DEPECHE MODE - WALKING IN MY SHOES

Released: April 26, 1993

Charted:  UK: #14

"Walking in My Shoes" is a song released as the second single from the 1993 eighth studio album “Songs of Faith and Devotion”.

"Walking in My Shoes" is about understanding and empathy. The singer is telling the listener to try to understand them before passing judgment on their actions. They emphasize that the listener should understand what they have been through before making any conclusions or seeking any absolution. The chorus encourages the listener to literally "walk in the singer's shoes" and keep the same appointments they kept, as a way of understanding what they went through. The song delves into the complexities of the human experience and the importance of compassion.

Alan Wilder told about this song: “It was constructed using an unusual method for us, i.e. jamming together. Martin played the guitar, I played bass and we ran a rhythm machine, this was just to get the basic feel for the track, and after much trial and error, the chorus bass line and guitar pattern fell into place. From that point onwards, Flood and I began to construct the various drum loops, the string arrangements, the main riff, which combined a piano and harpsichord through a distorted guitar amp, and all the other bits and pieces. By contrast, the bass line for the verses was much more problematic and in fact didn't get written until the very last moment. The piano part at the beginning was put through a guitar processor, which distorted it and made it more edgy. We added a harpsichord sample on top of that."

Martin Gore in a 1998 interview: “If I really had to stick my neck out and choose my all time favourite song, it would probably be "Walking In My Shoes". I think it has a great melody—the words and the subject matter really complement each other perfectly. The instrumentation is also interesting.”

On the other hand, producer Mark Ellis known as Flood thought the following about the song: I'm being honest, the track that I was most disappointed by—I mean, I say "most disappointed"—but it was "Walking In My Shoes", because I never felt that the recorded version lived up to the way I imagined the song could be. I know I'm probably the only person in the universe who thinks like that, but I felt that the original demo—the potential wasn't realized, so.

David Fricke from Melody Maker wrote, "'Walking in My Shoes' is better neo-Bowie than we've heard in some time, a long-distance "Heroes" knockoff via the group's own "Enjoy the Silence" complete with hints of Robert Fripp's skysaw guitar."