| "World in Motion" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Single by New Order | ||||
| B-side | "The B-side" (1990) "Such a Good Thing" (2002) |
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| Released | 21 May 1990 | |||
| Format | CD, cassette, 12", 7" | |||
| Recorded | The Mill, Buckinghamshire, March 1990 | |||
| Genre | Dance[1] | |||
| Length | 4:30 | |||
| Label | Factory - FAC 293 | |||
| Writer(s) | Keith Allen Bernard Sumner Peter Hook Stephen Morris Gillian Gilbert [2] |
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| Producer | New Order, Stephen Hague | |||
| New Order singles chronology | ||||
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"World in Motion" is a song by English musical group New Order. It is New Order's only UK number one single. The song was produced for the England football team's 1990 FIFA World Cup campaign, and features several members of the 1990 English team, as well as comedian Keith Allen, who co-wrote the lyrics. Originally it was going to be called "E for England" but the Football Association, worried that it would be taken as a reference to the drug ecstasy, vetoed that title.
The backing track for the chorus of "World in Motion" bore some similarities to the instrumental theme tune for the DEF II current-affairs show, Reportage,[3] which had been written for the show by Stephen Morris and Gillian Gilbert of New Order. The song was produced by Stephen Hague, who had also produced one of the group's earlier hits, "True Faith".
The single's B-side, an early version of the A-side, was titled "The B-Side", extending the football theme of the release. It was produced by former Swans member Roli Mosimann. The single was released in May 1990 with the catalogue number FAC 293. It was New Order's last release on Factory Records.
A rap is performed by Jamaican-born England player John Barnes towards the end of the track. Barnes was selected to perform the rap after a contest with other players including Peter Beardsley, Paul Gascoigne, and Chris Waddle.[4] The rap part was co-written by former Liverpool player Craig Johnston. In addition to Barnes, the entire squad sing on parts of the track.
In 1996, LFO's Mark Bell remixed version of the song appeared on The Beautiful Game, which was released to tie in with Euro 96.
The single was re-released for the 2002 FIFA World Cup, this time with the track "Such a Good Thing" replacing "The B-Side". It failed to enter the UK Top 40. The 2002 version was planned to have David Beckham performing the rap, but the F.A. vetoed the idea.[5] It was due to have been re-released again in remixed form for the 2006 FIFA World Cup, however despite a UK release date of May 29, 2006 a last minute decision was taken to shelve this release and the remix has never surfaced.
The legendary "They think it's all over" quotation uttered by football commentator Kenneth Wolstenholme at the end of the 1966 World Cup Final between England and West Germany is utilised at the beginning and end of the track (though not the original; Wolstenholme re-recorded his famous phrase especially for the producers), and somewhat less known samples, such as "A beauty scored by Bobby Charlton" and "We Want Goals", are taken from Goal!, the official documentary film on the 1966 tournament; the voice is that of actor Nigel Patrick.
In 2010 a reworked version of the song was used in a commercial for the Mars Bar.[6]
Contents |
The same tracks appear on the 7" and cassette singles.
| Chart (1990) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Australia ARIA Singles Chart | 21 |
| German Media Control Singles Chart[7] | 21 |
| Irish Singles Chart[8] | 7 |
| New Zealand RIANZ Singles Chart | 8 |
| UK Singles Chart[9] | 1 |
| UK Indie Chart | 1 |
| U.S. Billboard Hot Dance Club Play | 10 |
| U.S. Billboard Hot Dance Singles Sales | 5 |
| U.S. Billboard Modern Rock Tracks | 5 |
| Chart (2002, NUOCD12 release) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| UK Singles Chart[9] | 43 |
| Chart (2010) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| UK Singles Chart | 22 |
| Preceded by "Killer" by Adamski featuring Seal |
UK number one single 3 June 1990 - 17 June 1990 |
Succeeded by "Sacrifice" by Elton John |