(He'll Never Be An) Ol' Man River

"(He'll Never Be An) Ol' Man River"
"(He'll Never Be An) Ol' Man River"
Single by TISM
from the album Machiavelli and the Four Seasons
B-side	"Abscess Makes the Heart Grow Fonder"; "Dicktatorship";
Released	6 June 1995
Recorded	September 1994
Studio	Platinum Studios
Genre	Dance-rock, alternative rock
Length	2:24
Label	Shock/genre b.goode
Songwriter(s)	TISM
Producer(s)	Lawrence Maddy
TISM singles chronology
Original artwork

"(He'll Never Be An) Ol' Man River" is a song by Australian alternative rock band TISM, released in June 1995 as the second single from their third studio album, Machiavelli and the Four Seasons. The song peaked at number 23 on the ARIA Charts, becoming the band's highest charting single and polled at number 9 in the Triple J Hottest 100, 1995

The band performed the song on the RMITV show Under Melbourne Tonight in April 1995.^[1]

Meaning and controversy

The track is a criticism of celebrity worship, using the then-recent death of River Phoenix as its focus. It contains the opening line, "I'm on the drug that killed River Phoenix".^[2]

Controversy surrounded the release of this track. Red Hot Chili Peppers' Australian-born bassist Michael "Flea" Balzary (a close friend of Phoenix) reportedly left "wanting to kill" TISM.^[2] TISM addressed this controversy in 2004:^[3] "By the same token, Hitler-Barassi says, 'I'm on the drug that killed River Phoenix', the line that famously enraged Red Hot Chili Peppers bassist Flea, 'wasn't about River Phoenix at all. That song was about fame, and the people listed in it weren't even real celebrities."

The single was issued with a second "pills" cover after a version depicting a mockup of Phoenix's tombstone was withdrawn.

Reception

Double J named it in the top fifty Australian songs of the 1990s, saying, "The song is a riotous techno-punk romp that namechecks a range of celebrity deaths, prodding those who obsess over these morbid events far more than the celebrities themselves. Like TISM's best work, you can take it on its provocative face value or, you know, read the lyrics."^[4]

Track list

CD single (G003)

"(He'll Never Be An) Ol' Man River" – 2:25
"Abscess Makes the Heart Grow Fonder" – 2:47
"Dicktatorship" – 2:00

Personnel

Damian Cowell – lead vocals (choruses)
Peter Minack – lead vocals (verses)
Jack Holt – bass
James Paull – electric guitar
Eugene Cester – keyboards

Charts

Chart performance for "(He'll Never Be An) Ol' Man River"
Chart (1995)	Peak position
Australia (ARIA)^[5]	23

References

^ "Free Music Videos, Video Interviews, Music Video News, Live Sessions and Clips - NME.COM | - NME.COM". NME. Archived from the original on 13 January 2014. Retrieved 13 January 2014.
^ ^a ^b "TISM 10 Essential Tracks". MusicFeeds. 4 August 2022. Retrieved 6 August 2022.
^ Dwyer, Michael (2 July 2014). "The phantom menace". The Age (newspaper). Retrieved 11 December 2007.
^ Dan Condon. "The 50 best Australian songs of the 90s". Double J.
^ "TISM – (He'll Never Be An) Ol' Man River". ARIA Top 50 Singles. Retrieved 9 June 2021.

[1] "Free Music Videos, Video Interviews, Music Video News, Live Sessions and Clips - NME.COM | - NME.COM". NME. Archived from the original on 13 January 2014. Retrieved 13 January 2014.

[MFAug22-2] "TISM 10 Essential Tracks". MusicFeeds. 4 August 2022. Retrieved 6 August 2022.

[3] Dwyer, Michael (2 July 2014). "The phantom menace". The Age (newspaper). Retrieved 11 December 2007.

[4] Dan Condon. "The 50 best Australian songs of the 90s". Double J.

[aus-5] "TISM – (He'll Never Be An) Ol' Man River". ARIA Top 50 Singles. Retrieved 9 June 2021.

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