Carnival (The Cardigans song)

Last updated
"Carnival"
Carnival The Cardigans.jpg
Swedish CD single cover
Single by the Cardigans
from the album Life
B-side
Released25 March 1995 (1995-03-25)
Length
  • 3:37 (album version)
  • 3:20 (single/radio edit)
Label
Songwriter(s)
Producer(s) Tore Johansson
The Cardigans singles chronology
"Sick & Tired"
(1995)
"Carnival"
(1995)
"Sick & Tired (reissue)"
(1995)
Music video
"Carnival" on YouTube

"Carnival" is a song by Swedish band the Cardigans. It was released in March 1995 by Trampolene and Stockholm Records as the first single from their second album, Life (1995). The song gave the group their first appearance on the UK Singles Chart, reaching number 72 in June 1995. After their next single, a re-issue of "Sick & Tired", reached the top 40, "Carnival" was re-pressed and reached a peak of number 35. This release also peaked at number 44 in the Netherlands, becoming the band's first single to chart there. The accompanying music video was directed by Swedish-based director Matt Broadley. [1]

Contents

"Carnival" was the first released material by the Cardigans on which Nina Persson received a writing credit, on this occasion alongside bassist Magnus Svenningsson whom she would later supersede as the group's primary lyricist. The song concerns the narrator's unrequited love for a boy, and mentions a "carnival" (the description actually appears to refer to a funfair) which the narrator would like to attend with the boy but does not go because he never responds to her.

The single's B-sides are a cover of Ozzy Osbourne's "Mr Crowley", one of several Osbourne and Black Sabbath cover versions released by the group; and "Emmerdale", an instrumental which shared its name with their previous album, but did not appear on it.

Critical reception

James Masterton for Dotmusic wrote, "It's in a similar vein to their last hit; light, almost fluffy jazz-pop that sounds gorgeous but is unlikely to bring them a major hit just yet." [2] John Mulvey from NME said the song "is blessed with a budget-flight-down-to-Rio bubbliness — imagine The Sugarcubes playing Swing Out Sister's greatest hits — that makes it oddly irresistible. Also, it shames me to report, the xylophone solo is pretty damned smart." [3]

Track listing

  1. "Carnival" – 3:20
  2. "Mr Crowley" – 2:35
  3. "Emmerdale" – 2:25

Charts

Chart (1995–1996)Peak
position
Iceland (Íslenski Listinn Topp 40) [4] 14
Netherlands (Dutch Top 40 Tipparade) [5] 17
Netherlands (Single Top 100) [6] 44
Scotland (OCC) [7] 41
UK Singles (OCC) [8] 35

Certifications

RegionCertification Certified units/sales
Japan (RIAJ) [9] Gold100,000*

* Sales figures based on certification alone.

Release history

RegionDateFormat(s)Label(s)Ref.
Japan25 March 1995CD
[10]
United Kingdom15 May 1995
  • 7-inch vinyl
  • CD
  • cassette
[11]

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References

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  2. Masterton, James (26 November 1995). "Week Ending December 2nd 1995". Chart Watch UK. Retrieved 4 October 2021.
  3. Mulvey, John (20 May 1995). "Singles". NME . p. 54. Retrieved 20 January 2024.
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