Farewell to the Fairground

"Farewell to the Fairground"
Single by White Lies
from the album To Lose My Life...
B-side	"Love Lockdown" (various remixes)
Released	23 March 2009
Recorded	May–September 2008
Studio	ICP Studios, Brussels, Belgium
Genre	Indie rock, post-punk revival
Label	Fiction
Songwriter(s)	Harry McVeigh, Charles Cave, Jack Lawrence-Brown
Producer(s)	Ed Buller, Max Dingel
White Lies singles chronology
"To Lose My Life" (2009) "Farewell to the Fairground" (2009) "Death" (2009)

"Farewell to the Fairground" is a song by London-based indie rock band White Lies. It was released on 23 March 2009 by Fiction Records. It was their third single from debut album To Lose My Life..., and fourth single overall. The band recorded a video for the track with director Andreas Nilsson, filmed in Nikel, Russia.^[1]

The song reached number one in Poland and also charted in the Netherlands and the United Kingdom.

History and release

"Farewell to the Fairground" was recorded along with nine other tracks in Brussels' ICP Studios between May and September 2008. In a track-by-track review of their debut album for NME, the band stated that it was one of a number of songs which were written particularly quickly during the recording process, as they had only recorded demo versions of five tracks prior to signing to Fiction and entering the studio. The band described it as one of their more upbeat tracks.^[2] A remix of the song, titled "Farewell to the Fairground (Yuksek Remix)", previously appeared as a B-side to previous single "To Lose My Life". The single featured the band's cover version of Kanye West's "Love Lockdown" as a B-side. The single charted at No. 84 in the week of its release.^[3] It then rose to No. 33 the week after, becoming the band's highest charting single.

Track listing

CD

1. "Farewell to the Fairground (Single Mix)"
2. "Farewell to the Fairground (Future Funk Squad's 'Black Truth' Remix)"

7" vinyl (1)

1. "Farewell to the Fairground (Single Mix)"
2. "Love Lockdown (Radio 1 Live Lounge Version)"

7" vinyl (2)

1. "Farewell to the Fairground (Single Mix)"
2. "Farewell to the Fairground (Rory Phillips White Horse Mix)"

iTunes EP

1. "Farewell to the Fairground (Single Mix)
2. "Love Lockdown (Radio 1 Live Lounge Version)"
3. "Farewell to the Fairground (Rory Phillips White Horse Mix)"
4. "Farewell to the Fairground (Disco Bloodbath Remix)"

Charts

Chart (2009)	Peak Position
Netherlands (Dutch Single Top 100)[4]	83
Polish Singles Chart[5]	1
Scottish Singles Chart[6]	9
UK Singles Chart	33[3]

Certifications

Region	Certification	Certified units/sales
United Kingdom (BPI)[7]	Silver	200,000^‡
^‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone.

In other media

The song was featured in the 2012 video game Forza Horizon, playing on the Horizon Rocks station.^[8]

References

1. "White Lies' debut album goes straight to Number One in the charts". NME. Retrieved 2009-01-30.
2. "NME Video: White Lies – Track by Track". YouTube (on behalf of NME.com). Archived from the original on 2021-12-15. Retrieved 2009-01-30.
3. "White Lies – Farewell to the Fairground". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 2009-03-28.
4. "dutchcharts.nl - Discografie White Lies". MegaCharts. Retrieved 23 August 2013.
5. "Lista Przebojów Trójki - Polskie Radio Online". Archived from the original on 22 November 2019. Retrieved 2 February 2023.
6. Peaks in Scotland:
   • "Death": "Official Scottish Singles Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. officialcharts.com/. 28 September 2008. Retrieved 2 February 2023.
   • "To Lose My Life": "Official Scottish Singles Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. officialcharts.com/. 18 January 2009. Retrieved 2 February 2023.
   • "Farewell to the Fairground": "Official Scottish Singles Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. officialcharts.com/. 29 March 2009. Retrieved 2 February 2023.
   • "Death" (re-release): "Official Scottish Singles Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. officialcharts.com/. 5 July 2009. Retrieved 2 February 2023.
   • "Bigger than Us": "Official Scottish Singles Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. officialcharts.com/. 9 January 2011. Retrieved 2 February 2023.
7. "British single certifications – White Lies – Farewell To The Fairground". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved 22 December 2024.
8. "Soundtrack – Forza Horizon Wiki Guide – IGN". 25 September 2012.

External links

• White Lies' official website