Ain't Talkin' 'bout Dub

"Ain't Talkin' 'bout Dub"
Single by Apollo 440
from the album Electro Glide in Blue
Released	3 February 1997 (1997-02-03)
Genre	Big beat electronic rock drum and bass
Length	4:31
Label	Stealth Sonic Sony
Songwriter(s)	Michael Anthony David Lee Roth Alex Van Halen Edward Van Halen
Producer(s)	Apollo 440
Apollo 440 singles chronology
"Krupa" (1996) "Ain't Talkin' 'bout Dub" (1997) "Raw Power" (1997)
Music video
"Ain't Talkin' 'bout Dub" on YouTube

"Ain't Talkin' 'bout Dub" is a song by English electronic music group Apollo 440. It was released in February 1997 by Stealth Sonic and Sony Records as the second single from their second studio album, Electro Glide in Blue (1997). Successful on the charts in Europe, it peaked at number one in Romania and within the Top 10 in Denmark, Finland, Norway, Sweden (number two) and the UK.

The song is based on a sample of the lead guitar line of American rock group Van Halen's 1978 song "Ain't Talkin' 'bout Love". The beginning of the song contains a sample from the 1971 science-fiction film The Andromeda Strain .

The single's front cover features a photograph of Member of Parliament Jeremy Thorpe wearing Jimi Hendrix's Gibson Flying V guitar backstage at a Jimi Hendrix Experience concert at the Royal Festival Hall in 1967. ^[1]

Critical reception

Music Week gave the song four out of five, adding that "the Scouse beat merchants take the Run DMC route by bolting breakbeats on to a Van Halen track and then layering in some spliffy toasting chatter. Could be huge." ^[2] Also Daisy & Havoc from the magazine's RM Dance Update gave it four out of five. They concluded that "anyone who samples Van Halen deserves a good share of this week's votes for that alone, and A440 use this as a basis for several resounding journeys into sound." ^[3] Gerald Martinez from New Sunday Times noted that on the track, the American rock group's "Ain't Talkin' 'bout Love" "get the techno treatment from Apollo Four Forty who combine that metal-pop tune with reggae dub touches. Hear it to believe it!" ^[4] Andrew Diprose from Smash Hits named it a "drum 'n' bass mayhem". ^[5]

Music video

The accompanying music video for "Ain't Talkin' 'bout Dub" was directed by James Brown and premiered in February 1997. ^[6]

The video currently sits at 1.8 million views on YouTube as of February 2025.

Track listing

• UK 12" vinyl

1. "Ain't Talkin' 'bout Dub" (Matrix Remix) - 6:03
2. "Ain't Talkin' 'bout Dub" (@440 Instrumental Version) - 4:59
3. "Ain't Talkin' 'bout Dub" (Nok-Hop Remix) - 6:19
4. "Ain't Talkin' 'bout Dub" (Booby Trap Remix) - 7:05

• CD single, CD1

1. "Ain't Talkin' 'bout Dub" (@440 Radio Edit) - 3:56
2. "Glam" (Rock N Roll Part III) - 8:13
3. "Ain't Talkin' 'bout Dub" (Matrix Remix) - 6:03
4. "Ain't Talkin' 'bout Dub" (Nok-Hop Remix) - 6:19

• CD single, CD2

1. "Ain't Talkin' 'bout Dub" (@440 Instrumental Version) - 5:00
2. "Ain't Talkin' 'bout Dub" (Armand Van Helden Moonraker Edit) - 6:50
3. "Ain't Talkin' 'bout Dub" (Escape From New York Edit) - 7:18
4. "Ain't Talkin' 'bout Dub" (Technology Park Remix) - 5:56
5. "Ain't Talkin' 'bout Dub" (Joey The Butcher Remix) - 7:04
6. "Ain't Talkin' 'bout Dub" (Booby Trap Remix) - 7:06

Charts

Weekly charts Chart (1997) Peak position Australia (ARIA) [7] 64 Austria (Ö3 Austria Top 40) [8] 32 Belgium (Ultratop 50 Flanders) [9] 14 Belgium (Ultratop 50 Wallonia) [10] 26 Denmark (IFPI) [11] 6 Europe (Eurochart Hot 100) [12] 17 Finland (Suomen virallinen lista) [13] 3 France (SNEP) [14] 29 Germany (GfK) [15] 13 Iceland (Íslenski Listinn Topp 40) [16] 11 Ireland (IRMA) [17] 24 Netherlands (Dutch Top 40) [18] 14 Netherlands (Single Top 100) [19] 15 Norway (VG-lista) [20] 4 Romania (Romanian Top 100) [21] 1 Scotland (OCC) [22] 15 Sweden (Sverigetopplistan) [23] 2 Switzerland (Schweizer Hitparade) [24] 18 UK Singles (OCC) [25] 7 UK Dance (OCC) [26] 5 US Dance Club Songs ( Billboard ) 15

Year-end charts Chart (1997) Position Belgium (Ultratop 50 Flanders) [27] 77 Europe (Eurochart Hot 100) [28] 63 Germany (Media Control) [29] 60 Romania (Romanian Top 100) [21] 4 Sweden (Topplistan) [30] 21

References

1. "Apollo Four Forty* – Ain't Talkin' 'Bout Dub". Discogs . Retrieved 13 March 2017.
2. "Reviews: Singles" (PDF). Music Week . 18 January 1997. p. 23. Retrieved 5 May 2022.
3. Daisy & Havoc (18 January 1997). "Hot Vinyl" (PDF). Music Week, in Record Mirror (Dance Update Supplemental Insert). p. 10. Retrieved 5 May 2022.
4. Martinez, Gerald (8 November 1998). "Dance fever for one and all". New Sunday Times . p. 13. Retrieved 21 October 2021.
5. Diprose, Andrew (12 March 1997). "Albums". Smash Hits . p. 58. Retrieved 13 December 2024.
6. "mvdbase.com - Apollo Four Four - "Ain't talkin' 'bout dub"". Music Video Database. Retrieved 21 January 2019.
7. "The ARIA Australian Top 100 Singles Chart - Week Ending 27 Apr 1997". ARIA . Retrieved 6 February 2016.
8. "Apollo Four Forty – Ain't Talkin' 'Bout Dub" (in German). Ö3 Austria Top 40. Retrieved 18 November 2012.
9. "Apollo Four Forty – Ain't Talkin' 'Bout Dub" (in Dutch). Ultratop 50. Retrieved 18 November 2012.
10. "Apollo Four Forty – Ain't Talkin' 'Bout Dub" (in French). Ultratop 50. Retrieved 18 November 2012.
11. "Top National Sellers" (PDF). Music & Media . 12 April 1997. Retrieved 6 May 2018.
12. "Eurochart Hot 100" (PDF). Music & Media . 5 April 1997. Retrieved 21 June 2018.
13. "Apollo Four Forty: Ain't Talkin' 'Bout Dub" (in Finnish). Musiikkituottajat. Retrieved 18 November 2012.
14. "Apollo Four Forty – Ain't Talkin' 'Bout Dub" (in French). Le classement de singles. Retrieved 18 November 2012.
15. "Apollo Four Forty – Ain't Talkin' 'Bout Dub" (in German). GfK Entertainment charts. Retrieved 30 October 2018.
16. "Íslenski Listinn NR. 213 Vikuna 20.3. '97 - 26.3. '97" (PDF). Dagblaðið Vísir. 21 March 1997. p. 16. Retrieved 8 April 2018.
17. "The Irish Charts – All there is to Know". Irish Recorded Music Association. Archived from the original (enter search parameter Apollo Four Forty into Search by Artist box, then select Go) on 21 July 2011. Retrieved 18 November 2012.
18. "Nederlandse Top 40 – week 9, 1997" (in Dutch). Dutch Top 40. Retrieved 18 November 2012.
19. "Apollo Four Forty – Ain't Talkin' 'bout Dub" (in Dutch). Single Top 100. Retrieved 30 May 2018.
20. "Apollo Four Forty – Ain't Talkin' 'Bout Dub". VG-lista. Retrieved 18 November 2012.
21. "Romanian Top 100: Top of the Year 1997" (in Romanian). Romanian Top 100. Archived from the original on 22 September 2005. Retrieved 5 October 2018.
22. "Official Scottish Singles Sales Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company . Retrieved 6 June 2018.
23. "Apollo Four Forty – Ain't Talkin' 'Bout Dub". Singles Top 100. Retrieved 18 November 2012.
24. "Apollo Four Forty – Ain't Talkin' 'Bout Dub". Swiss Singles Chart. Retrieved 18 November 2012.
25. "Official Singles Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 18 November 2012.
26. "Official Dance Singles Chart Top 40". Official Charts Company.
27. "Jaaroverzichten 1997" (in Dutch). Ultratop. Retrieved 18 May 2020.
28. "1997 Year-End Sales Charts: Eurochart Hot 100 Singles" (PDF). Music & Media . 27 December 1997. Retrieved 20 December 2019.
29. "Top 100 Single–Jahrescharts 1997" (in German). GfK Entertainment . Retrieved 17 April 2018.
30. "Årslista Singlar, 1997" (in Swedish). Sverigetopplistan . Retrieved 12 May 2025.