The People That We Love

"The People That We Love"
Single by Bush
from the album Golden State
Released	18 September 2001
Recorded	2001
Genre	Grunge[1]
Length	4:03
Label	Atlantic
Songwriter(s)	Gavin Rossdale
Producer(s)	Dave Sardy
Bush singles chronology
"Letting the Cables Sleep" (2000) "The People That We Love" (2001) "Headful of Ghosts" (2002)
Alternate cover
Early covers of the single, showing the original title of the song, "Speed Kills".

"The People That We Love" is a song by British rock band Bush. It was released on 18 September 2001 as the lead single from the band's fourth studio album, Golden State (2001).

Working title

The song was initially titled "Speed Kills", which can be found on early promotional copies, but it was changed to "The People That We Love" out of sensitivity for the victims of the September 11th terrorist attacks in the United States;^[2] this title was borrowed from the first line of the chorus.

Lyrics and style

The song's lyrical theme revolves around global acts of violence and the destruction they cause, although it was also rumored to be inspired by the Clinton/Gore US presidential campaign documentary, The War Room.^[3] Gavin Rossdale noted that the title has "nothing to do with war and nothing to do with aggression -- it was the speed of thought."^[4] Rossdale stated in 2023 that the song was initially inspired by Magdalene laundries in Ireland,^[5] in which "fallen women" were effectively forced into slavery in religious institutions that operated from the 18th century, only ending fully in 1996.

Stylistically, "The People That We Love" saw a return to form after the experimental sounds of Deconstructed and The Science of Things. Described once as "stop-start grunge heroics",^[1] the song also found significant radio play within the early weeks of release but was unable to persevere like early Bush singles.

Music video

The video was directed by Ulf Buddensieck in the summer of 2001 at a London studio. The music video was a big success on television outlets such as MTV2 and MMUSA. Gavin Rossdale expressed his thoughts on the video, stating:

"He (Ulf) came up with a treatment that was exactly what I was looking for.....It was as if I wrote a list and ticked off boxes. He wanted to do something that was edgy and vibrant and alive, and that's exactly what I wanted. Too many videos today are just too dark and moody. They all look like they were shot in a garage. We wanted to be unmoody and undark."

^[6]

Track listing

• AUS CD Single 7567851622
  1. "The People That We Love" - 4:03
  2. "American Eyes" - 3:36
  3. "The People That We Love [Golden Dub Mix]" - 5:42
• UK Promo CD Single PRO2782
  1. "Speed Kills [Album Version]" - 4:03

Appearances in the media

• "The People That We Love" was featured on the video game Need for Speed: Hot Pursuit 2.
• The song was also featured on the CW TV series Smallville, on the episode "Jitters".

Chart positions

Chart (2001)	Peak position
Germany (GfK)[7]	92
Scotland (OCC)[8]	88
UK Singles (OCC)[9]	81
UK Rock & Metal (OCC)[10]	8
US Bubbling Under Hot 100 Singles (Billboard)[11]	14
US Alternative Airplay (Billboard)[12]	11
US Mainstream Rock (Billboard)[13]	10

References

1. Saraceno, Christina (14 November 2001). "Bush's Golden Boy". Rolling Stone.
2. HENDRICKSON, MATT [1] Rolling Stone (26 September 2001)
3. BUSH -New Single, "The People That We Love" 2-4-7-music.com (15 November 2001). Retrieved on 11-24-08.
4. Saraceno, Christina "Bush's Golden Boy" Rolling Stone (2 November 2001). 11-26-2008.
5. Rogers, Ellie (9 November 2023). "Gavin Rossdale talks us through Bush's platinum hits: "These songs were not written with a view to any degree of success… I had toiled for many years and nothing had worked"". Music Radar. Retrieved 4 September 2024.
6. "Music Video History at OneSecondBush.com - A Comprehensive Fan Site for the Band Bush". Archived from the original on 7 November 2011. Retrieved 4 December 2011.
7. "Bush – The People That We Love" (in German). GfK Entertainment charts. Retrieved 28 December 2021.
8. "Official Scottish Singles Sales Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 28 December 2021.
9. "Official Singles Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 28 December 2021.
10. "Official Rock & Metal Singles Chart Top 40". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 28 December 2021.
11. "Bush Chart History (Bubbling Under Hot 100)". Billboard. Retrieved 28 December 2021.
12. "Bush Chart History (Alternative Airplay)". Billboard. Retrieved 11 March 2017.
13. "Bush Chart History (Mainstream Rock)". Billboard. Retrieved 11 March 2017.