Moving in Stereo

Last updated
"Moving in Stereo"
Song by the Cars
from the album The Cars
ReleasedJune 6, 1978 (1978-06-06)
RecordedFebruary 1978
Studio AIR (London, UK)
Genre
Length4:43
Label Elektra
Songwriter(s) Ric Ocasek, Greg Hawkes
Producer(s) Roy Thomas Baker
The Cars track listing
Audio
"Moving in Stereo" on YouTube

"Moving in Stereo" is a song by the American rock band The Cars. It appeared on their first album, The Cars , released in 1978. It was co-written by Ric Ocasek and the band's keyboard player Greg Hawkes, and sung by bassist Benjamin Orr.

Contents

Reception

Although not released as a single, except in the UK where it was the B side of 'My Best Friends Girlfriend', "Moving in Stereo" received airplay on album-oriented rock radio stations in the United States, often coupled with the song "All Mixed Up" which it segues into on the album. [3] The song continues to receive airplay on classic rock radio stations. [4]

Donald A. Guarisco of AllMusic described the song as "one of the Cars' finest experimental tracks," noting that it "sounds like a new wave update of Eno-era Roxy Music." [2] Classic Rock History critic Brian Kachejian rated "Moving in Stereo" combined with "All Mixed Up" as released on the album as the Cars' all-time greatest song. [5] Classic Rock History critic Emily Fagan rated it as the Cars 7th best song sung by Orr, saying that it "captures a sense of disorientation and ennui, with Orr delivering lyrics that seem to drift between reality and a dreamlike state." [6] Ultimate Classic Rock critic Dave Swanson rated it as the 4th best Benjamin Orr Cars song, stating that "the atmospheric mood of the track puts the listener in a late night, post-psychedelic haze." [7]

A demo version recorded in 1977, featuring only Ocasek and Hawkes, was released on The Cars: Deluxe Edition in 1999.

Cover versions

In other media

An instrumental portion of "Moving in Stereo" was used prominently in the 1982 feature film Fast Times at Ridgemont High , in which it accompanies Judge Reinhold's character's fantasy of Phoebe Cates's character removing her bikini top while embracing him. [2] [7] Although the song was popularized in the movie, it was not included on the soundtrack album.

"Moving In Stereo" was one of the last songs Nirvana played live. [9]

References

  1. 1 2 Edwards, Luke (March 23, 2024). "Best Cars Songs: 10 New Wave Hits To Rev Your Engine". Dig! . Retrieved January 5, 2025.
  2. 1 2 3 4 Guarisco, D.A. "Moving in Stereo". Allmusic . Retrieved May 3, 2012.
  3. "Top FM Rotation" Cash Box September 23, 1978: 24
  4. Whitburn, Joel (2002). Rock Tracks. Menomonee Falls, Wisconsin: Record Research Inc. p. 325. ISBN   0-89820-153-5.
  5. Kachejian, Brian (February 2024). "Top 10 Cars Songs". Classic Rock History. Retrieved 2024-09-16.
  6. Fagan, Emily (September 2024). "Top 10 Cars Songs Sung By Benjamin Orr" . Retrieved 2024-09-17.
  7. 1 2 Swanson, Dave (September 8, 2015). "Top 10 Benjamin Orr Cars Songs". UltimateClassicRock. Retrieved 2024-10-25.
  8. "Byzantine - The Cicada Tree review". Blabbermouth . 29 July 2017. Retrieved 2018-01-07.
  9. gearspace.com 9 Jan 2012