"No Surprises" is the third single from Radiohead's 1997 album OK Computer. The song peaked at number 4 in the UK and is perhaps the most instantly melodic Radiohead track, thanks to its soft glockenspiel riff. The sparkly backing contrasts with sad and resigned lyrics, which contributes to the emotion of the track.
Thom Yorke introduced the song to his bandmates and the members of R.E.M. on the R.E.M. Monster Tour. They were all gathered on 3 August 1995, in a dressing room in Oslo, Norway. The lyrics originally told the story of a man who has become fed up with the way things are working out for him and is having problems with his girlfriend. Two lines from this version are, "He was sick of her excuses / To not take off her dress when bleedin' in the bathroom." Preparing to record the song, Thom Yorke altered the lyrics, but the meaning remains essentially the same. Musically and lyrically more direct than most of Radiohead's work, this track was also seen to fit smoothly into an album as complex as OK Computer.
Jonny Greenwood has commented on the recording of the song, saying "No Surprises was used to try our new equipment out. We thought it wasn't good to save that recording. It still sounds a bit "careful" and that suits the song."
The song is prominently featured in the soundtrack of the 2000 film L'Auberge espagnole
VIDEO
The single featured a simple video which consists entirely of a close-up shot of Thom Yorke's head inside a plastic bubble which slowly fills up with water until he is completely submerged. He spends 57 seconds completely submerged with his breath held before the water is released and he resumes singing. However the documentary Meeting People Is Easy shows that the playback was sped up at this point during the filming and so Yorke was actually under water for less time. Additionaly, reflected on the bubble the lyrics scroll up and lights blink on and off. Both the video and the documentary were directed by Grant Gee.
IT'S INTERESTING
Thom Yorke originally wanted "No Surprises" as the closing track of OK Computer. Eventually the band reached a compromise, closing the album with "Lucky" (a song that had been released two years earlier for a War Child charity benefit album) and "The Tourist" (a song written very late in the recording period by guitarist Jonny Greenwood). In the handwritten track listing on the album's back cover artwork, a large space can be seen separating "No Surprises" from the two closing songs, apparently due to the last minute change.
In the 2000s, live performances of "No Surprises", especially in the United States, have taken on an added significance not originally foreseen by the band. Though not directly a political protest song, "No Surprises" contains the lines "bring down the government / they don't, they don't speak for us." At many US Radiohead concerts, particularly since 2003, these lines have been met with cheers from the crowd and inspired the American audience to sing along, apparently in an expression of dissent from the government of George W. Bush (though in a few states the lines have also received boos). R.E.M.'s Michael Stipe has commented on this phenomenon as inspiring a personal epiphany for him when he attended Radiohead's 2003 concert at the Hollywood Bowl. In an interview on ITV, he even described it as "the most overwhelming moment" in his life.
WHAT IS THIS SONG FOR ME?
Oh it's really impossible to describe what I feel when I listen to or play "No Surprises". So I just advice: get it as soon as possible and recognize what can the "big" people create!
LYRICS
A heart that's full up like a landfill
A job that slowly kills you
Bruises that won't heal
You look so tired and unhappy
Bring down the government
They don't, they don't speak for us
I'll take a quiet life
A handshake of carbon monoxide
No alarms and no surprises
No alarms and no surprises
No alarms and no surprises
Silent, silentThis is my final fit, my final bellyache with
No alarms and no surprises
No alarms and no surprises
No alarms and no surprises please
Such a pretty house, such a pretty garden
No alarms and no surprises (let me out of here)
No alarms and no surprises (let me out of here)
No alarms and no surprises please (let me out of here)
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