| "Fools Gold"/"What the World Is Waiting For" | ||||
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| Single by The Stone Roses | ||||
| from the album Turns Into Stone | ||||
| Released | 13 November 1989 | |||
| Format | CD, cassette, 7" and 12" vinyl record | |||
| Recorded | 1989 | |||
| Genre | Indie rock,[1][2] Madchester | |||
| Length | 4:15 (radio edit) 9:53 (album version) |
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| Label | Silvertone | |||
| Producer | John Leckie | |||
| Certification | Silver (BPI) | |||
| The Stone Roses singles chronology | ||||
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"Fools Gold"/"What the World Is Waiting For" is a non-album double A-side by The Stone Roses. It was released in the UK, U.S., Mexico, Australia, Germany, Japan, and Spain. "Fools Gold" and "What the World Is Waiting For" are also available on the compilation Turns Into Stone. "Fools Gold" is also available as the final track on the US release of The Stone Roses self-titled LP, as well as the Very Best of The Stone Roses compilation.
"Fools Gold" became the band's biggest commercial hit at the time. It was their first single to reach the top ten of the UK Singles Chart and stayed in the Top 75 for fourteen weeks, peaking at number eight.
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"Fools Gold" and "What the World Is Waiting For" were recorded at Sawmills Studios in Cornwall, with additional vocal and guitar parts recorded later at London's Battery Studios, during the autumn of 1989. The tracks had been worked on for four months, and the intention was to put "What the World Is Waiting For" as the A side; however, when Roddy Mckenna, Silvertone's A&R man, heard "Fools Gold" he urged the band to use that as the A-side. The band were not completely convinced, and it was agreed, instead, to release the two tracks as a double A-side.[3]
The dance-oriented song showcased the rhythm section of Mani on bass and Reni on percussion. The main drum beat is a one-bar loop originally taken from "Hot Pants – I'm Coming, I'm Coming, I'm Coming" sung by Bobby Byrd with John "Jabo" Starks on drums and produced by James Brown, released on Brownstone Records in 1972.
John Squire also shone on guitar with its various wah-wah pedal effects. Finally, Ian Brown sang the vocals in a unique whispered delivery. He would also perform with this technique for the track "Something's Burning". The bassline was "inspired" by "Know How" by Young MC, which is a sample from the Shaft theme song, performed by Isaac Hayes. The lyrics reference Nancy Sinatra's "These Boots Are Made for Walkin'" and Marquis de Sade.
The single was released in 1989 and entered the UK top ten. It was promoted with a music video, showing The Stone Roses performing outdoors and walking across the volcanic landscape of Lanzarote, Canary Islands. The cover art was a painting by John Squire, "Double Dorsal Dopplegänger",[4] which was later exhibited at Squire's 2004 art exhibition.
The band's appearance on the same November Top of the Pops as the Happy Mondays, who performed "Hallelujah" from the Madchester Rave on E.P.,[5] is regarded as a "cultural high-water mark", exposing the emerging Madchester scene to a wider audience, and popularizing a new dance-oriented music genre, baggy.[6]
In May 2007, NME magazine placed "Fools Gold" at number 32 in its list of the 50 Greatest Indie Anthems Ever.
Australian radio station Triple J voted "Fools Gold" number 76 in its Triple J Hottest 100 of all time in July 2009.
In 1999, drum and bass DJ Grooverider remixed the song for the 1999 re-release remix CD. The remix peaked at #25 on the UK Singles Chart, and has often been described as one of the best of the many remixes of songs by The Stone Roses. It has also been featured on many chillout CDs.
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