One Step Ahead (Split Enz song)
"One Step Ahead" is a 1980 song by New Zealand art rock group Split Enz from their studio album Waiata.[1] The song continued the group's success in their move towards their own version of new wave rock music that the group had established with their release "I Got You", rating in the top ten charts both in New Zealand and Australia.
| "One Step Ahead" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Single by Split Enz | ||||
| from the album Waiata (aka Coroborree) | ||||
| B-side |
| |||
| Released | November 1980 | |||
| Format | 7" vinyl | |||
| Recorded | AAV Studios, Melbourne, 1980 | |||
| Genre | New wave, rock | |||
| Length | 2:52 | |||
| Label | Mushroom Records | |||
| Songwriter(s) | Neil Finn | |||
| Producer(s) | David Tickle | |||
| Split Enz singles chronology | ||||
| ||||
The video clip for the song was one of the first ever videos screened on MTV. In a documentary for Radio New Zealand, Neil Finn expressed surprise at the song's success, stating that it "hasn't got a proper chorus".
After Split Enz's dissolution in 1984, singer Neil Finn continued to perform "One Step Ahead" with his next group Crowded House, in particular, the group performed the song live at their 1987 concert in Daytona known as Spring Break '87.
The single's b-side "In the Wars" was recorded in the Waiata recording sessions, however was not originally released as a track on the album, though was later appended as track twelve in the album's 2006 re-release.
"One Step Ahead" has been covered by numerous artists, most notably Amiel and The Like (whose version was unavailable to Australasian markets until 2007 when it became available on iTunes).
The video clip to "One Step Ahead" has keyboardist Eddie Rayner performing "Marche sur place", the pantomime illusion walk created by Decroux and Barrault (seen in the 1945 French film Children of Paradise) that is the technique Michael Jackson would base his moonwalk on in 1983.
Track listings
- "One Step Ahead" – 2:51
- "In the Wars" – 3:32
Personnel
Charts
| Chart (1980–1981) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Australian Singles Chart[2] | #5 |
| New Zealand Singles Chart[3] | #6 |
| U.S. Bubbling Under Hot 100 Singles[4] | #104 |
| Canadian Singles Chart[5] | #17 |
Notes
- One Step Ahead / In the Wars by Split Enz : Reviews and Ratings. Retrieved 4 August 2007.
- Kent, David. Australian Chart Book 1970–1992. St Ives, N.S.W. (1993). ISBN 0-646-11917-6.
- "New Zealand Charts". Retrieved 11 November 2010.
- Whitburn, Joel (1998). Bubbling Under Singles & Albums (1998 ed.). Menomonee Falls, Wis., U.S.A.: Record Research. p. 190. ISBN 9780898201284.
- "Hits of the World - Canada" (PDF). Billboard. 8 August 1981. p. 61.