Change His Ways

"Change His Ways"
Single by Robert Palmer
from the album Heavy Nova
B-side	"More Than Ever"
Released	May 1989[1]
Length	2:56
Label	EMI
Songwriter(s)	Robert Palmer
Producer(s)	Robert Palmer
Robert Palmer singles chronology
"Tell Me I'm Not Dreamin'" (1989) "Change His Ways" (1989) "It Could Happen to You" (1989)
Audio video
"Change His Ways" on YouTube

"Change His Ways" is a song by English vocalist Robert Palmer, which was released in 1989 as the fourth single from his ninth studio album Heavy Nova.^[2] The song was written and produced by Palmer.^[1] "Change His Ways" reached No. 28 in the UK.^[3]

A music video, featuring the use of animation and cartoon characters designed by the Italian artist and cartoonist Massimo Mattioli,^[4] was filmed to promote the single.^[5][6] The video parodies the highly successful Terence Donovan-directed videos for "Addicted to Love", "I Didn't Mean to Turn You On" and "Simply Irresistible" by replacing the backing models with caricature animated birds.^[7] The song itself features yodelling and Zydeco accordion.^[8]

Release

"Change His Ways" was released by EMI on 7" vinyl in the UK, Europe and Australasia. 12" vinyl and CD formats were issued in the UK and Europe,^[9] while a limited edition 7" picture disc was released in the UK.^[10] All 7" editions featured the B-side "More Than Ever", which also appeared on Heavy Nova.^[2]

Critical reception

Upon release, People commented on the song: "It starts out with a South African tinge then drifts through a reggae mood, a Louisiana riff or two, some mundane pop and, saints preserve, a snatch of yodeling. This is one of those notions that reads better than it sounds, and it doesn't read all that amusingly".^[11]

Track listing

7" single

1. "Change His Ways" – 2:57
2. "More Than Ever" – 3:25

12" single

1. "Change His Ways (Wed 9PM Mix)" – 5:16
2. "More Than Ever" – 3:25
3. "Change His Ways (Rock Mix)" – 4:51

CD single

1. "Change His Ways" – 2:57
2. "Change His Ways (Wed 9PM Mix)" – 5:16
3. "More Than Ever" – 3:25
4. "She Makes My Day" – 4:23

Chart performance

Chart (1989)	Peak position
Australian Singles Chart[12]	38
Belgian Singles Chart (V)[13]	39
Dutch Singles Chart[14]	47
German Singles Chart[15]	62
Irish Singles Chart[16]	21
New Zealand Singles Chart[17]	29
UK Singles Chart[18]	28

Personnel

• Robert Palmer – vocals, producer
• Eric "E.T." Thorngren – mixing
• Film Quarters – sleeve design
• Kevin Davies – photography
• Massimo Mattidi – sleeve artwork (origination of characterisation)

References

1. "Robert Palmer – Change His Ways / More Than Ever – EMI – UK – EM 85". 45cat. Retrieved 2018-03-23.
2. Robert Palmer. "Heavy Nova – Robert Palmer | Songs, Reviews, Credits". AllMusic. Retrieved 2018-03-23.
3. "ROBERT PALMER – full Official Chart History – Official Charts Company". Officialcharts.com. Retrieved 16 July 2018.
4. "BIOGRAPHY - MASSIMO MATTIOLI - Official Website". Archived from the original on 2020-08-10. Retrieved 2020-07-14.
5. Live Nation (2015-09-16). "The Most Addictive, Most Simply Irresistible Robert Palmer Parodies of All Time". Yahoo.com. Retrieved 2018-03-23.
6. Dennis Hunt (December 10, 1989). "MIXED MEDIA: A periodic look at pop-related books, videos and laser discs. : – latimes". Articles.latimes.com. Retrieved 2018-03-23.
7. Hawkins, Stan (5 July 2017). The British Pop Dandy: Masculinity, Popular Music and Culture – Stan Hawkins – Google Books. ISBN 9781351545860. Retrieved 2018-03-23.
8. Tobler, John (1991). Who's who in rock & roll – John Tobler – Google Books. ISBN 9780517056875. Retrieved 2018-03-23.
9. "Robert Palmer – Change His Ways at Discogs". Discogs.com. Retrieved 2018-03-23.
10. "Robert Palmer – Change His Ways / More Than Ever – EMI – UK – EMPD 85". 45cat. Retrieved 2018-03-23.
11. "Picks and Pans Review: Heavy Nova". People.com. 1988-08-08. Retrieved 2018-03-23.
12. Steffen Hung. "Robert Palmer – Change His Ways". Australian-charts.com. Retrieved 2018-03-23.
13. "Robert Palmer – Change His Ways". Ultratop.be. Retrieved 2018-03-23.
14. Steffen Hung. "Robert Palmer – Change His Ways". Dutchcharts.nl. Retrieved 2018-03-23.
15. Steffen Hung. "German Chart – Robert Palmer – Change His Ways". Germancharts.de. Retrieved 2018-03-23.
16. Jaclyn Ward. "The Irish Charts – All there is to know". Irishcharts.ie. Retrieved 2018-03-23.
17. Steffen Hung. "Robert Palmer – Change His Ways". charts.nz. Retrieved 2018-03-23.
18. "ROBERT PALMER | full Official Chart History | Official Charts Company". Officialcharts.com. Retrieved 2018-03-23.