Released 1982 Genre Synthpop, new wave | Format 7", 12" | |
B-side "The Jungle Line" (UK)
"Flying North" (US) Length 3:42
5:09 (extended version) Label Venice in Peril (UK)
Capitol Records (US) | ||
"She Blinded Me with Science" is a song by the English musician Thomas Dolby, released in 1982. It was first released as a single in the UK in October 1982 and was subsequently included on the EP Blinded by Science and the second edition of Dolby's debut album The Golden Age of Wireless.
Contents
Although a success in the United States, peaking at No. 5 in the Billboard Hot 100 and 2 weeks at No. 1 in Canada's RPM Magazine, the song barely managed to score among the Top 50 in Dolby's native United Kingdom, peaking at No. 49 in the UK Singles Chart.
Dolby is often considered a one-hit wonder in the United States on the basis of the song's chart success there. In 2002, US cable television network VH1 named "She Blinded Me with Science" No. 20 on its list of the "100 Greatest One-hit Wonders". While the song is Dolby's only Top 40 single on the Billboard Hot 100, he has had other songs that scored on the music charts. In 2006, VH1 placed it at No. 76 on their list of "Greatest Songs of the '80s". Then, in 2009, it ranked No. 13 on VH1's 100 Greatest One Hit Wonders of the 80s.
Song structure
The song features interjections from the British scientist and TV presenter Magnus Pyke, who repeatedly interjects; "science!" and delivers other lines in a deliberately over-the-top mad scientist voice, such as: "good heavens, Miss Sakamoto, you're beautiful!"
The song was showcased as part of Dolby's appearance at the South by Southwest 2007 music festival.
Music video
In the music video, Dolby commits himself to a Home for Deranged Scientists. Various mad scientist types operate fanciful inventions on the grounds of the home and act insane with normal scientific items. Throughout the course of the video, Magnus Pyke (as the Home Doctor) tries to diagnose what he is suffering from, all the while being seduced by Miss Sakamoto, a secretary in the home.
Dolby saw music videos with story lines as "short silent films with a soundtrack". The video for "She Blinded Me with Science" was conceived and storyboarded before the song was written. Dolby added the song title and then wrote the song to fit the planned video. He then directed the music video himself.
In popular culture
The song was used in the video game Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain, as a collectible. The song was also sampled by Mobb Deep in their song "Got It Twisted". Thomas Dolby approved the sample to be used by The Alchemist, who produced the track. It was also extensively used in advertisements for the Discovery Channel series MythBusters. The character Tai in the webcomic Questionable Content wears a T-shirt with the slogan "She Blinded Me With Library Science". A segment of the song was used in Breaking Bad as a ringtone for Walter White on Todd's phone. The song was also used as theme music for the unaired pilot of the television series The Big Bang Theory. In 2001, pop singer Melissa Lefton replaced the word in the song title "She" with "He" and was heard in the soundtrack to the 2001 Nickelodeon film, Jimmy Neutron: Boy Genius.