Such a Shame

"Such a Shame" was inspired by Luke Rhinehart’s The Dice Man,^[1] one of composer Mark Hollis' favourite books. When asked what drove him to respond to Rhinehart’s book, Hollis replied, "A good book, not a lifestyle I'd recommend."^[2]

Single

It was released as the album's second single in 1984 (see 1984 in music), and became a big hit in continental Europe in 1984 and 1985, reaching the Top 10 in numerous countries, and becoming a number one in certain territories (their third number one single after the remixed version of their song "Talk Talk" which topped the South African charts in 1983 and the single "It's My Life" which was number one in the US Billboard Hot Dance Club Play in 1984); but strangely this single was largely ignored in the UK. In the US, the song entered the Billboard Hot 100, and was a Top 20 hit in the Billboard Hot Dance Club Play.

The song was also released in 2004. It was also featured in a European TV commercial for the French car Peugeot 205.^[3]

Music video

In the music video the band performs the song with instruments. There are also recordings of telephone boxes, houses, cars, trees and a bank in one sitting by a projector shown.

Track listings

Original release

7" EMI 5433
No.	Title	Length
1.	"Such a Shame"	3:59
2.	"Again, a Game...Again"	4:06

7" with extra single, The Talk Talk Demos EMID 5433
No.	Title	Length
1.	"Such a Shame"	3:59
2.	"Again, a Game...Again"	4:06
3.	"Candy" (recorded in June 1981)	4:20
4.	"Talk Talk" (recorded in June 1981)	3:24
5.	"Mirror Man" (recorded in June 1981)	3:28

12" 12EMI 5433
No.	Title	Length
1.	"Such a Shame" (extended version)	6:54
2.	"Such a Shame"	4:06
3.	"Again, a Game...Again"

James Marsh – cover art

1990 release

7" R 6276
No.	Title	Length
1.	"Such a Shame" (Original Version)	4:28
2.	"Dum Dum Girl" (live from 1986 Montreux Jazz Festival)	3:39

12" 12R 6276
No.	Title	Length
1.	"Such a Shame" (remixed by Gary Miller)	5:40
2.	"Such a Shame" (Original Version)	4:28
3.	"Dum Dum Girl" (live from 1986 Montreux Jazz Festival)	3:39

Cassette TCR 6276
No.	Title	Length
1.	"Such a Shame" (Original Version)	4:28
2.	"Dum Dum Girl" (live from 1986 Montreux Jazz Festival)	3:39

CD CDR 6276
No.	Title	Length
1.	"Such a Shame" (Original Version)	4:28
2.	"Such a Shame" (remixed by Gary Miller)	5:40
3.	"Talk Talk" (live from 1986 Montreux Jazz Festival)	3:30
4.	"Dum Dum Girl" (live from 1986 Montreux Jazz Festival)	3:39

James Marsh - cover art

Charts

Weekly charts

Chart (1984–1985)	Peak position
Austria (Ö3 Austria Top 40)^[4]	2
Belgium (Ultratop 50 Flanders)^[5]	13
Belgium (VRT Top 30 Flanders)^[6]	6
France (SNEP)^[7]	7
Germany (Media Control Charts)^[8]	2
Italy (FIMI)^[9]	3
Netherlands (Dutch Top 40)^[10]	11
Netherlands (Single Top 100)^[11]	9
New Zealand (Recorded Music NZ)^[12]	39
Switzerland (Schweizer Hitparade)^[13]	1
UK Singles (Official Charts Company)^[14]	49
US Billboard Hot 100^[15]	89
US Billboard Hot Dance Club Play^[15]	12

Chart (1990)	Peak position
UK (Official Charts Company)^[16]	78

Year-end charts

Chart (1984)	Position
Austria (Ö3 Austria Top 40)^[17]	17
Italy (FIMI)^[18]	28
Netherlands (Dutch Top 40)^[19]	95
Netherlands (Single Top 100)^[20]	59
Switzerland (Schweizer Hitparade)^[21]	3

Chart (1985)	Position
France (SNEP)^[22]	39

Preceded by "Self Control" by Laura Branigan	Swiss number-one single 26 August 1984 – 23 September 1984 (5 weeks)	Succeeded by "Careless Whisper" by George Michael

Sandra version

"Such a Shame"

Single by Sandra

from the album The Wheel of Time

Released

25 March 2002

Format

CD single

Genre

Synthpop

Length

4:18

Mark David Hollis

Michael Cretu, Jens Gad

Sandra singles chronology

"Forever"
(2001)

"Such a Shame"
(2002)

"I Close My Eyes"
(2002)

German singer Sandra covered "Such a Shame" for her 7th studio album The Wheel of Time in 2002. Sandra's version was produced by Michael Cretu and Jens Gad. This cover version was released as the album's second single in March 2002, where it reached number 76 on the official German charts, number 21 Czech Republic Singles Chart and number 19 in the Hungarian Singles Chart.

Track listing

"Such a Shame" – 4:18
"Such a Shame" (Straight Dance Mix) – 7:54
"Such a Shame" (Cool Club Mix) – 5:22
"Such a Shame" (Karaoke Version) – 4:18

Charts

Chart (2002)	Peak position
Czech Republic (Rádio Top 100 Oficiální)	21
Germany (Media Control Charts)^[23]	76
Hungary (MAHASZ)	19

Other cover versions

In 1984, "Such a Shame" was covered by James Last.
Alles ist die Sekte has "Such a Shame" sampled for their 2003 single "Harmonie (Ausrasten und Pogen)" (English: Harmony (Lashing out and Poging)), released from the album Gar nich so schlimm! (English: Not so bad at all!).
German dance project Moonwalker covered the song in 2002.
In 2012, it was covered by Belgian singer An Pierlé on her album Strange Days.^[24]
Polish rock band Myslovitz released a cover version in 2012 as a single. It is one of the songs on the tribute album Spirit of Talk Talk.^[25]
In 2013, Dutch symphonic metal group Delain covered the song on their Interlude album.
Cover version by JACA&LANIETZ in 2013.^[26]

References

↑ Neiss, James (December 1991). "Talk Talk". Record Collector (Diamond Publishing Group Ltd) (148): 18–23.
↑ The Within Without. "Mark Hollis Interview". Users.cybercity.dk. Retrieved 8 April 2012.
↑ PUB 205 collector. YouTube. Retrieved 22 July 2013.
↑ "Austriancharts.at – Talk Talk – Such A Shame" (in German). Ö3 Austria Top 40. Retrieved 22 July 2013.
↑ "Ultratop.be – Talk Talk – Such A Shame" (in Dutch). Ultratop 50. Retrieved 22 July 2013.
↑ "Such A Shame – TALK TALK" (in Dutch). Top 30. Retrieved 25 July 2013. Hoogste notering in de top 30 : 6
↑ "Lescharts.com – Talk Talk – Such A Shame" (in French). Les classement single. Retrieved 22 July 2013.
↑ "Officialcharts.de – Talk Talk – Such A Shame". GfK Entertainment. Retrieved 22 July 2013.
↑ "HitParadeItalia – Top10 del 29 Settembre 1984" (in Italian). Hit Parade Italia. Creative Commons. Retrieved 13 July 2014.
↑ "Nederlandse Top 40 – Talk Talk - Such A Shame search results" (in Dutch) Dutch Top 40. Retrieved 22 July 2013.
↑ "Dutchcharts.nl – Talk Talk – Such A Shame" (in Dutch). Single Top 100. Retrieved 22 July 2013.
↑ "Charts.org.nz – Talk Talk – Such A Shame". Top 40 Singles. Retrieved 22 July 2013.
↑ "Swisscharts.com – Talk Talk – Such A Shame". Swiss Singles Chart. Retrieved 22 July 2013.
↑ "Talk Talk: Artist Chart History" UK Singles Chart. Retrieved 26 June 2013.
↑ 15.0 15.1 "Talk Talk – Awards". AllMusic. All Media Network. Retrieved 22 July 2013.
↑ "Such a Shame", UK Singles Chart (1990 release) Chartstats.com(Link redirected to OCC website) (Retrieved 17 September 2008)
↑ "Jahreshitparade 1984" (in German). Austriancharts.at. Hung Medien. Retrieved 17 September 2008.
↑ "I singoli più venduti del 1984" (in Italian). Hit Parade Italia. Creative Commons. Retrieved 22 July 2013.
↑ "Single Top 100 over 1984" (PDF) (in Dutch). Dutch Top 40. Retrieved 13 July 2014.
↑ "Jaaroverzichten – Single 1984" (in Dutch). Single Top 100. Hung Medien. Retrieved 13 July 2014.
↑ "Schweizer Jahreshitparade 1984" (in German). Hitparade.ch. Hung Medien. Retrieved 17 September 2008.
↑ "TOP – 1985" (in French). Top-france.fr. Retrieved 13 July 2014.
↑ "Officialcharts.de – Sandra – Such A Shame". GfK Entertainment. Retrieved 22 July 2013.
↑ "An Pierlé's Such a Shame cover of Talk Talk's Such a Shame". WhoSampled. Retrieved 22 July 2013.
↑ "Talk Talk compilation: Spirit Of Talk Talk". Fierce Panda. Retrieved 13 February 2014.
↑
- "JACA&LANIETZ Such a Shame (Talk Talk cover)". SoundCloud. Retrieved 13 February 2014.
- JACA&LANIETZ "Such a Shame" Video-art (Talk Talk cover). YouTube. Retrieved 13 February 2014.

External links

Full lyrics of this song at MetroLyrics

Talk Talk

Mark Hollis Lee Harris Paul Webb Simon Brenner

Albums	The Party's Over It's My Life The Colour of Spring Spirit of Eden Laughing Stock

Live albums	London 1986

Singles	"Talk Talk" "It's My Life" "Such a Shame" "Life's What You Make It"

Compilations	Natural History: The Very Best of Talk Talk History Revisited: The Remixes Asides Besides 12x12 Original Remixes The Collection Missing Pieces Introducing ... Talk Talk

Video	Live at Montreux 1986

Related articles	Discography Mark Hollis (album) .O.rang Out of Season Streets

Sandra

Studio albums	The Long Play Mirrors Into a Secret Land Paintings in Yellow Close to Seven Fading Shades The Wheel of Time The Art of Love Back to Life Stay in Touch

Compilation albums	Ten on One (The Singles) Everlasting Love 18 Greatest Hits My Favourites Reflections The Platinum Collection

Singles	"Andy mein Freund" "Japan ist weit" "(I'll Never Be) Maria Magdalena" "In the Heat of the Night" "Little Girl" "Innocent Love" "Hi! Hi! Hi!" "Loreen" "Midnight Man" "Everlasting Love" "Stop for a Minute" "Heaven Can Wait" "Secret Land" "We'll Be Together" "Around My Heart" "Hiroshima" "(Life May Be) A Big Insanity" "One More Night" "Don't Be Aggressive" "Johnny Wanna Live" "Nights in White Satin" "Forever" "Such a Shame" "I Close My Eyes" "Secrets of Love" "The Way I Am" "In a Heartbeat" "The Night Is Still Young" "Maybe Tonight" "Infinite Kiss"

Associated articles	Discography Arabesque Enigma Michael Cretu

Book:Sandra