"Game On" | ||||
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![]() UK single release | ||||
Single by Catatonia | ||||
from the album International Velvet | ||||
B-side |
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Released | 26 October 1998 [1] | |||
Studio | Rockfield (Rockfield, Wales) | |||
Length | 2:52 (single edit) | |||
Label | Blanco y Negro | |||
Songwriter(s) |
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Producer(s) |
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Catatonia singles chronology | ||||
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"Game On" is a song by Welsh alternative rock band Catatonia, released as the fifth and final single from their second studio album, International Velvet (1998), in October 1998. It was written by band members Cerys Matthews and Mark Roberts and produced by TommyD and the band. Commercially, the song charted on the UK Singles Chart, peaking at number 33.
"Game On" was the fifth single release from Catatonia's second studio album, International Velvet . [2] Earlier releases from the album had included "Mulder and Scully", [3] which became the break-out song for the band, and "Road Rage" which was nominated for best song at the Brit Awards, [4] the Ivor Novello Awards, [5] and won at the Q Awards. [6]
"Game On" was released in the UK on 26 October 1998, [7] where it peaked at number 33 on the UK Singles Chart. [8] As with the majority of the songs from International Velvet, it had been produced by TommyD. The record company was unhappy with the performance of the single, but they looked ahead to sales of tickets for several large shows coming up for Catatonia as well as the third studio album. [9]
The line "I know I could never fall from grace, I'm far too clever" first appeared in the song "Sugar Loaf Mountain", which was written by Cerys Matthews and Mark Roberts, and featured both of them singing. It was recorded on their original demos, alongside "Whale" and "Sweet Catatonia". Matthews and Roberts also wrote "Game On"; at the time the duo were in a relationship at the time which was troubled. Matthews later explained that the entire International Velvet had worked because of the difficulties that she and Roberts were experiencing. [9]
In a roundup of the album releases in 1998 for The People newspaper, "Game On", "Don't Need the Sunshine" and "Strange Glue" were called "fantastic examples of how mainstream music does not have to be about bare chests and short skirts". [10] However, not all reviews were positive. When Catatonia Greatest Hits was released in 2002, "Game On" was described as "filler" in a review on BBC Wales. [11]
Catatonia continued to perform "Game On" live following the release of their third album, Equally Cursed and Blessed . [2] [12] The song was introduced in the Welsh language during a small scale concert in Llangollen, North Wales. [12]
CD single [13]
7-inch and cassette single [14] [15]
Credits are lifted from the UK CD single liner notes. [13]
Studio
Personnel
Chart (1998) | Peak position |
---|---|
Scotland (OCC) [16] | 27 |
UK Singles (OCC) [8] | 33 |
Catatonia were an alternative rock band from Wales who gained popularity in the mid-to-late 1990s. The band formed in 1992 after Mark Roberts met Cerys Matthews and Kirsty Kennedy. The first major lineup featured Dafydd Ieuan of Super Furry Animals on drums, Paul Jones on bass, and Clancy Pegg on keyboards. With this line-up the band recorded two EPs, For Tinkerbell and Hooked.
Paper Scissors Stone was the fourth and final album by Welsh band Catatonia. It was released on 6 August 2001 in the UK, and reached #6 on the UK album chart.
Tin Planet is the second studio album by English band Space, released on 9 March 1998.
Cerys Matthews is a Welsh singer, songwriter, author, and broadcaster. She was a founding member of Welsh rock band Catatonia and a leading figure in the "Cool Cymru" movement of the late 1990s.
International Velvet is the second album by Welsh band Catatonia. It was the band's breakthrough, reaching number 1 in the UK Albums Chart, spawning two Top 10 singles, "Mulder and Scully" and "Road Rage", three other Top 40 singles, "I Am the Mob", "Game On" and "Strange Glue", and catapulted the band and lead singer Cerys Matthews into the spotlight. Album sales reached 900,000, as it became one of the biggest selling albums of 1998 in the United Kingdom. The album was also nominated for the Mercury Music Prize.
"Mulder and Scully" is a song by Welsh alternative rock band Catatonia, released as a single from their 1998 album, International Velvet. The song makes direct reference to fictional FBI special agents Fox Mulder and Dana Scully, the two main characters of the popular sci-fi TV series The X-Files who work on cases linked to the paranormal, called X-Files. In an interview Cerys Matthews, co-writer of the song, explained that while she was not a serious fan of the show, the basic premise of the series matched the concept of what she was trying to express.
Equally Cursed and Blessed is the third studio album by Welsh band Catatonia, released in April 1999 via Blanco y Negro Records. It reached number one in the UK Album Chart, and three singles were released from it: "Dead from the Waist Down", "Londinium" and "Karaoke Queen".
"I Am the Mob" is a song by Welsh rock band Catatonia from their album International Velvet. It became the band's second top 40 hit, peaking at No.40. The song's lyrics refer to the gangster movie The Godfather, with lines "I put horses' heads in people's beds, cause I am the Mob", and "That Luca Brasi: ah, he sleeps with the fishes".
"Strange Glue" is a song by Welsh rock group Catatonia. Written by guitarist Owen Powell, it was the band's fourth single to be released from International Velvet and charted at No. 11 on the UK Singles Chart. As a solo artist, lead singer Cerys Matthews later sang "Strange Glue" merged with the song "Galway Shawl" in concert.
Never Said Goodbye is the second solo studio album by Welsh singer-songwriter Cerys Matthews. It was released on 21 August 2006 by Rough Trade Records. Matthews co-produced the album with Ben Elkins and Stuart Sikes.
"The Ballad of Tom Jones" is a song by English band Space and Cerys Matthews, lead singer of Welsh band Catatonia. Lead singer Tommy Scott described Tom Jones as 'brilliant'. The song became a highly successful radio single, and resulted in Space performing with Jones in Jools Holland's' New Year's Eve television programme.
"Road Rage" is a song recorded by Welsh band Catatonia, taken from their second studio album, International Velvet (1998). It was written by band member Mark Roberts, with the production credit given generally to the band. "Road Rage" was released as the third single from the album on 20 April 1998, following their breakthrough success with the song "Mulder and Scully". The title "Road Rage" was based on the murder of Lee Harvey by his girlfriend Tracie Andrews in December 1996, something for which singer Cerys Matthews later apologised to Harvey's mother.
Greatest Hits is a compilation album of Welsh alternative rock band Catatonia's best known songs, mainly the singles, but also includes collaborations between Cerys Matthews with Space and with Tom Jones himself.
"April Skies" is a song by Scottish alternative rock group the Jesus and Mary Chain and the first single from the group's second studio album, Darklands (1987). The song was released by Blanco y Negro Records in April 1987, reaching No. 8 on the UK Single Chart, No. 6 in Ireland, and No. 16 in New Zealand, making it the band's highest-charting single in all three countries.
"Dead from the Waist Down" is a song by Welsh rock band Catatonia, taken from their third studio album, Equally Cursed and Blessed. It was written by Mark Roberts with Catatonia and produced by the band and TommyD. Released on 29 March 1999, the song reached number seven on the UK Singles Chart and was the band's only song to chart in New Zealand, where it peaked at number 44.
"Londinium" is a song by Welsh band Catatonia from their third studio album, Equally Cursed and Blessed (1999). It was written by Mark Roberts with Catatonia and produced by TommyD and the band. Released on 12 July 1999, the song reached number 20 on the UK Singles Chart.
"Stone by Stone" is a song recorded by the Welsh band Catatonia, taken from their fourth studio album, Paper Scissors Stone. It was written by Mark Roberts and the band, and produced by TommyD. It was released as their only single from that album in 2001.
"Lost Cat" is a song recorded by the Welsh band Catatonia, taken from their first studio album, Way Beyond Blue. It was written by Cerys Matthews and Mark Roberts, and produced by Stephen Street.
"Sweet Catatonia" is a song recorded by the Welsh band Catatonia, taken from their first studio album, Way Beyond Blue. It was written by Cerys Matthews and Mark Roberts, and produced by Paul Sampson and Stephen Street. The title of the track was the original name for the band.
For Tinkerbell is the debut extended play by Welsh band Catatonia, and also their first release. It features five tracks, some of which were later re-recorded on their first studio album Way Beyond Blue. All the tracks were later compiled with those from the Hooked EP on The Crai-EPs 1993/1994.
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