"Sit Down" is a song by English band
James, originally released in June 1989 by
Rough Trade Records. In its eight-and-a-half-minute original form, the song reached number 77 on the
UK Singles Chart and was ranked number eight in
John Peel's
Festive Fifty of that year.
After experiencing success as part of the
Madchester music scene, a new version was released in March 1991 that was shorter and with new lyrics. Released via
Fontana Records, it reached number two on the UK Singles Chart, spending three weeks there. It was the
20th best-selling single of 1991 in the UK.[2]
In 2013, the song placed fourth in a poll by
BBC Radio 2 and the
Official Charts Company to find the greatest track to miss out on the number-one spot in the UK charts.[3] In the same year, James performed the song with
Peter Kay for
Comic Relief. On 30 March 2017 a version of the song was used in the promo of the
seventh season of the hit
HBO series Game of Thrones.[4]
Background
The song's lyrics were written in late 1988 as a homage to author
Doris Lessing and singer
Patti Smith, who had inspired James' lead singer
Tim Booth.[5] Booth told the Daily Record in June 2004: "Sit Down is about me feeling so alone in my 20s and reading books by a writer called Doris Lessing which made me realise I wasn't. It was about being awake at 4am and having no-one to talk to."[6][7]
In a 2014 interview with Dave Simpson of The Guardian on the effect of the song, James guitarist
Larry Gott stated, "Sit Down is one of those songs that encourages people to put their arms around strangers. As soon as we launch into the opening bars, they start smiling. Then they turn to someone next to them or their girlfriend or boyfriend and hug them, and then they start singing every single word. As a musician, that's incredibly humbling."[8] The original cover depicts an image of the former
Fulham goalkeeper
Tony Macedo.[9]
Music videos
The music video for the original 1989 Rough Trade release was directed by Ed Barton. It features Booth wearing a
kaftan, against a white background, with the band performing the song. At one stage Booth hugs a sheep. The video was banned for two weeks by the
Musicians Union as
Jim Glennie took the role of a drummer, which the union felt displaced a professional musician.[10]
Track listings
1989 original release
"Sit Down" (7-inch and 8:31 extended version on 12-inch)
"Goin' Away" (12-inch and CD)
"Sound Investment" (12-inch and CD)
"Sky Is Falling" (7-inch, 12-inch and CD)
1991 release
"Sit Down" (new version) (7-inch, 12-inch and CD)
"Tonight" (12-inch and CD)
"Sunday Morning" (Canadian CD)
"Sit Down" (live at G-Mex) (7-inch, 12-inch and CD)