Somebody Told Me

"Somebody Told Me" is a song by American rock band The Killers. It was released as the second official single from the group's debut studio album Hot Fuss (2004), and was written by band members Brandon Flowers, Mark Stoermer, Dave Keuning and Ronnie Vannucci Jr.. In an interview with Rolling Stone, Brandon Flowers said: "This is the story of trying to meet someone in a club." [1] It is written in the key of B-flat minor.

For other uses, see Somebody Told Me (disambiguation).
"Somebody Told Me"
One of standard international artworks
Single by The Killers
from the album Hot Fuss
B-side
  • "Under the Gun"
  • "The Ballad of Michael Valentine"
  • "Show You How"
ReleasedMarch 15, 2004
Format
Recorded2003
StudioThe Hearse, Berkeley, California
Genre
Length3:17
Label
Songwriter(s)
Producer(s)The Killers
The Killers singles chronology
"Mr. Brightside"
(2003)		 "Somebody Told Me"
(2004)		 "Mr. Brightside (re-issue)"
(2004)
Audio sample
  • file
  • help

When the Killers first started out, their music was little noticed by music buyers and the media, which is why "Somebody Told Me" has been released twice in slightly different forms. The first, with the pink background cover, is the rarer version of the single as it was their first release of it; due to poor sales, not as many were produced. When re-released, the cover art sported a blue background color and is the more common version of the single.

The single peaked at number 51 on the United States Billboard Hot 100. In the United Kingdom, it charted at number 28 upon its first release in March 2004, becoming the band's first hit in the Top 40, it was then re-released in January 2005 and reached number three. Although not as successful as "Mr. Brightside", it still became one of the band's biggest hits to date.

In Australia, the song was ranked number four on Triple J's Hottest 100 of 2004. In 2009, it was voted at number nine in XFM's Top 100 Songs of the Decade.

Composition

Stylistically, "Somebody told Me" has been cited as alternative rock,[2] new wave,[3] and dance-rock.[4] The song is in the verse-chorus form. The intro of the song is an B♭m chord, leading into the first verse, which consists of an B♭m-E♭m-G♭ chord progression repeated twice, followed by an Am–F–G chord progression repeated twice.

The chorus follows the B♭m-G♭-A♭-F chord progression repeated twice. The first time through the chorus, the last F chord is cut off. The song has a second verse and chorus, then has a bridge with the chord progression E-G♭-B-E-B-E-A♭m-G♭-E-E♭-G♭, which leads into the chorus for a final time.[5]

Critical reception

Billboard called the song "wildly infectious",[6] and "as addictive as nickel slots".[7] Blender asserted that the single is a "superb blaze of synthesizers and guitars that builds to the year's best one-liner: 'Somebody told me you had a boyfriend who looked like a girlfriend I had in February of last year.'"[8]

Entertainment Weekly hailed the single as "three smashingly punchy minutes of garage pop so tightly wound that singer Brandon Flowers seems to be accusing his girl of cheating on him with another woman."[9] Rolling Stone said the single was a "nightclub anthem in the making" and continued, "the acid-tongued 'Somebody Told Me' blasts into outer space on a wave of synthesizers and singer Brandon Flowers' cheeky chorus."[10]

Michael Paoletta of Billboard praised the remixes done by, respectively, Josh Harris and King Unique for "maintaining the original song's integrity" but recommended readers to buy the album, Hot Fuss, rather than the single.[11]

Track listings

Original United Kingdom release
CD
  1. "Somebody Told Me" (Flowers/Keuning/Stoermer/Vannucci)
  2. "Under the Gun" (Flowers/Keuning)
  3. "The Ballad of Michael Valentine" (Flowers/Keuning)
7"
  1. "Somebody Told Me"
  2. "The Ballad of Michael Valentine"

United Kingdom re-release
CD1
  1. "Somebody Told Me"
  2. "Show You How" (Flowers)
CD2
  1. "Somebody Told Me"
  2. "Somebody Told Me" (Mylo Mix)
  3. "Somebody Told Me" (King Unique Vocal Mix)
  4. "Somebody Told Me" (U-MYX)
12"
  1. "Somebody Told Me" (Mylo Mix)
  2. "Somebody Told Me" (The Glimmers GypoRock Mix)

United States release
12"
  1. "Somebody Told Me" (Josh Harris Club)
  2. "Somebody Told Me" (Josh Harris Dub)
  3. "Somebody Told Me" (King Unique Mix)
  4. "Somebody Told Me" (King Unique's Dub)

Official versions
  • "Somebody Told Me" (Album Version) – 3:17
  • "Somebody Told Me" (The Glimmers GypoRock Mix)
  • "Somebody Told Me" (Josh Harris Radio Edit)
  • "Somebody Told Me" (Josh Harris Club)
  • "Somebody Told Me" (Josh Harris Dub)
  • "Somebody Told Me" (King Unique Mix) / (King Unique Vocal Mix)
  • "Somebody Told Me" (King Unique Frogger Dub)
  • "Somebody Told Me" (King Unique Radio Edit)
  • "Somebody Told Me" (Insider Remix)
  • "Somebody Told Me" (Mylo Mix)
  • "Somebody Told Me" (U-MYX)

Music video

The music video for "Somebody Told Me", was filmed in February 2004 in California, and was directed by Brett Simon. It shows the Killers performing their song in the moonlight of a desert location, with a giant LED screen displaying rolling, and flashing images of their logo, as well as an alternate version of the video shot during the day.

Charts and certifications

Accolades
Publication Country Accolade Year Rank
Rock & Pop Chile Rock & Pop 20 Años 200 Canciones[35] 2013
192
XFM United Kingdom 100 Greatest Songs of the Decade[36] 2009
9
Absolute Radio United Kingdom 100 Best Songs of the Decade[37] 2009
60
NME United Kingdom 100 Greatest Tracks of the Decade[38] 2009
41
Triple J Australia Hottest 100 of 2004 2004
4

Awards
Year Ceremony Award Result
2005 Grammy Awards Best Rock Song Nominated
Best Rock Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal Nominated
2005 International Dance Music Awards Best Alternative/Rock Dance Track Nominated

Live performances

The band performed the song during an appearance on an episode of Saturday Night Live, hosted by Topher Grace in 2005.[39] They also performed the song at the Sideshow Lollapalooza in June 2011.[40]

The song can be heard in the episode of Six Feet Under, "Grinding the Corn", from 2004.[39] The song appears as a master track in Rock Band 4. The song also appears in the background in a bar in a scene from the movie Rocky Balboa.

References
  1. Garin, Pirnia. "Somebody Told Me". RollingStone.com. Retrieved 17 February 2015.
  2. "Picks and Pans Main: Music : People.com". Retrieved February 21, 2015. "Somebody Told Me" is an alt-rock anthem...
  3. "It's party time: Springsteen is headlining, but March Madness Music Festival is loaded with big stars". Retrieved February 21, 2015. The New Wave [strain of] "Somebody Told Me"...
  4. "7 More Bands". ParentDish. Retrieved February 21, 2015. [The Killers'] dance-rock songs (like "Human" or even "Somebody Told Me")...
  5. "Somebody Told Me Chords". Ultimateguitar.com. Retrieved February 17, 2015.
  6. Paoletta, Michael (2004-08-28), "Somebody Told Me (Music)". Billboard. 116 (35):46
  7. Paoletta, Michael (2004-06-12), "Somebody Told Me (Music)". Billboard. 116 (24):3
  8. Langer, Andy (June 2004), "Rock Radio Wakes Up". Esquire'. 141 (6):48
  9. Brown, David (2004-06-18), "A Hot Fuss (Music)". Entertainment Weekly. (770):86
  10. Eliscu, Jenny (2004-07-08), "The Killers: Hot Fuss (Music)". Rolling Stone. (952/953):
  11. Paoletta, Michael. Billboard, August 28, 2004, p. 46
  12. "Australian-charts.com – The Killers – Somebody Told Me". ARIA Top 50 Singles. Retrieved July 6, 2012.
  13. "Austriancharts.at – The Killers – Somebody Told Me" (in German). Ö3 Austria Top 40. Retrieved July 6, 2012.
  14. "RR Canada Rock Top 30" (PDF). p. 57. Retrieved October 7, 2019.
  15. "Danishcharts.com – The Killers – Somebody Told Me". Tracklisten. Retrieved July 6, 2012.
  16. "Chart Search Result - European Hot 100 Singles 2005-01-29". Billboard.biz. Retrieved August 30, 2012.
  17. "Lescharts.com – The Killers – Somebody Told Me" (in French). Les classement single. Retrieved July 6, 2012.
  18. "IFPI Greece Archive Top 50 Singles". Archived from the original on 2005-06-12. Retrieved 2005-06-12.
  19. "The Irish Charts – Search Results – Somebody Told Me". Irish Singles Chart. Retrieved January 27, 2020.
  20. "Italiancharts.com – The Killers – Somebody Told Me". Top Digital Download. Retrieved December 14, 2018.
  21. "Dutchcharts.nl – The Killers – Somebody Told Me" (in Dutch). Single Top 100. Retrieved December 14, 2018.
  22. "Charts.nz – The Killers – Somebody Told Me". Top 40 Singles. Retrieved July 6, 2012.
  23. "Official Scottish Singles Sales Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company.
  24. "Swisscharts.com – The Killers – Somebody Told Me". Swiss Singles Chart. Retrieved July 6, 2012.
  25. "Official Singles Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved July 6, 2012.
  26. "Official Independent Singles Chart Top 50". Official Charts Company. Retrieved July 6, 2012.
  27. "The Killers Chart History (Hot 100)". Billboard. Retrieved July 6, 2012.
  28. "The Killers Chart History (Adult Pop Songs)". Billboard. Retrieved July 6, 2012.
  29. "The Killers Chart History (Alternative Songs)". Billboard. Retrieved July 6, 2012.
  30. "The Killers Chart History (Pop Songs)". Billboard. Retrieved July 6, 2012.
  31. "The Official UK Singles Chart 2005" (PDF). UKChartsPlus. Retrieved October 11, 2018.
  32. "Italian single certifications – The Killers – Somebody Told Me" (in Italian). Federazione Industria Musicale Italiana. Retrieved September 11, 2017. Select "2017" in the "Anno" drop-down menu. Select "Somebody Told Me" in the "Filtra" field. Select "Singoli online" under "Sezione".
  33. "British single certifications – The Killers – Somebody Told Me". British Phonographic Industry. Select singles in the Format field. Select Platinum in the Certification field. Type Somebody Told Me in the "Search BPI Awards" field and then press Enter.
  34. "American single certifications – The Killers – Somebody Told Me". Recording Industry Association of America. If necessary, click Advanced, then click Format, then select Single, then click SEARCH. 
  35. "Rock & Pop – El Gran Sonido". Rock & Pop.
  36. "10 - 1". Xfm. Archived from the original on 2009-12-02. Retrieved 2012-08-07.
  37. "Somebody Told Me by The Killers". Song of the Decade. Archived from the original on 2012-05-29. Retrieved 2012-08-07.
  38. "100 Tracks of the Decade". Nme.Com. 2012-05-02. Retrieved 2012-08-07.
  39. "The Killers". IMDb. Retrieved 18 February 2015.
  40. Fuentes, Nathalie. "The Killers-Somebody Told Me @Lollapalooza 2011". YouTube.com. Retrieved 18 February 2015.
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