Carnival Game (song)

Last updated
"Carnival Game"
Cheap Trick Carnival Game Japanese Promo 1997 Single Snap Pack.jpeg
Single by Cheap Trick
from the album Cheap Trick
B-side "You Let a Lotta People Down"
Released1997
Genre Rock, power pop
Length3:50
Label Victor
Songwriter(s) Jerry Dale McFadden
Rick Nielsen
Robert Reynolds
Robin Zander
Tom Petersson
Producer(s) Cheap Trick
Ian Taylor
Cheap Trick singles chronology
"Baby Talk"
(1997)		"Carnival Game"
(1997)		"That '70s Song"
(1999)

"Carnival Game" is a song by American rock band Cheap Trick, released in 1997 as the third and final single from their thirteenth studio album Cheap Trick . It was written by Jerry Dale McFadden, Rick Nielsen, Robert Reynolds, Robin Zander and Tom Petersson, and produced by Cheap Trick and Ian Taylor. [1]

Contents

As with the rest of the Cheap Trick album, "Carnival Game" was recorded at Pie Studios, Glen Cove, New York, and mixed at Cove City Sound Studios, Glen Cove, New York. [2]

Release

The song was released as a promotional single by Victor in Japan. [3] The B-side, "You Let a Lotta People Down", is an album track on Cheap Trick. The main release was issued in a 3" DJ promo CD with a snap-pack picture sleeve with lyrics. [4] The artwork used featured photographs of each band member with a black background. [5] In addition to this, a one track promotional-only CD was also produced, with a custom photocopied picture insert with all text in Japanese. [6]

Promotion

During 1997, whilst promoting the album, the band performed the song live on the American TV show Hard Rock Live. [7]

Critical reception

In a review of Cheap Trick, Carlo Wolff of The Boston Globe considered the song to have "ELO-style jauntiness" and described the song as "cute" and "harmony-laden". [8] Steven Mirkin of Entertainment Weekly felt that "Say Goodbye" and "Carnival Game" "approach[s] the [band's] earlier material's heady rush". [9] Jae-Ha Kim of the Chicago Sun-Times commented: "The wah-wah guitars in "Carnival Game" punch up the driving number." [10] He added: "Rick Nielsen's nimble lead guitar work in "Carnival Game" and the shimmery chorus of "Say Goodbye" herald their strengths." [11]

Curtis Bonney of the San Francisco Weekly wrote: "The standout tracks are fairly plentiful: the sugary Beatles-John Lennon - uh - stylings on "Carnival Game," "Yeah, Yeah," and "You Let a Lot of People Down." Nice chord progressions, nice hooks; you've heard them all, but you haven't, really." [12] Rob Seng of The Courier-Journal noted: "Although outside writing help is sometimes a harbinger of trouble, the contributions that the band gets here from the members of the Mavericks results in an engaging hook on "Carnival Game"." [13] In a 1997 concert review, Chris Riemenschneider of the Austin American-Statesman described "Carnival Game" as a "delightful poppy ditties a la "Oh, Candy"." [14]

Track listing

CD Single (VIDP-30002 - promo)
  1. "Carnival Game" - 3:50
  2. "You Let a Lotta People Down" - 4:27
CD Single (CDS-463 - promo)
  1. "Carnival Game" - 3:49

Personnel

Cheap Trick

Additional personnel

Related Research Articles

<i>The Doctor</i> (Cheap Trick album) 1986 studio album by Cheap Trick

The Doctor is the ninth studio album by Cheap Trick, released in 1986. It was produced by Tony Platt and reached No. 115 on the Billboard 200 Chart.

<i>Cheap Trick</i> (1997 album) 1997 studio album by Cheap Trick

Cheap Trick, commonly referred to as Cheap Trick '97, is the second eponymous album, and thirteenth studio album, by the American rock band Cheap Trick, produced by the band and Ian Taylor and released on Red Ant Records and Alliance Entertainment. The album is referred to as "Cheap Trick II" when it is referenced on the promotional DVD that was released with the band's Special One album in 2003. Ian Taylor had previously engineered the One On One LP in 1982 and produced a handful of other tracks from 1983's Next Position Please LP, as well as the title track for the 1983 Sean S. Cunningham comedy film Spring Break.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The Flame (Cheap Trick song)</span> 1988 single by Cheap Trick

"The Flame" is a power ballad written by British songwriters Bob Mitchell and Nick Graham. The song was released in 1988 by the American rock band Cheap Trick and the first single from their tenth album Lap of Luxury.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Can't Stop Fallin' into Love</span> 1990 single by Cheap Trick

"Can't Stop Fallin' into Love" is a song by the American rock band Cheap Trick, which was released in 1990 as the lead single from their eleventh studio album Busted. It was written by guitarist Rick Nielsen, lead singer Robin Zander and bassist Tom Petersson, and produced by Richie Zito.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ghost Town (Cheap Trick song)</span> 1988 single by Cheap Trick

"Ghost Town" is a song by American rock band Cheap Trick, released in 1988 as the third single from their tenth studio album Lap of Luxury. It was written by Diane Warren and guitarist Rick Nielsen, and produced by Richie Zito. The song reached number 33 on the Billboard Hot 100.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Woke Up with a Monster (song)</span> 1994 single by Cheap Trick

"Woke Up with a Monster" is a song by American rock band Cheap Trick, released in 1994 as the lead single from their twelfth studio album Woke Up with a Monster. It was written by Rick Nielsen, Robin Zander and Tom Petersson, and produced by Ted Templeman. The song was released by Warner Bros. Records as a promotional-only single in the United States, aimed at generating radio play. It reached No. 16 on the Billboard Album Rock Tracks and remained on the chart for six weeks.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">You're All I Wanna Do</span> 1994 single by Cheap Trick

"You're All I Wanna Do" is a song by American rock band Cheap Trick, which was released in 1994 as the second single from their twelfth studio album Woke Up with a Monster. The song was written by Jim Peterik, Rick Nielsen, Robin Zander, Terry Reid and Tom Petersson, and produced by Ted Templeman.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Wherever Would I Be</span>

"Wherever Would I Be" is a song by American rock band Cheap Trick, released in 1990 as the second single from their eleventh studio album Busted. It was written by American songwriter Diane Warren and produced by Richie Zito. "Wherever Would I Be" peaked at number 50 on the US Billboard Hot 100.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Stop This Game</span> 1980 single by Cheap Trick

"Stop This Game" is a song by American rock band Cheap Trick, released in 1980 as the lead single from their fifth studio album All Shook Up. It was written by Rick Nielsen and Robin Zander, and produced by George Martin. "Stop This Game" reached No. 48 on the US Billboard Hot 100 and No. 32 on the Canadian RPM Top Singles.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Say Goodbye (Cheap Trick song)</span> 1997 single by Cheap Trick

"Say Goodbye" is a song by the American rock band Cheap Trick, which was released in 1997 as the lead single from their thirteenth studio album Cheap Trick. The song was written by guitarist Rick Nielsen, lead vocalist Robin Zander and bassist Tom Petersson, and was produced by Cheap Trick and Ian Taylor.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Way of the World (Cheap Trick song)</span> 1980 single by Cheap Trick

"Way of the World" is a song by American rock band Cheap Trick, which was released in 1980 as a single from their fourth studio album Dream Police (1979). The song was written by Rick Nielsen and Robin Zander and produced by Tom Werman. In February 1980 it was released as a 7" vinyl single in the UK only, backed by "Oh, Candy," from the first Cheap Trick album, and peaked at #73. It attempted to capitalize on the success of the mid-1979 single "I Want You to Want Me" and the live album Cheap Trick at Budokan which both entered the top 30.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Everything Works If You Let It</span> 1980 single by Cheap Trick

"Everything Works if You Let It" is a song by American rock band Cheap Trick, released in 1980 as a single from the soundtrack of the film Roadie. It was written by Rick Nielsen and produced by George Martin. "Everything Works If You Let It" reached No. 44 on the US Billboard Hot 100 and No. 40 on the Canadian RPM Top Singles.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Scent of a Woman (song)</span> 2003 single by Cheap Trick

"Scent of a Woman" is a single by American rock band Cheap Trick, released as the lead single from their 2003 album Special One. It was the band's first single in four years, from their first studio album in six years.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Perfect Stranger (Cheap Trick song)</span> 2006 single by Cheap Trick

"Perfect Stranger" is a song by the American rock band Cheap Trick, which was released in 2006 as the lead single from their fifteenth studio album Rockford. It was written by Linda Perry, Robin Zander, Rick Nielsen, Tom Petersson and Bun E. Carlos, and produced by Perry.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">If It Takes a Lifetime</span> 2006 single by Cheap Trick

"If It Takes a Lifetime" is a song by American rock band Cheap Trick, released in 2006 as the third and final single from their fifteenth studio album Rockford. It was written by Robin Zander, Tom Petersson, Rick Nielsen, Bun E. Carlos and Julian Raymond, and produced by Cheap Trick, with co-production by Raymond.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">My Obsession</span> 2003 single by Cheap Trick

"My Obsession" is a song by American rock band Cheap Trick, released in 2003 as the second single from their fourteenth studio album Special One. It was written by Tom Petersson, Rick Nielsen, Robin Zander and Julian Raymond, and produced by Chris Shaw and Cheap Trick.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Too Much (Cheap Trick song)</span> 2003 single by Cheap Trick

"Too Much" is a single by American rock band Cheap Trick, released as the third and final single from their 2003 album Special One.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Didn't Know I Had It</span> 1994 single by Cheap Trick

"Didn't Know I Had It" is a song by American rock band Cheap Trick, released in 1994 as the fifth and final single from their twelfth studio album Woke Up with a Monster. It was written by Rick Nielsen and Todd Cerney, and produced by Ted Templeman.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">When I Wake Up Tomorrow</span> 2016 single by Cheap Trick

"When I Wake Up Tomorrow" is a song by American rock band Cheap Trick, which was released in 2016 as the second and final single from their seventeenth studio album Bang, Zoom, Crazy... Hello. It was written by Julian Raymond, Robin Zander, Rick Nielsen and Tom Petersson, and produced by Raymond and Cheap Trick. Released as a promotional single in the United States, "When I Wake Up Tomorrow" reached No. 24 on the Billboard Mainstream Rock chart.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Long Time Coming (Cheap Trick song)</span> 2017 single by Cheap Trick

"Long Time Coming" is a song by American rock band Cheap Trick, which was released in 2017 as the only single from their eighteenth studio album We're All Alright!. It was written by Robin Zander, Rick Nielsen, Tom Petersson and Julian Raymond, and produced by Raymond and Cheap Trick. Released as a promotional single in the United States, "Long Time Coming" reached No. 36 on the Billboard Mainstream Rock chart. The song also reached No. 1 on the Mediabase Classic Rock Airplay chart.

References

  1. ↑ "Cheap Trick - Cheap Trick (CD, Album) at Discogs". Discogs.com. Retrieved 2013-04-29.
  2. ↑ "Cheap Trick - Cheap Trick (CD, Album) at Discogs". Discogs.com. Retrieved 2013-04-29.
  3. ↑ "Cheap Trick - Carnival Game at Discogs". Discogs.com. Retrieved 2013-04-29.
  4. ↑ "Cheap Trick - Carnival Game (CD) at Discogs". Discogs.com. Retrieved 2013-04-29.
  5. ↑ "Images for Cheap Trick - Carnival Game". Discogs.com. Retrieved 2013-04-29.
  6. ↑ "Cheap Trick - Carnival Game (CD) at Discogs". Discogs.com. Retrieved 2013-04-29.
  7. ↑ YouTube (2009-01-23). "Cheap Trick - Carnival Game - from Hard Rock Live". YouTube. Retrieved 2013-04-29.
  8. ↑ Wolff, Carlo (29 May 1997). "Cheap Trick redux; a witty Boston survivor". The Boston Globe.
  9. ↑ Steven Mirkin (1997-05-09). "Cheap Trick Review | Music Reviews and News". EW.com. Retrieved 2013-04-29.
  10. ↑ [ dead link ]
  11. ↑ "Google". Google.com. Retrieved 21 May 2023.
  12. ↑ Michael Batty (1997-05-28). "Recordings - Page 1 - Music - San Francisco". SF Weekly. Retrieved 2013-04-29.
  13. ↑ Seng, Rob (7 June 1997). "All Trick, all treat". The Courier-Journal.
  14. ↑ "NewsBank for Statesman". Nl.newsbank.com. Retrieved 2013-04-29.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.