Peter Gabriel
Peter Gabriel
Peter Gabriel & Kate Bush
Peter Gabriel
Peter Gabriel
Peter Gabriel
Peter Gabriel
Peter Gabriel & Laurie Anderson
Peter Gabriel & Youssou N’Dour
The second track off of Peter Gabriel’s 1986 album So. It also provided Gabriel with his only #1 hit on the Billboard Hot 100 (peaking in July 1986).
The song is centered around Gabriel trying to woo someone, and uses a LOT of sexual innuendo. The titular sledgehammer is a pretty obvious phallic sy...
[Intro]
Hey, hey, you
Tell me how have you been?
[Verse 1]
You could have a steam train
If you just lay down your tracks
You could have an aeroplane flying
If you bring your blue sky back
All you do is call me
I'll be anything you need
[Verse 2]
You could have a big dipper
Going up and down, all around the bends
You could have a bumper car, bumping
This amusement never ends
[Chorus]
I wanna be your sledgehammer
Why don't you call my name?
Oh, let me be your sledgehammer
This will be my testimony
[Verse 3]
Show me 'round your fruit cage
'Cause I will be your honey bee
Open up your fruit cage
Where the fruit is as sweet as can be
[Chorus]
I wanna be your sledgehammer
Why don't you call my name?
You'd better call the sledgehammer
Put your mind at rest
I'm going to be the sledgehammer
This can be my testimony
I'm your sledgehammer
Let there be no doubt about it
[Post-Chorus]
Sledge, sledge
Sledgehammer
[Interlude]
[Outro]
I get it right
I kicked the habit
Kicked the habit, kicked the habit
Shed my skin
Shed my skin
This is the new stuff
This is the new stuff
I go dancing in
We can go dancing in
Oh, won't you show for me?
Show for me
I will show for you
Show for you
Show for me
Show for me
Oh, I will show for you
Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, I do mean you
Show for me
Only you
You been coming through
Show for you
I'm gonna build that power
Build, build up that power, hey
Show for me
I've been feeding the rhythm
I've been feeding the rhythm
Show for you
Gonna feel that power, hey, build in you
Show for me
Come on, come on, help me do
Come on, come on, help me do
Show for you
Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, you
Show for me
I've been feeding the rhythm
I've been feeding the rhythm
Show for you
It's what we're doing, doing
All day and night
Show for me
Come on, come on, help me do
Come on, come on, help me do
Show for you
Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, you
Show for me
I've been feeding the rhythm...
Sledgehammer was written by Peter Gabriel.
Sledgehammer was produced by Peter Gabriel & Daniel Lanois.
Peter Gabriel released Sledgehammer on Fri Apr 25 1986.
Within the book Tab+ 25 Top Rock Bass Songs:
The tone on the soul-fusion track “Sledgehammer” is bubbling with fatness and transients all at once. Levin performed it on a fretless Music Man Sabre bass plugged directly into the board. He ran through an octave pedal along the way (most likely a Boss...
Gabriel shared on his website:
‘Sledgehammer’ was obviously a big track from that record and that was, in part, homage to the music that I grew up with. I loved soul music, blues music and that was a chance to work with some of the brass players that had worked with Otis Redding, who’s my all time...