Hey Jupiter

"Hey Jupiter"
Hey Jupiter US EP cover art featuring Tori Amos staring into the distance leaning on a tree branch
Hey Jupiter US EP cover
Single by Tori Amos
from the album Boys for Pele
ReleasedAugust 20, 1996 (1996-08-20)
Length6:03
Label
Songwriter(s)Tori Amos
Producer(s)Ian Stanley
Tori Amos singles chronology
"Professional Widow"
(1996) 		"Hey Jupiter"
(1996) 		"In the Springtime of His Voodoo"
(1996)
Tori Amos EP chronology
Crucify
(1992) 		Hey Jupiter
(1996) 		Scarlet's Hidden Treasures
(2004)

"Hey Jupiter" is a song written and performed by American singer-songwriter Tori Amos. It was released as the fourth single from her third studio album, Boys for Pele (1996), and was her first extended play (EP) since Crucify in 1992. The US EP Hey Jupiter features a re-recorded version of "Hey Jupiter" followed by four live tracks recorded during her Dew Drop Inn Tour of 1996. The song is also featured on the double A-side CD singles released in the UK and Australia.

Live versions can be found on the US "Bliss" single in 1999, the London show of her The Original Bootlegs series (2005), and the 27 shows part of the Legs and Boots series, released over 2007 and 2008. The music video is on the collection Fade to Red and was released in 2006.

The Dakota version

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The version released on all but the UK 12-inch vinyl single, entitled "Hey Jupiter (The Dakota Version)", differs substantially from the version that appears on Boys for Pele in that it is a full re-recording rather than a remix. While the studio album version is largely a piano solo track, the Dakota version adds many more layers including bass, guitars, and a rhythm track taken from the earlier B-side track "Sugar" (though slowed down). Lyrically, new bridges and an extended coda are added, making the song even longer despite the fact that the third verse from the album version is omitted. The Dakota version also emphasises the song's chordal similarity to Prince's power ballad "Purple Rain," which also features an extended instrumental coda. The UK 12-inch vinyl single version also differs from the Boys for Pele version in that it contains a radio edit of the Dakota version.

The Dakota version has been performed on each of Amos' tours since the Dew Drop Inn Tour (1996). Traditionally, Amos performs the album version when on solo piano, although the Dakota version was performed on the vast majority of nights of the American Doll Posse world tour. A remaster of the Dakota version is included on the anthology box set A Piano: The Collection.

Critical reception

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Daina Darzin from Cash Box wrote, "With her Boys for Pele disc double platinum and counting, Tori Amos has firmly established herself in the pantheon of quirky, smart female vocalists right alongside Alanis Morissette. This is an atmospheric, edgy ballad, at once ethereal and dark, buoyed by Amos' evocative, emotion-laden voice. An instant-add on a number of formats including CHR, Adult Contemporary and Modern Rock."[1] Kevin Courtney from Irish Times viewed it as "a plangent ballad which never spins out of orbit".[2]

Sales and chart performance

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The US EP Hey Jupiter debuted at number 94, its peak, on the Billboard 200 on September 7, 1996; it remained on the chart for three weeks before falling off.[3][4] As of May 2008, 12 years after its release, the Hey Jupiter EP had sold 172,000 copies in the US, according to Nielsen SoundScan.[5] The "Hey Jupiter/Professional Widow" double A-side single release peaked at number 20 on the UK Singles Chart.[6] The Australian double A-side release debuted at number 68 on the ARIA Singles Chart in October 1996 and peaked at number 17 in February 1997, maintaining its peak position for three weeks.[7][8] The double A-side single remained on the chart for 31 weeks throughout 1996 and 1997, ranking at number 65 on the Australian year-end chart for 1997.[7][9]

Music video

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The accompanying music video for "Hey Jupiter" was directed by Earle Sebastian who has worked with Bono, Madonna, the Fugees, Missy Elliott, and others.[10] The video is set to the Dakota version radio edit, as opposed to the extended Dakota or the Boys for Pele versions of the song.[11]

The video features Amos being guided through a burning building by a small girl. According to Amos in the audio commentary provided with the video collection Fade to Red (2006), the small girl represents an angel who is "taking her to a different dimension, another reality."[12]

Amos describes the spectators watching the event: "...this women that they knew, some knew better than others, is in a fire. If you see it as an emotional fire, well, maybe it's someone who can't get out of a relationship or an addiction or another type of situation. But, you know, there's nothing you can do but watch them burn. And, that's really how I saw it poetically."[12]

Track listings

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All tracks are written by Tori Amos, except where noted

US EP[13]
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Hey Jupiter" (The Dakota version) 6:03
2."Sugar" (live) 5:33
3."Honey" (live) 4:19
4."Professional Widow" (Merry Widow version live) 4:38
5."Somewhere Over the Rainbow" (live)Harold Arlen, Edgar Yipsel Harburg4:31
Total length:25:14
UK and Australian CD single[14]
No.TitleLength
1."Hey Jupiter" (The Dakota version)6:03
2."Professional Widow" (Armand's Star Trunk Funkin' mix radio edit)3:45
3."Sugar" (live)5:43
4."Honey" (live)4:19
Total length:19:50
UK 12-inch single[15]
No.TitleLength
1."Professional Widow" (Armand's Star Trunk Funkin' mix)8:08
2."Hey Jupiter" (The Dakota version radio edit)4:14
3."Talula" (BT's Synethasia mix)11:27
Total length:23:49
UK cassette single[16]
No.TitleLength
1."Hey Jupiter" (The Dakota version)6:03
2."Professional Widow" (Armand's Star Trunk Funkin' mix radio edit)3:45
Total length:9:48

Personnel

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The personnel listing is from the Boys for Pele album booklet.[17]

Charts

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Certifications

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Region Certification Certified units/sales
Australia (ARIA)[24] Gold 35,000^

^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.

Release history

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Region Version Date Format(s) Label(s) Ref.
United Kingdom "Hey Jupiter" / "Professional Widow" July 22, 1996
  • 12-inch vinyl
  • CD
  • cassette
 EastWest [25]
United States Hey Jupiter EP August 20, 1996 CD Atlantic [26]

References

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  1. ^ Darzin, Daina (July 20, 1996). "Pop Singles" (PDF). Cash Box. p. 7. Retrieved November 14, 2022.
  2. ^ Courtney, Kevin (January 26, 1996). "Rock". Irish Times.
  3. ^ "Billboard 200". Billboard. September 7, 1996. Retrieved August 30, 2022.
  4. ^ a b "Tori Amos Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved April 26, 2018.
  5. ^ "Ask Billboard — How Many Dolls are in a Posse". Billboard. May 8, 2008. Archived from the original on April 14, 2013. Retrieved September 4, 2008.
  6. ^ a b "Official Singles Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved April 26, 2018.
  7. ^ a b Ryan, Gavin (2011). Australia's Music Charts 1988–2010. Mt. Martha, VIC, Australia: Moonlight Publishing.
  8. ^ a b "Tori Amos – Hey Jupiter / Professional Widow". ARIA Top 50 Singles. Retrieved April 26, 2018.
  9. ^ a b "ARIA Top 100 Singles for 1997". ARIA. Retrieved November 26, 2019.
  10. ^ "Earle Sebastian director videography on Internet Archive". mvdbase. Archived from the original on January 21, 2016.
  11. ^ Amos, Tori (February 14, 2006). The Tori Amos Video Collection: Fade to Red (US DVD liner notes). Rhino Entertainment.
  12. ^ a b Amos, Tori (February 14, 2006). The Tori Amos Video Collection: Fade to Red (DVD). Rhino Entertainment. In "Fade to Red Audio Commentary" at 32:55. ASIN B000CR7R9S.
  13. ^ Amos, Tori (1996). Hey Jupiter (US CD EP liner notes). Atlantic Records. 82955-2.
  14. ^ Amos, Tori (1996). Hey Jupiter / Professional Widow (UK & Australian CD single liner notes). EastWest Records. A5494CD.
  15. ^ Amos, Tori (1996). Hey Jupiter / Professional Widow (UK 12-inch single sleeve). EastWest Records. A5494T, 7567-85493-0.
  16. ^ Amos, Tori (1996). Hey Jupiter / Professional Widow (UK cassette single sleeve). EastWest Records. A5494C.
  17. ^ Amos, Tori (1996). Boys for Pele (US CD booklet). Atlantic Records. 82862-2.
  18. ^ "Tori Amos – Hey Jupiter / Professional Widow" (in Dutch). Ultratop 50. Retrieved April 26, 2018.
  19. ^ "Tori Amos – Hey Jupiter / Professional Widow" (in French). Ultratop 50. Retrieved April 26, 2018.
  20. ^ "Eurochart Hot 100 Singles" (PDF). Music & Media. Vol. 13, no. 39. September 28, 1996. p. 20. Retrieved August 17, 2020.
  21. ^ "Top National Sellers" (PDF). Music & Media. Vol. 13, no. 40. October 5, 1996. p. 20. Retrieved November 26, 2019.
  22. ^ "Official Scottish Singles Sales Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved April 26, 2018.
  23. ^ "Official Dance Singles Chart Top 40". Official Charts Company. Retrieved August 17, 2020.
  24. ^ "ARIA Charts – Accreditations – 1997 Singles" (PDF). Australian Recording Industry Association. Retrieved November 26, 2019.
  25. ^ "New Releases: Singles" (PDF). Music Week. July 20, 1996. p. 46. Retrieved July 12, 2021.
  26. ^ "Hey Jupiter [Explicit]". Amazon. Retrieved July 12, 2021.
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