If I Had a Gun...
"If I Had a Gun..." is a song by the English rock band Noel Gallagher's High Flying Birds, written by frontman Noel Gallagher from their self-titled debut studio album Noel Gallagher's High Flying Birds (2011). It was released as the third single on 26 December 2011 in all regions bar the United Kingdom. As with the other single releases from Noel Gallagher's High Flying Birds singles, Strangeboy Stacey engineered and mixed the B-side. The song impacted US radio on 13 September 2011.[1]
| "If I Had a Gun..." | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
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| Single by Noel Gallagher's High Flying Birds | ||||
| from the album Noel Gallagher's High Flying Birds | ||||
| B-side | "I'd Pick You Every Time" | |||
| Released | 26 December 2011 | |||
| Genre | Rock | |||
| Length | 4:18 | |||
| Label | Sour Mash | |||
| Songwriter(s) | Noel Gallagher | |||
| Producer(s) | Noel Gallagher, Dave Sardy | |||
| Noel Gallagher's High Flying Birds singles chronology | ||||
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| Noel Gallagher's High Flying Birds track listing | ||||
10 tracks
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The track features Jon Graboff on second guitar (credited as the Pedal Steel in the sleeve notes).
Background
Written in Lima, Peru and originally intended to be the lead single off the album, "If I Had a Gun..." was passed over in favour of "The Death of You and Me" as Noel thought it sounded too much like Oasis and wanted to make his comeback with a whisper rather than with a bang while describing the song as "emotionally uplifting and up there with the best I've wrote".
The song first surfaced on the Internet when Noel was recorded playing it at a soundcheck in Taiwan in April 2009 during the Asian leg of Oasis' Dig Out Your Soul world tour.
Music video
Filmed in Los Angeles, California, the music video for "If I Had a Gun..." is centred on a wedding ceremony with Noel acting as the priest. During the ceremony a cowboy on a horse arrives and dives into a swimming pool and the bride (Peyton List) follows him and they ride off into the sunset on the horse. Visible at 3:27 are the two women and the "Soulsucker" video camera from the "AKA... What a Life!" music video.
The video appears to be part of a three video story start with "If I Had a Gun" then "The Death of You and Me" and ending with "AKA... What a Life!" as all the videos begin where the other one finished but the videos weren't released in chronological form as the singles came out in a different order.
At the end of the video Noel pulls up in a van outside the same diner he's featured in during "The Death of You and Me" – while in the background, as he's walking toward the door, there is a preview of "Shoot a Hole into the Sun," the remixed version of "If I Had a Gun...," from his cancelled 2012 collaboration album with Amorphous Androgynous. Directed and produced by Mike Bruce, with producers Blake West and Camille LaBry of United Film House.
Chart performance and reception
As of the chart week ending 21 January 2012, 'If I Had a Gun' had peaked at number 95 in the UK Singles Chart. It was very successful in Japan, peaking at number two on the Japan Hot 100, on the week of 29 October 2011 (and stayed on the chart for many weeks before and after).[2] It ranked at number 77 on the end-of-the-year chart of the Japan Hot 100.[3]
For much of 6 May 2012 and 7 May 2012, "If I Had a Gun" was the No. 1 Trending Topic worldwide on Twitter. The Trending Topic originated in Buenos Aires, Argentina during Noel Gallagher's concert there on the night of 6 May 2012.[4]
Track listing
- CD, 7" JDNCSCD11
- "If I Had a Gun..." - 4:18
- "I'd Pick You Every Time" - 2:11
- Digital download JDNCSCD11
- "If I Had a Gun..." - 4:18
- "I'd Pick You Every Time" - 2:11
- "If I Had a Gun..." (music video) - 4:47
References
- "AllAccess.com Alternative eWeekly". AllAccess. 6 September 2011. Retrieved 3 July 2016.
- "Japan Hot 100:Year-End". Billboard—Japan. Prometheus Global Media. 2011. Retrieved 25 November 2013.
- "If I Had a Gun - trend explained". What The Trend. 7 May 2012. Retrieved 7 May 2012.