Dare (song)

"DARE"
Single by Gorillaz featuring Shaun Ryder
from the album Demon Days
Released	29 August 2005 (UK) 1 November 2005 (US)
Format	CD, Maxi-CD, DVD
Recorded	2004
Genre	Hip house, Alternative dance
Length	4:04 (album version) 3:34 (radio edit)
Label	Parlophone Virgin Records America
Producer	Gorillaz, DJ Danger Mouse
Certification	Gold (Australia)[1]
Gorillaz singles chronology
"Feel Good Inc." (2005) "Dare" (2005) "Dirty Harry" (2005)

"DARE" (styled as "挑戦 (DARE)") is a song by Gorillaz and is featured on their 2005 album Demon Days. It was released 29 August 2005 as the second single from the album and became the first Gorillaz single to hit number one on the UK Singles Chart. On online music stores such as iTunes, the radio edit of the song was released on 20 June 2005. "DARE" was released to US airplay in mid-October. On the Billboard Hot 100, it peaked at number 87 on 3 January 2006, going on to reach #8 on the Modern Rock Tracks chart on 21 February 2006. The commentator on the 2006 Brit Awards said that the song was originally to be called "It's There", but was changed because Shaun Ryder's strong Mancunian accent made it sound like he was saying 'It's dare.'^{[citation needed]} Rosie Wilson takes over the role of "Noodle" from Miho Hatori, who provided the vocals for her on the first album. 2D provides backing vocals; however, to blend his vocals with Noodle's, his voice was toned down to be slightly covered up by Noodle. 2D's full vocalization can be heard on the D-Sides remix album. D-Sides features a demo version of "DARE" entitled "People". This version contains the same background beat while lacking the majority of the keyboards and effects in the final recording. Unlike the new version, it is completely sung by Damon Albarn (as 2D).

Track listings

CD1

1. "DARE" - 4:04
2. "Clint Eastwood" (Live) - 4:34

CD2

1. "DARE" - 4:04
2. "Highway (Under Construction)" - 4:20
3. "DARE" (Soulwax Remix) - 5:42

Enchanded CD Single

1. "DARE" - 4:04
2. "Highway (Under Construction)" - 4:20
3. "DARE" (Soulwax Remix) - 5:42
4. "DARE" (Music Video) - 4:48

CD Promo

1. "DARE" - 4:04

DVD Single

1. "DARE" (Video) - 4:48
2. "Samba at 13" - 6:23
3. "People" - 3:28
4. "DARE" (Animatic)

Australian Single

1. "DARE" - 4:04
2. "Feel Good Inc." - 3:41
3. "Highway (Under Construction)" - 4:20
4. "DARE" (Soulwax Remix) - 5:42
5. "DARE" (Video) - 4:48

Japanese Single

1. "DARE" - 4:04
2. "Highway (Under Construction)" - 4:20
3. "DARE" (Soulwax Remix) - 5:42
4. "Clint Eastwood" (Live) - 4:34
5. "DARE" (Video)- 4:48

iTunes E.P

1. "DARE" - 4:04
2. "Clint Eastwood" (Live) - 4:34
3. "DARE" (Live In Harlem) - 4:28
4. "People" - 3:28
5. "DARE" (Animatic)

Chart positions

Chart (2005)	Peak position
Australian Singles Chart	11
Austrian Singles Chart	29
Belgian Singles Chart	3
Dutch Singles Chart	98
German Singles Chart	37
Irish Singles Chart	7
Italian Singles Chart	11
New Zealand Singles Chart	5
Swiss Singles Chart	34
UK Singles Chart	1
U.S. Billboard Hot 100	87
U.S. Billboard Pop 100	67
U.S. Billboard Modern Rock Tracks	8

Music video

The music video for "Dare" includes an appearance by Shaun Ryder (of Happy Mondays and Black Grape fame, at the request of Damon Albarn) as a giant disembodied head kept alive by machinery in Noodle's wardrobe. In a departure for the band, the song is mostly performed in the video by Noodle, with 2D, Russel, and Murdoc only appearing in short cameos in the video; 2D is seen listening into Noodle's room by pressing his ear to the floor, Russel is shown seated on a toilet reading a newspaper directly below Noodle's room and Murdoc appears at the end of the video lying in bed with Shaun Ryder, who wakes up, apparently having dreamt up the entire sequence of the video. A voice beside him growls, "go back to sleep, honey," revealing the voice to belong to Murdoc, after which it is further revealed to be another nightmare dreamt by Murdoc, who also wakes up bolt upright (well, nearly bolt upright) in his own bed gasping and panting. If you look closely at Murdoc's room at the end of the video, there is a picture of HIM's band sign, suggesting that maybe Murdoc might be a fan of the band. In commentary, Noodle claims that Murdoc initially protested at her doing the entire video by herself, but she countered that she wrote the song and she had seen him show off too much in the "Feel Good Inc." music video - and adds that he was asleep in his Winnebago for the whole of the shoot up until the final scene. The video was directed by Jamie Hewlett and Pete Candeland.

The video was leaked a few days prior to its 17 July 2005 release on the Gorillaz official website. Some say that legal threats were made against the individuals who uploaded the video, but none of these claims can be confirmed. The video was later recalled from other websites and the final scene was tweaked slightly; Murdoc's Confederate Naval Jack flag was replaced with that of the Jolly Roger. (The version with the Naval Jack is played in some countries, including Canada.)

This video calls back to classic horror movies. In the very beginning of the video we see Gorillaz' 'reject false icons' statue, which one may recognize as Pazuzu, the figurine from The Exorcist and son of the devil. Crows are flying around the building, in a tribute to Alfred Hitchcock's The Birds. Shaun Ryder is depicted as a Frankenstein-like monster who is brought to life as the music begins. Amongst the contraptions that are part of the life support system appear to be two Atari joysticks and a Speak & Spell from the early 1980s. Ryder's head being kept alive is a reference to the movie The Brain That Wouldn't Die. The tube attached to Ryder's cheek switches from side to side as a tribute to the goofs commonly made in early horror movies. When we see Russel sitting on the toilet, he is holding a newspaper with a headline that reads CANNIBAL MASSAKREN, the Danish title of Cannibal Holocaust, and on the back of the newspaper a headline text of the name "Freddie Shepherd," intended as a reference to former Newcastle United Chairman Freddie Shepherd. The zoom on Noodle's eye at the end of the video is taken directly from Ringu and its American remake, The Ring.

References

1. ^ "ARIA Charts - Accreditations - 2005 Singles". Australian Recording Industry Association. 2005. http://www.aria.com.au/pages/aria-charts-accreditations-singles-2005.htm. Retrieved 2007-06-17. 

External links

• Promo Video (Youtube)

Preceded by "The Importance of Being Idle" by Oasis

UK number one single 10 September 2005 – 17 September 2005

Succeeded by "Don't Cha" by Pussycat Dolls featuring Busta Rhymes