Everything Zen

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"Everything Zen"
Single by Bush
from the album Sixteen Stone
Released28 January 1995 (1995-01-28)
Genre
Length
  • 4:38 (album version)
  • 4:02 (edit)
Label
Songwriter(s)Gavin Rossdale
Producer(s)
Bush singles chronology
"Bomb"
(1994) 		"Everything Zen"
(1995) 		"Little Things"
(1995)
Music video
"Everything Zen" on YouTube

"Everything Zen" is a single by British grunge band Bush. Released on 28 January 1995, it was the band's first single released under the name "Bush",[2] and their second overall. The single comes from their 1994 debut album, Sixteen Stone.

Lyrics and music[edit]

The title of the song may reference the poem Howl by Allen Ginsberg which includes the phrase "who vanished into nowhere Zen New Jersey." The lyrics "Mickey Mouse has grown up a cow" are taken from David Bowie's 1971 song "Life on Mars?". Other references in the song include Tom Waits[3] ("Rain Dogs howl for the century"), Jane's Addiction's "Ted, Just Admit It..." ("there's no sex in your violence"), Alice in Chains' "Would?" ("try to see it once my way"), and the Elvis Presley sighting conspiracy theory ("I don't believe that Elvis is dead").

The song's opening guitar riff has been compared to that of Neil Young's "Rockin' in the Free World" (1989).[4]

Music video[edit]

The video was the first video Bush had ever made. The video was directed by Matt Mahurin, who also makes an appearance in the video wearing a mask, and was shot on 12 and 13 November 1994. Scenes from the video were recreated in the opening credits of the TV series Millennium.

Gavin Rossdale said of the video: "I hadn't even seen that many videos before making this because I never had MTV. I just remember that it felt weird miming with all those people standing around, but you soon get over that. Obviously, this video was hugely important in breaking us in America."[5]

Commercial performance[edit]

Although it did not achieve immediate success, it eventually reached number two on the Billboard Modern Rock Chart,[6] number 5 on the Mainstream Rock Tracks and Canadian Rock/Alternative chart, and number 40 on the Hot 100 Airplay. It failed to hit the Hot 100 that year.

Track listing[edit]

European CD single (6544-95794-2) and 12-inch vinyl (A8196T)

  1. "Everything Zen" (radio edit)
  2. "Bud"
  3. "Monkey"
  4. "Everything Zen"

Charts[edit]

Chart (1995) Peak
position
Australia (ARIA)[7] 41
Netherlands (Dutch Top 40 Tipparade)[8] 5
Netherlands (Single Top 100)[9] 45
UK Singles (OCC)[10] 84
UK Rock & Metal (OCC)[11] 2
US Radio Songs (Billboard)[12] 40
US Alternative Airplay (Billboard)[13] 2
US Mainstream Rock (Billboard)[14] 5

Release history[edit]

Region Date Format(s) Label(s) Ref.
United States 28 January 1995 Radio
[citation needed]
United Kingdom 17 April 1995
  • 12-inch vinyl
  • CD
  • cassette
[15]

References[edit]

  1. ^ Piccoli, Sean (22 March 1997). "Bush: America's Band". Sun Sentiel. Sun Senitel. Retrieved 23 January 2020.[permanent dead link]
  2. ^ Nine, Jennifer (1999). Bush: Twenty-seventh Letter : the Official History. Virgin. ISBN 9780753501894. Retrieved 26 July 2020.
  3. ^ "Everything Zen by Bush - Songfacts". www.songfacts.com. Lead singer Gavin Rossdale made reference to two of his favorite people in one of the lyrics: Tom Waits and Allen Ginsberg. The line, "Rain Dogs howl for the century" refers to the Waits album Rain Dogs (also a "song), and the Ginsberg poem Howl.
  4. ^ Terich, Jeff. "1995: The year Oasis made us want to live forever". Treble. Retrieved 1 December 2023.
  5. ^ "Music Video History at OneSecondBush.com - A Comprehensive Fan Site for the Band Bush". Archived from the original on 20 February 2012. Retrieved 4 March 2012.
  6. ^ "Alternative Airplay Chart for the week of March 4, 1995". Billboard. Eldridge Industries. Retrieved 1 October 2020.
  7. ^ "Bush – Everything Zen". ARIA Top 50 Singles. Retrieved 22 October 2018.
  8. ^ "Tipparade-lijst van week 32, 1995" (in Dutch). Dutch Top 40. Retrieved 10 April 2023.
  9. ^ "Bush – Everything Zen" (in Dutch). Single Top 100. Retrieved 22 October 2018.
  10. ^ "Official Singles Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 22 October 2018.
  11. ^ "Official Rock & Metal Singles Chart Top 40". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 22 October 2018.
  12. ^ "Bush Chart History (Radio Songs)". Billboard. Retrieved 11 March 2017.
  13. ^ "Bush Chart History (Alternative Airplay)". Billboard. Retrieved 11 March 2017.
  14. ^ "Bush Chart History (Mainstream Rock)". Billboard. Retrieved 11 March 2017.
  15. ^ "New Releases: Singles". Music Week. 15 April 2023. p. 31.
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