The National Anthem (Radiohead song)

"The National Anthem"
Song by Radiohead
from the album Kid A
Recorded November 1997,[1] January 1999–April 2000
Genre
Length 5:51
Label
Songwriter(s) Radiohead
Producer(s)
Kid A track listing
"Kid A"
(2)		 "The National Anthem"
(3)		 "How to Disappear Completely"
(4)

"The National Anthem" is a song by the English rock band Radiohead, and the third track from their fourth studio album, Kid A. The song is moored to a repetitive bassline, has a processed electronic production and develops in a direction influenced by jazz. The song was written by Radiohead, who co-produced it with Nigel Godrich. It has been played frequently at Radiohead concerts since the release of Kid A in 2000. It received mixed reviews by critics.

Background and recording

"The National Anthem" is thought to have been previously attempted at recording sessions in 1994 and 1997, but according to Radiohead member Colin Greenwood, the band decided it was "too good to use it as a B-side for OK Computer singles" and decided to save it for the next album.[2] In the album recording, the bass is played by lead singer Thom Yorke, who wrote the riff at age 16,[3] when the band was still in school.[2] In 1997, Radiohead recorded drums and bass for the song, intending to develop it for an OK Computer B-side, but decided to save it for their next album. Greenwood added ondes Martenot and sampled sounds from radio stations,[2] and Yorke's vocals were processed with a ring modulator.[4]

In the recording sessions, band members Thom Yorke and Jonny Greenwood conducted the session musicians, though Yorke lacks formal musical training. Yorke stated in an interview, "the running joke when we were in the studios was, 'Just blow. Just blow, just blow, just blow'",[5] referring to the chaotic wind section sound. Although the recording sounds chaotic, each instrument is playing a solo to the riff.

Composition

The bass riff of "The National Anthem" was written and performed by Thom Yorke (pictured in 2010)

The free jazz-style wind section featured in the song, influenced by jazz bassist and composer Charles Mingus,[5] creates a soundscape of chaos, and has been described as "a brass band marching into a brick wall" by one reviewer.[5] Simon Reynolds of Spin said: "the song is a strange, thrilling blast of kosmik highway music — combining Hawkwind's "Silver Machine" with Can's "Mother Sky" and throwing in free-jazz bedlam for good measure".[6] Cam Lindsey of Exclaim! wrote that the song is a "radical jazz-rock fusion".[7]

The song also features an ondes Martenot, played by Jonny Greenwood, an early electronic instrument which was picked up by Greenwood for several songs on Kid A and subsequent albums.[8] Greenwood's usage of it was inspired by the music of Olivier Messiaen.[9] It also contains a brass section, recorded in 1999,[4] inspired by the "organised chaos" of Town Hall Concert by the jazz musician Charles Mingus. Yorke and Greenwood directed the musicians to sound like a "traffic jam"; according to Yorke, he jumped up and down so much during his conducting that he broke his foot.[10]

Critical reception

The song received mixed reviews from music critics. In his review of the album for the New Yorker, Nick Hornby mentioned the song as "an unpleasant free-jazz workout, with a discordant horn section squalling over a studiedly crude bass line".[11] Mark Beaumont, who disparaged the album in Melody Maker on its release, was unrepentant ten years later in the Guardian, describing the "free-form jazz horns of 'The National Anthem'" as "mingus-in-a-tumble-dryer racket".[12]

Lorraine Ali, writing for Newsweek, described the song as "annoying pileup of squawking instruments" and "bursts of arch, disjointed avant-garde".[13][14] Rob Sheffield of Rolling Stone said the horn section in the song "was a cornier-than-usual art-rock cliché, trying way too hard for a way-too-obvious gimmick".[15]

However, NME journalist April Clare Welsh called it the fourth best song on Kid A.[16] Adam Downer of Sputnikmusic said that "by the end of the song, you're in awe of such a jam session" and named it a "recommended track".[17] In a review for a live performance of Radiohead, Siobhan Kane of The Irish Times praised the song: "it distills Radiohead's worldview, with those guitars and Yorke's evocative voice, all intelligence and deep emotion."[18] Cam Lindsey cited it as "probably the standout track on the album".[7]

Live performances

"The National Anthem" was the opening song for most Radiohead concerts in 2000–2001, and is the first track on the band's 2001 album I Might Be Wrong: Live Recordings. It has been one of the most played songs from Kid A at concerts since 2000, but has seen a decrease in performances in recent years.[19][20]

Radiohead has performed with a wind section in their 2000 performances in New York City (one of which was at Radiohead's taping for Saturday Night Live), a 2001 performance in London for the BBC's Later with Jools Holland, during a 2001 concert in Paris, and on The Colbert Report in 2011.[21]

Uses and cover versions

"The National Anthem" has been covered by numerous artists, including: Japanese shamisen duo Yoshida Brothers, on their album Prism; Meshell Ndegeocello, for the tribute album Exit Music: Songs with Radio Heads; Mr Russia, for the tribute album Every Machine Makes a Mistake: A Tribute to Radiohead; and Vernon Reid, for the album Other True Self.[22][23] Ayurveda and Umphrey's McGee covered the song on live performances.

The Jazz Passengers did an instrumental version on their album Reunited.[24] A "marvellously squalling version" by the University of Arizona marching band was praised in the Guardian.[25][26]

Lupe Fiasco has used a sample of the song on the mixtape Enemy of the State: A Love Story in the song "The National Anthem".[27]

Personnel

Radiohead

Additional musicians

References

  1. ↑ "The National Anthem". citizeninsane.eu. Retrieved 12 July 2017.
  2. 1 2 3 Nic, Harcourt (12 October 2000). "Radiohead – Morning Becomes Eclectic". Morning Becomes Eclectic (Interview). Jonny and Colin Greenwood. KCRW.
  3. ↑ Fricke, David (2 August 2001). "Making Music That Matters". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 29 March 2009.
  4. 1 2 Swenson, Kylee (January 2001). "A Spy In the House of Music: Radiohead's Ed O'Brien Discusses Sonic Espionage". MC2 Magazine: 44–47. Archived from the original on 29 November 2014. Retrieved 12 July 2017.
  5. 1 2 3 Loder, Kurt (1 October 2001). "Radiohead: Ice Age Coming". MTV. Retrieved 3 March 2009.
  6. ↑ Reynolds, Simon (2 October 2000). "Classic Reviews: Radiohead, 'Kid A'". Spin. Retrieved 12 July 2017.
  7. 1 2 Lindsay, Cam (1 November 2000). "Radiohead - Kid A review". Exclaim!. Retrieved 2 September 2015.
  8. ↑ Letts, Marianne Tatom (2010). Radiohead and the Resistant Concept Album: How to Disappear Completely. Indiana University Press. p. 66. ISBN 9780253004918. Retrieved 27 October 2015.
  9. ↑ "Radiohead: Cosmic Kid … Monte: Celestial Sex Music". The New York Observer. 2 October 2000. Retrieved 27 October 2015.
  10. ↑ Zoric, Lauren (1 October 2000). "Fitter, Happier, More Productive". Juice Magazine. Archived from the original on 9 March 2016. Retrieved 12 July 2017.
  11. ↑ Hornby, Nick (30 October 2000). "Beyond the Pale". The New York. p. 106. Retrieved 27 October 2015. (Registration required (help)).
  12. ↑ Beaumont, Mark (11 October 2010). "Radiohead's Kid A: Still Not Much Cop". The Guardian. Retrieved 27 October 2015.
  13. ↑ Ali, Lorraine (16 October 2000). "Radiohead's Creepy Genius: A Ghostly Seduction". Newsweek. Retrieved 7 November 2015 – via HighBeam Research. (Subscription required (help)).
  14. ↑ Ali, Lorraine (5 November 2016). "Radiohead, 'Kid A': Newsweek's Original Album Review". Newsweek. Retrieved 12 July 2017.
  15. ↑ Sheffield, Rob (2 October 2015). "How Radiohead Shocked the World: A 15th-Anniversary Salute to 'Kid A'". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 12 July 2017.
  16. ↑ Welsh, April Clare (2 October 2015). "Radiohead's 'Kid A' – The Album's Tracks Ranked In Order Of Greatness". NME. Retrieved 12 July 2017.
  17. ↑ Downer, Adam (27 February 2006). "Radiohead - Kid A (album review)". Sputnikmusic. Retrieved 12 July 2017.
  18. ↑ Kane, Siobhan (20 June 2016). "Radiohead live review: an exploration of their musical universe". The Irish Times. Retrieved 12 July 2017.
  19. ↑ "Radiohead Tour Statistics: 2012 - setlist.fm". www.setlist.fm. Retrieved 12 July 2017.
  20. ↑ "Radiohead Tour Statistics: 2006 - setlist.fm". www.setlist.fm. Retrieved 12 July 2017.
  21. ↑ "The Colbert Report". Comedy Central. Retrieved 12 July 2017.
  22. ↑ Laskin, Tom (17 February 2006). "Vernon Reid & Masque". Isthmus. Retrieved 7 November 2015 – via HighBeam Research. (Subscription required (help)).
  23. ↑ Westergaard, Sean. "Vernon Reid & Masque: Other True Self". Allmusic. Retrieved 7 November 2015.
  24. ↑ Collins, Troy (6 October 2010). "The Jazz Passengers: Reunited (2010)". All About Jazz. Retrieved 27 October 2015.
  25. ↑ Salmon, Chris. "Trombone's Got the Bends". The Guardian. Retrieved 27 October 2015.
  26. ↑ Layman, Will (18 January 2011). "The Jazz Passengers: Reunited". PopMatters. Retrieved 27 October 2015.
  27. ↑ Vozick-Levinson, Simon (1 Dec 2009). "Lupe Fiasco raps over Radiohead's 'National Anthem'". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved 23 October 2015.
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