Gabriel has said of the song's meaning, "It's about being prepared to lose what you have for what you might get ... It's about letting go."[9]
The song is mostly written in 7 4 time, an unusual time signature that has been described as "giving the song a constant sense of struggle".[2] The meter settles into 4 4 time only for the last two measures (bars) of each chorus.[10] It is performed in the key of B major with a tempo of 102 beats per minute, with Gabriel's vocals ranging from F♯3 to G♯4.[11]
Background
Recorded at The Soundstage studios in Toronto,[12] it was the final song recorded for the album. By the time guitars were recorded, Robert Fripp had returned to London and was unavailable to participate. As such, all of the guitars on the song were played by Steve Hunter.[13]
While earlier versions of the song featured more prominent electric guitar, Bob Ezrin recalled that he instructed Hunter to perform the main riff on a twelve-string guitar, an instrument "he hadn't played in a long time".[9] However, Hunter stated that he instead borrowed a Martin acoustic guitar and Travis picked the voicings with a capo on the second fret. As Ezrin wanted the acoustic guitar to be tripled, Hunter was required to provide three satisfactory takes, all of which had to be aligned with one another.[13]
Rather than employ a full drum kit, Ezrin removed Allan Schwartzberg's cymbals and placed a shaker in one hand and a drum stick in another, which he used to strike a telephone directory. For additional rhythmic textures, Larry Fast constructed a fake drum kit on his keyboard, which he dubbed the "synthibam",[9] although the liner notes credit percussionist Jimmy Maelen with the instrument.[14] After the session musicians departed, Fast overdubbed some additional electronics, including the synth horn orchestration.[9] Fast gravitated toward a sound resembling a French horn, which he deemed to be suitable accompaniment for the acoustic guitars.[15] From verse two onwards, a subdued four note flute riff, played by Gabriel himself, prefaces each section of lyrics.[2]
The song originally had seven different parts, but Ezrin helped Gabriel pare it down to a shorter length.[16] In a 1977 interview with Barbara Charone, Gabriel revealed that "Solsbury Hill" was almost left off his first album.[17] Ezrin attributed this to his dislike of the original final line of the chorus, which was "make your life a taxi not a tomb." He said that the song "was not going on the record until we found the proper last line."[18]
Several alternate lyrics were attempted, including "does anyone here know Officer Muldoon? "; the two also considered backmasking the lyric "fool, you've got the record on backwards." During the final day of mixing, Gabriel changed the line to "grab your things I've come to take you home", which Ezrin accepted.[18] Gabriel ultimately expressed his approval of the song, placing particular attention on its 7/4 time signature. "It's got a kick time and that 7/4 rhythm works well because it feels like a normal rhythm but isn't quite right...If it's a hit, it'll be interesting to see how people dance to it."[17]
Critical reception
Cash Box said that "its lighthearted feeling should go a long way in expanding his audience beyond the boundaries of so-called 'Progressive Rock.'"[19]Record World said that "the folk flavored song has an interesting electronic undercurrent."[20]NME described "Solsbury Hill" as the "most overtly personal song on the album", further adding that "its simple and infectious melody" gave the feeling that Gabriel's departure from the band "was like having the proverbial weight lifted from his shoulders."[16]Melody Maker also gave the song a positive review, writing that "its beautifully syncopated rhythm is utterly addictive." They singled out further praise for Ezrin's production and the song's "perfectly developed riff."[21] In 2021, it was listed at No. 472 on Rolling Stone's "Top 500 Best Songs of All Time".[22]
Use in soundtracks
The song has been used in a number of films and television shows, including the 2001 film Vanilla Sky[23] and the 2004 film In Good Company.[24] It has also been used in the trailer of Finding Dory (2016),[25] and featured as the send-off song for the series finale of AMC's Halt and Catch Fire.[26] It was also used for the conclusion of an episode of Fox's 9-1-1.[27] It was used in a Cingular Wireless TV ad campaign,[28] a Toyota ad campaign,[29] and a Nespresso TV ad campaign.[30] Its prevalence in romantic comedy trailers has been called "ubiquitous", particularly its inclusion in a satirical re-cut trailer of The Shining (1980).[31]
Robert Fripp is often credited as having played guitar on the track. However, he has written: "I had nothing to add to the track after Steve [Hunter]'s superb & fitting contribution, although I would love to be on it."[33]
"Solsbury Hill" was recorded by English synth-pop duo Erasure in 2003 for their cover versions album Other People's Songs and released as a single in the United Kingdom on 6 January 2003. The single reached No. 10 on the UK Singles Chart, No. 7 in Denmark, No. 29 in Germany, No. 39 in Sweden, and No. 41 in Ireland. The track was chosen for the album by Erasure member Vince Clarke.
Clarke and lead vocalist Andy Bell turned the song into a mid-tempo electronic dance tune, displaying the signature Erasure sound. The band changed the structure of the song from the original 7 4time signature to 4 4—except for the chorus, which slips back into 7 4 time for one line. This also results in the vocals in the verses effectively being shifted forward in comparison to Gabriel's (which start on beat 5 of each bar) to start on beat 1 of bars 1 and 3.[citation needed]
In 2013, an instrumental version of "Solsbury Hill" was included on guitarist Steve Hunter's studio album The Manhattan Blues Project. Hunter had played on the original Peter Gabriel (1977 album) recording and he invited his friend and original "Solsbury Hill" bassist Tony Levin to play bass on the track.
In 1991 Canadian progressive rock band Saga released a cover of "Solsbury Hill" on their greatest hits compilation called The Works.
