Get Behind Me Satan

Get Behind Me Satan
Studio album by The White Stripes
Released	June 7, 2005
Recorded	February 2005 at Third Man Studios, Detroit, Michigan
Genre	Garage rock, alternative rock, blues rock
Length	44:07
Label	V2 (US) XL (Europe)
Producer	Jack White
The White Stripes chronology
Elephant (2003) Get Behind Me Satan (2005) Icky Thump (2007)
Singles from Get Behind Me Satan
"Blue Orchid" Released: May 30, 2005 "My Doorbell" Released: September 3, 2005 "The Denial Twist" Released: November 7, 2005

Get Behind Me Satan is the fifth studio album by American alternative rock band The White Stripes, released on June 7, 2005, on V2 Records. Though still basic in production style, the album marked a distinct change from its guitar-heavy 2003 predecessor, Elephant. With its reliance on piano-driven melodies and experimentation with marimba on "The Nurse" and "Forever For Her (Is Over For Me)", Get Behind Me Satan plays down the punk, garage rock and blues influences that dominated earlier White Stripes albums. Frontman Jack White plays with different technique than in the past, trading in his electric guitar for piano, mandolin, and acoustic guitar on all but a handful of tracks, as his usual riff-conscious lead guitar style is overtaken by a predominantly rhythmic approach. Rolling Stone ranked it the third best album of the year^[1] and it received the Grammy for Best Alternative Music Album in 2006. As of February 2007, Get Behind Me Satan had sold 850,000 units in the United States.^[2] Get Behind Me Satan was the only Jack White record not to receive a commercial release on vinyl, with only 600 promotional copies being released originally.

Background and production

Album

The album was recorded in the stairway and foyer of Jack White's house.

Jack White has explained that the title, Get Behind Me Satan, refers to a well-known line from the story of the Temptation of Jesus which is later repeated against the disciple Simon Peter, in Matthew 16:23 of the New Testament. In the King James Version, the quotation is slightly different: "Get thee behind me, Satan".^[3] Jack White has also stated in an interview on the radio show Fresh Air that "truth is the number one theme throughout the album Get Behind Me Satan." Relating that point to the album's multiple reference to movie actress Rita Hayworth, White said she became an "all-encompassing metaphor" for the album since she changed her last name from something that revealed her Latina heritage, and the way celebrity was cast upon her.^[4]

Get Behind Me Satan was, for ten years, the only album by The White Stripes to not be commercially released in a vinyl format. The reason behind it was because The White Stripes had intended to re-record Get Behind Me Satan entirely live in a New Zealand studio and wanted that to be the official vinyl version. However, the studio that they were planning to record it in no longer had the recording equipment to make it possible. As a result, at the time there was never a commercially released vinyl of the album. Yet, there are only a few copies of the album on vinyl LP that were given exclusively to music journalists for review, which have since become coveted collector's items. They were released by both XL Recordings and V2 Records and each label had only 300, making the total 600 and highly rare.^[5] However, for Record Store Day 2015, Jack White's Third Man Records are releasing a limited vinyl edition with a lenticular gatefold sleeve, pressed on red and white vinyl. A commercially released version with standard artwork pressed on standard black vinyl will be released later in the year.^[6]

Cover art homages

The album cover was used in the Gilmore Girls episode "I Get a Sidekick Out of You", with Lane and Zach in Meg and Jack's positions, respectively. It was also used for the 2008 Ozy and Millie calendar as both the front cover and for the month of January with the characters Ozy and Mille replacing Jack and Meg.

Reception

Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
Source	Rating
Metacritic	81/100[7]
Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic	[8]
Entertainment Weekly	C+[9]
The Guardian	[10]
Los Angeles Times	[11]
NME	8/10[12]
Pitchfork Media	7.3/10[13]
Q	[14]
Rolling Stone	[15]
Spin	B[16]
The Village Voice	A–[17]

Get Behind Me Satan entered the U.S. and UK charts at #3, ranking higher in the U.S. charts than their previous records, but lower in the UK charts than Elephant. "Blue Orchid", the first single, became a radio hit in the United States and the band's second UK Top 10 hit. "My Doorbell" was the second single from the album, followed by "The Denial Twist". Both also reached the Top 10 in the UK and charted on the Modern Rock Charts as well.

In 2006, the album was included in 1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die, edited by Robert Dimery, but was removed in the 2007 edition. "Instinct Blues" was featured in Michel Gondry's 2006 film The Science of Sleep. It was voted the sixth best album of the year in the 2006 Village Voice Pazz and Jop critic poll, with the song "My Doorbell" being voted as the year's ninth best single.

Track listing

All songs written and composed by Jack White. 

No.	Title	Length
1.	"Blue Orchid"	2:37
2.	"The Nurse"	3:47
3.	"My Doorbell"	4:01
4.	"Forever for Her (Is Over for Me)"	3:15
5.	"Little Ghost"	2:18
6.	"The Denial Twist"	2:35
7.	"White Moon"	4:01
8.	"Instinct Blues"	4:16
9.	"Passive Manipulation"	0:35
10.	"Take, Take, Take"	4:22
11.	"As Ugly as I Seem"	4:10
12.	"Red Rain"	3:52
13.	"I'm Lonely (But I Ain't That Lonely Yet)"	4:19

Japan edition bonus tracks
No.	Title	Length
14.	"Who's a Big Baby?"	3:21
15.	"Though I Hear You Calling, I Will Not Answer"	3:25

Personnel

The White Stripes

• Jack White – lead vocals, guitar, piano, bass guitar, mandolin, marimba, tambourine
• Meg White – drums, percussion, backing vocals, triangle, bells, bongos, lead vocals on "Passive Manipulation"

Other Credits

• Howie Weinberg – mastering
• Jack White – production
• John Hampton – mixing

References

1. "Top 50 Records of 2005". Rollingstone.com. Archived from the original on 14 December 2006.
2. "Sources: White Stripes Heading To Warner Bros". Billboard.com. Retrieved 24 September 2011.
3. "King James Version: Matthew Chapter 16". verse 23. Retrieved 24 September 2011.
4. Fricke, David (August 25, 2005). "White on White". Rolling Stone Magazine. Retrieved June 20, 2008.
5. "The White Stripes / Get Behind Me Satan Promo Vinyl". stevehoffman.tv. crimpies 03-10-2009, 11:07 PM. Retrieved 24 September 2011.
6. "THIRD MAN RECORDS PRESENTS FIRST COMMERCIAL VINYL RELEASE OF PIVOTAL WHITE STRIPES ALBUM FOR RECORD STORE DAY 2015". thirdmanrecords.com. Retrieved 3 March 2015.
7. "Reviews for Get Behind Me Satan by The White Stripes". Metacritic. Retrieved November 29, 2015.
8. Phares, Heather. "Get Behind Me Satan – The White Stripes". AllMusic. Retrieved September 24, 2011.
9. Browne, David (June 6, 2005). "Get Behind Me Satan". Entertainment Weekly (824). ISSN 1049-0434. Retrieved September 24, 2011.
10. Petridis, Alexis (June 3, 2005). "The White Stripes, Get Behind Me Satan". The Guardian (London). ISSN 0261-3077. OCLC 60623878. Retrieved November 29, 2015.
11. Hilburn, Robert (June 5, 2005). "Their fifth album proves they've earned their stripes". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved November 29, 2015.
12. Needham, Alex (May 25, 2005). "The White Stripes : Get Behind Me Satan". NME. ISSN 0028-6362. Retrieved September 24, 2011.
13. Murphy, Matthew (June 5, 2005). "The White Stripes: Get Behind Me Satan". Pitchfork Media. Retrieved September 24, 2011.
14. "The White Stripes: Get Behind Me Satan". Q (228): 108. July 2005. ISSN 0955-4955.
15. Sheffield, Rob (June 16, 2005). "Get Behind Me Satan". Rolling Stone. ISSN 0035-791X. Retrieved September 24, 2011.
16. Klosterman, Chuck (June 2005). "The White Stripes: Get Behind Me Satan". Spin 21 (6): 101. ISSN 0886-3032. Retrieved November 29, 2015.
17. Christgau, Robert (July 12, 2005). "Laptop for Desktoppers". The Village Voice. Retrieved November 29, 2015.

External links