Santiago Cuatro

Album: Barbara Barbara, We Face a Shining Future (2016)
Play Video

Songfacts®:

  • Speaking about the song and the Barbara Barbara album to Consequence of Sound, Underworld's Karl Hyde said: "This is a record that's split into two sections, with a divider in the middle, 'Santiago Cuatro.' They are all quintessentially Underworld.

    For me, what happens in those first two tracks, 'I Exhale' and 'If Rah,' is I see those visually. I always see those tracks as someone laying down the Eiffel Tower on its side and cutting it up into these shards of rhythmic steel. And when you get to this moment of 'Santiago Cuatro,' you can step back, take a moment, then come through this doorway and travel around on this vast, sunlit plane."
  • The album title came from Rick Smith's father, who passed away in 2015. Karl Hyde told Spin: "Toward the end of his life, Rick's father was talking to Rick's mother - her name is Barbara - reassuring her that everything's going to be okay. That they had a bright future. 'Barbara, Barbara, we face a shining future.' To reassure her. When I heard Rick say that... I just said to him, 'That's the title.'

    I don't think he realized the extent to which I wasn't going to back down. He came up with a few more titles, and I just sort of [responded,] 'Are you mad? Why are you wasting your time talking to me about this? That's the title!'"

Comments

Be the first to comment...

Editor's Picks

Cheerleaders In Music Videos

Cheerleaders In Music VideosSong Writing

It started with a bouncy MTV classic. Nirvana and MCR made them scary, then Gwen, Avril and Madonna put on the pom poms.

Shaun Morgan of Seether

Shaun Morgan of SeetherSongwriter Interviews

Shaun breaks down the Seether songs, including the one about his brother, the one about Ozzy, and the one that may or may not be about his ex-girlfriend Amy Lee.

Real or Spinal Tap

Real or Spinal TapMusic Quiz

They sang about pink torpedoes and rocking you tonight tonight, but some real lyrics are just as ridiculous. See if you can tell which lyrics are real and which are Spinal Tap in this lyrics quiz.

Ian Anderson of Jethro Tull

Ian Anderson of Jethro TullSongwriter Interviews

The flautist frontman talks about touring with Led Zeppelin, his contribution to "Hotel California", and how he may have done the first MTV Unplugged.

Stan Ridgway

Stan RidgwaySongwriter Interviews

Go beyond the Wall of Voodoo with this cinematic songwriter.

Dar Williams

Dar WilliamsSongwriter Interviews

A popular contemporary folk singer, Williams still remembers the sticky note that changed her life in college.