Big Scary Animal

"Big Scary Animal" (titled "It's Too Real (Big Scary Animal)" in the United States and Japan) is a song written by American singer-songwriter Belinda Carlisle with Charlotte Caffey and Ralph Schuckett, and produced by Schuckett for Carlisle's fifth studio album, Real (1993). The song was released on September 13, 1993, as the album's lead single. The CD single includes two B-sides: "Windows of the World", also from the Real album, and "Change", which is an eight-track demo. "Big Scary Animal" peaked at number 12 on the UK Singles Chart, reached number 26 in Iceland, and became a minor hit in Australia, Canada, and Germany.

"Big Scary Animal"
Single by Belinda Carlisle
from the album Real
B-side"Windows of the World"
ReleasedSeptember 13, 1993 (1993-09-13)[1]
Length4:08
LabelVirgin
Songwriter(s)
Producer(s)Ralph Schuckett
Belinda Carlisle singles chronology
"Little Black Book"
(1992)		 "Big Scary Animal"
(1993)		 "Lay Down Your Arms"
(1993)

Critical reception

Alan Jones from Music Week gave the song four out of five, writing, "Belinda's quirky upfront vocal style suits this acoustically jangling song which cames complete with appropriate jungle motifs via drums and sound effects. Tougher than a lot of her whimsical singles and a promising taster for her Real album."[2] Push, writing for Melody Maker, could hear elements of the J. Geils Band's "Centerfold", Men Without Hats' "The Safety Dance", Adam and the Ants' "Kings of the Wild Frontier" and Dinosaur Jr.'s "Freak Scene" in the track. He felt that such influences would be "a recipe for disaster", but noted the song's catchiness, commenting that "having played this record just the once, I can't stop humming it."[3]

Music video

There are three versions of the music video for "Big Scary Animal": the international UK video (directed by Michel Gondry), the director's cut, and US version (directed by Jim Gable).

Track listings
  • US cassette single[4]
Japanese mini-CD single[5]
  1. "It's Too Real (Big Scary Animal)" – 4:08
  2. "Windows of the World" – 3:26
European CD single[9]
  1. "Big Scary Animal"
  2. "Windows of the World"
  1. "Big Scary Animal"
  2. "Windows of the World"
  3. "Change" (8 track demo)
  4. "Too Much Water" (8 track demo)
  • European maxi-CD and Australian CD single[11]
  1. "Big Scary Animal"
  2. "Windows of the World"
  3. "Change" (8 track demo)

Charts
Chart (1993) Peak
position
Australia (ARIA)[12] 56
Canada Top Singles (RPM)[13] 70
Europe (Eurochart Hot 100)[14] 40
Germany (Official German Charts)[15] 63
Iceland (Íslenski Listinn Topp 40)[16] 26
UK Singles (OCC)[17] 12

References
  1. "Single Releases" (PDF). Music Week. September 11, 1993. p. 23. Retrieved November 9, 2022.
  2. Jones, Alan (September 18, 1993). "Market Preview: Mainstream – Singles" (PDF). Music Week. p. 16. Retrieved February 1, 2023.
  3. Push (September 25, 1993). "Singles". Melody Maker. p. 31.
  4. It's Too Real (Big Scary Animal) (US cassette single sleeve). Belinda Carlisle. Virgin Records. 1993. 4KM-38402.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  5. Big Scary Animal (Japanese mini-CD single liner notes). Belinda Carlisle. Virgin Records, Offside Records. 1993. VJDP-10211.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  6. Big Scary Animal (UK 7-inch single sleeve). Belinda Carlisle. Virgin Records, Offside Records. 1993. VS 1472, 7243 8 92103 7 8.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  7. Big Scary Animal (UK cassette single sleeve). Belinda Carlisle. Virgin Records, Offside Records. 1993. VSC 1472.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  8. Big Scary Animal (Australian cassette single sleeve). Belinda Carlisle. Virgin Records, Offside Records. 1993. 8921034.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  9. Big Scary Animal (European CD single liner notes). Belinda Carlisle. Virgin Records, Offside Records. 1993. VSCDE 1472, 7243 8 92119 2 4.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  10. Big Scary Animal (UK CD single liner notes). Belinda Carlisle. Virgin Records, Offside Records. 1993. VSCDX 1472.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  11. Big Scary Animal (European maxi-CD & Australian CD single liner notes). Belinda Carlisle. Virgin Records, Offside Records. 1993. VSCDT 1472, 7243 8 92103 23.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  12. "The ARIA Australian Top 100 Singles Chart – Week Ending 06 Feb 1994". ARIA. Retrieved February 22, 2016.
  13. "Top RPM Singles: Issue 2326." RPM. Library and Archives Canada. Retrieved August 6, 2019.
  14. "Eurochart Hot 100 Singles" (PDF). Music & Media. Vol. 10, no. 41. October 9, 1993. p. 15. Retrieved October 18, 2020.
  15. "Belinda Carlisle – Big Scary Animal" (in German). GfK Entertainment charts. Retrieved August 6, 2019.
  16. "Íslenski Listinn Topp 40 (4.–10. nóv.)". Dagblaðið Vísir (in Icelandic). November 4, 1993. p. 20. Retrieved September 30, 2019.
  17. "Official Singles Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved August 6, 2019.
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