"Phil Collins - Another Day In Paradise (Official Music Video)" on YouTube
Collins sings the song from a third-person perspective, as he observes a man crossing the street to ignore a homeless woman, and he implores listeners not to turn a blind eye to homelessness because, by drawing a religious allusion, "it's just another day for you and me in paradise". Collins also appeals directly to God by singing: "Oh Lord, is there nothing more anybody can do? Oh Lord, there must be something you can say."
The song was Collins' seventh and final Billboard Hot 100 No. 1 single, the last No. 1 single of the 1980s and the first No. 1 single of the 1990s. It was a worldwide success, eventually becoming one of the most successful songs of his solo career. It won Collins and Padgham the Grammy Award for Record of the Year at the 1991 awards ceremony, while it was also nominated for Song of the Year, Best Pop Vocal Performance, Male and Best Music Video, Short Form. "Another Day in Paradise" also won an award for British Single at the 1990 Brit Awards. Despite the awards gained following its release, the song also generated controversy over its subject matter and has received a largely unfavourable reaction from music critics.
The live performance of the song at the 1991 Grammy Awards by Collins and David Crosby, who provided backing vocals on the track, was released on the 1994 album Grammy's Greatest Moments Volume I.[3] In 2009, Collins' version was listed 86th on Billboard's Greatest Songs of All Time.[4] "Another Day in Paradise" has since been covered by several artists, including Brandy and her brother Ray J, Jam Tronik, Axxis, Novecento, Brad Arnold[5] and Hank Marvin.
Chart performanceedit
The song was another hit for Collins. On 23 December 1989, it became his seventh (and, to date, final[update]) No. 1 single in the U.S.[2] The song was also the final No. 1 song of the 1980s in the U.S., and remained at No. 1 for four weeks, which classifies the song as a hit from the 1990s as well. This song is notable for keeping Janet Jackson's "Rhythm Nation" from reaching No. 1. It also saw out the 1980s and saw in the 1990s at the top of the German singles chart. The song had already reached No. 2 in the UK in November of that year. The single version is slightly different from the album version in that it uses a shorter intro.
Music videoedit
The song's music video was directed by Jim Yukich and produced by Paul Flattery of FYI.[6] The video, shot entirely in black and white, features Collins singing in a dark background, interspersed with images of the homeless, the refugees and the poverty of children in the streets. The music video also features many messages about the homeless, to convey the full message of the song. Collins' part was shot in less than an hour in New York.
Receptionedit
"Another Day in Paradise" provoked controversy upon release and was widely criticised.[7][8] Some critics found the wealthy Collins unqualified to sing about the poor,[9] while others accused him of profiteering from homelessness.[10] Collins responded, "When I drive down the street, I see the same things everyone else sees. It's a misconception that if you have a lot of money you're somehow out of touch with reality."[9]Billboard gave a positive review, calling it a "poignant" track whose "subject matter is complemented nicely by a subdued, ethereal musical context".[11]
Singer-songwriter and political activist Billy Bragg gave a 2000 interview in which he negatively compared Collins to the Clash, stating, "Phil Collins might write a song about the homeless, but if he doesn't have the action to go with it he's just exploiting that for a subject."[12] In 2003, Andrew Collins described the song as a "bland redress" for the subject of homelessness in the New Statesman.[13] In 2007, Blender remarked that Collins "wrote the worst song ever about homelessness",[14] while Caroline Sullivan of The Guardian called it "a song that addressed the issue of homelessness with the same insight as Sporty Spice's 'If That Were Me'".[15] Writing for the BBC in 2010, David Sheppard described the song's lyrics as "cringe-worthy" and gave it as an example of Collins "painting the bull's-eye on his own forehead" when it came to his negative status with music critics.[16]
It was reported that Collins left the UK for Switzerland in 1997, in response to the election of a Labour government;[17][18] Collins had actually left previously to be with his future wife Orianne Cevey.[19][18] In 2013, MSN's Hugh Wilson said this relocation led to further accusations of hypocrisy, since Collins "bemoaned the plight of the homeless in the song 'Another Day in Paradise' " then "lugged his estimated £130 million fortune to Switzerland where the tax regime is far less punishing for the super wealthy".[20]
In a 2016 article for The Guardian, Michael Hann wrote, "Collins has been unfairly criticised for many things, but 'Another Day in Paradise' is not one of them. Criticism of that is manifestly fair." Hann argued that the song patronizes the general public, who "almost certainly encounter poverty more often than [Collins]", and chided Collins for "[equating] his material wealth with his listener's by pointing out that both 'you and me' are in paradise".[21] On the other hand, Jamie Wales of Gigwise described the track as a "classic", and said of the hypocrisy allegations levelled at Collins, "The truth is Phil collected money for homeless charities from fans who attended his concerts and then donated double the total takings out of his own money."[22]
* Sales figures based on certification alone. ^ Shipments figures based on certification alone. ‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone.
Less than six months after the release of the original Phil Collins version, a cover version by German dance act Jam Tronik was released as their debut single. In the United Kingdom, the song first charted in March 1990, reaching a peak of number 19 on the UK Singles Chart in the first week of April. It also charted in Germany and Belgium. Sampled in this version is the drum loop from the 1988 Raze song "Break 4 Love". The B-side, "Get on the Raze", also samples "Break 4 Love".
In 2001, siblings Brandy and Ray J covered the song for the Phil Collins tribute album Urban Renewal. Produced by Guy Roche and released as the album's lead single in March 2001, the cover version became a top-10 success in Australia and across Europe, receiving gold certifications in Australia (35,000), France (250,000), Germany (250,000), and Switzerland (20,000). In 2002, this version of the song was included on the European edition of Brandy's Full Moon album.
Critical receptionedit
In their review, Music Week felt that the "US siblings are likely to score a hit with this infectiously familiar track."[79]
Music videoedit
The music video follows a homeless woman wandering the streets being chastised by various people, including a waitress, a businessman, and a police officer. The video is intercut with scenes of Brandy and Ray J singing on a fire escape and along alleyways, while also following the woman and taking photographs of each incident with a camera. The homeless woman then walks into a luxurious shoe boutique, and the receptionist calls the police to escort her out. When she is dropped back to her makeshift shelter in an alleyway, one of the policemen comes across a series of Polaroids depicting all of the previous characters, including himself, in the homeless woman's place. At the end of the video, Brandy and Ray J come to pick up the homeless woman and walk off with her into the distance.
Track listingsedit
CD maxi single
"Another Day in Paradise" (R&B-Version) – 4:32
"Another Day in Paradise" (Stargate Mix) – 4:19
"Another Day in Paradise" (Stargate Classic Club) – 4:22
"Another Day in Paradise" (Knee Deep Remix) – 6:28
"Another Day in Paradise" (Black Legend VS. J-Reverse Club Mix) – 7:54
CD single
"Another Day in Paradise" (R&B-Version) – 4:32
"Another Day in Paradise" (Stargate Mix) – 4:19
The Remixes – 12-inch maxi
"Another Day in Paradise" (Knee Deep Remix) – 6:28
"Another Day in Paradise" (Black Legend vs. J-Reverse Club Mix) – 7:54
* Sales figures based on certification alone. ^ Shipments figures based on certification alone. ‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone.
^"BPI > Certified Awards > Search results for Phil Collins (page 3)". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved 16 February 2016.
^ abMaury Dean (2003). Rock N' Roll Gold Rush. Algora. p. 60. ISBN 0-87586-207-1.
^"Grammy's Greatest Moments, Volume 1: Various Artists". Amazon. Retrieved 21 November 2011.
^"Billboard's Greatest Songs of All Time". Billboard. Archived from the original on 25 April 2009. Retrieved 1 May 2009.
^"3 Doors Down - Another Day In Paradise (live in Manchester 11.03.12)". 12 March 2012. Archived from the original on 21 December 2021. Retrieved 22 September 2021 – via YouTube.
^"Phil Collins: Another Day in Paradise (Video 1989) - IMDb". IMDb.
^Heim, Chris (8 June 1990). "Phil Collins takes issues but not criticism seriously". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved 20 October 2020.
^Larkin, Colin (14 September 2007). The Encyclopedia of Popular Music: Concise (5th ed.). Omnibus Press. p. 263. ISBN 978-1846098567. Retrieved 21 August 2014. ...the widely criticised 'Another Day in Paradise'.
^ ab"Another Day in Paradise". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on 26 July 2014. Retrieved 2 July 2020.
^Donaldson, Sophie (12 March 2017). "Is Phil Collins really such a bad dad?". Irish Independent. Retrieved 2 July 2020.
^"Single reviews". Billboard. 4 November 1989. p. 79.
^Brunner, Rob (30 June 2000). "Bragg-ing Rites". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved 9 February 2014.
^Collins, Andrew (24 February 2003). "Give music a chance". New Statesman. Retrieved 14 April 2024.
^"The 40 Worst Lyricists in Rock". Blender. Vol. November 2007. Archived from the original on 11 October 2007. Retrieved 2 July 2020.
^Sullivan, Caroline (19 September 2007). "I wish I'd never heard of Phil Collins ..." The Guardian. Retrieved 9 February 2014.
^Sheppard, David. "Phil Collins Going Back Review". BBC. Retrieved 16 April 2014.
^Bainbridge, Luke (14 October 2007). "The ten right-wing rockers". The Guardian. Retrieved 28 October 2020.
^ abHodgkinson, Will (28 January 2016). "I'm too sensitive. I don't like being thought of as middle of the road". The Times. Retrieved 28 October 2020.(subscription required)
^Harrington, Richard (28 February 1997). "Phil Collins: Genesis to an Heiress". The Washington Post. Retrieved 24 August 2023.
^Wilson, Hugh (3 April 2013). "Famous men and their misunderstood politics". MSN. Archived from the original on 22 February 2014. Retrieved 16 April 2014.
^Hann, Michael (14 October 2016). "From tax bills to endangered elephants: 10 subjects songwriters should avoid". The Guardian. Retrieved 18 October 2020.
^Wales, Jamie (27 February 2016). "5 reasons why Phil Collins is actually a legend". Gigwise. Retrieved 2 July 2020.
^"Eurochart Hot 100 1989" (PDF). Music & Media. Vol. 6, no. 51. 23 December 1989. p. 6. OCLC 29800226. Retrieved 17 January 2020 – via World Radio History.
^"Top 100–Jaaroverzicht van 1989". Dutch Top 40. Retrieved 9 June 2020.
^"Jaaroverzichten – Single 1989" (in Dutch). MegaCharts. Retrieved 9 April 2019.
^"Year End Singles" (PDF). Record Mirror. 27 January 1990. p. 44. ISSN 0144-5804. Retrieved 25 October 2023 – via World Radio History.
^"Jahreshitparade Singles 1990" (in German). Retrieved 9 April 2019.
^"Jaaroverzichten 1990" (in Dutch). Ultratop. Retrieved 9 April 2019.
^"Eurochart Hot 100 of 1990" (PDF). Music & Media. Vol. 7, no. 51. 22 December 1990. p. 60. OCLC 29800226. Retrieved 15 January 2020 – via World Radio History.
^"Top 100 Singles–Jahrescharts 1990" (in German). GfK Entertainment. Retrieved 9 April 2019.
^"Schweizer Jahreshitparade 1990" (in German). Schweizer Hitparade. Retrieved 15 September 2013.
^"Billboard Top 100 – 1990". Archived from the original on 6 July 2009. Retrieved 15 September 2009.
^"Swedish single certifications – Phil Collins – Another Day in Paradise" (in Swedish). Swedish Recording Industry Association. Archived from the original on 6 November 2015. Retrieved 6 November 2015.
^"British single certifications – Phil Collins – Another Day In Paradise". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved 30 August 2022.
^"British single certifications – Phil Collins – Another Day In Paradise". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved 26 August 2022.
^"The Official Swiss Charts and Music Community: Awards ('Another Day in Paradise')". IFPI Switzerland. Hung Medien.
^"British single certifications – Brandy & Ray J – Another Day in Paradise". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved 9 February 2021.
^"The ARIA Report: New Releases Singles – Week Commencing 30th April 2001" (PDF). ARIA. 30 April 2001. p. 24. Archived from the original (PDF) on 20 February 2002. Retrieved 21 November 2021.
^"New Releases – For Week Starting June 4, 2001: Singles". Music Week. 2 June 2001. p. 23.
^"Casa & Nova – official nomination for the Hollywood Music In Media Awards". casa-and-nova. Retrieved 19 May 2017.
^"Another Day In Paradise (feat. Sevda B) DJ Jack Smith". AppleMusic. 20 November 2020.
^"Another Day In Paradise (feat. Sevda B) DJ Jack Smith". Youtube. 20 November 2020.
^"ADJ Jack Smith – "Another Day In Paradise" and "Electric Shock" ft. Sevda B – powerful, warm, all-embracing sounds!". Jamsphere. 21 December 2020.
External linksedit
Another Day In Paradise (Remastered 2016) on YouTube