DEPECHE MODE - PERSONAL JESUS

Released: August 29, 1989

Charted:  UK: #13   US: #28 

"Personal Jesus" is a song released as the lead single from the 1990 seventh studio album “Violator”. The single was their first to enter the US top 40 since 1984's "People Are People" and was their first gold-certified single in the US.

The concept of a personalized deity was a compelling image that clearly struck a chord with many fans, initially introduced, rather cleverly, through an advertisement published in the personal columns of several regional newspapers. The ad featured the words “Your Personal Jesus,” along with a phone number that, when dialed, led to a segment of the song.

Martin Gore cited his inspiration as coming from Priscilla Presley’s Elvis And Me autobiography. He told Rolling Stone: “It’s about how Elvis was her man and mentor, and how often that happens in love relationships – how everybody’s heart is like a god in some way, and that’s not a very balanced view of someone, is it?” 

Dave Gahan, on the other hand, remembers US TV channels being the source; “There is someone trying to sell you some sort of religion and you have to pay like $20 or something and then they send you your own personal rainbow or whatever you want to call it,” he recounted in 1990. “It just seems all twisted and wrong – that’s why Martin wanted to write the song, because he felt this was making a mockery of the Christian movement.”

Johnny Cash did a stripped-down version on his 2002 album “American IV, The Man Comes Around”. Martin Gore revealed to The London Times that the band were unaware that Cash had covered this song. When they heard about the country legend's recording, the threesome were naturally thrilled. Said Gore: "I think when you're somebody of Johnny Cash's caliber, you don't ask for permission." Cash offered his interpretation of the song in an interview for NPR: “It's a very fine, fine evangelical song, probably the most evangelical gospel song I ever recorded, although I don't know if the writer meant it to be that, but that's what it is. It's where you find your comfort, your counsel, your shoulder to lean on, your hand to hold on to your Personal Jesus.”