Club Foot (song)

"Club Foot" is a song by English indie rock band Kasabian, featured on their 2004 debut album, Kasabian. It was released on 10 May 2004 in the UK. The video of this song, directed by W.I.Z., is dedicated to Czech student Jan Palach who in 1969 set himself on fire in protest against renewed Soviet suppression of Czechoslovakia. The video also refers to the Soviet government's intervention in the Hungarian Revolution of 1956 on a banner showing the text in Hungarian (Szabad Európa Rádió), which translates as "Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty". The scene with the inspector girl who stands before the tank harks back to the young man who stood in front of the line of tanks in 1989 in Tiananmen Square, which itself has become an icon for resistance.

"Club Foot"
Single by Kasabian
from the album Kasabian
B-side
  • "Trash Can"
  • "Sand Clit"
Released10 May 2004 (2004-05-10)[1]
Recorded2004
Genre
Length
  • 3:34 (album version)
  • 2:49 (single version)
LabelParadise, RCA
Songwriter(s)
Producer(s)
Kasabian singles chronology
"Reason Is Treason"
(2004)		 "Club Foot"
(2004)		 "L.S.F."
(2004)
Music video
"Club Foot" on YouTube

In October 2011, NME placed it at number 108 on its list "150 Best Tracks of the Past 15 Years".[3]

Background

Bassist Chris Edwards said, "It's about love and life. At the time [in 2002] [sic], the war in Iraq had just kicked off and the lyrics aren't about pushing you in one way or another, but just about what was going on at the time, what you'd read in the paper about soldiers being petrol bombed."[4]

Guitarist Serge Pizzorno said the song is about "revenge and having it out."[5]

Composition

The song is known for its distinctive distorted bass riff, played by lead guitarist Christopher Karloff as opposed to primary bassist Chris Edwards. Karloff would also play the bassline live, while Edwards played guitar. After Karloff's departure from the band in 2006, touring guitarist Jay Mehler would play the bassline, but from 2008 onwards Edwards has played the bassline in live performances.

Serge Pizzorno said, "We were watching a Beach Boys documentary and saw they had a great kind of approach to making 'Good Vibrations.' We wanted to approach 'Club Foot' the same way, to mess with the landscape and give the listener something to hold on to."[5]

MTV.com described the song as "a quilt of relentless beats, hissing electronic noises, a buzzing guitar riff and Meighan's breathless, menacing vocals."[4] The Morning Call said it "piles layers and layers of synths atop tight guitar work before coming to a fluttering, flutey end."[5]

Track listing

CD
  • PARADISE08
  1. Club Foot – 2:52
  2. Club Foot (Jagz Kooner Vocal Mix) – 4:53
  3. Trash Can – 2:53
  4. Sand Clit – 3:53

Personnel
  • Tom Meighan – lead vocals
  • Sergio Pizzorno – guitar, synths, backing vocals
  • Christopher Karloff – guitar, bass, synths, drum machine

Reissue
"Club Foot (re-release)"
Single by Kasabian
from the album Kasabian
B-side
  • "The Duke"
  • "Bang"
Released21 March 2005 (2005-03-21)[6]
Recorded2004
Genre
Length2:51
LabelColumbia
Songwriter(s)
Producer(s)
Kasabian singles chronology
"Cutt Off"
(2005)		 "Club Foot (re-release)"
(2005)		 "Empire"
(2006)

"Club Foot" is a reissued single from Kasabian. The single entered the Uk Chart at No. 19 in 2004, and at No. 21 in 2005.[7] In 2005 it also peaked No. 27 in US Modern Rock Tracks,[8] the same position in the same chart reached in 2011 with the single version contained in Live!, recorded at The O2 Arena in London on 15 December 2011.[9][10] The Maxi CD includes two new B-sides and a remix of "Club Foot", while the 2-track CD contains a live version of non-album track "55".

Maxi CD
  • PARADISE30
  1. Club Foot – 2:51
  2. The Duke – 3:35
  3. Bang – 3:05
  4. Club Foot (Jimmy Douglass Remix) – 3:21
  5. CD-rom with Club Foot promo video + Club Foot Live @ Brixton Academy video

Mini CD
  • PARADISE29
  1. Club Foot – 2:51
  2. 55 (Live @ Brixton Academy) – 4:23

10" Vinyl
  • PARADISE31
  1. Club Foot – 2:51
  2. 55 (Live @ Brixton Academy) – 4:23
  3. Club Foot (Jimmy Douglass Remix) – 3:21

Australian EP
  • 82876659622
  1. Club Foot – 2:51
  2. Reason Is Treason – 3:44
  3. Trash Can – 2:53

[Notes: Red Digipak]

Charts
Chart (2004) Peak
position
UK Singles Chart[7] 19
Chart (2005) Peak
position
UK Singles Chart[7] 21
US Alternative Airplay (Billboard)[11] 27

Certifications
Region CertificationCertified units/sales
United Kingdom (BPI)[12] Platinum 600,000‡

‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone.

References
  1. "New Releases: Singles". Music Week. 8 May 2004. p. 29.
  2. "Club Foot – Kasabian". Allmusic. Rovi Corporation. 2013. Retrieved 18 April 2013.
  3. 150 Best Tracks Of The Past 15 Years | NME.COM
  4. Kaufman, Gil (14 April 2005), "Kasabian Mix Big Riffs And Dance Beats To Make Noisy Love During War", MTV, archived from the original on 18 April 2005, retrieved 6 January 2022
  5. Righi, Len (17 February 2005). "Britpop sensation Kasabian comes to America feeling groovy". The Morning Call. Retrieved 6 January 2022.
  6. "New Releases: Singles". Music Week. 19 March 2005. p. 31.
  7. "Kasabian. 'Club Foot'". Official Charts Company. Archived from the original on 11 November 2013. Retrieved 31 July 2013.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
  8. "Kasabian – Awards: Allmusic (Billboard Singles)". Allmusic. Rovi Corporation. Retrieved 31 July 2013.
  9. "Kasabian – Live in London (containing 'Club Foot')". Discogs. Retrieved 31 July 2013.
  10. "Kasabian – Chart history: Alternative Songs". Billboard. Prometheus Global Media. Retrieved 31 July 2013.
  11. "Kasabian Chart History (Alternative Airplay)". Billboard. Retrieved 25 September 2015.
  12. "British single certifications – Kasabian – Club Foot". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved 24 September 2020.
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