"The Bottom Line" is a song by the English

alternative dance Alternative dance (also known as indie dance or underground dance in the United States) is a musical genre that mixes alternative rock with electronic dance music. Although largely confined to the British Isles, it has gained worldwide exposure ...

band

Big Audio Dynamite Big Audio Dynamite (later known as Big Audio Dynamite II and Big Audio, and often abbreviated BAD) were an English band, formed in London in 1984 by Mick Jones (The Clash guitarist), Mick Jones, former lead guitarist and co-lead vocalist of th ...

, released as both a 7" and 12" single from their debut

studio album An album is a collection of audio recordings (e.g., music) issued on a medium such as compact disc (CD), Phonograph record, vinyl (record), audio tape (like 8-track cartridge, 8-track or Cassette tape, cassette), or digital distribution, dig ...

, ''

This Is Big Audio Dynamite ''This Is Big Audio Dynamite'' is the debut studio album by the English band Big Audio Dynamite, led by Mick Jones, the former lead guitarist and co-lead vocalist of the Clash. It was released on 1 November 1985 by Columbia Records. The album p ...

'' (1985). It was written, and produced by Mick Jones, his debut single with a band singing lead vocals since being fired from

the Clash The Clash were an English Rock music, rock band formed in London in 1976. Billed as "The Only Band That Matters", they are considered one of the most influential acts in the original wave of British punk rock, with their music fusing elements ...

in 1983. Whilst not a hit in their home country, peaking at No. 97 on the UK singles chart, it was a Top 40 hit in

Australasia Australasia is a subregion of Oceania, comprising Australia, New Zealand (overlapping with Polynesia), and sometimes including New Guinea and surrounding islands (overlapping with Melanesia). The term is used in a number of different context ...

, peaking at No. 34 on Australia's

ARIA Singles Chart The ARIA Charts are the main Australian music sales charts, issued weekly by the Australian Recording Industry Association. The charts are a record of the highest selling songs and albums in various genres in Australia. ARIA became the offici ...

, and No. 38 on New Zealand's

Recorded Music NZ Recorded Music NZ (formerly the Recording Industry Association of New Zealand (RIANZ)) is a non-profit trade association of record producers, distributors and recording artists who sell recorded music in New Zealand. Membership of Recorded ...

chart. The 12" version of the song at the full length of 8:40 is considered the definitive version, featuring parts one and two. Part one is a slightly longer than the album version, and part two is the extended "rap" alluded to on the album version when it fades with "I'm gonna take you to part two." In 1990, "The Bottom Line" was remixed and used as the title track for the adventure comedy film, '' Flashback'', starring

Dennis Hopper Dennis Lee Hopper (May 17, 1936 – May 29, 2010) was an American actor, filmmaker, photographer and visual artist. He was considered one of the key figures of New Hollywood. He earned prizes from the Cannes Film Festival and Venice Internatio ...

and

Kiefer Sutherland Kiefer William Frederick Dempsey George Rufus Sutherland (born 21 December 1966) is a Canadian actor. He is best known for his starring role as Jack Bauer in the Fox Broadcasting Company, Fox drama series ''24 (TV series), 24'' (2001–2010, 20 ...

. However, this track was not included on the film's official soundtrack.

Single cover

The single's cover depicts most of the band dressed in

cowboy A cowboy is an animal herder who tends cattle on ranches in North America, traditionally on horseback, and often performs a multitude of other ranch-related tasks. The historic American cowboy of the late 19th century arose from the ''vaquero'' ...

clothing as a four piece band, minus keyboardist Dan Donovan who took and designed the photo.

Critical reception

Chris Salewicz Chris Salewicz ( ) is a journalist, broadcaster and novelist who lives in London. Career Salewicz was as a senior features writer for the ''New Musical Express'' (''NME'') from 1975 to 1981, where, under tutelage of editor Neil Spencer, he an ...

of ''

Spin Spin or spinning most often refers to: * Spin (physics) or particle spin, a fundamental property of elementary particles * Spin quantum number, a number which defines the value of a particle's spin * Spinning (textiles), the creation of yarn or thr ...

'' called it, "stirring and anthem-like, loaded with references to other musical forms, but with Jones's unerring sense of

melody A melody (), also tune, voice, or line, is a linear succession of musical tones that the listener perceives as a single entity. In its most literal sense, a melody is a combination of Pitch (music), pitch and rhythm, while more figurativel ...

as its lifeblood. Like all the best things, it is very simple, belying the immense diligence that has gone into its making."

Track listing

7" single # "The Bottom Line" – 4:35 # "BAD" – 6:25 12" single # "The Bottom Line" – 8:40 # "BAD" – 6:40

Chart performance

* A"The Bottom Line" and "BAD" charted together on the ''Billboard''

Hot Dance Club Play The Dance Club Songs (also known as National Disco Action, Hot Dance/Disco Club Play, and Hot Dance Club Play) was a chart published weekly between 1976 and 2020 by ''Billboard'' magazine. It used club disc jockeys set lists to determine the mos ...

chart.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Bottom Line, The 1985 songs 1985 singles Big Audio Dynamite songs Songs written by Mick Jones (The Clash) Song recordings produced by Mick Jones (The Clash) CBS Records singles