Walking in My Shoes

"Walking in My Shoes"
Single by Depeche Mode
from the album Songs of Faith and Devotion
B-side"My Joy"
Written1991
Released26 April 1993 (1993-04-26)
Recorded1992
Studio
Genre
Length
  • 5:35 (album version)
  • 4:59 (single version)
LabelMute
SongwriterMartin Gore
Producers
Depeche Mode singles chronology
"I Feel You"
(1993) 		"Walking in My Shoes"
(1993) 		"Condemnation"
(1993)
Music video
"Walking in My Shoes" on YouTube

"Walking in My Shoes" is a song by the English electronic music band Depeche Mode. Produced by the band and Flood, it was released on 26 April 1993 by Mute and Sire as the second single from their eighth studio album, Songs of Faith and Devotion (1993). The song reached number 14 on the UK Singles Chart and matched the success of the previous single "I Feel You" on the US Billboard Modern Rock Tracks chart, where it reached one. The B-side is "My Joy", a song originally intended to be included on the album itself.

The song was cited by then-member Alan Wilder to be his favourite song from the album together with "In Your Room". Its music video was directed by Anton Corbijn.

Background

Main article: Songs of Faith and Devotion

"Walking in My Shoes" was written by songwriter Martin Gore in 1991.[3] In February 1992, the band convened at a villa near Madrid, Spain, to start the recording sessions for the album, at which time they were presented with the demo for the song.[4] The sessions were fraught with struggles, as lead singer Dave Gahan was struggling with an addiction to heroin, and the rest of the band found themselves frequently at odds.[5]

Recording

Recording for the song began during the Madrid sessions in February 1992.[4] "Walking in My Shoes" began with the band jamming together.[6] Said Wilder, "Martin [Gore] played the guitar, I played bass and we ran a rhythm machine – this was just to get the basic feel of the track, and after much trial and error, the chorus bass line and guitar pattern fell into place."[6] The track included a piano part which was processed through a guitar processor to add distortion.[7] Wilder wanted the song to sound less programmed, so to that end, he said that "There are different [drum] loops in the verse, an additional loop comes in on the bridge, and the chorus brings in a complete change of drum sound and rhythm. Plus, there are different drum fills, hi-hat patterns, and top percussion parts in each section. The combination of all that gives you the impression of rhythm changing all the time."[7] By mixing the drums further into the background in the song, it helped to avoid sounding "too dance-oriented".[7]

Wilder said that the track "is probably the best example of the new multi-layered DM sound. The more organic feel was created with the use of live bass and guitar, plus a dynamic string arrangement and a series of different drum loops, blended with both old and new Mode techniques. The e-bow guitar (playing the end melody) endowed the track with a haunting quality, which was also evident in Dave's voice mirroring the distorted piano and harpsichord riff."[8] The songs from the album, including "Walking in My Shoes", were the first that the band used Cubase software to sequence.[9]

By the time the band was at Olympic Studios in Paris in late 1992 to finish up the album, the track had been completed and Wilder began mixing the song for its single release.[10]

Release and promotion

"Walking in My Shoes" was released on 26 April 1993 in the United Kingdom.[11] Mute Records released the single in a variety of formats, including on 7" vinyl with catalogue number 7BONG22 and two 12" vinyl singles (12BONG22 and L12BONG22).[12] They also released 7" and 12" promotional vinyl singles, designated BONG22 and P12BONG22, respectively.[13] In Germany, Intercord Records released the single, with the 12" vinyl being assigned catalogue number INT 111.912.[13] Remixes of the track were created by Jonny Dollar, Portishead, William Orbit, and Mark 'Spike' Stent.[13] The single's B-side was another Gore composition, "My Joy", which was originally intended for inclusion on the album itself, but was moved to a B-side when the band agreed it wasn't a strong enough track.[14] Wilder and Steve Lyon, who had acted as the sound engineer on the album, provided a remix of "My Joy."[15] Said Wilder, "It was remixed by Steve Lyon and myself; I reconfigured the track for the 12" version, with Steve engineering."[8]

The single failed to reach the UK top 10 or the US top 40; nevertheless, the song became a top ten hit in some countries of Continental Europe, and became a recurring song during the live performances of the band since 1993. The song peaked number 14 on the UK Singles Chart and number 69 on the US Billboard Hot 100. On the Billboard Modern Rock Tracks chart, it peaked number one for a week.

On the album, "Walking in My Shoes" was slotted as the second track, after "I Feel You" and before "Condemnation".[16]

Though Wilder said that the band members had drifted as far apart as they had ever been during the recording of the song and album, the emotional stress contributed to make "Walking in My Shoes" one of the band's greatest works.[5] Years later, Wilder, Gore and producer Flood called the song one of the best they'd ever made.[5][17]

Music video

The accompanying music video for "Walking in My Shoes" was directed by Dutch photographer, film director and music video director Anton Corbijn.[13] Praised as one of their best videos in Burmeister and Lang's Monument biography, the video visuals are inspired by Hieronymus Bosch's triptych The Garden of Earthly Delights.[13]

Other releases

The song, in its original or remixed form, appears on later compilation releases, including The Singles 86–98 (1998), Remixes 81–04 (2004), The Best of Depeche Mode Volume 1 (2006) and Remixes 2: 81–11 (2011).

Live performances

Depeche Mode performed "Walking in My Shoes" live during their subsequent tours, including the 1993–94 Devotional Tour, the 2001 Exciter Tour, the 2005–06 Touring the Angel tour, the 2009–10 Tour of the Universe, the 2013–14 Delta Machine Tour, the 2018–19 Global Spirit Tour and the 2023–24 Memento Mori World Tour. Performances from these tours were released on Devotional (1993), One Night in Paris (2002), Touring the Angel: Live in Milan (2006), Tour of the Universe: Barcelona 20/21.11.09 (2010), Live in Berlin (2014), and Depeche Mode: M (2025).

On the Global Spirit Tour, the song was accompanied by a narrative video about a transgender musician getting dressed in the morning and going to perform at a bar.[18][19][20]

Critical reception

Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[21]

David Fricke from Melody Maker wrote: "'Walking in My Shoes' is better neo-Bowie than we've heard in some time, a long-distance 'Heroes' knockoff via the group's own 'Enjoy the Silence' complete with hints of Robert Fripp's skysaw guitar."[22] Sam Wood from Philadelphia Inquirer felt that the song, "with its moody minor-key melody and burbling bass-line reminiscent of early Simple Minds, adapts an ancient Native American proverb to create an anthemic plea for compassion".[23] Andrew Harrison from Select named it the best track of the album, noting its "intensified, pulsating downward spiral".[24] Leesa Daniels from Smash Hits gave it three out of five, adding: "The great thing about the 'Mode is their songs always have a chorus that's easy to sing along to. That's the case here, although for a change it does take a few listens to get the hang of it. The song is very atmospheric in a black-and-white-grainy-film for the video kind of way. Lovely."[25] U2 lead singer Bono listed the song on his "60 Songs That Saved My Life" playlist.[26]

Track listings

All songs were written by Martin Gore.

Charts

Release history

Region Date Format(s) Label(s) Ref.
Australia 26 April 1993
  • CD
  • cassette
[64]
United Kingdom
  • 12-inch vinyl
  • CD
  • cassette
 Mute [11]
Japan 1 May 1993 CD [65]

See also

References

  1. ^ Shaw, William (April 1993). "In The Mode". Details: 90–95, 168. Archived from the original on 2 April 2015. Retrieved 17 June 2013.
  2. ^ a b Cosores, Philip (5 July 2017). "Ranking: Every Alternative Rock No. 1 Hit from Worst to Best". Consequence. Retrieved 18 June 2025.
  3. ^ Gittins 2018, p. 155.
  4. ^ a b Gittins 2018, p. 157.
  5. ^ a b c Hallard & Lane (2006)
  6. ^ a b Miller 2003, p. 482.
  7. ^ a b c Doerschuk, Robert L. (July 1993). "Modus Operandi". Sound on Sound. ISSN 0951-6816. Archived from the original on 20 February 2014. Retrieved 17 June 2013 – via Playingtheangel.com.
  8. ^ a b Miller 2003, p. 523.
  9. ^ Miller 2003, p. 484.
  10. ^ Weidenbaum, Marc (May 1993). "Fashion Victims". Pulse! (magazine). No. 114. pp. 49–53.
  11. ^ a b "Depeche Mode 'Walking in My Shoes' 1993". depmode.com. Retrieved 25 October 2022.
  12. ^ Burmeister & Lange 2017, pp. 212–213.
  13. ^ a b c d e Burmeister & Lange 2017, p. 212.
  14. ^ Miller 2003, p. 521.
  15. ^ Burmeister & Lange 2017, p. 213.
  16. ^ Gittins 2018, p. 161.
  17. ^ Olexova, Michaela (September 1998). "The Singles 86>98 by Martin Gore". Bong. No. 37. pp. 18–19.
  18. ^ Coughlin, Kevin P. (13 September 2017). "Depeche Mode gets 'spiritual' at Madison Square Garden". New York Daily News. Retrieved 18 April 2024.
  19. ^ Valente, Joanna C. (14 September 2017). "Depeche Mode Gets Political". Luna Luna Magazine. Retrieved 18 April 2024.
  20. ^ Naftule, Ashley (28 September 2017). "Depeche Mode Never Let Us Down at Ak-Chin Pavilion". Phoenix New Times. Retrieved 18 April 2024.
  21. ^ Raggett, Ned. "Walking in My Shoes – Depeche Mode". AllMusic. Retrieved 15 March 2026.
  22. ^ Fricke, David (13 March 1993). "Albums". Melody Maker. p. 30. Retrieved 5 May 2023.
  23. ^ Wood, Sam (30 March 1993). "Depeche Mode Meditates on Religion with 'Songs of Faith and Devotion'". Philadelphia Inquirer.
  24. ^ Harrison, Andrew (April 1993). "Reviews: New Albums". Select. p. 75. Retrieved 1 January 2025.
  25. ^ Daniels, Leesa (28 April 1993). "New Singles". Smash Hits. p. 49. Retrieved 27 April 2021.
  26. ^ "60 Songs That Saved My Life". U2.com. Retrieved 27 September 2020.
  27. ^ Walking in My Shoes (UK CD single liner notes). Mute Records. 1993. CD BONG 22.
  28. ^ Walking in My Shoes (UK limited CD single liner notes). Mute Records. 1993. LCD BONG 22.
  29. ^ Walking in My Shoes (UK limited 12-inch single sleeve). Mute Records. 1993. L12 BONG 22.
  30. ^ Walking in My Shoes (UK 12-inch single sleeve). Mute Records. 1993. 12 BONG 22.
  31. ^ Walking in My Shoes (Japanese CD single liner notes). Mute Records. 1993. 9 40852-2.
  32. ^ Walking in My Shoes (UK cassette single sleeve). Mute Records. 1993. C BONG 22.
  33. ^ Walking in My Shoes (US cassette single sleeve). Sire Records, Reprise Records, Mute Records. 1993. 4-18506.
  34. ^ Walking in My Shoes (US 7-inch single vinyl disc). Sire Records, Reprise Records, Mute Records. 1993. 7-18506.
  35. ^ Walking in My Shoes (US 12-inch single vinyl disc). Sire Records, Reprise Records, Mute Records. 1993. 0-40852.
  36. ^ Walking in My Shoes (US maxi-cassette single cassette notes). Sire Records, Reprise Records, Mute Records. 1993. 4-40852.
  37. ^ Walking in My Shoes (US maxi-CD single disc notes). Sire Records, Reprise Records, Mute Records. 1993. 9 40852-2.
  38. ^ Ryan, Gavin (2011). Australia's Music Charts 1988-2010. Mt. Martha, VIC, Australia: Moonlight Publishing.
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  63. ^ "The Year in Music: Top Modern Rock Tracks". Billboard. Vol. 105, no. 52. 25 December 1993. p. YE-39.
  64. ^ "New Release Summary – Product Available from : 26/04/93: Singles". The ARIA Report. No. 168. 25 April 1993. p. 19.
  65. ^ "デペッシュ・モード | ウォーキング・イン・マイ・シューズ" [Depeche Mode | Walking in My Shoes] (in Japanese). Oricon. Retrieved 5 February 2025.

Works cited

  • Burmeister, Dennis; Lange, Sascha (2017). Depeche Mode: Monument. New York: Akashic Books. ISBN 978-1-61775-593-4.
  • Gittins, Ian (2018). Depeche Mode: Faith and Devotion. London: Palazzo Editions. ISBN 978-1-78675-064-8.
  • Hallard, Ross (director); Lane, Phil Michael (director) (2006). Depeche Mode: 1991–94 (We Were Going to Live Together, Record Together and It Was Going to Be Wonderful) (DVD). Mute Records.
  • Miller, Jonathan (2003). Stripped: The True Story of Depeche Mode. Omnibus Press. ISBN 1-84449-415-2.
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