Israel (Siouxsie and the Banshees song)

"Israel" is a song by English rock band Siouxsie and the Banshees, released as a stand-alone single in 1980 by Polydor Records. The track was written by Siouxsie and the Banshees and co-produced with Nigel Gray, it featured a 30 singer Welsh choir on backing vocals.[1] While touring in Europe in Autumn 1980, the band wanted to write a Christmas song to be released on time for December of that year. They composed it on the road, which was quite unusual for them.[2]

"Israel"
Single by Siouxsie and the Banshees
B-side"Red Over White"
Released28 November 1980 (1980-11-28)
Recorded1980
GenrePost-punk
Length4:54
LabelPolydor
Songwriter(s)
Producer(s)
  • Nigel Gray
  • Siouxsie and the Banshees
Siouxsie and the Banshees singles chronology
"Christine"
(1980)		 "Israel"
(1980)		 "Spellbound"
(1981)
Music video
"Israel" on YouTube

The song became a favourite of several artists including Air's composer Jean-Benoît Dunckel who selected as one of his 10 all-time favourite songs,[3] and the band Ride who selected it as a song of their intro tape during their tours,[4] and producer Howie B. (a frequent collaborator of Björk and Tricky in the 1990s) who included it in a list of songs, representing the music he listened to when he grew up in Glasgow.[5]

Release

"Israel" was released as a stand-alone single in between the albums Kaleidoscope (1980) and Juju (1981) on 28 November 1980 by record label Polydor. It peaked at No. 41 on the UK Singles Chart.[6] It was the band's first single to be also released on a 12-inch although the track lengths on both sides of the 12-inch edition were the same as on the 7-inch.

Although it reached No. 73 on the US National Disco Action Top 100 chart as an import,[7] "Israel" did not appear on a Siouxsie and the Banshees album until the release of the Once Upon a Time: The Singles compilation the following year, although some copies of the US release of Juju on PVC Records included a free copy of this single.

The song was remastered in 2002 for the compilation CD The Best of Siouxsie and the Banshees and was also featured as a bonus track on the 2006 Kaleidoscope reissue.

Cover version

"Israel" was later covered by Nouvelle Vague on their 2006 album Bande à Part.

Track listing

All tracks are written by Siouxsie Sioux, Steven Severin, John McGeoch and Peter Clarke. All tracks produced by Nigel Gray and Siouxsie and the Banshees.

7-inch and 12-inch single[8][9]
No.TitleLength
1."Israel"4:54
2."Red Over White"4:31

Charts
Chart (1980) Peak
position
UK Singles (OCC)[6] 41
Billboard US Hot Dance/Disco[7] 73

References
  1. Houston, Billy (1980), The File, Phase One, The File [official fanzine]
  2. Paytress, Mark (2003). Siouxsie & the Banshees: The Authorised Biography. Sanctuary. ISBN 1-86074-375-7.
  3. "JDB Ma Compile La Sélection DE Darkel (Jean-Benoît DunckeL de AIR) [His all-time favourite playlist]". Les Inrockuptibles. September 2006. Archived from the original on 29 August 2018. Retrieved 25 August 2018.
  4. "Ride - Venue Music - May 2015 UK Tour". Soundcloud.com. Retrieved 6 May 2014.
  5. "Clash DJ Mix - Howie B"I hope you enjoy the trip..."". Clashmusic. 4 October 2014. Archived from the original on 21 January 2019. Retrieved 22 January 2018.
  6. "Official Singles Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 12 July 2018.
  7. "Chart History Siouxsie & The Banshees Dance Club Songs". Billboard. Retrieved 2 February 2020.
  8. "Israel" (UK 7-inch single). Siouxsie and the Banshees. Polydor Records. 1980. POSP 205.CS1 maint: others (link)
  9. "Israel" (UK 12-inch single). Siouxsie and the Banshees. Polydor Records. 1980. POSPX 205.CS1 maint: others (link)
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