You Can't Bring Me Down

Last updated
"You Can't Bring Me Down"
You Can't Bring Me Down Single Cover.jpg
Single by Suicidal Tendencies
from the album Lights...Camera...Revolution!
Released1990
RecordedDecember 1989–April 1990
Studio
  • Rumbo, Los Angeles
  • Amigo, Hollywood
Genre Thrash metal
Length5:48
Label Epic
Songwriter(s)
Producer(s)
Suicidal Tendencies singles chronology
"How Will I Laugh Tomorrow"
(1989)
"You Can't Bring Me Down"
(1990)
"Send Me Your Money"
(1990)
Lights...Camera...Revolution! track listing
  1. "You Can't Bring Me Down"
  2. "Lost Again"
  3. "Alone"
  4. "Lovely"
  5. "Give It Revolution"
  6. "Get Whacked"
  7. "Send Me Your Money"
  8. "Emotion No. 13"
  9. "Disco's Out, Murder's In"
  10. "Go 'N Breakdown"

"You Can't Bring Me Down" is a song by Suicidal Tendencies, released in 1990 on the Lights...Camera...Revolution! album. It delivered moderate commercial success, and aided in the band's transition from punk rock to thrash metal. [1] Although the song never reached any of the major music charts, it was a successful single.[ citation needed ]

Contents

Content

The song begins with a hypnotic whammy bar solo, then goes into a clean, almost acoustic sounding rhythm guitar part, and then a guitar solo is added over it. The solo continues for a while, featuring 8-finger tapping and shredding, then the tempo speeds up and the song breaks into the main riff, and the first verse of lyrics, and finally the chorus.

This continues until around 3:40, when suddenly the rhythm guitar is clean again, the tempo slows down, and another solo comes in. Then finally towards the end of the song it goes back to the main riff, only this time with lead vocalist Mike Muir ranting and almost talking instead of singing. Then the song goes back to the chorus, the chorus extends (with yet another guitar solo), and finally ends (Muir's last lyrics being "Suicidal!" and then cackling).

The song was written by Muir and lead guitarist Rocky George.

Music video

A music video was made for "You Can't Bring Me Down", which was a major hit on MTV's Headbangers Ball . The video seemed mostly to be about the band's ban from appearances in Los Angeles; in the beginning of the video a newspaper pops up with the head line "Suicidal Tendencies Banned In L.A." It showed Mike Muir being taken prisoner by a few unnamed authorities, who eventually executed him on the electric chair, despite heavy revolt from Muir's "gang" (perhaps representative of S.T.'s fans), who try to help him escape.

When Muir is executed in the video you can see the United States Constitution flashing in the background, which is perhaps taking another stab at the PMRC, which the band believed limited the American constitutional right to freedom of speech.

The song was also used in Danny Way's part in the skate video, The DC Video.

Track listing

No.TitleLength
1."You Can't Bring Me Down"5:48
2."Don't Give Me Your Nothing"4:30
3."Waking the Dead"6:54

Related Research Articles

<i>Master of Puppets</i> 1986 studio album by Metallica

Master of Puppets is the third studio album by the American heavy metal band Metallica, released on March 3, 1986, by Elektra Records. Recorded in Copenhagen, Denmark at Sweet Silence Studios with producer Flemming Rasmussen, it was the band's final album to feature bassist Cliff Burton, who died in a bus accident in Sweden during the album's promotional tour.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Suicidal Tendencies</span> American crossover thrash band

Suicidal Tendencies is an American crossover thrash band formed in 1980 in Venice, Los Angeles, California, by vocalist Mike Muir. The band has undergone various lineup changes, with Muir as the only remaining original member. Their current lineup includes Muir, guitarists Dean Pleasants and Ben Weinman, bassist Tye Trujillo and drummer Greyson Nekrutman. Notable musicians who have contributed to the band's studio or live activities include guitarists Rocky George and Mike Clark, bassists Louiche Mayorga, Robert Trujillo, Ra Díaz, Josh Paul and Stephen "Thundercat" Bruner, and drummers Amery Smith, Jimmy DeGrasso, Brooks Wackerman, David Hidalgo Jr., Thomas Pridgen, Dave Lombardo, Brandon Pertzborn and session musician Josh Freese.

<i>How Will I Laugh Tomorrow When I Cant Even Smile Today</i> 1988 studio album by Suicidal Tendencies

How Will I Laugh Tomorrow When I Can't Even Smile Today is the third studio album by American crossover thrash band Suicidal Tendencies. It was released on September 13, 1988 on Epic Records, the band's first album on that label. It was also their first album recorded with guitarist Mike Clark and their only release with bassist Bob Heathcote, who was replaced by Robert Trujillo in 1989.

<i>Still Cyco After All These Years</i> 1993 studio album of re-recorded songs by Suicidal Tendencies

Still Cyco After All These Years is the seventh studio album by American crossover thrash band Suicidal Tendencies, released in 1993. The album is composed of re-recorded songs from the band's 1983 debut album, Suicidal Tendencies; re-recordings of "War Inside My Head" and "A Little Each Day" from the band's second album, Join the Army; and "Don't Give Me Your Nothin'" which was previously released as a B-side to "Send Me Your Money".

<i>Join the Army</i> 1987 studio album by Suicidal Tendencies

Join the Army is the second studio album by American crossover thrash band Suicidal Tendencies. It was released in April 1987, and is one of the most well known albums for crossing over the genres of punk and thrash metal, known as crossover thrash, a genre that Suicidal Tendencies have been credited for creating. Join the Army is arguably one of Suicidal Tendencies' most popular efforts, although it only reached No. 100 on the Billboard 200 chart. This was their first album with guitarist Rocky George and drummer R.J. Herrera, and their last recording with bassist Louiche Mayorga. This is also the last album to feature the band playing hardcore punk before an extended period with a more thrash metal focus.

Song structure is the arrangement of a song, and is a part of the songwriting process. It is typically sectional, which uses repeating forms in songs. Common forms include bar form, 32-bar form, verse–chorus form, ternary form, strophic form, and the 12-bar blues. Popular music songs traditionally use the same music for each verse or stanza of lyrics. Pop and traditional forms can be used even with songs that have structural differences in melodies. The most common format in modern popular music is introduction (intro), verse, pre-chorus, chorus, verse, pre-chorus, chorus, bridge, and chorus. In rock music styles, notably heavy metal music, there is usually one or more guitar solos in the song, often found after the middle chorus part. In pop music, there may be a guitar solo, or a solo performed with another instrument such as a synthesizer or a saxophone.

<i>Suicidal for Life</i> 1994 studio album by Suicidal Tendencies

Suicidal for Life is the eighth studio album by American crossover thrash band Suicidal Tendencies, which was released in 1994. It is their sixth full-length album with original material, and their last album to feature lead guitarist Rocky George and bassist Robert Trujillo as well as their only one to feature drummer Jimmy DeGrasso. Suicidal for Life was also Suicidal Tendencies' final studio album released on Epic Records and their last one before their temporary breakup in 1995–1996.

<i>Suicidal Tendencies</i> (album) 1983 studio album by Suicidal Tendencies

Suicidal Tendencies is the debut studio album by American hardcore punk band Suicidal Tendencies, released on July 5, 1983 through Frontier Records. Regarded as one of the best-selling and most successful punk rock albums, Suicidal Tendencies was well-received by fans and critics alike, and the airplay of its only single "Institutionalized" brought the band considerable popularity. The album was a major influence on the then-emerging genre of thrash metal and its subgenre crossover.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mike Muir</span> American singer

Michael Allen Muir is an American singer who is the lead vocalist and the only sole continuous member of Los Angeles-based bands Suicidal Tendencies, Los Cycos, and Infectious Grooves. He has also released several solo albums under his nickname Cyco Miko. Muir's trademark is wearing bandanas, jerseys with the number 13, and hats with block-style letters that read "suicidal".

<i>Lights...Camera...Revolution!</i> 1990 studio album by Suicidal Tendencies

Lights...Camera...Revolution! is the fifth studio album by American crossover thrash band Suicidal Tendencies, released in 1990. This was the band's first release with bassist Robert Trujillo and their last studio album with drummer R.J. Herrera.

<i>Controlled by Hatred/Feel Like Shit... Déjà Vu</i> 1989 studio album by Suicidal Tendencies

Controlled by Hatred / Feel Like Shit… Déjà Vu is the fourth album by American crossover thrash band Suicidal Tendencies, released on October 17, 1989, by Epic Records. Despite containing re-recorded songs of previously released material, Controlled by Hatred / Feel Like Shit… Déjà Vu is still considered a studio album rather than an EP or a compilation album. It includes four covers of No Mercy, a cover of Los Cycos, two never-before released tracks and two different versions of "How Will I Laugh Tomorrow" : the "video edited" version and the "heavy emotion" version. Controlled by Hatred is the first of two Suicidal Tendencies albums to go gold.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Breaking the Law</span> Song by Judas Priest

"Breaking the Law" is a song by English heavy metal band Judas Priest, originally released on their 1980 album British Steel. The song is one of the band's better known singles, and is readily recognised by its opening guitar riff.

"Can't You Hear Me Knocking" is a track by English rock band the Rolling Stones from their 1971 album Sticky Fingers. The track is over seven minutes long, and begins with a Keith Richards open-G tuned guitar intro. The main song lasts for two minutes and 43 seconds, after which it transforms into an extended improvisational jam. The entire track was captured in one take, with the jam being a happy accident; the band had assumed the tape machine had been stopped, and were surprised to find the entire session had been captured. Originally they were going to end the song before the jam started, but were so pleased with the jam that they decided to keep it in. Besides the regular Rolling Stones members Mick Jagger (vocals), Keith Richards (guitar), Mick Taylor (guitar), Charlie Watts (drums) and Bill Wyman (bass), the track also features conga player Rocky Dijon, saxophonist Bobby Keys, organist Billy Preston and additional percussion by producer Jimmy Miller.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Institutionalized (song)</span> 1983 single by Suicidal Tendencies

"Institutionalized" is the debut single by American hardcore punk/crossover thrash band Suicidal Tendencies. It was released in 1983 as the only single from their self-titled debut album. "Institutionalized" is one of the band's most popular songs and has remained a live staple since it was first played in 1982. The song was re-recorded on the band's 1993 album Still Cyco After All These Years; this version was nominated for the Grammy for Best Metal Performance in 1994, but lost to Ozzy Osbourne's live version of "I Don't Want to Change the World".

<i>Year of the Cycos</i> 2008 compilation album by Suicidal Tendencies

Year of the Cycos is a compilation album of bands featuring vocalist Mike Muir, released in 2008. It includes new and previously released songs by Suicidal Tendencies, Infectious Grooves, Cyco Miko and No Mercy.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Send Me Your Money</span> 1990 single by Suicidal Tendencies

"Send Me Your Money" is a song by Suicidal Tendencies, released as a single in 1990 from their fifth studio album Lights...Camera...Revolution!. It featured a music video that received heavy airplay at MTV's Headbangers Ball and aided in Suicidal's transition from a punk metal band to a thrash metal one. This was the first and only Suicidal Tendencies single to chart in the UK.

"Half Full Glass of Wine" is a song by Tame Impala, released in 2008 on their self-titled second EP. The song was later featured in the end credits for the show Entourage, season 7, episode 3 on July 18, 2010. "Half Full Glass of Wine" came in at number 75 in the Triple J Hottest 100 in 2008.

<i>Lights...Camera...Suicidal</i> 1990 video by Suicidal Tendencies

Lights...Camera...Suicidal is a 1990 home video released by American hardcore punk band Suicidal Tendencies. It was released to accompany their fourth album Lights...Camera...Revolution!, which was released four months earlier, and contains six of the band's music videos, with frontman Mike Muir speaking about each one, and a live video for "War Inside My Head". Lights...Camera...Suicidal is currently out of print, and has never been released on DVD.

<i>World Gone Mad</i> 2016 studio album by Suicidal Tendencies

World Gone Mad is the twelfth studio album by the American crossover thrash band Suicidal Tendencies, released on September 30, 2016. It is the band's first studio album to feature Dave Lombardo on drums, Ra Díaz on bass, and Jeff Pogan on rhythm guitar. Vocalist Mike Muir had stated that World Gone Mad could have been Suicidal Tendencies' final studio album, although he later retracted that statement.

References

  1. "See Suicidal Tendencies' Explosive "You Can't Bring Me Down" Performance in 1993". Revolver. 2021-02-05. Retrieved 2024-02-11.