Gold on the Ceiling

"Gold on the Ceiling"
Single by The Black Keys
from the album El Camino
Released	February 25, 2012
Format	CD CD-R digital download
Recorded	2011 at Easy Eye Sound studio in Nashville, Tennessee
Genre	Garage rock blues rock glam rock
Length	3:44
Label	Nonesuch
Writer(s)	Dan Auerbach Brian Burton Patrick Carney
Producer(s)	Danger Mouse The Black Keys
Certification	Gold (RIAA)
The Black Keys singles chronology
"Lonely Boy" (2011) "Gold on the Ceiling" (2012) "Little Black Submarines" (2012)
Music video "Gold on the Ceiling" on YouTube

"Gold on the Ceiling" is a song by American rock band The Black Keys. It is the third track from their seventh studio album, El Camino, and was released as the record's second single on February 25, 2012. The song was certified platinum in Australia and Canada.^[1]

Music videos

Two videos were shot for the song. The first, directed by Reid Long, features footage from the band's concerts, as well as candid shots of them on tour.

A second music video, directed by Harmony Korine, was shot prior to the single release, but was not released until May 2012. The video features the band members wearing Baby Björns and being carried by giant doppelgängers of theirs, played by two Belmont Bruins men's basketball players.^[2]

Reception

Will Hermes of Rolling Stone called the song's keyboards "a serrated organ growl backed up with a SWAT team of hand claps" and cited it as an example of Danger Mouse's prowess as a producer and co-writer. Summarizing the song, Hermes wrote, "It's Sixties bubblegum garage pop writ large, with T. Rex swagger and a guitar freakout that perfectly mirrors the lyrics, a paranoid rant that makes you shiver while you shimmy."^[3] John Soeder of The Plain Dealer labeled it one of the album's finest and said that it sounded like a hybrid of Norman Greenbaum's "Spirit in the Sky" and Gary Glitter's "Rock and Roll Part 2".^[4] Harley Brown of Consequence of Sound called the song "bombastic, slightly sleazy" and said that it "best sums up The Black Keys' almost unbelievably consistent musicianship and success".^[5] Melissa Maerz of Entertainment Weekly said that the song, "with its swarm-of-bees organs and acid-trip gospel harmonies, could be a lost Nuggets gem".^[6] Randall Roberts of the Los Angeles Times, writing about the song's retro stylings, said that it "sounds as if it's existed forever".^[7] Sam Richards of NME said that the song's "brilliantly demented cowboy glam holler... is boosted by the band's new trio of female backing singers wailing for all they're worth".^[8]

Use in popular media

• "Gold on the Ceiling" was used in a prominent television advertising campaign for the 2012 NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Tournament nicknamed "Brackets Everywhere" on Turner Sports and CBS Sports networks. Along with being featured in commercials for the tournament, the song was featured during in-game coverage of the games.^[9]
• A mix of the song was used in a 2012 United Kingdom advert for the Indian beer Cobra.^[10]
• It is used in the advertisements for the TV series Veep.
• It is featured in TV shows, films and video games including NCIS, Suits, MLB 12: The Show, Battleship, "We're the Millers, Workaholics, Chuck and Guitar Hero Live in addition to appearing as downloadable content for Rocksmith.
• It is also used in the theatrical trailer for The Campaign.
• The song was performed live at the 2012 MTV Movie Awards by the band, accompanied on guitar by Johnny Depp.^[11]
• NBC Sports has made video montages with "Gold on the Ceiling" during the 2012 Summer Olympics honoring the Olympic athletes who had won gold medals.
• Currently, the song is the theme song for NASCAR: Race Day on SPEED.
• The song appears as the goal song for the Vancouver Canucks and the Nashville Predators, whose colors scheme includes gold, experimented with "Gold on the Ceiling" as its new goal song during the summer of 2014.^[12]
• In one of the episodes of NBC's Superstore, this song can be heard in one scene playing in the background over the store's PA system.

Covers

Sweet (with guitarist Andy Scott as the only original member) covered this song on their 2012 album New York Connection.

Single cover

The cover art for the single features a picture of an abandoned, dilapidated building. It is actually an entrance to the former Rolling Acres Mall in Akron, Ohio.

Personnel

• Dan Auerbach – vocals, guitar
• Patrick Carney – drums
• Brian Burton – keyboards, bass guitar
• Ashley Wilcoxson, and Leisa Hans – backing vocals

Charts

Weekly charts Chart (2012) Peak position Australia (ARIA)[13] 34 Belgium (Ultratip Flanders)[14] 2 Belgium (Ultratip Wallonia)[15] 14 Canada (Canadian Hot 100)[16] 51 Canada Active Rock (America's Music Charts)[17] 1 Canada Alternative Rock (America's Music Charts)[18] 1 Ireland (IRMA)[19] 45 UK Singles (The Official Charts Company)[20] 57 US Billboard Hot 100[16] 94 US Adult Alternative Songs (Billboard)[21] 3 US Alternative Songs (Billboard)[16] 1 US Hot Mainstream Rock Tracks (Billboard)[16] 9 US Rock Songs (Billboard)[16] 2

Year-end charts Chart (2012) Peak position US Rock Songs[22] 5 US Alternative Songs[23] 6 Certifications Region Certification Sales/shipments Italy (FIMI)[24] Gold 15,000 ^*sales figures based on certification alone ^^shipments figures based on certification alone ^xunspecified figures based on certification alone

References

1. http://www.theblackkeys.com/news/record-certifications-around-world
2. Phillips, Amy (2012-05-31). "Watch: New Black Keys Video for "Gold on the Ceiling" Directed by Harmony Korine". Pitchfork Media. Pitchfork. Retrieved 2012-06-04.
3. Hermes, Will (2011-12-22). "The Keys Turn Their Blues-Rock Beater into a Sleek, Shiny Muscle Car". Rolling Stone (1146/1147): 85–86. Retrieved 2012-02-03.
4. Soeder, John (2011-12-10). "Black Keys take their 'El Camino' for a spin in the pursuit of pop: Review". Cleveland.com. Cleveland Live LLC. Retrieved 2012-03-01.
5. Brown, Harley (2011-12-06). "Album Review: The Black Keys – El Camino". Consequence of Sound. Retrieved 2012-03-01.
6. Maerz, Melissa (2011-12-09). "El Camino (2011): The Black Keys". Entertainment Weekly (1184): 72. Retrieved 2011-12-08.
7. Roberts, Randall (2011-12-05). "Album review: The Black Keys' ‘El Camino’". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 2011-12-05.
8. Richards, Sam (2011-12-02). "Album Review: The Black Keys - 'El Camino'". NME. Retrieved 2011-12-05.
9. "Turner, CBS: ‘Brackets Everywhere’". National Collegiate Athletic Association. Turner Sports Interactive. 2012-02-29. Retrieved 2012-03-07.
10. http://www.tvadmusic.co.uk/2012/03/cobra-beer-the-train/
11. "Johnny Depp plays guitar with The Black Keys at MTV Movie Awards". NME.com. 4 June 2012. Retrieved 5 June 2012.
12. http://section303.com/from-gary-glitter-to-the-black-keys-a-goal-song-evolution-52874
13. "Australian-charts.com – The Black Keys – Gold on the Ceiling". ARIA Top 50 Singles.
14. "Ultratop.be – The Black Keys – Gold on the Ceiling" (in Dutch). Ultratip.
15. "Ultratop.be – The Black Keys – Gold on the Ceiling" (in French). Ultratip.
16. "Gold on the Ceiling - The Black Keys". Billboard. Retrieved February 21, 2012.
17. "Canadian Active Rock & Alt Rock Chart Archive: Active Rock - April 17, 2012". America's Music Charts. Retrieved April 17, 2012.
18. "Canadian Active Rock & Alt Rock Chart Archive: Alternative Rock - March 13, 2012". America's Music Charts. Retrieved March 13, 2012.
19. "Chart Track: Week 13, 2012". Irish Singles Chart.
20. "Artists: Black Keys". The Official UK Charts Company. Retrieved 2012-09-06.
21. "The Black Keys – Chart history: Adult Alternative Songs". Billboard. Prometheus Global Media. Retrieved June 4, 2014.
22. "Best of 2012 - Rock Songs 1-10". Billboard.com. Retrieved January 16, 2013.
23. "Best of 2012 - Alternative Songs 1-10". Billboard.com. Retrieved January 16, 2013.
24. "Italian single certifications – The Black Keys" (in Italian). Federazione Industria Musicale Italiana. Select Online in the field Sezione. Enter The Black Keys in the field Filtra. Select 2014 in the field Anno. The certification will load automatically