Our Lips Are Sealed

"Our Lips Are Sealed" is a song co-written by Jane Wiedlin, guitarist of The Go-Go's, and Terry Hall, singer of the Specials and Fun Boy Three.

For the Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen film, see Our Lips Are Sealed (film).
"Our Lips Are Sealed"
Single by The Go-Go's
from the album Beauty and the Beat
B-side"Surfing and Spying"
ReleasedJune 12, 1981
Recorded1981
Genre
Length2:44
LabelI.R.S.
Songwriter(s)
Producer(s)
The Go-Go's singles chronology
"Our Lips Are Sealed"
(1981)		 "We Got the Beat"
(1982)

It was first recorded by The Go-Go's as the opening track on their album Beauty and the Beat (1981) and was their debut American single in June 1981. The single eventually reached the top 5 in Australia and Canada, and the top 20 in the United States. Although originally written and performed with three verses,[2] an abbreviated version of the song appears on Beauty and the Beat. Although most of the song's lead vocals are performed by usual lead singer Belinda Carlisle, co-writer Wiedlin sings the bridge. In 1983, Hall's band, Fun Boy Three, released their version of "Our Lips Are Sealed". Issued as a single, the track became a top ten hit in the United Kingdom and remains the best known version of "Lips" in that country. The recording by The Go-Go's, while a bigger hit elsewhere, only made No. 47 in the UK.

In 2000, Rolling Stone named "Our Lips Are Sealed" one of the 100 Greatest Pop Songs of all time.

Origins

The Go-Go's supported the Specials on the latter's 1980 'Seaside' tour of England. According to Jane Wiedlin, she and Terry Hall had a brief affair despite his having a girlfriend. After Wiedlin returned to the United States, Hall mailed her some lyrics, and this led to their co-writing the song. The Go-Go's version is significantly more upbeat than Fun Boy Three's, which Wiedlin describes as "great" but also "gloomier".[3]

Music video

The official music video for the song features sequences of the band members in carefree tableaux (riding around in a 1960 Buick convertible, stopping at a lingerie shop, and splashing around in a fountain) interspersed with footage of the band playing a club booking.

Jane Wiedlin says the band was initially unenthusiastic about doing the video when Miles Copeland, president of their label, I.R.S. Records, told them they would be doing it. "We were totally bratty", she recalls. The video was financed with unused funds from the Police's video budget.[4]

The concept was for the band to drive around and be followed by a camera. Belinda Carlisle would sing, and the other members would do cute things. They wanted an older-style convertible, and found a 1960 Buick at Rent-a-Wreck. It was, says Wiedlin, the band's idea to end the video by jumping into the Electric Fountain on the corner of Wilshire Boulevard and Santa Monica Boulevard in Beverly Hills. "I thought, at any minute the cops are gonna come. This is gonna be so cool."[4]

Wiedlin looks back on the video experience fondly. "I have horrible '80s poodle hair in [it]", she recalled in a 2011 history of MTV. "But there's a simplicity and innocence to the video that appeals to me."[5] In one sequence, Belinda Carlisle can be seen trying to hide; she later admitted this was deliberate, as she thought the whole idea of a music video was ridiculous and unlikely to catch on.

Chart performance

The original version peaked at number 20 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart, and 15 on the Billboard Top Rock Tracks chart. On the dance chart, the song peaked at number 10.[6] A song of unusual longevity as a hit, it remained on the Billboard charts until March 1982, long after its peak, ultimately charting for 30 weeks.[7]

Fun Boy Three version
"Our Lips Are Sealed"
Single by Fun Boy Three
from the album Waiting
Released29 April 1983
GenreNew wave
LabelChrysalis
Songwriter(s)Jane Wiedlin, Terry Hall
Producer(s)David Byrne
Fun Boy Three singles chronology
"Tunnel of Love"
(1980)		 "Our Lips Are Sealed"
(1983)		 "The Farm Yard Connection"
(1983)

The following year, co-writer Terry Hall re-recorded the song with his own band, Fun Boy Three. It was included on their second album Waiting and reached number seven on the UK Singles Chart, and was the last single to chart in the UK before their split later in 1983. Backing vocals were provided by Mo-dettes drummer June Miles-Kingston, who also played drums on the single and the Waiting LP.

2x7" single (Chrysalis FUNB 1 + FBFRE 1)
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Our Lips Are Sealed" (Single Version)Terry Hall, Jane Wiedlin2:51
2."Our Lips Are Sealed" (Urdu Version)Hall, Wiedlin3:50
3."Going Home" (Specially recorded by The Old Grey Whistle Test)The Fun Boy Three 
4."We're Having All the Fun" (Specially recorded by The Old Grey Whistle Test)The Fun Boy Three 
12" single (Chrysalis 4V9-42689)
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Our Lips Are Sealed" (Special Club Remix)Terry Hall, Jane Wiedlin6:07
2."Our Lips Are Sealed" (Single Version)Hall, Wiedlin2:51
3."Our Lips Are Sealed" (Urdu Version)Hall, Wiedlin3:50
12" UK single (Chrysalis FUNBX 1)
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Our Lips Are Sealed" (Remixed Version)Terry Hall, Jane Wiedlin6:00
2."Our Lips Are Sealed" (Single Version)Hall, Wiedlin2:51
3."Our Lips Are Sealed" (Urdu Version)Hall, Wiedlin3:50
Chart (1983) Peak
position
Ireland (IRMA) 13
UK Singles (The Official Charts Company) 7

Hilary and Haylie Duff version
"Our Lips Are Sealed"
Single by Hilary Duff and Haylie Duff
from the album A Cinderella Story
ReleasedMay 2004[15]
Recorded2004
GenrePop rock
Length2:40
LabelHollywood
Songwriter(s)Jane Wiedlin, Terry Hall
Producer(s)John Shanks
Hilary Duff singles chronology
"Little Voice"
(2004)		 "Our Lips Are Sealed"
(2004)		 "Fly"
(2004)
A Cinderella Story singles chronology
"Our Lips Are Sealed"
(2004)		 "Tell Me Something I Don't Know"
(2008)

Sisters Hilary and Haylie Duff covered the song for the soundtrack to the 2004 film A Cinderella Story, in which Hilary starred. The cover, recorded as a duet with Duff's sister Haylie and produced by John Shanks, was released as a single in the United States in May 2004. The Duff sisters said in an interview that they had wanted to record together, and Hilary chose "Our Lips Are Sealed" because the "secretive" theme of the song relates to the film A Cinderella Story.[16] As of July 27, 2014, the song had sold 161,000 copies in the United States.[17]

Music video

The single's music video was directed by Chris Applebaum and filmed in Toronto, Canada, in May 2004.[16] Similar to the video for the Go-Go's single, it depicts the Duff sisters driving around town in a car and goofing about, and is interspersed with footage from A Cinderella Story. A second version of the video, which has new scenes and is not interspersed with scenes from A Cinderella Story, can be viewed on the Dignity deluxe edition DVD.

It was released on June 3 and received medium airplay on MuchMusic in Canada and MTV in the U.S. Though the video was popular on the MTV video chart show Total Request Live, the single itself was less successful than the original Go-Go's song in the U.S., failing to chart on the Hot 100. In Australia it reached number eight. The song was later included on Duff's compilation album, Most Wanted (2005).

This version was also included in the Japanese and Australian editions of Hilary Duff's second compilation album Best of Hilary Duff.

Track listing
  1. "Our Lips Are Sealed" – 2:40
  2. "Our Lips Are Sealed" (music video) – 2:50
  3. A Cinderella Story movie trailer – 1:44

Charts
Chart (2004) Peak
position
Australia (ARIA)[18] 8

References
  1. Cateforis, Theo (2011). Are We Not New Wave?: Modern Pop at the Turn of the 1980s. University of Michigan Press. p. 139. ISBN 978-0-472-03470-3.
  2. See video "Totally Go-Go's" recorded live on December 4, 1981, at Palos Verdes High School
  3. "Jane Wiedlin from the Go-Go's: Songwriter Interviews". Songfacts.com. 2007-10-22. Retrieved 2016-10-23.
  4. Marks, Craig; Tannenbaum, Rob (2011). I Want My MTV: The Uncensored Story of the Music Video Revolution. New York, NY: Dutton. pp. 92–93. ISBN 978-0-525-95230-5.
  5. I Want My MTV, 104.
  6. Whitburn, Joel (2004). Hot Dance/Disco: 1974-2003. Record Research. p. 111.
  7. Top Pop Singles 1955-1999 by Joel Whitburn
  8. Kent, David (1993). Australian Chart Book 1970–1992. St Ives, NSW: Australian Chart Book. ISBN 0-646-11917-6.
  9. "Image: RPM Weekly - Library and Archives Canada" (PDF). Bac-lac.gc.ca. Retrieved 2016-10-23.
  10. "Charts.nz – Go Go's – Our Lips Are Sealed". Top 40 Singles.
  11. "Swedishcharts.com – Go Go's – Our Lips Are Sealed". Singles Top 100.
  12. "Forum – ARIA Charts: Special Occasion Charts – 1982". Australian-charts.com. Hung Medien. Retrieved 17 April 2017.
  13. "Item Display - RPM - Library and Archives Canada". Collectionscanada.gc.ca. Archived from the original on 2016-08-11. Retrieved 2016-10-23.
  14. "Top 100 Hits of 1982/Top 100 Songs of 1982". Musicoutfitters.com. Retrieved 2016-10-23.
  15. "Music: Billboard Picks" (PDF). American Radio History. Billboard. June 5, 2004. p. 32. Retrieved June 16, 2020.
  16. Moss, Corey. "Hilary And Haylie Give The Go-Go's A Double-Duff Treatment". MTV News. May 20, 2004.
  17. "Ask Billboard: How Has Enrique Iglesias' 'Bailando' Become Such A Big Hit?". Billboard. July 27, 2014. Retrieved July 27, 2014.
  18. "Australian-charts.com – Hilary Duff & Haylie Duff – Our Lips Are Sealed". ARIA Top 50 Singles. Retrieved November 24, 2013.
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