The song's music video won a record nine MTV Video Music Awards at the 1987 MTV Video Music Awards and Best British Video at the 1987 Brit Awards. The song also saw Gabriel nominated for three Grammy Award for Best Male Rock Vocal Performance, Record of the Year and Song of the Year. In a 2005 poll conducted by Channel 4 the music video was ranked second on their list of the 100 Greatest Pop Videos.
The "Sledgehammer" video was commissioned by Tessa Watts at Virgin Records, directed by Stephen R. Johnson and produced by Adam Whittaker. Aardman Animations and the Brothers Quay provided claymation, pixilation, and stop motion animation that gave life to images in the song. Many of these techniques had been employed in earlier music videos, such as Talking Heads's 1985 hit "Road to Nowhere", also directed by Johnson. The style was later used in the video for "Big Time", another single from So.
Gabriel lay under a sheet of glass for 16 hours while filming the video one frame at a time. "It took a lot of hard work," Gabriel recalled. "I was thinking at the time, 'If anyone wants to try and copy this video, good luck to them.'" Two dead, headless, featherless chickens were animated using stop-motion and shown dancing along to the synthesised shakuhachi solo. This section was animated by Nick Park, of Aardman Animations, who was refining his work in plasticine animation at the time. The video ended with a large group of extras jerkily rotating around Gabriel, among them his daughters Anna-Marie and Melanie, the animators themselves and director Stephen Johnson's girlfriend. Also included were six women who posed as the back-up singers of the song.
"Sledgehammer" won nine MTV Video Music Awards in 1987, the most awards a single video has won. It ranked at #4 on MTV's 100 Greatest Music Videos Ever Made (1999). "Sledgehammer" has also been declared MTV's #1 animated video of all time. The video was voted #7 on TMF's Ultimate 50 Videos You Must See, which first aired June 24, 2006. It ranked at #2 on VH1's "Top 20 Videos of the '80s" and #1 on "Amazing Moment in Music" on the Australian TV show 20 to 1 in 2007. It won Best British Video at the 1987 Brit Awards and was nominated for the Best Music Video category for the first annual Soul Train Music Awards in that same year.
The music video was remastered into 4K resolution, and was released in 2018 through Apple Music.
Sledgehammer
Peter Gabriel Feat. Youssou N'Dour Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
If you'd 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
Going up and down, all around the bends
You could have a bumper car, bumping
This amusement never ends
I want to be your sledgehammer
Why don't you call my name
Oh let me be your sledgehammer
This will be my testimony
Show me round your fruit cakes
'Cause I will be your honey bee
Open up your fruit cakes
Where the fruit is as sweet as can be
I want to 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
Sledge sledge sledgehammer
I kicked the habit (I kicked the habit)
Shed my skin (Shed my skin)
This is the new stuff (This is the new stuff)
I go dancing in, (We could 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), I will show for you
Yea, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, I do mean you
Only you, you've been coming through
Going to build that power
Build, build up that power, hey
I've been feeding the rhythm
I've been feeding the rhythm
Going to feel that power, build in you
Come on, come on, help me do
Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, you
I've been feeding the rhythm
I've been feeding the rhythm
It's what we're doing, doing
All day and night, come on and help me do, come on and help me do
The lyrics to Peter Gabriel's "Sledgehammer" are about the power of love and the lengths to which someone will go to be with the person they desire. The song begins with Gabriel telling his lover that he can make anything happen for them, from a steam train to a bumper car, and that he will be anything they need. He then declares himself to be a "sledgehammer" for his lover, willing to break down any barriers in their way and be their champion.
The song's chorus encourages his lover to "call [his] name" and let him help them build their power to be together. Gabriel addresses his past drug addiction and the changes he has made in his life, shedding his old self to become someone who can help his lover. The song ends with Gabriel asking his lover to help him feed the rhythm, suggesting that their love is a collaborative effort that they will build together.
Overall, "Sledgehammer" is a passionate declaration of love and a promise to do whatever it takes to be with the one you love.
Line by Line Meaning
You could have a steam train
If you'd just lay down your tracks
You could have an aeroplane flying
If you bring your blue sky back
You have the potential to achieve great things if you can lay the foundation for success and overcome any obstacles in your path.
All you do is call me
I'll be anything you need
I am here for you and will provide whatever support and assistance you require to fulfill your goals and desires.
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
Life is full of exciting opportunities and experiences. You can choose to take part in them and enjoy the ride, or watch from the sidelines.
I want to be your sledgehammer
Why don't you call my name
Oh let me be your sledgehammer
This will be my testimony
I want to be your strong and unwavering support, ready to help you overcome any obstacle in your path. It would be an honor to serve you in this capacity.
Show me round your fruit cakes
'Cause I will be your honey bee
Open up your fruit cakes
Where the fruit is as sweet as can be
Let me into your life and show me everything you have to offer. I promise to appreciate every aspect of your being and make the most of all the opportunities you provide.
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
Rest assured that I am ready and willing to be your unwavering support, and I will do everything in my power to help you achieve your goals. I am your sledgehammer, and you can count on me to be there for you.
I kicked the habit (I kicked the habit)
Shed my skin (Shed my skin)
This is the new stuff (This is the new stuff)
I go dancing in, (We could 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), I will show for you
I have overcome my obstacles and am ready to embrace a new chapter in my life. Let's enjoy life to the fullest together and support each other along the way.
Yea, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, I do mean you
Only you, you've been coming through
Going to build that power
Build, build up that power, hey
I am addressing you specifically, and I can see that you have the potential to achieve great things. Let's work together to build the power and strength we need to make it happen.
Come on, come on, help me do
Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, you
I've been feeding the rhythm
I've been feeding the rhythm
It's what we're doing, doing
All day and night, come on and help me do, come on and help me do
Let's work together to create a powerful and harmonious partnership. We can do anything we set our minds to, and with your help, we can achieve greatness.
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: PETER GABRIEL
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@cindchar1
Peter Gabriel released this song in 1986. It became instantly, for me, the very ideation of that special someone I was looking and waiting for. I carried it with me for many years, always a favorite....and always looking...for those eyes.
In early summer of 2002 I found those eyes... and in fall of 2004 I married those eyes. Sadly, in 2009, through a cruel twist of fate, those eyes left this world.
Wednesday June 10th, will be her birthday.
Today, I came across this version of the song and it brought me both to tears and also brought your eyes back to the front of my mind. It is your eyes I see when I close my eyes. Your eyes that I miss so much. Those brilliant greenish blue eyes.
I have made many mistakes in my life. I have been and still am a selfish and flawed man, but I do try, every day. Those eyes changed me. Because of a promise I made to those eyes, I am now 11 years sober.
I will not break the promise I made to those eyes.
So now....two days before your birthday...here is the song that kept me alive all those years knowing and believing that you were out there. I still know and believe...you are out there.
In your eyes.... I saw the light and the heat.
Yes....I was that complete
Happy Birthday Cynthia Ann Quick Reynolds Smith.
I miss you every single day
and I miss
...Your Eyes
@Claudia-ng2ep
Is anyone still loving this in2023❤
@frogdogink4415
Yup... but Today is 2/13/24 😎 so yeah, it's still great in your eyes! ❤
@AshtonCynthiaClarke
And 2024!!❤
@kasardevi8
oh yeah! ❤
@helensutton9670
Oh yes
@belamenezes9728
Is anyone still loving this performance in 2021.
@towelaokwudire
YASSSS
@vincentrichards7092
Eye
@lindathomas882
I could watch this every day
@leonsam12
It’s 1:50am and was totally mesmerized watching this😌👌