19
1985 · Chrysalis CHS 12 2860 · UK: England
- Artist
- Paul Hardcastle
- Title
- 19
- Release
- 19 / Fly by Night
- Year
- 1985
- Label
- Chrysalis # CHS 12 2860
- Format
- 7" · Single
- Language
- English
- Country
- UK: England
- Genre
- Electronic · Synthpop · Electronic
- Primary theme
- Post-War
Annotation
Paul Hardcastle, born 10 December 1957 in London, UK. The track "19" (Chrysalis # CHS 2860), a synth pop record, featured samples of television narrator Peter Thomas speaking about the Vietnam war, throwing in claims about the impact of the war on veterans, and as suggested in the title, the age of those who fought in the war. Some of these claims and statistics are disputed. It also featured documentary recordings, of newsreaders reporting about the Vietnam War. Hardcastle took this narration from the 1984 ABC television documentary "Vietnam Requiem". This single received a massive audience, hitting the # 1 spot in eleven different countries, including in the UK and Germany. In the US, it reached # 15 in the Billboard Hot 100 on 20 July 1985. (1) A week earlier, on 13 July 1985, the single reached # 1 in the US Billboard Hot Dance/Disco chart. (2) Note that Harcastle released several alternative versions of this single - the 7", and several 12" additions, including 19 / Fly by Night / Dolores / The Asylum (It'z Weird) (Chrysalis # CHS 22 2860) and 19 (The Final Story) / King Tut / Fly by Night (Chrysalis # CHS 322860). The song addressed several interesting issues, typically…
Annotation by Justin A. Brummer
About the artist
English composer-producer, born 10 December 1957 in London; his 1985 electro hit '19' sampled Vietnam War documentary narration. [Source: Wikipedia]