Goodbye Mr. A
"Goodbye Mr A" is the second single by English pop rock band The Hoosiers, from their debut album, The Trick to Life. It was released on 8 October 2007. The song is written in the key of B major, and was created in memory of frontman Irwin Sparkes' secondary school English teacher, Jonathan "Mr. A" Anderton, after Sparkes heard of Anderton's death in 2006.
| "Goodbye Mr A" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Single by The Hoosiers | ||||
| from the album The Trick to Life | ||||
| Released | 8 October 2007 | |||
| Format | CD single, digital download | |||
| Genre | Pop rock, indie pop | |||
| Length | 4:27 | |||
| Label | RCA | |||
| Producer(s) | Toby Smith | |||
| The Hoosiers singles chronology | ||||
| ||||
The song has been noted for its similarities to Electric Light Orchestra's single "Mr. Blue Sky".[1] The song is part of the soundtrack for the video game FIFA 08.[2]
Music video
The music video to "Goodbye Mr A" is reminiscent of superhero comics and popular culture, such as the 1960s Batman television series. In the video, The Hoosiers kidnap Mr. A, a comic-book character and the world's greatest superhero. They then take his place fighting crime as incompetent anti-heroes. Despite being fired into space at the end, Mr. A. survives and opens his eyes; this is a reference to the film Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer.
"Goodbye Mr A" is included in the soundtrack for the football video game FIFA 08, and the game can also be seen in the "Goodbye Mr A" music video. Lead singer Irwin Sparkes, who is from Reading, Berkshire, is playing as Reading F.C. against Manchester United. The song also appears in a trailer for the American film Juno.
Track listing
| No. | Title | Producer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Goodbye Mr. A" (single edit) | Toby Smith | 4:27 |
| 2. | "Worried About Ray" (piano version) (live on Virgin Radio) |
Use in other media
On 28 September 2007, The Hoosiers performed "Goodbye Mr A" on GMTV's Entertainment Today segment. The song marked the band's second UK Top 5 single, entering the UK Singles Chart at #5 on Sunday 14 October 2007 and it climbed to #4 the following week. On Sunday 30 December 2007, it rose up the chart from #29 to #10, soon after the release of Bee Movie.
It was used in the 18 March 2009 episode of Waterloo Road. This song was used in the Halfords "Easter Getaway" advertisement. The instrumental for this song has also been used in the second teaser trailer for Toy Story 3, which was released on 11 October 2009. It also appeared in the film Juno. In 2010, it was used as the opening theme for the CBBC show, Hounded.
In a video posted on 12 April 2019 to his Youtube channel Philosophy Tube, Oliver Thorn parodied "Goodbye Mr A" with a song called "Goodbye Doctor P," in reference to psychologist Jordan Peterson; Thorn performed the song as the closing credits for his video on Peterson. [3]
Chart positions
| Chart (2007) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Irish Singles Chart | 23 |
| UK Singles Chart | 4 |
| UK Downloads | 4 |
Certifications
| Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
|---|---|---|
| United Kingdom (BPI)[6] | Gold | 400,000* |
|
^shipments figures based on certification alone | ||
References
- The Hoosiers: 'Goodbye Mr A'
- Barker, Anthony (18 November 2007). "EA Announce FIFA 08 Track List". Console Monster. Archived from the original on 26 July 2011. Retrieved 18 September 2007.
- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SEMB1Ky2n1E
- "The Official UK Singles Chart 2007" (PDF). UKChartsPlus. Retrieved 9 January 2019.
- "The Official UK Singles Chart 2008" (PDF). UKChartsPlus. Retrieved 9 January 2019.
- "British single certifications – Hoosiers – Goodbye Mr. A". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved 4 February 2017. Select singles in the Format field. Select Gold in the Certification field. Type Goodbye Mr. A in the "Search BPI Awards" field and then press Enter.