Carnival (The Cardigans song)

"Carnival"
Swedish CD single cover
Single by the Cardigans
from the album Life
B-side
Released25 March 1995 (1995-03-25)
StudioTambourine Studios (Malmö, Sweden)[1]
Genre
Length
  • 3:37 (album version)
  • 3:20 (single/radio edit)
Label
Songwriters
ProducerTore Johansson
The Cardigans singles chronology
"Sick & Tired"
(1995) 		"Carnival"
(1995) 		"Sick & Tired (reissue)"
(1995)
Music video
"Carnival" on YouTube

"Carnival" is a song by the Swedish band the Cardigans. It was released on 25 March 1995 by Trampolene and Stockholm Records as the first single from their second album, Life (1995). Two years after its release, the track was featured in the film Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery, which helped the song gain further recognition.[3]

Background

The song concerns the narrator's unrequited love for a boy and references a carnival that she wishes to attend with him but does not, as he never responds.

"Carnival" was the first released material by the Cardigans on which Nina Persson received a writing credit, in this case alongside bassist Magnus Svenningsson, whom she would later supersede as the band's primary lyricist. An early version of the song was performed regularly during the band’s 1994 summer tour in support of their debut album, Emmerdale.

Release

When released as a single, the B-side to "Carnival" included a cover of Ozzy Osbourne's "Mr. Crowley", one of several Osbourne covers recorded by the group, and "Emmerdale", an instrumental track that shares its name with their previous album but does not appear on it. The accompanying music video for the single, directed by Björn Lindgren, features the band performing the song at a 1960s-style dancehall.

The song marked the group's first appearance on the UK Singles Chart, reaching number 72 in the week of 17 June 1995. Following the success of their next single, a re-issue of "Sick & Tired", which reached the top 40, "Carnival" was repressed and peaked at number 35 in the week of 2 December 1995. The re-release also reached number 44 in the Netherlands, becoming the band's first single to chart there.

Critical reception

The song was critically acclaimed. James Masterton of Dotmusic wrote, "It's in a similar vein to their last hit; light, almost fluffy jazz-pop that sounds gorgeous but is unlikely to bring them a major hit just yet."[4] Holly Hernandez of Melody Maker described it as "frothy stimulation".[5] John Mulvey of NME said the song "is blessed with a budget-flight-down-to-Rio bubbliness—imagine The Sugarcubes playing Swing Out Sister's greatest hits—that makes it oddly irresistible. Also, it shames me to report, the xylophone solo is pretty damned smart."[6] Another NME editor, Mark Beaumont, described it as taking "a vibe-surfing bus tour around Parisian tourist spots".[7] Mark Sutherland of Smash Hits gave "Carnival" a top score of five out of five and named it Best New Single, writing: "...they've just written the perfect pop song. Xylophones and guitars tinkle merrily, Nina coos Come on and love me now, every male on the planet goes Oh, alright then, and the whole world thinks Sod school/work for a game of soldiers and nips off to the coast for a bossa nova beach party. Last one in's a rotten egg!"[8]

Track listing

  • International CD single (1995)
  1. "Carnival" – 3:20
  2. "Mr Crowley" – 2:35
  3. "Emmerdale" – 2:25

Charts

Certifications

Region Certification Certified units/sales
Japan (RIAJ)[16] Gold 100,000*

* Sales figures based on certification alone.

Release history

Region Date Format(s) Label(s) Ref.
Japan 25 March 1995 CD
[17]
United Kingdom 15 May 1995
  • 7-inch vinyl
  • CD
[18]
United Kingdom (re-release) 13 November 1995
  • 7-inch vinyl
  • CD
[19]

References

  1. ^ Maiolo, Alex (November 2015). "Per Sundig and Seden's Tambourine Studios". Tape Op. Retrieved 2 July 2024.
  2. ^ a b Mason, Stewart. The Cardigans - Best Of (2008) Review at AllMusic. Retrieved October 4, 2024.
  3. ^ Austin Powers - Original Soundtrack | Album | AllMusic, 15 April 1997
  4. ^ Masterton, James (26 November 1995). "Week Ending December 2nd 1995". Chart Watch UK. Retrieved 4 October 2021.
  5. ^ Hernandez, Holly (8 July 1995). "Albums". Melody Maker. p. 36. Retrieved 1 February 2024.
  6. ^ Mulvey, John (20 May 1995). "Singles". NME. p. 54. Retrieved 20 January 2024.
  7. ^ Beaumont, Mark (8 July 1995). "Long Play". NME. p. 47. Retrieved 1 February 2024.
  8. ^ Sutherland, Mark (7 June 1995). "Singles". Smash Hits. p. 54. Retrieved 10 February 2025.
  9. ^ "Íslenski Listinn Topp 40 (4.11. '95 – 10.11. '95)". Dagblaðið Vísir (in Icelandic). 4 November 1995. p. 26. Retrieved 1 October 2019.
  10. ^ "The Cardigans – Carnival" (in Dutch). Dutch Top 40. Retrieved 4 October 2021.
  11. ^ "The Cardigans – Carnival" (in Dutch). Single Top 100. Retrieved 4 June 2019.
  12. ^ "Official Scottish Singles Sales Chart on 17/6/1995 – Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 4 June 2019.
  13. ^ "Official Singles Chart on 17/6/1995 – Top 100". Official Charts Company.
  14. ^ "Billboard Japan Hot Overseas – Week of October 15, 2025". Billboard Japan (in Japanese). Retrieved 15 October 2025.
  15. ^ "Latvian Airplay Top Chart - 1995". Lanet.lv. Retrieved 21 March 2026.
  16. ^ "Japanese digital single certifications – Cardigans – Carnival" (in Japanese). Recording Industry Association of Japan. Retrieved 20 May 2021. Select 2018年1月 on the drop-down menu
  17. ^ "Cardigans Discography" (in Japanese). PolyGram. Archived from the original on 21 February 1999. Retrieved 27 August 2023.
  18. ^ "New Releases: Singles". Music Week. 13 May 1995. p. 39.
  19. ^ "New Releases: Singles". Music Week. 11 November 1995. p. 49.
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