up Escalator'', though it did not chart. It has since seen praise from critics and appeared on multiple compilation albums.

Background

Parker described the song as "good fun, a good re-creation of a

Stones In geology, rock (or stone) is any naturally occurring solid mass or aggregate of minerals or mineraloid matter. It is categorized by the minerals included, its chemical composition, and the way in which it is formed. Rocks form the Earth's ...

song with more humor." The song was inspired by, according to Parker, "spending a lot of time in Los Angeles." He explained of the song's inspiration:

Release

"Stupefaction" was released in April 1980 as the debut single from ''

''. The B-side of the single was "Women in Charge," a non-album track that was later included as a bonus track on later editions of ''The Up Escalator''. A music video for the song was also released, featuring Parker and the Rumour, including

Nicky Hopkins Nicholas Christian "Nicky" Hopkins (24 February 1944 – 6 September 1994) was an English pianist and organist. Hopkins performed on many popular and enduring British and American rock music recordings from the 1960s to the 1990s, most notably ...

. The single did not chart, though it did garner FM-radio play. The song has also appeared on compilation albums such as ''Passion Is No Ordinary Word: The Graham Parker Anthology'' and ''Master Hits: Graham Parker''. Parker said of the record company's decision to release the song as a single, Stupefaction' to me sounded like a poppy, uptempo, 'fun' song that could on the radio. And

Jimmy Iovine James Iovine ( ; ; born March 11, 1953) is an American entrepreneur, record executive, and media proprietor best known as the co-founder of Interscope Records. In 2006, Iovine and rapper-producer Dr. Dre founded Beats Electronics, which prod ...

thought so. He said, 'You know, it's great, this guy's saying 'Stupid, stupid, stupid! Just imagine people listening to the radio going, 'Hey, listen to him.' It's like '' Beavis and Butt-head'' or something! oes spot-on Butt-Head impersonation">Butt-Head.html" ;"title="oes spot-on Butt-Head">oes spot-on Butt-Head impersonation 'Hey, that guy's saying stupid!' Jimmy had that scenario of what would be going on in the outside world ... the record company thought it was good fun."

Reception

Dave Swanson of ''Diffuser.fm'' ranked the song as Parker's eighth best, calling it a "great song" and a "classic" and stating, "[''The Up Escalator's''] '80s production values often clashed with his style. Not so on this one though, as the pure pop washed with grit here ranks as one of Parker's best." ''Rock Beat Int'l'' writer Geoff Cabin described the track as a "bouncy, cheerful pop tune" and praised its "sneeringly funny lyrics." Debra Rae Cohen of ''

Rolling Stone ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner, and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. It was first known for its co ...

'' described the song as "deliberately rinky-dink" and noted it as one of the few songs on the album that Hopkins "doesn't deaden with his all-purpose, stylized noodling." Comedian

Adam Carolla Adam Carolla (born May 27, 1964) is an American radio personality, comedian, actor and podcaster. He hosts '' The Adam Carolla Show'', a talk show distributed as a podcast which set the record as the "most downloaded podcast" as judged by ''Guin ...

praised the song in his book ''In Fifty Years We'll All Be Chicks'', writing of radio during the 1980s, "We could be hearing ' Clubland' by

Elvis Costello Declan Patrick MacManus OBE (born 25 August 1954), known professionally as Elvis Costello, is an English singer-songwriter and record producer. He has won multiple awards in his career, including a Grammy Award in 2020, and has twice been nom ...

or 'Stupefaction' by Graham Parker, but instead we get '

The Safety Dance "The Safety Dance" is a song by Canadian new wave/synth-pop band Men Without Hats, released in Canada in 1982 as the second single from ''Rhythm of Youth''. The song was written by lead singer Ivan Doroschuk after he had been kicked out of a cl ...

' by

Men Without Hats Men Without Hats are a Canadian new wave and synth-pop band, originally from Montreal, Quebec. Their music is characterized by the baritone voice of their lead singer Ivan Doroschuk, as well as their elaborate use of synthesizers and electroni ...

." The song was covered by the Health & Happiness Show on the Parker tribute album ''Piss & Vinegar: The Songs of Graham Parker.''

References

{{Graham Parker & The Rumour 1980 singles 1980 songs Graham Parker songs Stiff Records singles Arista Records singles