Huey Lewis and the News – Hip To Be Square (US 12″ Promo)
Posted by DjPaulT on 1st March 2012
BURNING THE GROUND EXCLUSIVE 1986
REQUEST
“Hip to Be Square” is a song by Huey Lewis and the News, written by Bill Gibson, Sean Hopper, and Huey Lewis, and released in 1986 as the second single from the multi-platinum album, Fore!. The song features Pro Football Hall of Famers and then-San Francisco 49ers Joe Montana and Ronnie Lott singing backup vocals. The single reached number three on the Billboard Hot 100. In concert, Huey Lewis now normally sings the song as “(Too) Hip to Be Square”, as performed on their live album, Live at 25.
The song is referred to in the novel American Psycho when the main character, Patrick Bateman, provides a lengthy critique of Huey Lewis and the News’ career.
The song was then featured in the film adaptation during a scene in which Bateman (played by Christian Bale) gives an abridged version of his critique from the novel to Paul Allen (Jared Leto):
You like Huey Lewis and the News? Their early work was a little too New Wave for my taste, but when Sports came out in ’83, I think they really came into their own, commercially and artistically. The whole album has a clear, crisp sound, and a new sheen of consummate professionalism that really gives the songs a big boost. He’s been compared to Elvis Costello, but I think Huey has a far more bitter, cynical sense of humor. [...] In ’87, Huey released this, Fore!, their most accomplished album. I think their undisputed masterpiece is “Hip to Be Square,” a song so catchy, most people probably don’t listen to the lyrics. But they should, because it’s not just about the pleasures of conformity, and the importance of trends, it’s also a personal statement about the band itself.”
Immediately afterward, Bateman brutally murders Allen with an axe before casually smoking a cigar. It was originally featured on the accompanying soundtrack, but shortly after it was released, the album was pulled from the shelves and the song was removed before being reissued, but a small number had already been sold. Reports suggested that Huey Lewis had objected to the context in which his song was used in the film and demanded it be removed from the album. In reality, the film’s production team had paid for the rights to use the song in the film, but overlooked receiving the rights to include it on the soundtrack. When the soundtrack was released with the song on it, Huey Lewis had it withdrawn, as the soundtrack rights had not been secured.
The song was adapted on Sesame Street in a song entitled “It’s Hip to Be a Square”, whose first verse was designed to teach kids the different shapes, and the second verse celebrates diversity.
SIDE A:
Hip To Be Square (Dance Remix) 6:05
SIDE B:
Hip To Be Square (Dub Mix) 5:11
VINYL GRADE:
Vinyl: Near Mint
Sleeve: Near Mint
CHARTS:
| Year | Single | Chart | Position |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1986 | Hip To Be Square | U.S. Billboard Hot 100 | #3 |
| 1986 | Hip To Be Square | U.S. Billboard Hot Adult Contemporary Tracks | #20 |
| 1986 | Hip To Be Square | U.S. Billboard Hot Album Rock Tracks | #1 |
RELEASE INFORMATION:
Label: Chrysalis – 4V9 43075
Format: Vinyl, 12″, Single, 45 RPM
Country: US
Released: 1986
Genre: Rock
Style: Pop Rock
Credits: Artwork By [Graphic Design] – Laura Lamar
Engineer [Remix] – Steve Peck
Photography [Photo Illustration], Artwork By [Creative Direction] – Bennett Hall
Producer – Huey Lewis And The News*
Remix – Shep Pettibone
Written-By – B. Gibson*, H. Lewis*, S. Hopper*
NOTES:
Remixed for Mastermix Productions.
Mastered at Sterling.
Find The 12″ On DISCOGS
EQUIPMENT USED:
Turntable: Pro-Ject Debut III
Cartridge: Ortofon Super
Stylus: Ortofon OM Stylus 30
Bellari VP130 Tube Phono Preamp
Soundcard: ESI Juli@
VPI HW 16.5 Record Cleaning Machine
Brother MFC-6490CW Professional Series Scanner
SOFTWARE USED:
Adobe Audition 3.0 (Recording)
Adobe Photoshop CS5
ClickRepair
dBpoweramp
Playlist Creator
RESTORATION NOTES:
All vinyl rips are recorded @ 32bit/float
Downsampled to 24bit/96kHz and16bit /44kHz using iZotope RX Advanced 2
FLAC (Level Eight)
MP3 (320kbps)
Artwork scanned at 600dpi
PW: burningtheground
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Tags: 1986, Hip To Be Square (Dance Remix), Huey Lewis and the News, Shep Pettibone, US 12" Promo
Posted in Huey Lewis and the News | 21 Comments »