Change His Ways

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"Change His Ways"
Single by Robert Palmer
from the album Heavy Nova
B-side"More Than Ever"
ReleasedMay 1989[1]
Length2:56
LabelEMI
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)

"Change His Ways" is a song by English vocalist Robert Palmer, which was released in 1989 as the fifth 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[edit]

"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[edit]

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[edit]

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[edit]

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[edit]

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

References[edit]

  1. ^ a b "Robert Palmer – Change His Ways / More Than Ever – EMI – UK – EM 85". 45cat. Retrieved 2018-03-23.
  2. ^ a b 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.
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