MEN AT WORK – OVERKILL

Estrena: març de 1983

Llistes: EUA #3 Regne Unit #21

"Overkill" és una cançó gravada per la banda australiana de pop/rock Men at Work per al seu segon àlbum, “Cargo”, i es va llançar com a single a la primavera de 1983. Escrita pel cantant principal Colin Hay, va entrar al top ten a Austràlia, Canadà, Irlanda i els Estats Units, i va significar un canvi per a Men at Work, allunyant-se de la seva música habitual més desenfadada cap a un so més refinat i unes lletres més madures.

La cançó parla de la incertesa de sortir de la zona de confort i de l'ansietat que comporta el canvi. Colin Hay es va inspirar en la cançó quan es va adonar que havia aconseguit tot el que s'havia proposat i que la seva vida havia arribat a un punt on ja no controlava el seu futur. També reflectia l'ansietat que patia, sabent que hauria de deixar la seva llar a Melbourne per explorar nous horitzons.

La cançó detalla com de greu s'havia tornat l'ansietat del narrador, que incapaç de dormir, surt als carrers per trobar consol amb altres ànimes inquietes. Intenta justificar les seves accions dient: “At least there's pretty lights" (Almenys hi ha llums boniques a fora), en contrast amb la foscor perpètua dels seus pensaments. La lluita contra la seva ansietat arriba al seu punt àlgid a la tornada, amb la frase “Ghosts appear and fade away, come back another day” (Els fantasmes apareixen i s'esvaeixen, tornen un altre dia), però es té la sensació que qualsevol treva amb aquests fantasmes mentals és només temporal.

El videoclip es va filmar als voltants del barri de St. Kilda, a Melbourne, que irònicament era la llar de Colin Hay, la zona que deixaria enrere, cosa que va provocar l'ansietat que va inspirar la lletra de la cançó.

Colin Hay es va sentir molt orgullós de "Overkill", afirmant que era "...la primera cançó que vaig escriure en què vaig pensar que podria guanyar-me la vida com a compositor. Vaig pensar que era una bona cançó i que resistiria el pas del temps. En aquell moment, vaig sentir que tenia alguna cosa especial. Estava molt content amb aquesta cançó". "Overkill" es va llançar com a segon senzill de “Cargo” a Austràlia, després de "Dr Heckyll & Mr Jive". Va ser el single principal de l'àlbum a nivell internacional, on va assolir el número 3 als Estats Units, el número 6 a Canadà i el número 9 a Irlanda. Al Regne Unit, on la banda va tenir menys èxit que a Amèrica del Nord, va arribar al número 21, sent el segon senzill més ben posicionat allà, després de "Down Under", que va arribar al número u.

MEN AT WORK – OVERKILL

Released: March 1983

Charts:  US #3   UK #21

 “Overkill” was a song recorded by Australian pop/rock band Men at Work for their second album, “Cargo”, and was released as a single from that album in the Spring of 1983. Written by lead singer Colin Hay, the song made the top ten in Australia, Canada, Ireland and the United States, and saw Men at Work move away from their usual light-hearted music, to a more refined sound and mature lyrics.

The song is about the uncertainty of moving out of your comfort zone and the anxiety that comes with change.  The song was inspired by Colin Hay realising that he had managed to achieve all he had set out to do, and his life had reached a point where he was no longer in control of his future. It also reflected the anxiety Hay was suffering, knowing he would have to leave his home in Melbourne for pastures new.

The song details how bad the narrator's anxiety had become, as unable to sleep, he heads into the streets, where he can find solace with other restless souls. He tries to justify his actions by saying “At least there's pretty lights” outside, compared to the perpetual darkness of his thoughts.  The battle against his anxiety comes to a head in the chorus, “Ghosts appear and fade away, come back another day” he retorts, but you get the idea that any respite from those mental ghosts is only temporary.

 The music video is filmed around the Melbourne suburb of St. Kilda, which was ironically the home of Colin Hay, and the area he would be moving away from, causing the anxiety that inspired the song’s lyrics. 

Colin Hay remained very proud of “Overkill”, stating that it was “...the first song that I wrote where I thought I could make a living as a songwriter. I thought it was a good song, and one that would stand the test of time. I felt at the time it had something to it. I was very happy with that song”. The song was released as the second single from “Cargo” in Australia, following “Dr Heckyll & Mr Jive”. It was the lead single from the album internationally, where it made #3 in the United States, #6 in Canada and #9 in Ireland. In the UK, where the band had less success than in North America, it made #21, their second highest charting single there, behind the chart topping “Down Under”.