Don't Speak
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| "Don't Speak" | ||
|---|---|---|
| Image:Don't Speak.jpg | ||
| Single by No Doubt | ||
| From the album Tragic Kingdom | ||
| Released | 1996: North America 1997: Europe | |
| Format | Airplay only | |
| Genre | Ska Punk | |
| Length | 4:23 | |
| Label | Interscope | |
| Writers | Gwen Stefani Eric Stefani | |
| Producer | Matthew Wilder | |
| Director | Sophie Muller | |
| Certification | Uncertified | |
| Chart positions | #1 (USA airplay, UK, Australia, Canada) | |
| No Doubt single chronology | ||
| "Spiderwebs" 1995 | "Don't Speak" 1996 | "Excuse Me Mr." 1996 |
"Don't Speak" is the third single from Tragic Kingdom, the third album by Californian ska/rock group, No Doubt, released in late 1996.
Despite the song's popularity, "Don't Speak" did not chart on the Billboard Hot 100 (as rules of the times required commercial singles for charting and one was not issued for the song), but it did reach number one on the Billboard Hot 100 Airplay. The song also reached number one in the U.K., Canada and Australia. The single ignited the mid-1990s ska revival, and is No Doubt's most successful international single, propelling them to superstardom. "Don't Speak" is also one of No Doubt's most popular songs.
Contents |
Song information
The song was co-written by Eric Stefani and Gwen Stefani and co-produced by Matthew Wilder. The bittersweet ballad is based on a true story on the turbulent relationship between Gwen Stefani and bassist Tony Kanal. After being in a relationship for seven years, Kanal informed Stefani that his feelings about her had changed and that he did not want to be her boyfriend anymore. Not surprisingly, Stefani stumbled into a severe depression. To help cope with her emotional pain, she began to write music, and the final version of "Don't Speak" was born. Although the song was originally a more sugary love song, after the events as described above, the song was changed with a darker tone.
While "Don't Speak" is not the most ska-like of songs, it helped, along with Just a Girl, to get people interested in No Doubt. This contributed to the mid-1990s ska revival.
There are no notable cover versions of "Don't Speak", but various bands, including dance-pop group Clueless, released a dance version of the song as their debut single. It has also been covered by The Countdown Singers and Canadian pop group Deja Vu. It has also been recently covered by R&B singer Leela James.
Music video
Image:Speak.JPG The music video for "Don't Speak" takes place in a garage. There are scenes telling the story how media only focused on Gwen and the band was always in the background. During this time No Doubt was touring in North America and there are scenes from their concert. At the beginning of the video (before the music starts), there is a scene of a man, played by Tony Kanal, picking a rotten orange from a tree. It ends with the man replacing the orange in the tree. The imagery of the orange is probably an allusion to Orange County, where the band met and attended high school. In the garage scenes Gwen wears a blue dress and is in bare feet.
Chart performance
Upon release, the song immediately began to receive extensive airplay, and it became the most widely played song on American radio in 1996.Template:Ref Not surprisingly, the song reached number one on the Billboard Hot 100 Airplay, and maintained that position for sixteen consecutive weeks, a record at the time. Although the record was broken in 1998 by the Goo Goo Dolls' "Iris" with eighteen weeks at number one, the song remains in second place of songs on the Hot 100 Airplay with the most weeks at number one. For all its airplay though, the song was not allowed to chart on the Billboard Hot 100 as no commercial single was released for it (which were required for charting purposes at the time). Not surprisingly, the song was also a hit on No Doubt's main radio format at the time, Modern Rock Tracks where it climbed to number two. The song also proved to be a crossover smash, hitting number one on Adult Top 40 and even hitting a respectable number six and number nine on Adult Contemporary and the Rhythmic Top 40 respectively. In terms of local countdowns, "Don't Speak" reached number eleven on the KROQ Top 106.7 Countdown of 1996. It also was the number one hit single for the Hot 100 Airplay on the 1997 Year End chart. [1]
Internationally, the song was also very successful. It debuted at number one in the United Kingdom, maintaining the top position for three weeks and becoming a rare million-selling single. It also debuted at number one in Canada, maintaining the zenith position for five weeks and becoming one of the biggest-selling singles of the year. Australia was another major music market where the song received widespread airplay, debuting at #1 and maintaining the peak position for 8 weeks. In Switzerland, "Don't Speak" debuted at number eighteen before climbing to number one (for four weeks) six weeks later. After falling from number one, it remained in the top ten for an additional seven weeks.
The CD single had an alternative version of "Don't Speak", an acoustic version of "Hey You", and "Greener Pastures" as the B-Side. A live version of the song appears as the B-side on the "Sunday Morning" CD single.
Comprehensive charts
USA
| Year | Single | Chart | Peak position |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1996 | "Don't Speak" | Billboard Hot 100 Airplay | #1 (16 weeks) |
| 1996 | "Don't Speak" | Modern Rock Tracks | #2 |
| 1996 | "Don't Speak" | Top 40 Mainstream | #1 |
| 1996 | "Don't Speak" | Rhythmic Top 40 | #9 |
| 1996 | "Don't Speak" | Adult Top 40 | #1 |
| 1996 | "Don't Speak" | Adult Contemporary | #6 |
International
| Year | Single | Chart | Peak position |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1996 | "Don't Speak" | U.K. Top 40 | #1 (3 weeks) |
| 1996 | "Don't Speak" | Canadian Singles Chart | #1 (5 weeks) |
| 1996 | "Don't Speak" | Australia ARIA Singles Chart | #1 (8 weeks) |
| 1996 | "Don't Speak" | Switzerland Singles Chart | #1 (4 weeks) |
Album appearances
"Don't Speak" is featured on these No Doubt albums:
- Tragic Kingdom as track number ten;
- The Singles 1992-2003 as track number thirteen;
- Twice on Boom Box:
- As track number thirteen on disc one (same as The Singles),
- Track number thirteen on disc four (a live DVD);
- "Excuse Me Mr." (a very rare No Doubt bootleg) as track number nine.
According to All Music Guide, "Don't Speak" also appears on the following albums:
- Festivalbar '97
- Pure Hits '97
- The Nominees CD for the 1998 Grammy Awards
- Love Vol. 4
Notes
References
- All Music Guide, Accessed March 9, 2005.
- Official No Doubt Website, Accessed March 9, 2005.
- Article on Official Website, Accessed March 9, 2005.
- Swiss Charts, Accessed September 6, 2005.