"Big Time"
Single by Peter Gabriel
from the album So
B-side(s)	"Curtains", "Across the River"
Released	January 1987
Format	7", 12", CD
Recorded	1985
Genre	Rock
Length	4:26 (6:14 Extended version)
Label	Geffen
Writer(s)	Peter Gabriel
Producer(s)	Daniel Lanois
Chart positions
#8 (US Billboard Hot 100) #13 (UK Top 40 Singles)
Peter Gabriel singles chronology
"Don't Give Up" (1986)	"Big Time" (1987)	"In Your Eyes" (1987)

"Big Time" is a pop rock song by Peter Gabriel from his 1986 album So (see 1986 in music). Image File history File links BigTimesinglecover. ... A collection of various CD singles In music, a single is a short recording of one or more separate tracks. ... Peter Brian Gabriel (born February 13, 1950, in Chobham, Surrey, England) is an English musician. ... So is the fifth studio album by British rock musician Peter Gabriel, released in 1986 (see 1986 in music). ... In recorded music, the terms A-side and B-side refer to the two sides of 7 inch vinyl records on which singles were released beginning in the 1950s. ... The Beatles Magical Mystery Tour (1967) as a 33 ⅓ LP vinyl record A gramophone record (also phonograph record, or simply record) is an analogue sound recording medium consisting of a flat disc with an inscribed modulated spiral groove starting near the periphery and ending near the center of the disc. ... The 12-inch [30 cm] single gramophone record gained popularity with the advent of disco music in the 1970s. ... A CD single is a music single in the form of a compact disc. ... A music genre is a category (or genre) of pieces of music that share a certain style or basic musical language (van der Merwe 1989, p. ... Rock is a form of popular music, usually featuring vocals (often with vocal harmony), electric guitars, and a strong back beat; other instruments, such as the saxophone, are common in some styles, however saxophones have been omitted from newer subgenres of rock music since the 90s. ... To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article or section may require cleanup. ... Geffen Records is an American record label, owned by Universal Music Group. ... A songwriter is someone who writes the lyrics to songs, the musical composition or melody to songs, or both. ... Peter Brian Gabriel (born February 13, 1950, in Chobham, Surrey, England) is an English musician. ... In the music industry, a record producer (or music producer) has many roles, among them controlling the recording sessions, coaching and guiding the performers, and supervising the recording, mixing and mastering processes . ... Daniel Lanois (born September 19, 1951 in Hull, Québec) is a Canadian record producer and singer-songwriter. ... A record chart, also known as a music chart, is a method of ranking music according to popularity during a given period of time. ... The Billboard Hot 100 is the United States music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine. ... Peter Brian Gabriel (born February 13, 1950, in Chobham, Surrey, England) is an English musician. ... Dont Give Up is a duet by recorded by Peter Gabriel and Kate Bush for Gabriels album So. ... Please wikify (format) this article as suggested in the Guide to layout and the Manual of Style. ... This article is about the music genre. ... Peter Brian Gabriel (born February 13, 1950, in Chobham, Surrey, England) is an English musician. ... So is the fifth studio album by British rock musician Peter Gabriel, released in 1986 (see 1986 in music). ... See also: 1985 in music, other events of 1986, 1987 in music, 1980s in music and the list of years in music // January 23 - The first induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame (Chuck Berry, James Brown, Ray Charles, Fats Domino, Everly Brothers, Buddy Holly, Jerry Lee Lewis...

Music

"Big Time" appears to be (at least partially) in A♭ melodic minor at 116 bpm. The song's bass guitar part is unique in that backing bassist Tony Levin and then-backing drummer Jerry Marotta teamed up for the main bassline. Using one of Levin's fretless basses, Levin handled the fingerings while Marotta hit his drumsticks on the strings, which is why the bass part sounds percussive. Inspired by this sound, Levin later invented Funk Fingers, which were little drumstick ends that could be attached to the fingers to achieve a similar bass guitar effect in concert. BPM can mean: beats per minute Business Process Management Business Process Modeling Business Performance Management This page concerning a three-letter acronym or abbreviation is a disambiguation page—a list of articles associated with the same title. ... Martin EB18 Bass Guitar in flight case. ... For the jazz drummer, see Tony Levin (drummer) . Tony Levin (born June 6, 1946, Boston, Massachusetts) is an influential American bass player. ... As used by Tony Levin in Aschaffenburg Funk Fingers are a kind of drumsticks that are attached to the fingers of a bass player for producing extra-funky sounds on his bass guitar. ...

Lyrics

The song, sung in the first person, describes a man from "a small town", who tires of the small people who "think so small, they use small words", and dreams of "making it" in the big city (the titular "big time") ^[1]. As he lives in the city, his car, house, eyes, mouth, and bank account all increase in size. The song is a criticism of the greed and excess of the 1980s. The 1980s refers to the years of 1980 to 1989. ...

Music video

Gabriel, successful after his smash hit "Sledgehammer", used the similarly-up-tempo "Big Time" to create another visually stunning video. The visual style was very evocative of the "Sledgehammer" video, using stop motion and claymation to show Gabriel leaving his small town for the big city. Sledgehammer is a hit song by Peter Gabriel from his 1986 album So. ... Stop motion is an animation technique which makes things that are static appear to be moving. ... The term Claymation is a registered trademark created by Will Vinton Studios to describe their clay animated movies; the more generic term is clay animation, but the portmanteau claymation has entered the English language as a genericized trademark. ...

Track listing

Single

1. "Big Time (Extended version)" – (6:12)
2. "Curtains" – (3:28)
3. "No Self Control" – (3:54)
4. "Across the River" – (7:12)
5. "Big Time" (7" Version) – (4:26)^[2]

Curtains is the title of a song by Peter Gabriel as part of the Ubisoft game Myst IV: Revelation. ...

Other

• "Big Time" was the official theme song of WWE WrestleMania 22, a professional wrestling pay-per-view event held on April 2, 2006 in Chicago, Illinois.

The theme music of a radio or television program is a piece that is written specifically for that show and usually played during the title sequence and/or end credits. ... WrestleMania 22 was the twenty-second annual WrestleMania professional wrestling pay-per-view produced by World Wrestling Entertainment. ... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ... Pay-per-view is the name given to a system by which television viewers can call and order events to be seen on TV and pay for the private telecast of that event to their homes later. ... April 2 is the 92nd day of the year (93rd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar, with 273 days remaining. ... 2006 (MMVI) was a common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ... This article is about Illinois largest city. ... Official language(s) English Capital Springfield Largest city Chicago Area  Ranked 25th  - Total 57,918 sq mi (149,998 km²)  - Width 210 miles (340 km)  - Length 390 miles (629 km)  - % water 4. ...

Notes

1. ↑  Lyrics And Through the Wire. Accessed April 19, 2006.
2. ↑  Track Listing AllMusic.com. Accessed February 7, 2006.

The All Music Guide (AMG) is a metadata database about music, owned by All Media Guide. ...

External links

• Big Time at MusicBrainz
• "Big Time" music video at WWE.com