Spaceman (4 Non Blondes song)

"Spaceman"
Single by 4 Non Blondes
from the album Bigger, Better, Faster, More!
B-side	"Pleasantly Blue"
Released	September 1993
Studio	Groove Masters (Santa Monica, California)
Genre	Rock
Length	3:40
Label	Interscope Atlantic
Songwriter(s)	Linda Perry Shaunna Hall
Producer(s)	David Tickle
4 Non Blondes singles chronology
"What's Up?" (1993) "Spaceman" (1993) "Mary's House" (1993)
Music video
"Spaceman" on YouTube

"Spaceman" is a song by American alternative rock band 4 Non Blondes. It is the sixth track on their only studio album, Bigger, Better, Faster, More! (1992),^[1] and was released as the album's third single in September 1993 by Interscope and Atlantic Records. The song is written by lead singer Linda Perry with guitarist Shaunna Hall, and was produced by David Tickle. While the album's lead single, "What's Up?", became a worldwide hit, "Spaceman" reached the top 20 only in Austria, Iceland, Italy and Switzerland and missed the US Billboard Hot 100. The music video for the song was directed by Scott Kalvert.

Composition

"Spaceman" is composed in the key of G major and is set in common time with a slow tempo of 69 beats per minute.^[2] The song is three minutes and forty seconds long.^[3]

Critical reception

Tom Demalon from AllMusic stated that the song's "yearning lyrics are delivered over a quiet, martial drum rhythm."^[4] Larry Flick from Billboard wrote, "Follow-up to the gold-selling "What's Up?" is fueled by a similar wall-shattering vocal performance. The tune itself is a strumming, guitar-anchored rock ballad, deriving much of its motion from a rolling, militaristic beat. While it is not immediately catchy, slowly ingratiating track will likely meet with warm approval at top 40 and album-rock levels."^[5] Dave Jennings from Melody Maker said, "More histrionics, this time at a slower pace and with tacky "military" drumming."^[6] Alan Jones from Music Week gave "Spaceman" three out of five, adding that the song "offers pretty much the same mix [as its predecessor], with the same unrestrained vocals and loosely fitting instrumentation. But it's a less heady brew that won't fare quite so well."^[7]

Music video

The song's accompanying music video was directed by American film director Scott Kalvert and filmed in Los Angeles.^[8] It features the band performing the song in several locations, including inside a house with colorful lights, in a sunny park, and under a full moon. The video was added to the playlists of MTV and The Box on the week ending September 26, 1993.^[9]

Track listings

All songs were written by Linda Perry, with co-writing from Shaunna Hall on "Spaceman" and Roger Rocha on "Strange".

US cassette single[10] A. "Spaceman" – 3:30 B. "Pleasantly Blue" – 2:27 UK CD single[11][12] "Spaceman" – 3:40 "Strange" – 4:04 "Pleasantly Blue" – 2:27 "What's Up?" (remix) – 4:51

UK 7-inch and cassette single[11][13][14] "Spaceman" – 3:40 "Strange" – 4:04 UK 12-inch single[15] A1. "Spaceman" – 3:40 A2. "Strange" – 4:04 B1. "What's Up?" (remix) – 4:51 B2. "What's Up?" (piano version) – 4:09

Credits and personnel

Credits are lifted from the Bigger, Better, Faster, More! album booklet.^[16]

Studios

• Recorded at Groove Masters (Santa Monica, California)
• Mixed and overdubbed at The Bunker (Malibu, California)
• Mastered at Precision Mastering (Los Angeles)

Personnel

• Linda Perry – writing, vocals, acoustic and electric guitar
• Shaunna Hall – writing, additional guitar
• Roger Rocha – guitar
• Christa Hillhouse – bass, vocals
• Dawn Richardson – drums
• Rory Kaplan – Mellotron
• Suzie Katayama – accordion
• David Tickle – production, recording, mixing
• Mark Hensley – engineering
• Stephen Marcussen – mastering

Charts

Weekly charts Chart (1993–1994) Peak position Australia (ARIA)[17] 85 Austria (Ö3 Austria Top 40)[18] 19 Belgium (Ultratop 50 Flanders)[19] 24 Europe (Eurochart Hot 100)[20] 45 Europe (European Hit Radio)[21] 21 Germany (GfK)[22] 28 Iceland (Íslenski Listinn Topp 40)[23] 2 Italy (Musica e dischi)[24] 11 Netherlands (Dutch Top 40)[25] 32 Netherlands (Single Top 100)[26] 25 New Zealand (Recorded Music NZ)[11] 23 Switzerland (Schweizer Hitparade)[27] 18 UK Singles (OCC)[28] 53 UK Airplay (ERA)[29] 52 US Bubbling Under Hot 100 Singles (Billboard)[30] 17 US Album Rock Tracks (Billboard)[31] 39

Year-end charts Chart (1993) Position Iceland (Íslenski Listinn Topp 40)[32] 43

Release history

Region	Date	Format(s)	Label(s)	Ref.
United States	September 1993	Cassette	Interscope
United Kingdom	October 4, 1993	7-inch vinyl 12-inch vinyl CD cassette		[33]

References

1. "4 Non Blondes – Bigger, Better, Faster, More!". AllMusic. Retrieved October 27, 2020.
2. "Spaceman by 4 Non Blondes – Sheet Music". Musicnotes. Retrieved July 7, 2020.
3. "4 Non Blondes – Spaceman [Vinyl Single] Overview". AllMusic. Retrieved July 7, 2020.
4. Demalon, Tom. "4 Non Blondes – Bigger, Better, Faster, More!". AllMusic. Retrieved November 4, 2020.
5. Flick, Larry (September 18, 1993). "Single Reviews" (PDF). Billboard. Vol. 105, no. 38. p. 73. Retrieved October 27, 2020.
6. Jennings, Dave (October 9, 1993). "Singles". Melody Maker. p. 36. Retrieved June 23, 2023.
7. Jones, Alan (October 9, 1993). "Market Preview: Mainstream – Singles" (PDF). Music Week. p. 18. Retrieved April 4, 2021.
8. "Production Notes". Billboard. Vol. 105, no. 40. October 2, 1993. p. 58.
9. "Video Monitor". Billboard. Vol. 105, no. 41. October 9, 1993. p. 47.
10. Spaceman (US cassette single sleeve). 4 Non Blondes. Interscope Records, Atlantic Records. 1993. 4-98374.
11. "4 Non Blondes – Spaceman". Top 40 Singles. Retrieved July 7, 2020.
12. Spaceman (UK CD single liner notes). 4 Non Blondes. Interscope Records. 1993. A8349CD, 6544-95992-2.
13. Spaceman (UK 7-inch single sleeve). 4 Non Blondes. Interscope Records. 1993. A8349, 6544-98349-7.
14. Spaceman (UK cassette single sleeve). 4 Non Blondes. Interscope Records. 1993. A8349C, 6544-98349-4.
15. Spaceman (UK 12-inch single sleeve). 4 Non Blondes. Interscope Records. 1993. A8349T, 6544-95993-0.
16. Bigger, Better, Faster, More! (US CD album booklet). 4 Non Blondes. Interscope Records, Atlantic Records. 1992. INTD-92112, 7 92112-2.
17. Ryan, Gavin (2011). Australia's Music Charts 1988–2010 (PDF ed.). Mt Martha, Victoria, Australia: Moonlight Publishing. p. 107.
18. "4 Non Blondes – Spaceman" (in German). Ö3 Austria Top 40. Retrieved July 7, 2020.
19. "4 Non Blondes – Spaceman" (in Dutch). Ultratop 50. Retrieved July 7, 2020.
20. "Eurochart Hot 100 Singles" (PDF). Music & Media. Vol. 10, no. 49. December 4, 1993. p. 11. Retrieved July 7, 2020.
21. "EHR Top 40" (PDF). Music & Media. Vol. 10, no. 49. December 4, 1993. p. 21. Retrieved April 10, 2024.
22. "4 Non Blondes – Spaceman" (in German). GfK Entertainment charts. Retrieved July 7, 2020.
23. "Íslenski Listinn Topp 40 (07.10–13.10)". Dagblaðið Vísir (in Icelandic). October 7, 1993. p. 20. Retrieved July 7, 2020.
24. "Classifiche". Musica e dischi (in Italian). Retrieved June 8, 2022. Set "Tipo" on "Singoli". Then, in the "Artista" field, search "4 Non Blondes".
25. "Nederlandse Top 40 – week 49, 1993" (in Dutch). Dutch Top 40. Retrieved July 7, 2020.
26. "4 Non Blondes – Spaceman" (in Dutch). Single Top 100. Retrieved July 7, 2020.
27. "4 Non Blondes – Spaceman". Swiss Singles Chart. Retrieved July 7, 2020.
28. "Official Singles Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved July 7, 2020.
29. "Airplay 100" (PDF). Hit Music. October 16, 1993. p. 21. Retrieved May 6, 2024.
30. "4 Non Blondes Chart History (Bubbling Under Hot 100)". Billboard. Archived from the original on February 2, 2020. Retrieved July 7, 2020.
31. "4 Non Blondes Chart History (Mainstream Rock Songs)". Billboard. Archived from the original on February 3, 2020. Retrieved July 7, 2020.
32. "Árslistinn 1993". Dagblaðið Vísir (in Icelandic). January 4, 1994. p. 17. Retrieved July 7, 2020.
33. "Single Releases". Music Week. October 2, 1993. p. 25. Misprinted as September 27.