Little Bird (Annie Lennox song)

"Little Bird" is a song composed and recorded by the Scottish singer-songwriter Annie Lennox. Taken from her debut solo album, Diva (1992), it was released in 1993 as a double A-side with "Love Song for a Vampire" (which appeared on the soundtrack for the Francis Ford Coppola film Bram Stoker's Dracula) in Ireland, the United Kingdom and various other European countries. In other territories, "Little Bird" was released alone.

"Little Bird"
Single by Annie Lennox
from the album Diva
A-side"Love Song for a Vampire"
ReleasedFebruary 1993
FormatCD single, 7 inch and cassette single
GenreDance, pop rock
Length4:48 (Album Version)
4:32 (Edit)
LabelBMG
Columbia Records
Arista Records (US)
Songwriter(s)Annie Lennox
Producer(s)Stephen Lipson
Annie Lennox singles chronology
"Cold"
(1992)		 "Little Bird" / "Love Song for a Vampire"
(1993)		 "No More I Love You's"
(1995)
Music video
"Little Bird on YouTube

Lennox performed "Little Bird" during the 2012 Summer Olympics closing ceremony in London on 12 Aug 2012. A live version was played in the end credits to The Sopranos episode "Eloise". The song was also featured in the film Striptease. The video for "Little Bird" does not appear on the video album for Diva but is heard instrumentally over the end credits.

Critical reception

Aftonbladet wrote that the song is "based on a vibrant sight loop not quite unlike many old Eurythmics songs".[1] Dave Sholin from the Gavin Report commented that Lennox' "hit streak is about to carryover into 1993 on the wings of a sensitively written and brilliantly produced song that expresses what many people feel from time to time. All that, and it's uptempo!"[2] In their review of Lennox' 2009 Greatest Hits collection, HuffPost said that in the song, "Lennox observes the creature's freedom as it glides across the sky. Though the song starts out with self-doubt, she concludes, "...this little bird's fallen out of that nest now...so I've just got to put these wings to test", and both she and the collection soar from that point on."[3] Kjell Moe from Nordlys described it as "suggestive".[4] Pop Rescue noted that it "has a wonderful electro-pop feel to it – the beat and swirling synth helps the song grow wonderfully as Annie sings over the top." They added that "the beat builds as Annie's vocals get stronger and she's soon joined by guitars in the chorus."[5] Alec Foege from Spin noted in his review of Diva, that "Little Bird" "is the album's finest track. Its call-and-response woo-woos exude genuine confidence, cleverness, and craft."[6]

Chart performance

"Little Bird" / "Love Song for a Vampire" peaked at number three in the United Kingdom and Ireland and number 34 in Switzerland. "Little Bird" peaked at number 49 in the United States. It also peaked within top 10 in Canada, Italy, Portugal and Spain. In 2012, after Lennox performed the song during the 2012 Summer Olympics closing ceremony, it charted as a solo single for the first time, reaching number 96 on the UK Singles Chart.

Music video
Annie Lennox in front of her lookalikes dressed like the personas from "Sweet Dreams" and "I Need a Man" in the music video of "Little Bird".

The music video was directed by Sophie Muller and features eight Lennox lookalikes dressed as the many different personas that Lennox has used in her videos (both solo and as part of Eurythmics) over the past decade, with Lennox herself in a Cabaret-esque setting acting as ringmaster. Gradually the personas begin to squabble for the spotlight, pushing aside one another and Lennox herself as she fights to maintain control.

The music videos referenced by the personas include:

Lennox was in late stages of pregnancy with her second daughter Tali during the filming of the video. The "ringmaster" persona, played by Lennox, wears a black dress designed to give the illusion of being close-fitting, with a fully sequinned front and a flowing matte back panel that together partially conceal her baby bump.

Track listing

All tracks were written by Annie Lennox unless otherwise noted.

CD – Arista (US)

No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Little Bird" (Edit) 4:32
2."Love Song for a Vampire" (from Bram Stoker's Dracula) 4:16
3."Why" 5:04
4."The Gift"Lennox/Buchanan, Bell, Moore4:36*
5."You Have Placed a Chill in My Heart"Lennox/Stewart4:06*

CD – BMG (UK)

No.TitleLength
1."Little Bird"4:39
2."Love Song for a Vampire" (from Bram Stoker's Dracula)4:17
3."Little Bird" (Utah Saints Version)6:35
4."Little Bird" (N-Joi Version)4:46

12" – Arista (US)

No.TitleLength
1."Little Bird" (House of Gypsies Version)6:59
2."Little Bird" (House of Gypsies Radio Version)4:18
3."Little Bird" (House of Annie Version)4:19
4."Little Bird" (Single Version)4:32
5."Little Bird" (Utah Saints Version)6:38
6."Little Bird" (N-Joi Version)4:52

Charts

See also

References
  1. Aftonbladet. 3 April 1992.
  2. Sholin, Dave (11 December 1992). "Gavin Picks > Singles" (PDF). Gavin Report. No. 1935. p. 48. Retrieved 16 April 2018.
  3. "HuffPost Reviews : The Annie Lennox Collection". HuffPost. 27 March 2009. Retrieved 28 February 2020.
  4. Moe, Kjell (10 April 1992). "På egen hånd". Nordlys (in Norwegian). p. 31. Retrieved 11 May 2020.
  5. "REVIEW: "DIVA" BY ANNIE LENNOX (CD, 1992)". Pop Rescue. 12 August 2015. Retrieved 29 March 2020.
  6. Foege, Alec (July 1992). "SPINS". Spin. p. 75. Retrieved 27 February 2020.
  7. "Australian-charts.com – Annie Lennox – Little Bird". ARIA Top 50 Singles. Retrieved 2 November 2016.
  8. "Top RPM Singles: Issue 100235." RPM. Library and Archives Canada. Retrieved 2 November 2016.
  9. "Top RPM Dance/Urban: Issue 1709." RPM. Library and Archives Canada. Retrieved 25 September 2018.
  10. "Hits of the World" (PDF). Billboard. Prometheus Global Media. Retrieved 2 November 2016.
  11. "Offiziellecharts.de – Annie Lennox – Why". GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved 2 November 2016.
  12. "Íslenski Listinn Topp 40 (02.04.1993 - 08.04.1993)" (PDF). Dagblaðið Vísir - Tónlist. Retrieved 4 February 2018.
  13. "The Irish Charts – Search Results – Little Bird / Love Song for a Vampire". Irish Singles Chart. Retrieved 25 September 2018.
  14. "Top 10 Sales in Europe" (PDF). Music & Media. Vol. 10 no. 19. 8 May 1993. p. 24. Retrieved 24 November 2019.
  15. "Charts.nz – Annie Lennox – Little Bird". Top 40 Singles. Retrieved 2 November 2016.
  16. "Top 10 Portugal" (PDF). Music & Media. Retrieved 20 March 2018.
  17. "Swisscharts.com – Annie Lennox – Little Bird / Love Song for a Vampire". Swiss Singles Chart. Retrieved 2 November 2016.
  18. "Official Singles Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 25 September 2018.
  19. "Annie Lennox: Artist Chart History". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 2 November 2016.
  20. "Annie Lennox Chart History (Hot 100)". Billboard. Retrieved 2 November 2016.
  21. "Annie Lennox Chart History (Dance Club Songs)". Billboard. Retrieved 2 November 2016.
  22. "Annie Lennox Chart History (Pop Songs)". Billboard. Retrieved 2 November 2016.
  23. "The RPM Top 100 Hit Tracks of 1993". RPM. Library and Archives Canada. Retrieved 25 September 2018.
  24. "The RPM Top 50 Dance Tracks of 1993". RPM. Library and Archives Canada. Retrieved 25 September 2018.
  25. "1993 Year-End Sales Charts: Eurochart Hot 100 Singles" (PDF). Music & Media. Retrieved 27 November 2019.
  26. "Top 100 Singles 1993". Music Week. 15 January 1994. p. 24.
  27. "British single certifications – Annie LennoxDion – Little Bird / Song for a Vampire". British Phonographic Industry. Select singles in the Format field. Select Silver in the Certification field. Type Little Bird / Song for a Vampire in the "Search BPI Awards" field and then press Enter.
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