When the Lady Smiles
{{Infobox song
| name = When the Lady Smiles
| cover = Golden earring - When the lady smiles.jpg
| alt =
| type = single
| artist = Golden Earring
| album = N.E.W.S.
| B-side = Orwell's Year
| released = 3 February 1984 (NL){{cite web|url=https://dutchcharts.nl/showitem.asp?interpret=Golden+Earring&titel=When+The+Lady+Smiles&cat=s|title=Golden Earring singles}}
| studio =
| venue =
| genre = Rock
| length = 4:59 (Single Version)
5:39 (Album Version)
6:16 (12" Version)
| label = 21 Records
| writer = George Kooymans
Barry Hay
| producer = Shell Schellekens
| prev_title = The Devil Made Me Do It
| prev_year = 1982
| next_title = Clear Night, Moonlight
| next_year = 1984
}}
"When the Lady Smiles" is a 1984 song by Dutch band Golden Earring. It was the first single from their album N.E.W.S. (NorthEastWestSouth). Following their United States top 10 hit "Twilight Zone", "When the Lady Smiles" was a chart disappointment in America, only reaching No. 76 on the Billboard Hot 100. However, the song became the band's fifth Hot 100 charter, making Golden Earring the most successful Dutch band on the United States singles chart.{{cite web|title=allmusic - Golden Earring > Charts & Awards > Billboard Singles|url={{AllMusic|class=artist|id=p4379|pure_url=yes}}|accessdate=14 March 2009}}
In the Netherlands, "When the Lady Smiles" became Golden Earring's fifth number-one song. The song debuted at No. 9 on the United States Top Rock Tracks chart, but its controversial music video prevented the song from achieving further success in America.
Controversy
The commercial success of "When the Lady Smiles" in the United States was thwarted by the song's controversial music video. Directed by Dick Maas, one scene portrays Golden Earring lead singer Barry Hay attempting to rape a nun on a metro car. Because of the rape scene, the video was banned from MTV.{{Cite book|last=Boone|first=Brian|title=I Love Rock 'n' Roll (Except When I Hate It): Extremely Important Stuff About the Songs and Bands You Love, Hate, Love to Hate, and Hate to Love|publisher=Penguin Publishing Group|year=2011|isbn=9781101517314|language=English}}
Dutch actor Huub Stapel has a cameo in the music video as an elevator mechanic, referencing the movie De Lift.
Also appearing in several scenes (metro car, window washer) is Hans Vandenburg, lead singer of Gruppo Sportivo.
In the United States, the song debuted at No. 9 on the Top Rock Tracks chart (now Mainstream Rock Airplay), slipped to No. 11 in its second week and then fell off the chart completely because of the music video ban.{{Cite web|title=Nothing to smile about in this truly odd Golden Earring video|url=https://www.tampabay.com/nothing-to-smile-about-in-this-truly-odd-golden-earring-video/2213316/|access-date=2022-01-03|website=Tampa Bay Times|language=en}}{{Cite web|last=devops|date=2013-11-28|title=Mainstream Rock Airplay|url=https://www.billboard.com/charts/hot-mainstream-rock-tracks/|access-date=2022-01-03|website=Billboard|language=en-US}}
2008 Hillary Clinton presidential campaign
New York senator Hillary Clinton used "When the Lady Smiles" during her campaign for the US presidency of 2008. The decision led to criticism from both American and Dutch figures because of the song's lyrics and graphic controversial video.{{Cite web|date=2008-03-28|title=Hillary Clinton's Incredibly Obscene Soundtrack|url=https://www.huffpost.com/entry/hillary-clintons-incredib_n_83700|access-date=2022-01-03|website=HuffPost|language=en}}{{Cite web|last=Frauenfelder|first=Mark|date=2008-01-28|title=Has Hillary Clinton seen the video for the Golden Earring song she plays?|url=https://boingboing.net/2008/01/28/has-hillary-clinton.html|access-date=2022-01-03|website=Boing Boing|language=en-US}}[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ivr6CtGuPqU Pauw&Witteman 2008 ] While the chorus contains the lyrics "When the lady smiles, I can't resist her call, as a matter of fact, I don't resist at all," other lines include "It drives me wild, her lips are warm and resourceful" and "My friends tell me, she's the beast inside your paradise."{{Cite web|title=The very weird campaign song choice of Hillary Clinton|url=https://www.dailykos.com/story/2008/1/29/445751/-|access-date=2022-01-03|website=Daily Kos}}
Golden Earring's manager stated that "There’s been no contact between Clinton’s team and us" for usage of the song. Her husband Bill Clinton had previously used the band's 1973 hit single "Radar Love" in his 1992 presidential campaign.{{Cite web|date=2008-01-29|title=Golden Earring heralds Hillary Clinton|url=https://www.dutchnews.nl/news/2008/01/golden_earring_heralds_hillary/|access-date=2022-01-03|website=DutchNews.nl|language=en-GB}}
However, "When the Lady Smiles" was pulled from Hillary Clinton's campaign after her team discovered the assault scene in the song's music video.{{Cite web|title=Er werd een non aangerand in de videoclip van 'When the lady smiles' en vijf andere weetjes over Golden Earring {{!}} Radio 2, de grootste familie|url=https://radio2.be/artikels/er-werd-een-non-aangerand-in-de-videoclip-van-when-the-lady-smiles-en-vijf-andere-weetjes|access-date=2022-01-03|website=radio2.be|language=nl}}
Charts
{{col-start}}
{{col-2}}
=Weekly charts=
| class="wikitable sortable plainrowheaders" style="text-align:center" |
| scope="col"| Chart (1984)
! scope="col"| Peak |
|---|
| {{single chart|Flanders|1|artist=Golden Earring|song=When the Lady Smiles|rowheader=true|accessdate=10 September 2021}} |
| {{single chart|Dutch40|1|year=1984|week=9|rowheader=true|accessdate=10 September 2021}} |
| {{single chart|Dutch100|1|artist=Golden Earring|song=When the Lady Smiles|rowheader=true|accessdate=10 September 2021}} |
| {{single chart|Billboardhot100|76|artist=Golden Earring|rowheader=true|accessdate=10 September 2021}} |
| {{single chart|Billboardmainstreamrock|9|artist=Golden Earring|rowheader=true|accessdate=10 September 2021}} |
{{col-2}}
=Year-end charts=
| class="wikitable sortable plainrowheaders" style="text-align:center" |
| scope="col"| Chart (1984)
! scope="col"| Position |
|---|
| scope="row"| Belgium (Ultratop Flanders){{cite web|url=https://www.ultratop.be/nl/annual.asp?year=1984|title=Jaaroverzichten 1984|publisher=Ultratop|accessdate=10 September 2021}}
| 31 |
| scope="row"| Netherlands (Dutch Top 40){{cite web|url=https://www.top40.nl/bijzondere-lijsten/top-100-jaaroverzichten/1984|title=Top 100-Jaaroverzicht van 1984|publisher=Dutch Top 40|accessdate=10 September 2021}}
| 21 |
| scope="row"| Netherlands (Single Top 100){{cite web|url=https://dutchcharts.nl/jaaroverzichten.asp?year=1984&cat=s|title=Jaaroverzichten – Single 1984|website=dutchcharts.nl|accessdate=10 September 2021}}
| 12 |
{{col-end}}
References
{{Reflist}}
{{Golden Earring}}
{{Authority control}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:When The Lady Smiles}}
Category:Dutch Top 40 number-one singles
Category:Songs written by George Kooymans