Excellent Birds

{{Infobox song

| name = This is the Picture (Excellent Birds)

| cover =

| alt =

| type = song

| artist = Peter Gabriel

| album = So

| B-side =

| released = 1986

| recorded =

| studio =

| genre = {{hlist|Art rock}}

| length = 4:25

| label = {{hlist|Charisma|Virgin|Geffen}}

| writer = {{hlist|Laurie Anderson|Peter Gabriel}}

| producer = {{hlist|Peter Gabriel|Daniel Lanois}}

}}

File:Paik_Nam_June_(cropped).jpg

Gabriel first encountered Anderson at her United States performance piece in spring 1983. After the performance, he discussed an idea of collaborating on a thirty minute video that would showcase their work.{{Cite book |last=Bright |first=Spencer |title=Peter Gabriel: An Authorized Biography |publisher=Sidgwick & Jackson |year=1988 |isbn=0-283-99498-3 |location=London, UK |page=199}} In an October 1983 interview with Philip Bell of Sounds magazine, Gabriel reiterated his interest in working with Anderson on a multimedia project utilising her music, visuals, and a "comical comedian to make it a humorous piece." Bell reported that a collaboration with Gabriel, Anderson and Nile Rodgers was "imminent".{{cite magazine |last=Bell |first=Phillip |date=1 October 1983 |title=Tales of the Gold Monkey |magazine=Sounds |url=https://thegenesisarchive.co.uk/interview-pg-sounds-1st-october/ |page=15|via=The Genesis Archives}} Nam June Paik, a Korean visual artist, initiated the collaboration by asking Gabriel and Anderson to contribute a song and music video for a PBS broadcast of the Good Morning, Mr. Orwell television program that would air on 1 January 1984 and reference George Orwell{{'s}} Nineteen Eighty-Four.

Anderson and Gabriel were given a strict deadline to complete the song and film the music video, so the two convened at Anderson's studio where they spent "a couple of nights just working around the clock." Gabriel presented Anderson with a basic riff that they both thought was a decent starting point.{{cite AV media notes |title=So |others=Peter Gabriel |year=2012 |type=CD liner notes |publisher=Real World |id=PGCD 5 |location=United Kingdom}} The two of them decided to write a song about birds since Anderson was working on a project related to natural history. Anderson and Gabriel wrote the lyrics in a collaborative manner where they traded lines back and forth.{{sfn|Gabriel|2012|loc=45:35}} Rodgers also visited the recording studio to overdub a rhythm guitar part.{{cite book |last=Easlea |first=Daryl |title=Without Frontiers: The Life & Music of Peter Gabriel|year=2013|publisher=Omnibus Press |location=London|isbn=978-1780383156|pages=253-255, 270-271}}

Gabriel recalled that he and Anderson felt like "burnt out zombies" by the end of the recording session. On the second night of tracking, Gabriel was sitting on a stool while overdubbing his vocals and fell asleep in the middle of one of his takes. When Gabriel played back the recording, he could hear some of his snores from his failed vocal attempt. The next day, Anderson and Gabriel worked on the music video.{{sfn|Gabriel|2012|loc=46:00}} Gabriel found the filming of the music video to be more enjoyable than the recording process and noted that the project was conducted in a far more expeditious manner than what he was accustomed to.{{Cite web |title=So |url=https://petergabriel.com/release/so/ |access-date=2 December 2024|website=PeterGabriel.com |language=en-GB}} The music video capitalised on green screen visuals to provide backdrops for Anderson and Gabriel, who spent the duration of the video gazing at projections of animated storm clouds, birds and snow. At the end of the music video, Anderson and Gabriel levitate in the air as they perform various dances.{{Cite web |last=Harvey |first=Eric |title=Peter Gabriel: So |url=https://pitchfork.com/reviews/albums/peter-gabriel-so/ |access-date=2 December 2024|website=Pitchfork |language=en-US}}

Gabriel recalled that they both planned to include the song on their own albums.{{cite magazine |last=Hutchinson |first=John |date=20 December 1986 |title=The Peter Gabriel Interview: My Brilliant Career|magazine=Sounds |url=https://thegenesisarchive.co.uk/sounds-20th-dec-1986-interviewed-by-john-hutchinson/ |page=23|via=The Genesis Archives}} By late 1985, Gabriel had eight finished songs for So and wanted to add another to the track list. Gabriel contacted Anderson for permission to use "Excellent Birds" on the album, which she agreed to. He subsequently reworked the song to make it fit in with the rest of So.{{sfn|Gabriel|2012|loc=47:01}} Anderson and Gabriel had previously decided to create separate versions of the song as they had different ideas over what constituted the song's bassline; Gabriel preferred one that encompassed the lower registers.{{Cite web|url=https://daily.redbullmusicacademy.com/2015/06/laurie-anderson-feature|title=Laurie Anderson on Sculpting Sounds with Brian Eno, Peter Gabriel and More|access-date=2 February 2021|archive-date=24 December 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201224215609/https://daily.redbullmusicacademy.com/2015/06/laurie-anderson-feature/|url-status=live}} Daniel Lanois and Manu Katché overdubbed a twelve-string guitar and talking drum respectively to augment the existing tracks. Gabriel did not include "This is the Picture (Excellent Birds)" on the original vinyl version of the album due to space limitations and instead placed it as the final track on the cassette and CD versions, which were able to accommodate the song.{{sfn|Gabriel|2012|loc=48:05}} Later releases of the album, including the 2002 edition, feature "This is the Picture (Excellent Birds)" as the eighth track on the album, placed just before "In Your Eyes".{{cite AV media notes |title=So |others=Peter Gabriel |year=2002 |type=CD liner notes |publisher=Real World|id=PGLP07|location=United States}}

The song is built around sparse percussive elements with minimal variation in the instrumentation.{{Cite book |last=Gallo |first=Armando|title=Peter Gabriel |publisher=SonicBond |year=1986 |isbn=0-7119-0783-8 |location=United Kingdom |page=86}} Rodgers and Bill Laswell played guitar and bass respectively on both recordings. Gabriel provided further instrumentation on the LinnDrum and Synclavier; he also overdubbed a Fairlight CMI for his reworked version on So.{{Cite AV media notes |title=Mister Heartbreak Liner Notes|others=Laurie Anderson |year=1984 |type=Liner Notes |publisher=Warner Bros. Records|location=United States}} The chorus features call and response vocals that repeat the phrase "this is the picture", with Gabriel singing in a higher register and Anderson whispering her part in response. Gabriel described Anderson's version as "more fragmented" than his recording, which he reworked to center around the groove. He also thought that Anderson's recording more closely resembled the mix found in the music video.

When Gabriel was preparing his 25th anniversary edition of So, he decided to assemble snippets of demos from the original recording sessions and compile them into full songs to demonstrate the progression of their development. Since the original recording sessions for "This is the Picture (Excellent Birds)" were completed in 48 hours, Gabriel had a limited amount of material available, but he nonetheless included a DNA version of the song on the 25th anniversary box set.

Writing about the "Excellent Birds" recording on Anderson's Mister Heartbreak album, Kurt Loder of Rolling Stone said that "an eclectic pop consciousness" was ingrained in the song.{{cite news|newspaper=Rolling Stone |issue=419 |date=April 12, 1984 |first=Kurt |last=Loder |author-link=Kurt Loder |title=Laurie Anderson Mister Heartbreak > Album Review |url=https://www.rollingstone.com/artists/laurieanderson/albums/album/102121/rid/5945881/ |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20080112154909/http://www.rollingstone.com/artists/laurieanderson/albums/album/102121/review/5945881 |archivedate=January 12, 2008 |accessdate=2 December 2024 |url-status=dead}} Lennox Samuels of Dallas Morning News thought that the song demonstrated Gabriel's "funk inclinations and his rather African musical sensibility". They also earmarked "Excellent Birds" as a potential hit single.{{Cite news |last=Samuels |first=Lennox |date=19 April 1984 |title=Laurie Anderson: Much More Than Rock |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=XZEjAAAAIBAJ&pg=PA71 |access-date=2 December 2024 |work=Montreal Gazette |page=G1|via=Google Books}} Doug Anderson of The Sydney Morning Herald described the song as "accessible", in part due to the contributions of Gabriel.{{Cite news |last=Anderson |first=Doug |date=13 June 1984 |title=Radio Choice |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=KH1WAAAAIBAJ&pg=PA18 |access-date=2 December 2024 |work=The Sydney Morning Herald|via=Google Books}} Eric Harvey of Pitchfork believed that "Excellent Birds" had lyrical similarities to Anderson's work on her debut album Big Science. He also said that the song's bassline and synthesised flute sound resembled some of the instrumentation found on Gabriel's 1982 self-titled album.

In their review of the 25th anniversary edition of So, AJ Ramirez of PopMatters dismissed "This is the Picture (Excellent Birds)" as the only dud on the album and thought that the vocalists' "excellent birds" exclamations were "goofy".{{Cite web |last=Ramirez |first=AJ |date=25 October 2012 |title=Peter Gabriel: So (25th Anniversary Deluxe Edition) |url=https://www.popmatters.com/164502-peter-gabriel-so-25th-anniversary-deluxe-edition-2495804998.html |access-date=2 December 2024 |website=PopMatters |language=en-US}} Annie Zaleski of Ultimate Classic Rock wrote that the song "boast[ed] a glassy art-funk underbelly and feathery Laurie Anderson vocal contributions."{{Cite web |last=Zaleski |first=Annie |date=8 November 2012 |title=Peter Gabriel, 'So' 25th Anniversary Edition – Album Review |url=https://ultimateclassicrock.com/peter-gabriel-so-25th-anniversary-edition-album-review/ |access-date=5 December 2024 |website=Ultimate Classic Rock |language=en}} Writing for Uncut, John Lewis characterised "This is the Picture (Excellent Birds)" as a series of "jerky abstractions in search of a song" that felt out of place on So.{{cite journal|last=Lewis|first=John|title=Peter Gabriel – So 25th anniversary box set|url=https://www.uncut.co.uk/reviews/peter-gabriel-so-25th-anniversary-box-set-2243/|journal=Uncut|date=October 2012|access-date=5 December 2024|archive-date=1 November 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141101201726/http://www.uncut.co.uk/peter-gabriel-so-25th-anniversary-box-set-review|url-status=live}}

Anderson began performing "Excellent Birds" live in 1984, during which blurred images were projected on a screen behind Anderson and her backing band.{{Cite news |last=Mirolla |first=Michael |date=25 April 1984 |title=Anderson Turns Avant-Garde Event Into Near Hysteria |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=1z0yAAAAIBAJ&pg=PA76 |access-date=2 December 2024 |work=The Gazette |page=H4|via=Google Books}} The television screen projected an image of a distorted woman looking out into the audience as digital snow and various text commands appeared on the screen, including "picture this", "look out", and "you pick up the pieces".{{Cite news |last=Polito |first=Robert |date=8 May 1984 |title=Words, Mere Words: Laurie Anderson Mouths Off |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=PHMhAAAAIBAJ&pg=PA40 |access-date=2 December 2024 |work=Boston Phoenix |page=7|via=Google Books}} Anderson included a performance of the song in her 1986 concert film Home of the Brave.{{Cite web |last=Mason |first=Stewart |title=Home of the Brave - Laurie Anderson |website=AllMusic |url=https://www.allmusic.com/album/home-of-the-brave-mw0000649832 |access-date=25 February 2025}}

Gabriel performed "This is the Picture (Excellent Birds)" on his This Way Up Tour, which began on 7 November 1986 to promote his So album. During live performances from this tour, Gabriel would preface the song by providing introductions of the band, starting with David Rhodes and ending with Tony Levin. In this extended introduction, Gabriel would announce himself as "the man who paid off all the judges before the show began." A recording from this tour was included on Gabriel's Live in Athens 1987 album. Anderson joined Gabriel onstage during his performance in New York City.{{Cite web |title= Peter Gabriel - So live: This Way Up Tour (1986-1987) |url=https://www.genesis-news.com/c-Peter-Gabriel-So-live-This-Way-Up-Tour-19861987-s479.html |access-date=2 December 2024|website=Genesis News Com|date=June 2012 }}

Gabriel revived the song for his 2012–2014 Back to Front Tour, which saw Gabriel play the entirety of his So album from start to finish.{{Cite web |title=Peter Gabriel - Back To Front 2012 - North America Tour Report |url=https://www.genesis-news.com/c-Peter-Gabriel-Back-To-Front-2012-North-America-Tour-Report--s521.html |access-date=5 December 2024 |website=Genesis News Com|date=24 November 2012 }} The song was later included on Back to Front: Live in London, which was recorded at The O2 Arena in October 2013.{{Cite web |title=Back to Front - Live in London |url=https://petergabriel.com/release/back-front-live-london-dvdblu-ray/ |access-date=5 December 2024 |website=PeterGabriel.com |language=en-GB}}

;"Excellent Birds"

• Laurie Anderson – vocals, Synclavier
• Peter Gabriel – vocals, Synclavier, LinnDrum
• Bill Laswell – bass guitar
• Nile Rodgers – guitar

;"This is the Picture (Excellent Birds)"

• Laurie Anderson – vocals
• Peter Gabriel – vocals, Synclavier, LinnDrum, Fairlight CMI
• Bill Laswell – bass guitar
• Nile Rodgers – guitar
• Daniel Lanois – twelve-string guitar
• Manu Katché – talking drum

• {{Cite book |last=Bright |first=Spencer |title=Peter Gabriel: An Authorized Biography |publisher=Sidgwick & Jackson |year=1988 |isbn=0-283-99498-3 |location=London, UK}}
• {{cite AV media |title=Classic Albums: So |series=Classic Albums |date=22 October 2012 |location=United Kingdom |publisher=Eagle Rock Entertainment and Peter Gabriel Records Ltd.|ref=CITEREFGabriel2012}}
• {{Cite book|title=Experiencing Peter Gabriel: A Listener's Companion|last=Bowman|first=Durrell |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=_o8BDQAAQBAJ&pg=PA136 |publisher=Rowman & Littlefield|date=2 September 2016|isbn=978-1-44225-199-1|location=Lanham, MD}}
• {{cite book |last=Easlea |first=Daryl |title=Without Frontiers: The Life & Music of Peter Gabriel|year=2013|publisher=Omnibus Press |location=London|isbn=978-1780383156 }}
• {{Cite book |last=Gallo |first=Armando|title=Peter Gabriel |publisher=SonicBond |year=1986 |isbn=0-7119-0783-8 |location=United Kingdom}}
• {{Cite book |last=Scarfe |first=Graeme |title=Peter Gabriel: Every Album, Every Song |publisher=SonicBond |year=2021 |isbn=978-1-78952-138-2 |location=United Kingdom}}

{{reflist}}

{{Laurie Anderson}}

{{Peter Gabriel}}

Category:Peter Gabriel songs

Category:Songs written by Peter Gabriel

Category:Songs written by Laurie Anderson

Category:Song recordings produced by Daniel Lanois

Category:1984 songs

Category:1986 songs