"Two Tribes"
Single by Frankie Goes To Hollywood
B-side(s)	"One February Friday", "War"
Released	28 May 1984
Format	7", 12", cassette
Recorded	1983-1984
Genre	Dance, New Wave
Length	various
Label	ZTT (ZTAS 3)
Writer(s)	Peter Gill, Holly Johnson, Mark O'Toole
Producer(s)	Trevor Horn
Chart positions
#1 (UK Singles Chart) #41 (US Billboard Hot 100)
Frankie Goes To Hollywood singles chronology
"Relax" (1983)	"Two Tribes" (1984)	"The Power Of Love" (1984)

"Two Tribes" is the title track of the second single by Frankie Goes To Hollywood, released in the UK by ZTT Records in May 1984 (see 1984 in music). The song was later included on the album Welcome To The Pleasuredome. Download high resolution version (701x700, 118 KB)Two Tribes File history Legend: (cur) = this is the current file, (del) = delete this old version, (rev) = revert to this old version. ... In music, a single is a short (usually ten minutes or less*) record, usually featuring one or two tracks as A-side, often accompanied by several B-sides, usually remixes or other songs. ... Frankie Goes to Hollywoods biggest selling single, Relax. Frankie Goes To Hollywood (FGTH) was one of the most controversial and commercially successful UK pop acts of the early 1980s. ... 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. ... War is a soul song written by Norman Whitfield and Barrett Strong for the Motown label in 1969. ... May 28 is the 148th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (149th in leap years). ... 1984 (MCMLXXXIV) was a leap year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ... The 12-inch [30 cm] single gramophone record gained popularity with the advent of disco music in the 1970s. ... Insert from the Winter cassette single by Tori Amos The cassette single was a music recording format that debuted in the 80s. ... 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. ... Electronic Dance Music is the contemporary form of 1970s disco music; it is usually played by mean of electronic instruments such as synthesizers, drum machines and sequencers. ... New Wave is a term that has been used to describe many developments in music, but is most commonly associated with a movement in American, Australian, British, Canadian and European popular music, in the late 1970s and early 1980s born out of the punk rock movement. ... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ... ZTT Records is a record label founded in 1983 by NME journalist Paul Morley, record producer Trevor Horn, producer/engineer Gary Langan and businesswoman Jill Sinclair. ... A songwriter is someone who writes the lyrics to songs, the musical composition or melody to songs, or both. ... For the Victoria Cross recipient see Peter Gill (VC). ... Holly Johnson (born William Johnson on February 9, 1960 in Liverpool) is best known as the lead singer of British pop group Frankie Goes to Hollywood. ... Mark OToole (born January 6, 1964 in Liverpool, England) was the bass guitarist for 1980s pop band Frankie Goes To Hollywood (FGTH). ... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ... Trevor Charles Horn, born July 15, 1949 in Durham, England, is a pop music producer and musician. ... A record chart, also known as a music chart, is a method of ranking music according to popularity during a given period of time. ... To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article or section may require cleanup. ... The Billboard Hot 100 is the United States music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine. ... Frankie Goes to Hollywoods biggest selling single, Relax. Frankie Goes To Hollywood (FGTH) was one of the most controversial and commercially successful UK pop acts of the early 1980s. ... Relax was the first single from Frankie Goes to Hollywood, released in October 1983. ... The Power of Love is the title of the third single from Frankie Goes to Hollywood, released in November 1984. ... Frankie Goes to Hollywoods biggest selling single, Relax. Frankie Goes To Hollywood (FGTH) was one of the most controversial and commercially successful UK pop acts of the early 1980s. ... ZTT Records is a record label founded in 1983 by NME journalist Paul Morley, record producer Trevor Horn, producer/engineer Gary Langan and businesswoman Jill Sinclair. ... See also: 1983 in music, other events of 1984, 1985 in music, 1980s in music and the list of years in music // Events January 21 - Relax by Frankie Goes To Hollywood reaches number one in the UK singles chart: it spends a total of forty-two weeks in the Top... Welcome to the Pleasuredome was the highly successful debut album by British pop band Frankie Goes to Hollywood, first released in 1984 by Island Records. ...

The single was a phenomenal success in the UK, staying at the top of the singles chart for nine consecutive weeks, during which time the group's previous single "Relax" climbed back up the charts to number two. This is a list of the number one hits in the UK Singles Chart, from its inception in 1952 to the present. ... Relax was the first single from Frankie Goes to Hollywood, released in October 1983. ...

The single was unable to repeat this success in the USA, where it would peak at number forty-one.

Origins and context

He "modelled shirts by Van Heusen". Image from Andy Warhol's "Van Heusen - Ronald Reagan - Ads suite of 10", 1985.

A version of "Two Tribes" was originally recorded for a BBC John Peel session in October 1982. The session version makes clear that the basic structure of the song, including its signature bass-line, percussion arrangement and idiosyncratic introductory and middle eight sections, were already intact prior to any involvement from ZTT or eventual producer Trevor Horn. Image File history File links Warhol_reagan_vanheusen. ... Image File history File links Warhol_reagan_vanheusen. ... Andy Warhol, photographed by Helmut Newton. ... BBC Radio 1 is a British radio station, specialising in popular music aimed at a young audience (children, teenagers and young adults). ... Autobiography John Robert Parker Ravenscroft, OBE (30 August 1939 – 25 October 2004), known professionally as John Peel, was a British disc jockey, radio presenter, and journalist. ... Trevor Charles Horn, born July 15, 1949 in Durham, England, is a pop music producer and musician. ...

The song's title derives from the line "when two great warrior tribes go to war", from the film Mad Max 2: The Road Warrior (the line is also spoken by Holly Johnson at the beginning of the session version). Mad Max 2: The Road Warrior (released in the US in 1981 as The Road Warrior) was a sequel to Mad Max. ... Holly Johnson (born William Johnson on February 9, 1960 in Liverpool) is best known as the lead singer of British pop group Frankie Goes to Hollywood. ...

The single was released at the height of the cold war, when general fears about global nuclear warfare were at a peak. Although Johnson would attest in a 1984 radio interview that the "two tribes" of the song potentially represented any pair of warring adversaries (giving the examples of "cowboys and Indians or Captain Kirk and Klingons"), the song does contain the line "On the air American/I modelled shirts by Van Heusen", a clear reference to then US President Ronald Reagan, who had advertised for Phillips Van Heusen in 1953 (briefly reviving the association in the early 1980s), and whose first film had been titled Love Is On The Air. The Cold War (1979-1985) discusses the period within the Cold War between the Soviet Invasion of Afghanistan in 1979 to the rise of Mikhail Gorbachev as Soviet leader in 1985. ... Nuclear War is a card game designed by Douglas Malewicki, and originally published in 1966. ... A cowboy (Spanish vaquero) tends cattle and horses on cattle ranches in North and South America. ... Captain James T. Kirk James Tiberius Kirk, a fictional character in the Star Trek television series, was the captain of the starship Enterprise (NCC-1701 and NCC-1701-A). ... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ... The presidential seal was used by President Hayes in 1880 and last modified in 1959 by adding the 50th star for Hawaii. ... Ronald Wilson Reagan (February 6, 1911 – June 5, 2004) was the 40th President of the United States (1981–1989) and the 33rd Governor of California (1967–1975). ... Phillips Van Heusen is noted for dress shirts In 1881, Moses Phillips and his wife Endel began sewing shirts by hand and selling them from pushcarts to local Pottsville, Pennsylvania coal miners. ... Love is on the Air. ...

Johnson also noted: "There's two elements in the music — an American funk line and a Russian line. It’s the most obvious demonstration of two tribes that we have today."^[1]

To accentuate this inherent musical tension, Horn juxtaposed the driving funk/rock rhythm section with a dramatic formal string arrangement and plenty of orchestral stabs, a novel technique that Horn himself had pioneered the previous year in producing Yes's "Owner of a Lonely Heart". An orchestra hit, also known as an orchestral hit, orchestra stab, or orchestral stab, is a sound created through the layering of the sounds of a number of different orchestral instruments. ... Yes is a British progressive rock band that formed in London in 1968. ... Owner of a Lonely Heart is a song by the British rock band Yes. ...

ZTT aggressively marketed the single in terms of its topical political angle, promoting it with images of the group wearing American military garb in combat, as well as Soviet-style army uniforms set against an American urban backdrop. State motto (Russian): Пролетарии всех стран, соединяйтесь! (Transliterated: Proletarii vsekh stran, soedinyaytes!) (Translated: Workers of the world, unite!) Capital Moscow Official language None; Russian (de facto) Government Federation of Soviet republics Area  - Total  - % water 1st before collapse 22,402,200 km² Approx. ...

The original cover art featured a Soviet mural of Lenin and images of Reagan and then UK Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher. The sleeve notes, attributed to ZTT's Paul Morley, dispassionately reported details of the relative nuclear arsenals of each superpower and the unknown power of "synergisms". The various mixes were subtitled in terms of the expected aftermath of nuclear conflict. Vladimir Ilyich Lenin ( Russian: Влади́мир Ильи́ч Ле́нин  listen?), original surname Ulyanov (Улья́нов) ( April 22 (April 10 ( O.S.)), 1870 – January 21, 1924), was a Russian revolutionary, the leader of the Bolshevik party, the first Premier of the Soviet Union, and the founder of the ideology of Leninism. ... Sir Robert Walpole, the first Prime Minister of the United Kingdom. ... Margaret Hilda Thatcher, Baroness Thatcher, LG, OM, PC, FRS (born 13 October 1925) was Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1979 to 1990. ... Paul Morley Paul Morley (born March 26, 1957 in Stockport, Cheshire) is an English music journalist, who wrote for the New Musical Express from 1977 to 1983, during one of its most successful and relatively notorious periods, and has since written for a wide number of publications. ... The examples and perspective in this article or section may not represent a worldwide view. ... Synergy or synergism, most often refers to the phenomenon of two or more discrete influences or agents acting in common to create an effect which is greater than the sum of the effects each is able to create independently. ...

Original 1984 mixes

The title track featured actor Patrick Allen, who recreated his narration from the Protect and Survive public information films for the single's 12-inch mixes (the original Protect and Survive soundtracks were sampled for the 7-inch mixes.) Patrick Allen (born March 17, 1927) is a British actor and voice actor. ... The front cover text reads: This booklet tells you how to make your home and your family as safe as possible under nuclear attack. Protect and Survive was the title of a series of booklets and a Public information film series produced by the British government during the late 1970s... Public Information Films (known as PIFs) are a series of government commissioned short films, shown during television advertising breaks in the UK. The US equivalent is the Public Service Announcement (PSAs). ... In music, sampling is the act of taking a portion of one sound recording, the sample, and reusing it as an instrument or element of a new recording. ...

The 12-inch A- and B-sides also ostensibly featured voice parts by Reagan himself, as played by actor Chris Barrie. Chris Barrie in Red Dwarf Chris Barrie (born March 28, 1960) is a British actor, best known as a vocal impressionist and for his role as Arnold Rimmer in the sitcom Red Dwarf. ...

The standard 7-inch mix featured a pop/radio-oriented production that dispensed with a section of the song's middle eight altogether. A significantly different guitar-driven "We Don't Want To Die" mix appeared, with complete middle eight, on the limited edition 7-inch picture disc.

The first 12-inch mix ("Annihilation") started with an air-raid siren, and unfolded as a groundbreaking extended deconstruction and reinvention of the basic track, including Allen's starkest advice about how to tag and dispose of family members should they die in the fallout shelter. Thunderbolt 1000/1000T Civil Defence siren. ...

The "Carnage" mix was, by comparison, altogether more conventional, featuring enhanced string treatments, a percussive midpoint flurry of vocal samples (from Allen and the group's B-side interview), but broadly following the prevailing instrumental/vocal 12-inch structural paradigm. The eventual album version ("For The Victims Of Ravishment") would derive from the "Carnage" mix.

The "Hibakusha" mix was originally released in a very limited edition, and appears on the Japanese-only Bang! album from 1985, even though the Japanese liner notes admit that the title is not pleasant to the Japanese readers. This mix was musically based on the "Annihilation" mix, but with a unique middle section that, with its loud screams and cut-up orchestral noises that continue over the final chorus, arguably makes this the most radical mix of them all. A Woman who a victims of a atomic bombing. ... Bang! is the title of two completely different compilation albums by Frankie Goes To Hollywood. ...

B-sides

The 7-inch featured "One February Friday", an interview between Morley and the group's three musicians ("The Lads"), Mark O'Toole, Brian Nash and Peter Gill, over an otherwise untitled instrumental track. Mark OToole (born January 6, 1964 in Liverpool, England) was the bass guitarist for 1980s pop band Frankie Goes To Hollywood (FGTH). ... Brian Nash (born May 20, 1963 in Liverpool, England) was the guitarist for 1980s pop band Frankie Goes To Hollywood. ... For the Victoria Cross recipient see Peter Gill (VC). ...

The principal B-side to the original 12-inch single was a cover version of "War", which became the subject of an accomplished extended remix in its own right (subtitled "Hidden") on the single's third UK 12-inch release, where it was promoted as a double-A-side with "Carnage". War is a soul song written by Norman Whitfield and Barrett Strong for the Motown label in 1969. ... It has been suggested that this article or section be merged into B-side. ...

With the exception of this AA release, all 12-inch versions featured the following additional B-side tracks:

• A shortened version of the 7-inch B-side interview (without music)
• A largely instrumental version of "Two Tribes (We Don't Want To Die)" with faux-live overdub treatments (subtitled "Surrender")
• A sequence of Patrick Allen outtakes, known as "The Last Voice".

The UK cassette single featured a cut-together combination of "Surrender", "Carnage" and "Annihilation", plus Reagan snippets and interview sections not included on any other release. Insert from the Winter cassette single by Tori Amos The cassette single was a music recording format that debuted in the 80s. ...

Videos

Richard Nixon in the longer "Two Tribes" video.

The Godley & Creme-directed video depicted a wrestling match between Reagan and then Soviet leader Konstantin Chernenko for the benefit of group members and an eagerly belligerent assembly of representatives from the world's nations, the event ultimately degenerating into complete global destruction. Image File history File linksMetadata Twotribes_nixon. ... Image File history File linksMetadata Twotribes_nixon. ... In popular music, Godley & Creme was a duo of English musicians and music video directors, namely Kevin Godley and Lol Crème. ... Konstantin Ustinovich Chernenko (Russian: ; September 24, 1911 – March 10, 1985) was a Soviet politician and General Secretary of the CPSU who led the Soviet Union from February 13, 1984 until his death just thirteen months later. ...

A longer version of the video (based on the "Hibakusha" mix) included an introductory cut-up monologue by Richard Nixon ("No firm diplomacy... No peace for America and the world"), plus similar contributions from other world leaders, including Lord Beaverbrook, Yasser Arafat and John F. Kennedy. The complete soundtrack to the extended video was eventually released as "Two Tribes (Video Destructo)" on the German version of the Twelve Inches compilation. Bastard pop is a musical genre which, in its purest form, consists of the combination (usually by digital means) of the music from one song with the acapella from another. ... Richard Milhous Nixon (January 9, 1913 – April 22, 1994) was the 37th President of the United States, serving from 1969 to 1974. ... Sir William Maxwell Max Aitken, 1st Baron Beaverbrook (May 25, 1879 - June 9, 1964) was a Canadian–British business tycoon and politician. ... Arafat redirects here; for the hill east of Mecca, see Mount Arafat Yasser Arafat (Arabic: ياسر عرفات‎) (August 24, 1929 – November 11, 2004), born Mohammed Abdel-Raouf Arafat al-Qudwa al-Husseini (محمد عبد الرؤوف القدوة الحسيني) and also known by the kunya Abu `Ammar (أبو عمّار), was Chairman of the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) (1969–2004); President of... John Fitzgerald Kennedy (May 29, 1917 – November 22, 1963), often referred to as John F. Kennedy, JFK or Jack Kennedy, was the 35th President of the United States. ... Tracklisting CD1 Relax [Sex Mix] (16:24) Two Tribes [Hibakusha Mix] (8:37) Welcome To The Pleasuredome [Fruitness Mix] (12:14) Rage Hard [Stamped] (4:59) (Dont Lose Whats Left) Of Your Little Mind (4:15) Watching The Wildlife [Die Letzten Der Menscheit] (10:15) Warriors Of The...

A third version of the video, included on the band's compilation of videos, retains the introduction, but loses most of the inserted clips in the main wrestling sequence. This video can be viewed here

"Two Tribes" in pop culture

• The track was included in the video game Grand Theft Auto: Vice City.
• The video was played several times at the 1984 Democratic National Convention in San Francisco in an attempt to ridicule Ronald Reagan.
• The track was featured in the Comic Strip movie The Supergrass.
• The song was used in Episode Five, Series One of Peter Kay's Phoenix Nights.

Grand Theft Auto: Vice City (released in October 2002) is the fourth video game in the hit Grand Theft Auto series. ... Featured at the Democratic National Convention are speeches by prominent party figures. ... The Comic Strip is a group of British comedians, best known collectively for their television series The Comic Strip Presents. ... Peter Kays Phoenix Nights is a British sitcom about The Phoenix Club, a working mens club in the northern English town of Bolton. ...

Track listing

All discographical information pertains to the original UK single release only. "Two Tribes" written by Gill/Johnson/O'Toole. "One February Friday" credited to Gill/Johnson/Morley/Nash/O'Toole/Paul Rutherford. Paul Rutherford (born December 8, 1959 in Liverpool, England) was the backing vocalist and dancer with 1980s pop band Frankie Goes To Hollywood (FGTH), one of the groups two openly gay singers. ...

"Two Tribes" 7-inch picture disc (P ZTAS 3).

Image File history File linksMetadata Twotribes_7inch_picdisc. ... Image File history File linksMetadata Twotribes_7inch_picdisc. ...

7" single (ZTAS 3)

1. "Two Tribes (Cowboys And Indians)" (3:57)
2. "One February Friday (Doctors And Nurses)" (4:55)

7" picture disc (P ZTAS 3)

1. "Two Tribes (We Don't Want To Die)" (4:10)
2. "One February Friday (Only Bullets Can Stop Them Now)" (4:55)

Cover art for "Two Tribes (Carnage)" (X ZTAS 3).

Image File history File linksMetadata Twotribes_carnage. ... Image File history File linksMetadata Twotribes_carnage. ...

12" single (12 ZTAS 3)

1. "Two Tribes (Annihilation)" (9:08)
2. "War (Hide Yourself)" (Barrett Strong/Norman Whitfield) — (4:12)
3. "One February Friday" [abridged] (1:46)
4. "Two Tribes (Surrender)" (3:46)
5. ["The Last Voice"] (1:14)

Barrett Strong (born February 5, 1941 in West Point, Mississippi) is an African-American singer and songwriter. ... Norman Whitfield Norman Jesse Whitfield (born in Harlem, New York in 1943) was a songwriter and producer for Berry Gordys Motown label during the 1960s. ...

2nd 12" single (X ZTAS 3)

1. "Two Tribes (Carnage)" (7:54)
2. "War (Hide Yourself)" (4:12)
3. "One February Friday" [abridged] (1:46)
4. "Two Tribes (Surrender)" (3:46)
5. ["The Last Voice"] (1:14)

Cover art for "War (Hidden)" (WARTZ 3).

Image File history File linksMetadata Twotribes_warhidden. ... Image File history File linksMetadata Twotribes_warhidden. ...

3rd 12" single (WARTZ 3)

1. "War (Hidden)" (8:33)
2. "Two Tribes (Carnage)" (7:54)
3. "One February Friday" [abridged] (1:46)

4th 12" single (X ZIP 1)

1. "Two Tribes (Hibakusha)" (6:38)
2. "War (Hide Yourself)" (4:12)
3. "One February Friday" [abridged] (1:46)
4. "Two Tribes (Surrender)" (3:46)
5. ["The Last Voice"] (1:14)

• Limited to 5000 copies.

Cassingle (CTIS 103)

1. ["Have Sex With As Many Objects As Possible"] (1:04)
2. "Two Tribes At Madison Square Garden" (3:11)
3. "The Carnage / The Annihilation" (12:05)
4. "One February Friday" (1:08)
5. "War (Somewhere Between Hiding And Hidden)" [identical to "War (Hide Yourself)"] (4:12)
6. "War Is Peace" (0:28)

• Titled "Two Tribes (Keep The Peace)".

Reissues

Since 1984, "Two Tribes" has been re-issued several times, generally involving third-party remixes bearing little relation to the original releases in terms of either song structure or overall ethos.

Notes

1. ^ "The War Game", Smash Hits, 26 April 1984.