High and Dry

"High and Dry/Planet Telex"

High and Dry/Planet Telex CD1 single cover
Single by Radiohead
from the album The Bends
A-side "Planet Telex"
B-side "Maquiladora" and "Planet Telex" (hexidecimal mix) (CD1)
"Killer Cars" and "Planet Telex" (l.f.o. jd mix) (CD2)
"India Rubber", "Maquiladora", "How Can You Be Sure" and "Just" (Live at the Forum) (U.S.)
Released February 1995
Recorded 1992-1993
Genre Alternative rock
Length 4:17
Label Parlophone (UK)
Capitol Records (US)
Writer(s) Radiohead
Producer John Leckie
Radiohead
Radiohead singles chronology
"My Iron Lung"
(1993)
"High and Dry"/"Planet Telex"
(1995)
"Fake Plastic Trees"
(1995)
The Bends track listing
"The Bends" "High and Dry"
(3)
"Fake Plastic Trees"
(4)

"High and Dry" is a song by the English alternative rock band Radiohead, and was the first single released from their second album, The Bends (1995). It was as a double A-side with album opener "Planet Telex". "High and Dry" was released in the UK on 5 March 1995 and remains one of the band's most popular radio hits, despite reaching only #17 upon release.

"High and Dry" was recorded during the Pablo Honey sessions but was dismissed by the band, who thought that it sounded like a Rod Stewart song.[1] However, during the sessions for The Bends it was rediscovered and remastered, as it was felt that it worked well with the rest of the album's content. The version that appears on the album is the original demo; it was never re-recorded.

The song is widely regarded as Radiohead's most accessible pop hit, and was a live favorite, though it has not been performed in a decade. In a 2007 interview with Pitchfork Media, Thom Yorke stated that he did not like the song, saying "It's not bad... it's very bad". He also stated that he was pressured into including the song on The Bends.[2]

Contents

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Track listing

CD1

  1. "High and Dry" - 4:17
  2. "Planet Telex" - 4:18
  3. "Maquiladora" - 3:27
  4. "Planet Telex (Hexidecimal Mix)" - 6:44

CD2

  1. "Planet Telex" - 4:18
  2. "High and Dry" - 4:17
  3. "Killer Cars" - 3:02
  4. "Planet Telex (L.F.O. JD Mix)" - 4:40

12" vinyl

  1. "Planet Telex (Hexidecimal Mix)" - 6:44
  2. "Planet Telex (L.F.O. JD Mix)" - 4:40
  3. "Planet Telex (Hexidecimal Dub)" - 7:32
  4. "High and Dry" - 4:17

U.S.

  1. "High and Dry" - 4:16
  2. "India Rubber" - 3:26
  3. "Maquiladora" - 3:26
  4. "How Can You Be Sure" - 4:21
  5. "Just" (live at the forum) - 3:47

Music videos

Two music videos were created for "High and Dry", one produced for the American market and another for Britain. The first version, directed by Paul Cunningham, stars the band in a diner (Dick's Restaurant & Cocktails, in San Leandro, California), where other patrons are involved in dramas of their own, which are revealed through the use of flashbacks. A couple and the diner's cook are involved in an unspecified crime. A businessman is hiding something in his briefcase. In the end, the two dramas are resolved when the guilty parties are betrayed, the cook gives the couple a time bomb and the businessman is ambushed and killed (though the murder is only suggested).

The British version of the video is in black and white, directed by David Mould. It shows the band performing in a desert setting amidst trucks and filming equipment. By the end of the video, it rains on the band, but they continue playing. This was actually the first version of the video produced, but the band expressed dissatisfaction with it, leading to the other video. Only the US version appears on the band's 1998 video compilation 7 Television Commercials, and both the UK and US versions appear on the Radiohead: The Best Of DVD released in 2008 by EMI.

Cover versions

A cover version of the song appears on English pop-jazz singer Jamie Cullum's album Pointless Nostalgic, and on some international versions of his subsequent album Twentysomething. Uruguayan singer Jorge Drexler covered the song in English and with an acoustic guitar on his album 12 segundos de oscuridad. A version of the song with Spanish lyrics and in a timba style was recorded by Cuban band Los Van Van for the collaborative nonprofit album Rhythms del Mundo. American pop/punk band Yellowcard covered this song for AOL Sessions Under Cover. Soul singer Bilal covered the song for the Radiohead tribute album Exit Music: Songs with Radio Heads. Emily Osment did a cover of "High & Dry" live on tour.

The song was also covered by jacksoul on their 2006 album mySOUL. Something Corporate also covered the song, recording a demo of it during their Galaxy Sessions.

The song has been covered by Amanda Palmer and appears on her 2010 album, Amanda Palmer Performs the Popular Hits of Radiohead on Her Magical Ukulele.

The country music band Lady Antebellum covered the song during their 2010 summer UK tour.

American Idol (Season 7) winner David Cook covered the song at VH1's studio.

The song has been also covered by the Israeli singer Ninet Tayeb and the Israeli rock band Red Band on the T.V. series Red Band and appears later on their album Red Band in 2011.

Nerina Pallot covered the song in her session at Abbey Road Studios for the BBC on 23rd November 2011

Other appearances

The song is heard in the background of a scene in the film I Now Pronounce You Chuck and Larry. The song is also featured in the 2011 film 50/50.

References

External links