George (song)

"George" is a song by New Zealand rock band Headless Chickens, released as the lead single from their third studio album, Greedy, in 1994. Charting as a double A-side with the Eskimos in Egypt mix of their 1991 song "Cruise Control",^[2] the single reached number one in the band's native New Zealand for four weeks in 1994 and 1995 and received a gold certification from the Recording Industry Association of New Zealand (RIANZ). "George" was nominated for Single of the Year at the 1995 New Zealand Music Awards, losing to Purest Form's "Message to My Girl".^[3] In 1997, the song was released in Australia, where it peaked at number 67 on the ARIA Singles Chart.

"George"
Single by Headless Chickens
from the album Greedy
A-side	"Cruise Control" (Eskimos in Egypt mix)
B-side	"Bestiary" "Milton Babbit's Rarotongan Holiday"
Released	1994
Recorded	September 1994
Studio	York St. (Parnell, Auckland, New Zealand)
Genre	Alternative rock[1]
Length	4:12
Label	Flying Nun
Songwriter(s)	Headless Chickens
Producer(s)	Malcolm Welsford, Headless Chickens
Headless Chickens singles chronology
"Mr. Moon" (1993) "George" / "Cruise Control" (1994) "Magnet" (1997)
Music video
"George" on YouTube

Music video

The music video for "George" was directed by Stephen McGlashan and Marcus Ringrose.^[1] It features the band performing the song in black-and-white while various coloured, ominous clips are show, including one of a tattooed man crawling across concrete. NZ On Screen called the video "strong", noting how the tone matches the song's "menacing" lyrics.^[1] The song's video, along with the clip for the Eskimos in Egypt mix of "Cruise Control", was nominated for Best Video at 1995 New Zealand Music Awards but lost to the video for Supergroove's "Can't Get Enough".^[3]

Track listing

CD and cassette single^[4][5]

1. "George"
2. "Cruise Control" (Eskimos in Egypt mix)
3. "Bestiary"
4. "Milton Babbit's Rarotongan Holiday"

Credits and personnel

Credits are taken from the CD single and the Greedy liner notes.^[4][6]

Studios

• Recorded in September 1994 at York St. Studios (Parnell, Auckland, New Zealand)
• Mastered at York Street Mastering (Auckland, New Zealand)

Headless Chickens Headless Chickens – writing, production Fiona McDonald – vocals, cover photo Chris Matthews – guitars, samples, loops, keyboards Grant Fell – bass guitar Bevan Sweeney – drums

Other personnel Malcolm Welsford – production, engineering Nick Treacy – assistant engineering Gavin Botica – mastering Ward Four – artwork design

Charts

Chart (1994–1997)	Peak position
Australia (ARIA)[7]	67
New Zealand (Recorded Music NZ)[8]	1

Certifications

Region	Certification	Certified units/sales
New Zealand (RMNZ)[9]	Gold	5,000*
* Sales figures based on certification alone.

References

1. "George – Headless Chickens, Music Video Overview". NZ On Screen. Retrieved 2 September 2020.
2. "Official Top 40 Singles – 27 November 1994". Recorded Music NZ. Retrieved 1 November 2019.
3. "1995 Winners". New Zealand Music Awards. Archived from the original on 30 October 2012. Retrieved 26 December 2021.
4. George / Cruise Control (New Zealand maxi-CD single liner notes). Headless Chickens. Flying Nun Records, Festival Records. 1994. FNCD302, D 11919.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
5. George / Cruise Control (New Zealand cassette single sleeve). Headless Chickens. Flying Nun Records, Festival Records. 1994. FNMC 302, C11919.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
6. Greedy (New Zealand CD album liner notes). Headless Chickens. Flying Nun Records, Mushroom Records. 1994. FNCD320, MUSH33025.2.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
7. Ryan, Gavin (2011). Australia's Music Charts 1988–2010. Mt. Martha, VIC, Australia: Moonlight Publishing.
8. "Headless Chickens – George". Top 40 Singles. Retrieved 10 April 2018.
9. "New Zealand single certifications – Headless Chickens – George / Cruise Control". Recorded Music NZ. Retrieved 22 February 2019.