Pop Goes the World (song)

"Pop Goes the World" is a song recorded by Canadian new wave/synthpop group Men Without Hats. It was released in October 1987 as the lead single from the album of the same name. The song reached Number 1 in Austria, and No. 2 in Canada and Sweden. The song has been inducted into the Canadian Songwriters Hall of Fame.[1]

"Pop Goes the World"
Single by Men Without Hats
from the album Pop Goes the World
B-side"The End (Of the World)"
ReleasedOctober 1987
Recorded1987
GenreSynthpop, new wave
Length3:43
LabelMercury
Songwriter(s)Ivan Doroschuk
Producer(s)Men Without Hats, Zeus B. Held
Men Without Hats singles chronology
"Nationale 7"
(1985)		 "Pop Goes the World"
(1987)		 "Moonbeam"
(1987)

Content

The song very generally tells a story of "Johnny" and "Jenny," the two members of a musical group called "The Human Race" (the members' instruments of choice vary throughout the song, though Johnny is primarily a guitarist and Jenny is a bassist) on their quest for fame in the industry, though at one point the lyrics note that they come to the realization that they could make "more money on a movie screen."

Music video

The music video for the song features lead singer Ivan Doroschuk who tells the story of "Johnny," played by guitarist Stefan Doroschuk (impersonating Elvis Presley), and "Jenny," portrayed by an unknown actress[lower-alpha 1] playing a left-handed Höfner 500/1 bass. The two are seen dancing around a bubble-filled stage along with numerous other characters including a keyboard-playing baby and Bonhomme (the mascot of Quebec City's annual Winter Carnival). The word "Pop!", in writing reminiscent of a comic book, appears periodically on screen in time with popping noises that punctuate the song. The video was released in 1988 in the CD Video format.

Charts
Chart (1987/88) Peak
position
Australia (Kent Music Report)[4] 66
Austria (Ö3 Austria Top 40)[5] 1
Canada (RPM) 2
New Zealand (Recorded Music NZ)[6] 15
South Africa [7] 3
Spain (AFYVE)[8] 11
Sweden (Sverigetopplistan)[9] 2
U.S. Billboard Hot 100 20
U.S. Billboard Hot Dance Club Play 27

Personnel
  • Ivan Doroschuk - vocals, guitar, keyboards, drum programming
  • Stefan Doroschuk - backing vocals, bass

2012 version

The song was re-recorded during the Love in the Age of War sessions, with Ivan Doroschuk on vocals, James Love on guitar and bass, and Louise Dawson on keyboards and drum programming. The recording was released as a digital single in 2012.[10]

The song was featured in the 1987 film Date with an Angel, which starred Phoebe Cates, Emmanuelle Béart and Michael E. Knight. The song was also featured very briefly in the 1991 film Scanners II: The New Order.

The main tune of the song has caught on among sports fans cheering for their teams in several countries across the world. In 2019 Chilean protests against chilean government due its systematic repression and humans right infringement, among other causes, protesters created in the streets the song "Chile Despertó" ("Chile Woke Up"), using the main tune of "Pop goes around the world". In Argentina, for instance, it is arguably the most popular tune sung by football (soccer) fans, no matter what team or division they belong to. Since December 2015, it's also been very popular in Argentina as an anthem of former President Cristina Fernández de Kirchner's followers; they sing "Oooh, vamos a volver, a volver a volver, vamos a volver" ("Oooh, we will return, we'll return, we'll return, we will return"). It is also used by football fans in Japan (national team, Yokohama F. Marinos and other teams) and by fans of Sport Club Internacional football team in Brazil.[11][12] In Hungary, fans of Diósgyőr, use the song with the neyt lyrics: "Amíg élek én, nem érdekel más, csak a Diósgyőr, csak a Diósgyőr, csak a Diósgyőr!" ("As long as I live, I don't care about anything but Diósgyőr, only Diósgyőr, only Diósgyőr!"). In Israel, fans of Hapoel Tel Aviv sing the song with the lyrics: "הפועל עולה" (Hapoel goes up).

Cover versions
  • In 1997, Canadian band The Nils covered the song on their album Green Fields In Daylight.
  • In 1999, punk rock band Apocalypse Hoboken covered the song on their album Inverse, Reverse, Perverse.
  • In 1999, Barcelona covered the song and it appeared as the fifth track on the single for the song "Robot Trouble."
  • In 2004, DJ Ötzi performed "You Never Walk Alone" which uses the chorus melody of "Pop Goes The World"
  • In 2004, LMP covered the song in their box-set A Century of Song.
  • In 2007, the song was covered by Hyperbubble on the compilation NineteenEightySeven and by Canal Pop on the compilation Southern Waves: Argentinian Tribute To Classic Electropop.
  • In 2011, The Burning Hell covered the song. The cover was released on the Zunior sampler Have Not Been the Same, Vol. 1: Too Cool to Live, Too Smart to Die. On the same band's 2016 album Public Library, bandleader Mathias Kom wrote the original song "Men Without Hats" as a tribute to the band's role in his childhood; the song's first verse describes the experience of going to a record store to buy the album Pop Goes the World, and quotes both the "Johnny played guitar and Jenny played bass" lyric and a piece of the instrumental line from this song.
  • In 2012, Savoir Adore covered the song. The cover was subsequently featured in commercials for Tide Pods.
  • In 2019 Chilean protests against chilean government due its systematic repression and humans right infringement, among other causes, protesters created in the streets the song "Chile Despertó" ("Chile Woke Up"), using the main tune of "Pop goes around the world"

Notes
  1. Although one source identifies the actress as Louise Court,[2] others indicate that this appears to be a case of mistaken identity.[3] Court had previously appeared in the band's videos for "I Like" and "Safety Dance".[3]

References
  1. Dunlevy, T'Cha (1 September 2020). "Men Without Hats' Safety Dance, Pop Goes the World enter hall of fame". Sudbury Star. Archived from the original on 3 September 2020.
  2. Wuench, Kevin (January 15, 2015). "Can you name the THIRD biggest hit for Men Without Hats? Here it is". Tampa Bay Times. Archived from the original on December 8, 2015. Retrieved November 26, 2015.
  3. Berry, Rohan (December 3, 2011). "The Mystery of the Manic Safety Dancer". Apercu.
  4. Kent, David (1993). Australian Chart Book 1970–1992 (illustrated ed.). St Ives, N.S.W.: Australian Chart Book. p. 198. ISBN 0-646-11917-6.
  5. "Austriancharts.at – Men Without Hats – Pop Goes the World" (in German). Ö3 Austria Top 40.
  6. "Charts.nz – Men Without Hats – Pop Goes the World". Top 40 Singles.
  7. http://www.rock.co.za/files/springbok_top_20_(M).html
  8. Salaverri, Fernando (September 2005). Sólo éxitos: año a año, 1959–2002 (1st ed.). Spain: Fundación Autor-SGAE. ISBN 84-8048-639-2.
  9. "Swedishcharts.com – Men Without Hats – Pop Goes the World". Singles Top 100.
  10. Pop Goes the World (song) at Discogs
  11. "Yokohama F. Marinos saposon" (in Japanese). Archived from the original on 7 April 2010. Retrieved 23 March 2010.
  12. ja:ウルトラス・ニッポン
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