I Believe in a Thing Called Love

Last updated

"I Believe in a Thing Called Love"
I Believe in a Thing Called Love single cover.jpg
Single by the Darkness
from the album Permission to Land
B-side
  • "Makin' Out"
  • "Physical Sex"
  • "Out of My Hands"
Released22 September 2003 (2003-09-22)
Studio Chapel (Lincolnshire, England)
Genre
Length3:40
Label
Songwriter(s)
Producer(s) Pedro Ferreira
The Darkness singles chronology
"Growing on Me"
(2003)		"I Believe in a Thing Called Love"
(2003)		"Christmas Time (Don't Let the Bells End)"
(2003)

"I Believe in a Thing Called Love" is a song by English rock band the Darkness, released as the third single from their debut studio album, Permission to Land . When released as a single in September 2003, it peaked at number two on the UK Singles Chart. The song also charted worldwide, becoming a top-10 hit in Ireland, New Zealand, and Sweden, as well as on the US Billboard Modern Rock Tracks chart.

Contents

Background and release

"I Believe in a Thing Called Love" was originally issued as a 3-track EP in August 2002; however, as only a small number of copies were printed, it was ineligible to chart. The EP also included early versions of "Love on the Rocks with No Ice" and "Love Is Only a Feeling". A live version of the song recorded at Knebworth House in Knebworth, Hertfordshire, in 2003 was included as a B-side on the group's Christmas single, "Christmas Time (Don't Let the Bells End)".

Commercial performance

When released as a single in September 2003, "I Believe in a Thing Called Love" peaked at number two on the UK Singles Chart. [2] Sales and streams in the UK have surpassed 600,000 units, allowing it to receive a platinum certification from the British Phonographic Industry (BPI). [3] The single helped the album sell 647,000 copies in the United States as of February 2012. [4] The song became the second highest charting single from a UK band in 2003, finishing behind Lostprophets' single "Last Train Home", released in December of that year. [5]

Music video

The music video for the song was designed to launch the band onto the US market. [6] Directed by Alex Smith, the band are shown on a spaceship, performing, and battling aliens and monsters. [7] [8]

Accolades

In March 2005, Q magazine placed "I Believe in a Thing Called Love" at number 47 in its list of the 101 Greatest Guitar Tracks.[ citation needed ] It was named the 276th best track of the 2000s by Pitchfork . [9] It is also placed 493 on The 500 Greatest Songs Since You Were Born on Blender magazine[ citation needed ] and was ranked number one for Classic Rock magazine's list of "The Greatest Rock Songs of the Noughties."[ citation needed ] The song was also named the 94th best hard rock song of all time by VH1. [10] In a 2020 poll, Classic Rock readers awarded the song the "Greatest Song of the Century (so far)." [11]

Track listings

Credits and personnel

Credits are taken from the Permission to Land album booklet. [17]

Studios

Personnel

Charts

Certifications

RegionCertification Certified units/sales
United Kingdom (BPI) [3] Platinum600,000‡
United States (RIAA) [42] Platinum1,000,000‡

‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone.

Release history

RegionDateFormat(s)Label(s)Ref(s).
United Kingdom22 September 2003
  • 7-inch vinyl
  • CD
  • DVD
 [43] [44]
United States3 November 2003 [45]
2 February 2004 Contemporary hit radio [46]
Australia22 March 2004CD [47]

Cover versions

This song was featured as a playable track on the music video games Karaoke Revolution Volume 2 , Guitar Hero On Tour: Decades and Dancing Stage Fusion ; as source music in an episode of The Bill ; and as part of the soundtracks for the films Bridget Jones: The Edge of Reason , Mike and Dave Need Wedding Dates , and The Fall Guy . The song was also featured on the original version of SingStar . It is featured in both Rocksmith and Rock Band 3 as downloadable content. The song was featured in a 2012 commercial during Super Bowl XLVI, for the Samsung Galaxy Note. [49] This propelled the song to the number one spot on U.S. iTunes rock chart. [50] The song also appeared in an Apple Music commercial featuring pop singer Taylor Swift in 2016. The song was also used by Tye Dillinger for a theme song for a little while, while he was in Ohio Valley Wrestling.

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  3. 1 2 "British single certifications – Darkness – I Believe in a Thing Called Love". British Phonographic Industry . Retrieved 9 July 2021.
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