Low (Cracker song)

"Low"
Single by Cracker
from the album Kerosene Hat
B-side	"Nostalgia"
Released	August 1993 (1993-08)
Genre	Alternative rock[1][2]
Length	4:35
Label	Virgin
Songwriter(s)	David Lowery Johnny Hickman Davey Faragher
Producer(s)	Don Smith Cracker
Cracker singles chronology
"Happy Birthday to Me" (1992) "Low" (1993) "Get Off This" (1994)

"Low" is a song by American rock band Cracker. It appears on their 1993 album, Kerosene Hat.^[3] "Low", a sleeper hit, reached number 64 on the US Billboard Hot 100 chart in May 1994. The song's biggest success was on the rock charts, reaching number three on the Billboard Modern Rock Tracks chart in November 1993 and number five on the Billboard Album Rock Tracks chart in March 1994. The music video, directed by Carlos Grasso, portrays lead singer David Lowery losing a boxing match with actress and comedian Sandra Bernhard.^[4]

In 2013, Lowery posted an essay on his Trichordist site focused on "Low" in the era of streaming music. The headline was "My Song Got Played on Pandora 1 Million Times and All I Got Was $16.89, Less Than What I Make From a Single T-Shirt Sale!" The post went viral and continues to be a reference point in the debate over the economics of streaming music.^[5]

Background

David Lowery has said that the band's label made him write a letter to radio stations denying that the song was about drugs, claiming that the repeated phrase "being stoned" was really "being stone." Lowery paraphrased a label executive as telling him, "I don't believe you and neither will anyone else, but there needs to be deniability and this is what we're gonna say."^[4]

Track listings

UK CD single

1. "Low" – 4:36
2. "I Ride My Bike" – 6:32
3. "Sunday Train" – 3:42
4. "Whole Lotta Trouble" – 2:26

US CD single

1. "Low" – 4:35
2. "Sunday Train" – 3:42
3. "Whole Lotta Trouble" – 2:26
4. "I See The Light" – 5:13
5. "Steve's Hornpipe" – 2:13

Charts

Chart (1993–1994)	Peak position
Australia (ARIA)[6]	63
Scotland (OCC)[7]	58
UK Singles (OCC)[8]	40
US Billboard Album Rock Tracks[9]	5
US Billboard Hot 100[9]	64
US Billboard Modern Rock Tracks[9]	3

Release history

Region	Date	Format(s)	Label(s)	Ref.
United States	August 1993	—	Virgin	[10]
United Kingdom	May 16, 1994	7-inch vinyl 10-inch vinyl CD cassette		[11]

Cover versions

In 2017, Lydia Lunch and Cypress Grove covered the song on their album Under the Covers.^[12]

In popular culture

The song was featured in the film The Perks of Being a Wallflower and its accompanying soundtrack.^[13] In addition, it was used in The Wolverine and episodes of Hindsight and Rectify. The B-side track "Whole Lotta Trouble" was featured on the soundtrack of the 1995 film Empire Records.

References

1. Vivinetto, Gina (September 10, 2005). "Cracker stands alone". Tampa Bay Times. Retrieved May 22, 2013.
2. Erlewine, Stephen Thomas. Various Artists - Whatever: The '90s Pop and Culture Box (2005) Review at AllMusic. Retrieved December 6, 2024.
3. Erlewine, Stephen Thomas. "Cracker – Kerosene Hat". AllMusic. Retrieved May 25, 2013.
4. Menconi, David (January 19, 2013). "Cracker Look Back at 20 Years of 'Low'". Spin. Retrieved August 24, 2020.
5. Yarm, Mark (August 10, 2016). "One Cranky Rocker Takes on the Entire Streaming Music Business" (Press release). Bloomberg News. Retrieved April 11, 2021.
6. "The ARIA Australian Top 100 Singles Chart – Week Ending 30 Oct 1994". Imgur. Retrieved April 29, 2016.
7. "Official Scottish Singles Sales Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved August 24, 2020.
8. "Official Singles Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved April 29, 2016.
9. "Cracker – Awards". AllMusic. Archived from the original on January 8, 2015. Retrieved August 24, 2020.
10. Borzillo, Carrie (July 9, 1994). "Virgin Pledges Time, Devotion to Sam Phillips". Billboard. Vol. 106, no. 28. p. 92. Retrieved January 24, 2023.
11. "Single Releases". Music Week. May 14, 1994. p. 27.
12. Kretsch, Ron (June 23, 2017). "Uhhhhh, WHAT? Lydia Lunch covers Bon Jovi". Dangerous Minds. Retrieved June 24, 2017.
13. Phares, Heather. "Original Soundtrack – The Perks of Being a Wallflower [Original Motion Picture Soundtrack]". AllMusic. Retrieved May 25, 2013.