never seen the video till now truly disturbing...................Buy those who help people mainly the oppressed usually get struck down like this...........
This is one of several great bands pumping out this kind of music "back then". XTC, Crowded House (the Finn Bros.) and Squeeze. Wonderfully well crafted pop music.
@gplito haha oh yr right, i was confusing nixon with kennedy apparently, i cant quite remember , i was remembering a section from a people's history of the us by howard zinn, but just glancing at kennedy's wikipedia article he was obviously of the same crop of corporate war bastards in office. i mean really? is having a sick cute boyfriend president that inspiring?
this billy jack bullshit, who listens to this old ass dudu brown tap ur foot 90s pop music, britney spears comes on right after this. u cant taste it but i just threw up in my mouth
I know this song since nonsuch album came out, but this is the first time i see this song's video. It seems they're talking about JFK, what a great band.
@bjustin1000 WOW! What I did want to know is what is the rivalry about? Why are people actually haters of this band? My things was just a religious argument but it seems other have some vendetta, why?
You put it so eloquently! It's funny because I am an age that makes XTC a bond I would have listened to in my late teens/early 20s but never really heard them until now. I guess what's great transcends time and never becomes irrelevant. Thanks for your insights. Peace.
Is XTC focused on anti-god, anti-christian, anti-hypocrasy as a general theme of their music? I just discovered 'Dear God" clearly an anti-god, anti-theology, anti-myth message...as is this song...are there more?
@AtheistSongs XTC doesn't FOCUS on anti-anything, but the themes you ask about crop up time and again in their music.
'Dear God' is the most obviously 'anti-Christian'. But there are MANY more that touch on Christianity, myth, hypocrisy yes... they, or at least Andy Partridge, is somewhat pagan in his outlook, so these things come out often in his lyrics in one way or another.
@akireflex Partridge is a humanist who obviously has good grasp on history and geography. Christianity replaced humanism with Original Sin and an apocalyptic world view and turned back the clock on human achievement for hundreds of years. The damage done by Monotheism is still felt today and is unparalleled by anything else.
I've just got into XTC but what i cant understand is why they never made it really big there music is so much better than other acts at the time. Its a crying shame that not many people my age (22) listens to music like this, people my age just want to listen to cheap sounding plastic pop and dance
@32INCHSTRIPER and how is that working out for you with millions dying because people like you wish them joy as they starve and are tortured? Why not just admit you're a useless coward and take no responsibility for the leaders who rule you so badly and destroy the world?
@elmoisgod I'm 14 years old (15 in March) and I've been listening to XTC since I was about 10. They are so much better than most things in the charts these days ;)
i just have to say.....this is a well written song...but Crash test dummies made this song a song.....more energy and character. please don't smite me.
No words for it, one of the finest rock songs ever. Andy speaks truth and speaks it beyond well. And no one rocked or worked a melody like XTC. IMO, even the Beatles, a huge influence on them of course, couldn't touch them.
This is a great band from a great country that gave us many great bands and gave us(Americans)our own roots music back! Don't trash these wonderful people. To the Brits: we're not all assholes.
@rintintin7529 I'm sorry you feel that way. My sister was born in England and we lived there for many years. It's a wonderful country, but i guess you have your share of assholes, too.Cheers.
@Hoplite001 This song is about a pumpkin Andy threw out after Halloween 1991. It sat there rotting, and looked so pathetic that he envisioned a pumpkin man dying for someone's sins, so he wrote this silly song and made the pumpkin man as Jesusy as he thought fit.
One of my favorite bands after all these years. I bought ''Drums and Wires'' in 1979,when it came out,when I was in grade eleven. I have most of their records. About twenty years ago I read that Andy Partridge suffered from stage fright,making XTC shows rare events. Great to see this video again. Such an insightful band. I remember the ridiculous ''Dear God'' controversy. What does the ''Pumpkinhead'' song mean? Lots. A retelling of JFK's death. His charisma. An historian likened it to Christ's.
I don't know whether this song is about JFK, Jesus Christ, Religion, American attitudes toward Britain, British Attitudes toward America, or John Lennon.
All I know is that XTC is the best thing that happened to Britain in a long time. It basically goes Nothing nothing nothing Newton Darwin Turing Churchill Whitley The Beatles XTC.
@SwingStu ---- Britain is a big pile of shit, and nothing good has happened there in over 100 years......where do you get your delusions, squid brain?
Hey, I'm from the so-called "new generation" of music. Remember that there will always exist good, talented groups. This record was released on April 27, 1992. The most popular single that particular day? Jump by Kriss Kross. Always remember that for every Beatles there is an Archies, for every XTC there shall be a Starship, for every Field Music a Lady Gaga. The shitty, corporate music always rises to the top of the chart. That is no reflection of a generation's collective taste in music.
@Stone8 There are current bands and musicians who make songs that I enjoy, Maybe my generation would enjoy them too but I think many of my generation are too content with old music to look towards the present and future. Perhaps laziness also plays its part here. I'm not against old music, I'm observing. And I'm sure you're curious which bands I enjoy so here they are, They are The New Pornographers (And associated acts such as Destroyer and Neko Case) and Flipron.
there are plenty new & old bands/songs i'm discovering on a regular basis! I heard this song back in' 92, but didn't really get into the band's catalog until around 2004. My favorite bands of this past decade include Doves, Kasabian, Black Rebel Motorcycle Club, Arcade Fire, Cut Copy, Ting Tings, Friendly Fires, Autolux, Peaches, & many more... so yes, there are plenty of newer bands, but you just gotta dig around for em a little more than in the past.
@pessimystica I'm glad you also have this view. Thanks for naming your favorites from these recent years too, I'll check them out. (Sorry for the short comment...)
brilliant band- never such great story telling and music since the Beatles- love the line about JFK- But he made to many enemies of the people who would keep us on our knees>" Also the camparison of Christ -"had him nailed to a chunk of wood." Great, great band.
I loved this song when the album first came out and I was studying broadcasting at a junior college. Was I the only one who gave this song any airtime in San Francisco? I never saw the full video until now.
XTC is one of the greatest bands of all time, and it is a damn shame that XTC is not widely recognized. All one has to do is pay close attention to their songs from Skylarking, English Settlement, and other albums to see what XTC is capable of. The music is staggering in its power to move the listener emotionally, not to mention the technical skills of these musicians -- especially for lovers of acoustic guitar.
XTC is one of the greatest bands of all time, and it is a damn shame that XTC is not widelye recognized. All one has to do is pay close attention to their songs from Skylarking, English Settlement, and other albums to see what XTC is capable of. The music is staggering in its power to move the listener emotionally, not to mention the technical skills of these musicians -- especially for lovers of acoustic guitar.
Also just realized how bizarre it is that the Crash Test Dummies cover has 4x more views. I am Canadian and under 30 and I heard it before the XTC version, but it's still weird that that is the more famous version in the Youtube/internet age.
I had the same thoughts as the top comments while watching this. I hope Andy Partridge looks at this once in a while and realizes he wasn't crazy, our world is. More talent in his pinky finger than legions of modern-day posers.
Ooooh. cheeky Thomasuki267. hahahaha This song certainly wasn't played much in Vancouver. We had to hear it via "Rock Over London". Still a fantastic song.
An inappropriate video, I always thought, in that the song is about Jesus so make the video fit the subject matter. The chickened out, and ran away from the religious zealots.
I disagree, there are plenty of references to Jesus in the video, but I think it speaks of politics on a whole. All the promises, just come out as lies in the end. I like the JFK reference too, very appropriate.
me i love the jerky stabbing punky funky stuttering early stuff but even this later stuff is just great. how bands are there that stayed good and changed so much for so long? not many
So as not to look "Pretentious" I never meant that younger (teens-28 group) have talent. There are many bands that have a great sound out there. They're "underground" (as most bands start off) but without a chance of being heard because of how controlled the music industry has become in the past6 20 years vs when people from the days of Elvis and Johnny Cash to the Beatles to Bowie, Rush, U2 etc all getting total artistic control. But the fucking 90s changed that around the time Cobain died.
@crustyeyegoop Well i agree with you. It's sad that the industry is so controlled. There have been many brilliant artist left behind. But such is the way of the world. I love this band as you probably can tell lol The never grow old for me, rather as I get older I find their songs grow with me. Cheers
I suppose, qwert. I like the music. I like it more if it's not as commercially successful. It has more to do with not wanting the bands I like to dumb down thir music for the majority and selling out to commercial interests but in the end who cares? right? it's all in the ear of the beholder. All good. Peace.
Great music stands the test of time because the people who truly appreciate good musicianship and intelligent and thoughtful lyrics keep it alive. I consider a band beter if they ARE NOT commercially succesful. Feels more "real" that way. Thx for postin' this awesome song and group.
@shingaki777 That is just plain stupid, basing your opinion on their popularity instead of their real "quality" (which isn´t measureable). You should just focus on their music in it self and dont give a damn about the majority. Going anti mainstream just for the anti stuff is just wrong. Gosh I´m bad at english...
@KingOfDaNerds123 Except for the stuff that isn't controlled by corporate media.. Open you mind, music comes from the individual, time is irrelevant. I blame your greedy ass generation for the destruction of music. Thank you corporate America.....
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JFK was a piece of shit. The Kennedys are a shitty trashy family. A scourge on the earth. All JFK did was fuck that drugged up blonde trashy bimbo ditz Marilyn Monroe, pop pills and fucking drink. He probably snorted coke as well. The kennedy family is all mobed up. They are the lowest form of trash on the earth and the surviving ones are all fucking useless human waste junkies and drunks. Its god send that some of them have died. Especially that fat ass old one Ted Kennedy.
@GloucesterAdam I can tell this is about Libertarians by references to the man who said "Render unto Ceaser that which is Ceaser's" and "Blessed are the poor". Good call.
I try not to watch music video's. (they ruin the minds eye). XTC makes the best music for the minds eye.
Absolutely my favorite band of all time with Radiohead coming in a distant second.
Not to be compared with Pink Floyd which remains an enigma to me.
Give one listen to River of Orchids from XTC's Apple Venus vol. 1 and you should be able to see a beautiful Salvador Dali landscape of human and earthly beauty returning to innocence.
Hit home on me, and i'ma chirstian, polital and un right religiouse group who twist the truth 2 sut them, and will not TOLERATE any one who would show the people the right way....Wake Up America! North, central and south America!!!
I love XTC and I love this song, but really, this video is awful. The presentation is trite and so overtly obvious, it insults the intelligence of anyone who truly appreciates this band. The previous comment said that "XTC always reluctantly made videos". After watching this, I understand why.
XTC always reluctantly made videos...they didn't really enjoy them and usually didn't play much part in the ideas behind them. As Andy Partridge once put it (paraphrased), "We show up and the director says, 'Go stand over by that exploding jockstrap over there!' and we do."
Also, for those unaware, the song actually came from Andy seeing a jack-o-lantern that was starting to rot and he felt sorry for it and thought of it as a martyr for Halloween.
@hypnodance - Andy: “He's every hero, every politician, every religious leader who's far too good to be true and by telling the truth becomes a martyr. Is Peter Pumpkinhead Jesus or JFK or Buddha? Actually the name's from a jack-o-lantern I carved. After Halloween, I stuck it on a fence post in my garden and every day I'd go past it on my way to my composing shed. And every day it would decay a bit more. I felt so sorry for it, I thought I'd make it a hero in a song.”
The singer looks like Boy George and Harry Potter had a child. I Think Boy George might like that a great deal, but Harry Potter has a lighting bolt on iz ead.
BRILLIANT video. Just brilliant. I knew the song was about JFK before I even saw the video, as soon as I heard it something told me this was about JFK, and I dunno why. JFK is my hero and something in my head told me this is about him. But the video tells you all you need to know about Dallas.
@HeartInThe60s Its not just about JFK. A Peter Pumpkinhead is a person that is loved by the people, but hated by the higher powers like the government.
Holy Jesus. Peter Pumpkinhead seems alot like Jesus and Kennedy fused into one. He must have been one of the best humans ALIVE. Also XTC is amazingly talented, especially considering what passes for music today
ditto. best band that kept cranking out hits that never got airplay. smartest, socially relevant, inventive band the industry neglected. so sad that Andy couldn't tour.
Love jump cuts between the band and the "band" as they would have played on the grassy hill the day Kennedy was shot. Great song and a great lesson for future generations. Don't trust the establishment! OHH,OH. They are breaking in my door as I type....................................................AHHH>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>
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I'm stupidly happy listening to this song.
rundoetx 1 day ago
Its really only about a rotting pumpkin on a stick in Andy's garden...
32INCHSTRIPER 1 week ago
never seen the video till now truly disturbing...................Buy those who help people mainly the oppressed usually get struck down like this...........
egentile30 1 week ago
I don't think its JFK its sorta an allegory of sorts
odaydrums 2 weeks ago
Great tune. The JFK conspiracy thing is a myth, of course. Oswald did it alone.
Still. Cool tune.
PhysicsForTheFuture 2 weeks ago
@PhysicsForTheFuture dude get off the drugs and come back to the real world.
rintintin7529 1 week ago
XTC are from Swindon,UK
TheStick1953 3 weeks ago
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watch?v=lEbkGEbU4l0
SuperMegaUberGenius 1 month ago
Brasil .. São Paulo . Guarulhos .. Ponte Grande .. fev/mar ..1993
Saudades mil !
rfanganiello 1 month ago in playlist Favorite videos
This is one of several great bands pumping out this kind of music "back then". XTC, Crowded House (the Finn Bros.) and Squeeze. Wonderfully well crafted pop music.
1wild52 1 month ago 3
@1wild52 Indeed...:)...x
MrLadyjack 1 month ago
somzeraaaaaaa !!!
Saudades mil 1993
rfanganiello 1 month ago
Love that Vox guitar at the beginning. Also, the song in general.
dkgdbr 1 month ago
"...Marilyn Magdalene.." (clever)
guarddog22 2 months ago
This is very timely, for being a 19 1/2 year-old song. I hope people will listen... this time.
StephakneeSaysGmail 2 months ago
Now this takes me back.
brianc2008 2 months ago
hahaha i beleive xtc agrees with me anyhow , MAGIC!
communistfun 3 months ago
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communistfun 3 months ago
john f kennedy tested weapons for kicks on cambodians, yeah he had it coming,he is probably the reason the khmer rouge came into being
communistfun 4 months ago
@communistfun The history on your planet almost correlates to ours here on Earth....pretty cool.
gplito 3 months ago 3
@gplito haha oh yr right, i was confusing nixon with kennedy apparently, i cant quite remember , i was remembering a section from a people's history of the us by howard zinn, but just glancing at kennedy's wikipedia article he was obviously of the same crop of corporate war bastards in office. i mean really? is having a sick cute boyfriend president that inspiring?
communistfun 3 months ago
@communistfun um no just no
Dataceruption 3 months ago
this billy jack bullshit, who listens to this old ass dudu brown tap ur foot 90s pop music, britney spears comes on right after this. u cant taste it but i just threw up in my mouth
elturbonegro 4 months ago
@elturbonegro honestly i dont like this song either. But dont judge XTC by this one, check out drums and wires!
or you're just a troll.
MjXllcommando 3 months ago
no 2 xtc song. pop at its best
mensamoo 4 months ago
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tagaboy666 4 months ago
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pjrg1919 5 months ago
I know this song since nonsuch album came out, but this is the first time i see this song's video. It seems they're talking about JFK, what a great band.
sergiomng 5 months ago
One reason they weren't bigger is they didn't tour. A result of the lead singer's paralyzing stage fright.
MrLEGIOXIII 5 months ago
@bjustin1000 WOW! What I did want to know is what is the rivalry about? Why are people actually haters of this band? My things was just a religious argument but it seems other have some vendetta, why?
You put it so eloquently! It's funny because I am an age that makes XTC a bond I would have listened to in my late teens/early 20s but never really heard them until now. I guess what's great transcends time and never becomes irrelevant. Thanks for your insights. Peace.
AtheistSongs 5 months ago
Is XTC focused on anti-god, anti-christian, anti-hypocrasy as a general theme of their music? I just discovered 'Dear God" clearly an anti-god, anti-theology, anti-myth message...as is this song...are there more?
AtheistSongs 5 months ago
@AtheistSongs XTC doesn't FOCUS on anti-anything, but the themes you ask about crop up time and again in their music.
'Dear God' is the most obviously 'anti-Christian'. But there are MANY more that touch on Christianity, myth, hypocrisy yes... they, or at least Andy Partridge, is somewhat pagan in his outlook, so these things come out often in his lyrics in one way or another.
akireflex 5 months ago
@akireflex Partridge is a humanist who obviously has good grasp on history and geography. Christianity replaced humanism with Original Sin and an apocalyptic world view and turned back the clock on human achievement for hundreds of years. The damage done by Monotheism is still felt today and is unparalleled by anything else.
MjXllcommando 3 months ago 3
enjoy the song!
ibrik2 5 months ago
Andy Partridge - my favourite living genius.
xxxchrist1 5 months ago
I've just got into XTC but what i cant understand is why they never made it really big there music is so much better than other acts at the time. Its a crying shame that not many people my age (22) listens to music like this, people my age just want to listen to cheap sounding plastic pop and dance
music.
elmoisgod 5 months ago
@elmoisgod
All you can do is spread the joy where ever you go....People will eventually catch on....
32INCHSTRIPER 2 weeks ago
@32INCHSTRIPER and how is that working out for you with millions dying because people like you wish them joy as they starve and are tortured? Why not just admit you're a useless coward and take no responsibility for the leaders who rule you so badly and destroy the world?
rintintin7529 1 week ago
@elmoisgod I'm 14 years old (15 in March) and I've been listening to XTC since I was about 10. They are so much better than most things in the charts these days ;)
bekkyxtcfan97 2 weeks ago 3
@bekkyxtcfan97 you are one smart kid, sincerely.
harkyo 3 days ago
Always been a massive XTC fan, and this song just kills!!! So prophetic!
deanfarry 5 months ago
genius...period
dmwcany 5 months ago in playlist More videos from stereohysteria
first time i ever heard the original. incredible!
very relevant to these times. can there be a real peter pumpkinhead out there that we can look too?
smellyfooty 5 months ago
@smellyfooty Ron Paul?
deanfarry 5 months ago
After all this time XTC is still relevant. love this song, But don't try to compare it to today's Politicians. They don't rate the complement!
johnandelizabth 5 months ago
i just have to say.....this is a well written song...but Crash test dummies made this song a song.....more energy and character. please don't smite me.
andrechristianmusic 5 months ago
@andrechristianmusic You have no taste.
Arronax50 5 months ago
@andrechristianmusic
CTD's version was HORR-I-BLE.
32INCHSTRIPER 4 months ago
this song reminds me of three things,Jesus,JFK,And Obama. Heroes to most people but foes to others.
359lillian 5 months ago
so sad :(
coolvideosonly2011 6 months ago
Still keeping us on our knees nearly 50 years later.
mkultra2300 6 months ago 2
No words for it, one of the finest rock songs ever. Andy speaks truth and speaks it beyond well. And no one rocked or worked a melody like XTC. IMO, even the Beatles, a huge influence on them of course, couldn't touch them.
psychoannalist1 6 months ago
@psychoannalist1 Now, now... but Oranges and Lemons comes close
baldrbraa 6 months ago
but he make to many enemys
of the people who will keep us on the knees
hommerzero 7 months ago
Dave's SG Jr. is "evidence" at the very end haha
QXVVOfficial 7 months ago
The lyrics were much to smart for the music industry
Fantastic lyric...Peter Pumpkin Head:)
FidelCastro128 7 months ago 2
This is a great band from a great country that gave us many great bands and gave us(Americans)our own roots music back! Don't trash these wonderful people. To the Brits: we're not all assholes.
MrBryancole11 7 months ago 15
@MrBryancole11 yes you are.
rintintin7529 1 week ago
@rintintin7529 I'm sorry you feel that way. My sister was born in England and we lived there for many years. It's a wonderful country, but i guess you have your share of assholes, too.Cheers.
MrBryancole11 1 week ago
@MrBryancole11 Ahhh shucks... and you're not all fat... :)
clivedxb 1 day ago
This is about President Kennedy
medesdaddy 7 months ago
I always thought ths song was about Jesus,
Hoplite001 7 months ago
@Hoplite001 This song is about a pumpkin Andy threw out after Halloween 1991. It sat there rotting, and looked so pathetic that he envisioned a pumpkin man dying for someone's sins, so he wrote this silly song and made the pumpkin man as Jesusy as he thought fit.
zoom98 7 months ago
I first started listening to XTC in 1981 when "English Settlement" came out. Awesome band.
Hoplite001 7 months ago
One of my favorite bands after all these years. I bought ''Drums and Wires'' in 1979,when it came out,when I was in grade eleven. I have most of their records. About twenty years ago I read that Andy Partridge suffered from stage fright,making XTC shows rare events. Great to see this video again. Such an insightful band. I remember the ridiculous ''Dear God'' controversy. What does the ''Pumpkinhead'' song mean? Lots. A retelling of JFK's death. His charisma. An historian likened it to Christ's.
mike196212 7 months ago
I don't know whether this song is about JFK, Jesus Christ, Religion, American attitudes toward Britain, British Attitudes toward America, or John Lennon.
All I know is that XTC is the best thing that happened to Britain in a long time. It basically goes Nothing nothing nothing Newton Darwin Turing Churchill Whitley The Beatles XTC.
SwingStu 8 months ago
@SwingStu ---- Britain is a big pile of shit, and nothing good has happened there in over 100 years......where do you get your delusions, squid brain?
Hunkola 7 months ago
@Hunkola - Who cares what you think?
steveo7121 7 months ago
I feel like the video had to be on the nose.
marsneedstowels 8 months ago
Hey, I'm from the so-called "new generation" of music. Remember that there will always exist good, talented groups. This record was released on April 27, 1992. The most popular single that particular day? Jump by Kriss Kross. Always remember that for every Beatles there is an Archies, for every XTC there shall be a Starship, for every Field Music a Lady Gaga. The shitty, corporate music always rises to the top of the chart. That is no reflection of a generation's collective taste in music.
gazerman65 9 months ago 32
@gazerman65 so whdda tryin to say mouth?
BerkLeeDrm 3 months ago
@gazerman65 I'm an xTc fan, Lady gaga is the real deal!
BillMinworth 2 months ago
@gazerman65 Great post dude....couldn't have typed one better myself. Generation Xer here.
77bogart 1 month ago
@gazerman65 Yup. What he said!
PhysicsForTheFuture 2 weeks ago
@gazerman65 Hey, great comment!
BassPlayerSusan 2 weeks ago
I fucking love the production. Such a huge sound.
messrocks89 9 months ago
FANTASTICA CANCION
ramacure 9 months ago
I love this song <3
Thank you for sending me Martha
vbuysvgdy 9 months ago
Tune will remain an all time classic. I miss XTC. Too bad for the current generation, you have no talent out there to remember your time.
Stone8 9 months ago
@Stone8 There are current bands and musicians who make songs that I enjoy, Maybe my generation would enjoy them too but I think many of my generation are too content with old music to look towards the present and future. Perhaps laziness also plays its part here. I'm not against old music, I'm observing. And I'm sure you're curious which bands I enjoy so here they are, They are The New Pornographers (And associated acts such as Destroyer and Neko Case) and Flipron.
101Volts 9 months ago
@101Volts
there are plenty new & old bands/songs i'm discovering on a regular basis! I heard this song back in' 92, but didn't really get into the band's catalog until around 2004. My favorite bands of this past decade include Doves, Kasabian, Black Rebel Motorcycle Club, Arcade Fire, Cut Copy, Ting Tings, Friendly Fires, Autolux, Peaches, & many more... so yes, there are plenty of newer bands, but you just gotta dig around for em a little more than in the past.
pessimystica 8 months ago in playlist Taping Songs in the 90s
@pessimystica I'm glad you also have this view. Thanks for naming your favorites from these recent years too, I'll check them out. (Sorry for the short comment...)
101Volts 8 months ago
They were(still are!) a brilliant band!
PeterPumpkinhead1 10 months ago
brilliant band- never such great story telling and music since the Beatles- love the line about JFK- But he made to many enemies of the people who would keep us on our knees>" Also the camparison of Christ -"had him nailed to a chunk of wood." Great, great band.
realguy640 10 months ago
I loved this song when the album first came out and I was studying broadcasting at a junior college. Was I the only one who gave this song any airtime in San Francisco? I never saw the full video until now.
antispamdinista 10 months ago
actually (and unfortunately) this is better than anything released since XTC called it quits
Leaddevo 10 months ago
@Leaddevo that's tu much but still a great band
brendn1 10 months ago
Very insightful song/video about the JFK assasination. These guys RULE !!!
videocanone 10 months ago
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XTC is one of the greatest bands of all time, and it is a damn shame that XTC is not widely recognized. All one has to do is pay close attention to their songs from Skylarking, English Settlement, and other albums to see what XTC is capable of. The music is staggering in its power to move the listener emotionally, not to mention the technical skills of these musicians -- especially for lovers of acoustic guitar.
punarsamana 10 months ago
XTC is one of the greatest bands of all time, and it is a damn shame that XTC is not widelye recognized. All one has to do is pay close attention to their songs from Skylarking, English Settlement, and other albums to see what XTC is capable of. The music is staggering in its power to move the listener emotionally, not to mention the technical skills of these musicians -- especially for lovers of acoustic guitar.
punarsamana 10 months ago
Also just realized how bizarre it is that the Crash Test Dummies cover has 4x more views. I am Canadian and under 30 and I heard it before the XTC version, but it's still weird that that is the more famous version in the Youtube/internet age.
mimickick 10 months ago
I had the same thoughts as the top comments while watching this. I hope Andy Partridge looks at this once in a while and realizes he wasn't crazy, our world is. More talent in his pinky finger than legions of modern-day posers.
mimickick 10 months ago
Ooooh. cheeky Thomasuki267. hahahaha This song certainly wasn't played much in Vancouver. We had to hear it via "Rock Over London". Still a fantastic song.
bandcouver 10 months ago
An inappropriate video, I always thought, in that the song is about Jesus so make the video fit the subject matter. The chickened out, and ran away from the religious zealots.
baronjosefr 11 months ago
@baronjosefr
I disagree, there are plenty of references to Jesus in the video, but I think it speaks of politics on a whole. All the promises, just come out as lies in the end. I like the JFK reference too, very appropriate.
yentaleh 10 months ago
@baronjosefr lol you think XTC of all bands runs away from zealots? obviously haven't heard "dear god" by them yet, huh?
daemonarson 10 months ago
Number 71 in the UK charts this classic got to......Now there's a real crime !!!!
xtstevie 11 months ago
Thanks for posting this awesome video. I've always loved the song, but never saw the video. Great share!
TheWarOnDebt 11 months ago
this video gives me wood
lukill6 11 months ago
me i love the jerky stabbing punky funky stuttering early stuff but even this later stuff is just great. how bands are there that stayed good and changed so much for so long? not many
fuckamericanidiot 11 months ago
I will never understand how this band did not rule the charts ... They simply buried 98% of whatever else came out in the eighties ...
LOOKN450 11 months ago
XTC is one of the most under rated bands in music history - shame - they were bloody brilliant!
Scripter555 1 year ago 50
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crustyeyegoop 8 months ago
So as not to look "Pretentious" I never meant that younger (teens-28 group) have talent. There are many bands that have a great sound out there. They're "underground" (as most bands start off) but without a chance of being heard because of how controlled the music industry has become in the past6 20 years vs when people from the days of Elvis and Johnny Cash to the Beatles to Bowie, Rush, U2 etc all getting total artistic control. But the fucking 90s changed that around the time Cobain died.
crustyeyegoop 8 months ago
@crustyeyegoop Well i agree with you. It's sad that the industry is so controlled. There have been many brilliant artist left behind. But such is the way of the world. I love this band as you probably can tell lol The never grow old for me, rather as I get older I find their songs grow with me. Cheers
Scripter555 8 months ago
@Scripter555 yeah yeaaaaahh....I love this song..I hear this on the maximum volume!!!!
seavoyagerful 4 months ago
@Scripter555 Amen ta dat!
kermsroomy 4 months ago
@ peterMayer. Never mind. That's NOT what I meant. Forget it.
shingaki777 1 year ago
I suppose, qwert. I like the music. I like it more if it's not as commercially successful. It has more to do with not wanting the bands I like to dumb down thir music for the majority and selling out to commercial interests but in the end who cares? right? it's all in the ear of the beholder. All good. Peace.
shingaki777 1 year ago
@shingaki777 sell out? XTC? That's implying they made a boat load of money. They didn't.....
PeterMayer 1 year ago 2
Three Jennifer Lopez fans voted thumbs down. Tacos and burrrrrritos!!!
bertonifilms 1 year ago 2
Great music stands the test of time because the people who truly appreciate good musicianship and intelligent and thoughtful lyrics keep it alive. I consider a band beter if they ARE NOT commercially succesful. Feels more "real" that way. Thx for postin' this awesome song and group.
shingaki777 1 year ago 2
@shingaki777 That is just plain stupid, basing your opinion on their popularity instead of their real "quality" (which isn´t measureable). You should just focus on their music in it self and dont give a damn about the majority. Going anti mainstream just for the anti stuff is just wrong. Gosh I´m bad at english...
qwert1238a 1 year ago 2
Kilo for Kilo Tonne for Tonne ......... legends ;-)
tykehx3 1 year ago
This is just a musical masterpiece, there is no denying.
KingOfDaNerds123 1 year ago 4
a talent not lost on his daughter!!! check out "Holly Partridge" shes ever so talented too
bigwavedave200659 1 year ago
Early stuff was great but this album freaked me out, in a good way, when I was young. 120 Minutes, right after the young ones.
heitmanek1 1 year ago
What a fucking song! Beautifully crafted from start to finish.
Monkeyslash 1 year ago 2
who pray for peter?
hommerzero 1 year ago
Great Song!
PS: At 0:54 (and more several times) Vox Phantom guitar!... I love it!
MonsoonZeero 1 year ago
this, the nonsuch album, is one of THE great records of the 90's lyrically and musically;yet another example of xtc's genius!
postiesince89 1 year ago
I think wulfsturd got it right, that is he got the line right anyway. XTC was and is a breath of fresh air. Thanks.
WhaleJabu 1 year ago 2
you said it, bandcouver.
Lillyetteiscool 1 year ago
now go watch no thugs in our house and see if im not wrong
yooanoozarrmay 1 year ago
THE most intelligent lyricist in the history of rock
yooanoozarrmay 1 year ago
This is better than anything from the last five years, FACT.
KingOfDaNerds123 1 year ago 44
@KingOfDaNerds123 No.
daviddowns81 10 months ago
@KingOfDaNerds123
You sir are not allowed to express facts.
Only OPINIONS!
Eat your cheerios Boy!
wesharris6 9 months ago
@KingOfDaNerds123 hell 5 years, this is better then anything that has come out for the past 11 years!!!
NINPHMTDS 6 months ago
@KingOfDaNerds123 Music was banned about 10 years ago in the USA under the "Patriot" act.
mkultra2300 6 months ago
@KingOfDaNerds123 Except for the stuff that isn't controlled by corporate media.. Open you mind, music comes from the individual, time is irrelevant. I blame your greedy ass generation for the destruction of music. Thank you corporate America.....
tbscrazy12 5 months ago
This comment has received too many negative votes show
JFK was a piece of shit. The Kennedys are a shitty trashy family. A scourge on the earth. All JFK did was fuck that drugged up blonde trashy bimbo ditz Marilyn Monroe, pop pills and fucking drink. He probably snorted coke as well. The kennedy family is all mobed up. They are the lowest form of trash on the earth and the surviving ones are all fucking useless human waste junkies and drunks. Its god send that some of them have died. Especially that fat ass old one Ted Kennedy.
wulfshelmut01 1 year ago
@wulfshelmut01 I like how you say the Kennedies are immoral and list off a whole heap of morally irrelevent things. Sex and drugs, oh, how evil.
Fatimus 1 year ago
@Fatimus How are the Kennedy's immoral? I don't think so. It might be me.
Supersweetguy 1 year ago
you stay classy, dude!
JohnThomson 1 year ago
my second best xtc song. class.
mensamoo 1 year ago
The latest Peter Pumpkinhead could be Julian Assange. Will the plots and sex scandals fail outright?
benjitz1 1 year ago
A Libertarian Anthem. Let's hear it for the Peter Pumpkinheads of the world!
GloucesterAdam 1 year ago
@GloucesterAdam I can tell this is about Libertarians by references to the man who said "Render unto Ceaser that which is Ceaser's" and "Blessed are the poor". Good call.
Fatimus 1 year ago
I try not to watch music video's. (they ruin the minds eye). XTC makes the best music for the minds eye.
Absolutely my favorite band of all time with Radiohead coming in a distant second.
Not to be compared with Pink Floyd which remains an enigma to me.
Give one listen to River of Orchids from XTC's Apple Venus vol. 1 and you should be able to see a beautiful Salvador Dali landscape of human and earthly beauty returning to innocence.
JohnnyContempt 1 year ago
Hit home on me, and i'ma chirstian, polital and un right religiouse group who twist the truth 2 sut them, and will not TOLERATE any one who would show the people the right way....Wake Up America! North, central and south America!!!
zozzyable 1 year ago
the vocals are not that different from those of Macca... except that Andy Partridge looks like a less fucked up Shaun Ryder
BohemianConspiracy 1 year ago
I love XTC and I love this song, but really, this video is awful. The presentation is trite and so overtly obvious, it insults the intelligence of anyone who truly appreciates this band. The previous comment said that "XTC always reluctantly made videos". After watching this, I understand why.
oldglenndog 1 year ago
XTC always reluctantly made videos...they didn't really enjoy them and usually didn't play much part in the ideas behind them. As Andy Partridge once put it (paraphrased), "We show up and the director says, 'Go stand over by that exploding jockstrap over there!' and we do."
Also, for those unaware, the song actually came from Andy seeing a jack-o-lantern that was starting to rot and he felt sorry for it and thought of it as a martyr for Halloween.
xnonsuchx 1 year ago
@xnonsuchx Really? Interesting. Judging from the video, I thought it had to do with JFK or something.
hypnodance 1 year ago
@hypnodance Exactly!
RyuDekay 1 year ago
@hypnodance - Andy: “He's every hero, every politician, every religious leader who's far too good to be true and by telling the truth becomes a martyr. Is Peter Pumpkinhead Jesus or JFK or Buddha? Actually the name's from a jack-o-lantern I carved. After Halloween, I stuck it on a fence post in my garden and every day I'd go past it on my way to my composing shed. And every day it would decay a bit more. I felt so sorry for it, I thought I'd make it a hero in a song.”
xnonsuchx 1 year ago
@xnonsuchx Oh, OK.
hypnodance 1 year ago
Such an underrated band nowadays.
markd325 1 year ago
HipHop is dead
Dannish64 1 year ago
Great mix of harmonica and guitars. British 90s music >much>more> American 90s grunge.
x9x8x7x61 1 year ago
To me this song is about heros, but the video suggests John F. Kennedy, with some Jesus thrown here and there. It's an odd combination imo
TheSuicidalChipmunks 1 year ago
The singer looks like Boy George and Harry Potter had a child. I Think Boy George might like that a great deal, but Harry Potter has a lighting bolt on iz ead.
oatmealclampickle 1 year ago
Is this the original?
Pasalaqcua 1 year ago
@Pasalaqcua Yes.
101Volts 1 year ago
How did I discover this awesome band just recently? Like todays youth, I must have been listening to some bullshit when I was younger.
urnot4me69 1 year ago 2
Would rather listen to the Crash Test Dummies version.
LOKISlog7 1 year ago
@LOKISlog7 How can u say that... HOW... :S
LarsVilaTrier 1 year ago
Fantastic guitar sound from that Vox vintage model.
robertlaberge 1 year ago
I thought this song was about Jesus.
mattjindrak 1 year ago
up to date comments Great, on the most underated band that gwait bwitian has produced,
dont let andy partridge let that be heard, hes still pissed off, i dont blaim him.
go+2
pg1able 1 year ago
BRILLIANT video. Just brilliant. I knew the song was about JFK before I even saw the video, as soon as I heard it something told me this was about JFK, and I dunno why. JFK is my hero and something in my head told me this is about him. But the video tells you all you need to know about Dallas.
HeartInThe60s 1 year ago
@HeartInThe60s Its not just about JFK. A Peter Pumpkinhead is a person that is loved by the people, but hated by the higher powers like the government.
vgchamp 1 year ago 3
Holy Jesus. Peter Pumpkinhead seems alot like Jesus and Kennedy fused into one. He must have been one of the best humans ALIVE. Also XTC is amazingly talented, especially considering what passes for music today
Fuzydragon1337 1 year ago 5
I'm from Dallas. This is hard to watch. This is the truth.
rhajamon 1 year ago
@rhajamon
At least Oswald wasn't a native son.
Despite the sad event I think that the residents of Dallas can take pride in the fact that they've always done Mr. Kennedy's memory justice.
thegirl44 1 year ago
I never knew this song was about the Kennedy assassination. Interesting.
TheForwardGaze 1 year ago
@TheForwardGaze I didn't know either until I stumbled upon this video, always loved the song though
mtbluzman 1 year ago
ditto. best band that kept cranking out hits that never got airplay. smartest, socially relevant, inventive band the industry neglected. so sad that Andy couldn't tour.
play them loud and proud!
mitchell53 1 year ago 2
Love jump cuts between the band and the "band" as they would have played on the grassy hill the day Kennedy was shot. Great song and a great lesson for future generations. Don't trust the establishment! OHH,OH. They are breaking in my door as I type....................................................AHHH>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>
tommyboy6267 1 year ago
amazing- best lyrics ever
TheBenji979 1 year ago