So Why So Sad

"So Why So Sad"
Single by Manic Street Preachers
from the album Know Your Enemy
B-side"Pedestal"
Released26 February 2001 (2001-02-26)
Genre
Length
LabelEpic
Songwriters
ProducerDave Eringa
Manic Street Preachers singles chronology
"The Masses Against the Classes"
(2000) 		"So Why So Sad"
(2001) 		"Found That Soul"
(2001)

"So Why So Sad" is a song by Welsh rock band Manic Street Preachers, jointly released in February 2001 as the first single from their sixth studio album, Know Your Enemy (2001), alongside "Found That Soul". All three members of the band—James Dean Bradfield, Sean Moore and Nicky Wire—share the writing credits. The song reached number eight on the UK Singles Chart, one place above "Found That Soul".

Background

The song includes the line "burns an expressway to your skull",[2] a reference to the final track on Sonic Youth's EVOL album and a Buddy Miles song.

Release

The CD version of "So Why So Sad" includes versions of "Pedestal" and a remix of "So Why So Sad" by Australian outfit the Avalanches, whereas the cassette single includes a live version of "You Stole the Sun from My Heart". Issued on 26 February 2001, the same day as "Found That Soul",[3] "So Why So Sad" was the Manic Street Preachers' first hit since "The Masses Against the Classes" thirteen months earlier.[4]

The single version is shorter, with the phrase "So Why, So Why So Sad?" sung only three times instead of four at the end and the drums finish two bars earlier without a fill.

The single reached number eight on the UK Singles Chart on 10 March 2001. Spending sixteen weeks on the chart, it is the second-longest charting Manic Street Preachers single in the UK, after "If You Tolerate This Your Children Will Be Next", which spent seventeen weeks on the chart.[5] In Ireland, it peaked at number 16.[6] In Finland, the single reached number four on the Finnish Singles Chart, spending three weeks on the ranking.[7] In Sweden, it reached number 26,[8] while in the Netherlands, it peaked at number 88.[9] In Germany, it reached number 94.[10]

Reception

Exclaim! Canada called the track "an outstanding pop song" with a production style "scarily similar" to the Beach Boys.[1] It was the only single from Know Your Enemy to be included on the 2002 compilation Forever Delayed, appearing as an edited version.[4]

Music video

The release was accompanied by a music video directed by Jamie Thraves. The video shows adults and children in swimsuits playing and sunbathing on a beach, while soldiers are engaging in combat at the same place, and not affecting each other, while the band is playing the song in a futuristic house on top of a nearby mountain and observing the beach. The video ends with a boy playing baseball with an adult who's throwing a hand grenade instead of a ball.

Track listings

All tracks were written and composed by Nick Jones, James Dean Bradfield and Sean Moore.

UK CD single[11]

  1. "So Why So Sad" – 3:55
  2. "So Why So Sad" (Sean Penn mix—Avalanches) – 4:58
  3. "Pedestal" – 4:50

UK cassette single[12]

  1. "So Why So Sad" – 4:02
  2. "You Stole the Sun from My Heart" (live at Millennium Stadium, 31 December 1999) – 4:25

European CD single[13]

  1. "So Why So Sad" – 3:55
  2. "So Why So Sad" (Sean Penn mix—Avalanches) – 4:58

Australian CD single[14]

  1. "So Why So Sad" – 3:55
  2. "So Why So Sad" (Sean Penn mix—Avalanches) – 4:58
  3. "Pedestal" – 4:50
  4. "You Stole the Sun from My Heart" (live at Millennium Stadium, 31 December 1999) – 4:25

Charts

Chart (2001) Peak
position
Australia Alternative (ARIA)[15] 11
Europe (Eurochart Hot 100)[16] 33
Finland (Suomen virallinen lista)[7] 4
Germany (GfK)[10] 94
Ireland (IRMA)[6] 16
Netherlands (Single Top 100)[9] 88
Sweden (Sverigetopplistan)[8] 26
UK Singles (OCC)[5] 8

Year-end charts

2001 year-end chart performance for "So Why So Sad"
Chart (2001) Position
UK Singles (OCC)[17] 162

Release history

Region Date Format(s) Label(s) Ref.
United Kingdom 26 February 2001
  • CD
  • cassette
 Epic [3]
Denmark 3 March 2001 CD [18]
Australia 12 March 2001 [19]

References

  1. ^ a b Bolton, Bob (1 May 2001). "Manic Street Preachers - Know Your Enemy". Exclaim Canada. Retrieved 28 September 2021.
  2. ^ "Manic Street Preachers / SO WHY SO SAD". Archived from the original on 14 July 2011. Retrieved 12 June 2009.
  3. ^ a b "New Releases – For Week Starting February 26, 2001: Singles" (PDF). Music Week. 24 February 2001. p. 27. Retrieved 9 August 2021.
  4. ^ a b Power, Martin (17 October 2010). Manic Street Preachers. Omnibus Press.
  5. ^ a b "Manic Street Preachers Songs and Albums | Full Official Chart History". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 15 June 2023.
  6. ^ a b "The Irish Charts – Search Results – Manic Street Preachers". Irish Singles Chart. Retrieved 15 June 2023.
  7. ^ a b "Manic Street Preachers: So Why So Sad" (in Finnish). Musiikkituottajat. Retrieved 15 June 2023.
  8. ^ a b "Manic Street Preachers – So Why So Sad". Singles Top 100. Retrieved 15 June 2023.
  9. ^ a b "Manic Street Preachers – So Why So Sad" (in Dutch). Single Top 100. Retrieved 15 June 2023.
  10. ^ a b "Offizielle Deutsche Charts" (in German). GfK Entertainment charts. To see the peak chart position, click 'TITEL VON', followed by the artist's name. Retrieved 15 June 2023.
  11. ^ So Why So Sad (UK CD single liner notes). Manic Street Preachers. Epic Records. 2001. 670832 2.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  12. ^ So Why So Sad (UK cassette single sleeve). Manic Street Preachers. Epic Records. 2001. 670832 4.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  13. ^ So Why So Sad (European CD single liner notes). Manic Street Preachers. Epic Records. 2001. EPC 670788 1.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  14. ^ So Why So Sad (Australian CD single liner notes). Manic Street Preachers. Epic Records. 2001. 670788 2.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  15. ^ "The ARIA Report: ARIA Alternative – Week Commencing 19th March 2001" (PDF). ARIA. 19 March 2001. p. 13. Archived from the original (PDF) on 22 February 2008. Retrieved 15 June 2023.
  16. ^ "Eurochart Hot 100 Singles". Music & Media. Vol. 18, no. 12. 17 March 2001. p. 15.
  17. ^ "The Official UK Singles Chart 2001" (PDF). UKChartsPlus. Retrieved 22 May 2018.
  18. ^ "Manic Street Preachers" (in Danish). Sony Music Denmark. Archived from the original on 31 March 2001. Retrieved 10 November 2023.
  19. ^ "The ARIA Report: New Releases Singles – Week Commencing 12th March 2001" (PDF). ARIA. 12 March 2001. p. 23. Archived from the original (PDF) on 22 February 2008. Retrieved 15 June 2023.
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