Wot (song)

"Wot" is a 1982 single by English musician Captain Sensible released by A&M Records. The song was produced by Tony Mansfield and features the group Dolly Mixture on backing vocals. The song charted in the United Kingdom and was a specialist hit in the United States, but enjoyed its greatest success in continental Europe.

"Wot"
Single by Captain Sensible
from the album Women and Captains First
A-side"Wot"
B-side"Strawberry Dross"
Released1982
Genre
Length5:52 (12" version)
3:20 (7" US version)
3:22 (7" EU version)
LabelA&M
Songwriter(s)Captain Sensible
Producer(s)Tony Mansfield
Captain Sensible singles chronology
"Happy Talk"
(1982)		 "Wot"
(1982)		 "Croydon"
(1982)

Production

"Wot" is a song written by Captain Sensible and produced by Tony Mansfield.[1][2] The song features backing vocals from Dolly Mixture.[2][3]

Captain described the song's creation in a SFX Magazine interview: - While the Damned were touring in the USA, he heard this horrible pounding sound coming from outside at 5am. It was coming from a building site and as it was so early and he wanted to sleep in the hotel, he recorded the noise to make a complaint. He played it to the reception, informing them that it was disgusting and a ploy to upset British bands, and he was trying to get some sleep. and they just said, "Have a nice day". Nothing was done and he got no sleep. When he returned to the UK, he played the tape to Tony Mansfield who took the tape and created a loop (backing track) from it within about 10 minutes. This sound loop formed the basis of the song. The loop can be heard clearly at the beginning and near the end of the song. The song's lyrics were also based on this lack of sleep and noisy events. Captain added that they simply "added more rubbish on top of the track" to build up the song.

The song was originally going to be called "Cap's Rap".

Genre

AllMusic's Stephen Cook described "Wot" as "Sugarhill Gang-inspired new wave disco".[4] Stephen "Spaz" Schnee from the same website called the song a "radio-friendly [slice] of lighthearted keyboard-based pop".[5]

Release

"Wot" was released on A&M Records.[1] In the United Kingdom, "Wot" was in the United Kingdom charts for seven weeks, peaking at number 26.[6] In the United States, "Wot" peaked on Billboards's Hot Dance Club Play Singles chart at number 24.[7] In France, the single was certified gold by the Syndicat National de l'Édition Phonographique (SNEP).[8]

"Wot" was performed by Captain Sensible on Top of the Pops with Dolly Mixture as the backing group.[9] Dolly Mixture had mixed feelings about appearing on Top of the Pops so often as it led to them being recognized more as backup musicians than for their own work.[9]

Reception

Online music database AllMusic described both the songs "Wot" and "A Nice Cup of Tea" as "well-crafted pop tunes that deliver the goods".[10]

Credits

Credits adapted from Wot record sleeve.[1][2]

Charts

References
  1. "Vinyl record sticker". Wot! (Media notes). Captain Sensible. A&M Records. 1982. CAP 2.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  2. Captain Sensible (1982). "Dear Auntie Sadie". Wot! (Media notes). Captain Sensible. A&M Records. CAP 2.
  3. "Women & Captains First – Credits". AllMusic. Retrieved 22 December 2013.
  4. Cook, Stephen. "Captain Sensible – Day in the Life of...Captain Sensible". AllMusic. Retrieved 5 May 2015.
  5. Schnee, Steve "Spaz". "Captain Sensible – Collection". AllMusic. Retrieved 22 December 2013.
  6. "Official Singles Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 6 January 2014.
  7. "Women & Captains First – Awards". AllMusic. Retrieved 6 January 2014.
  8. "French single certifications – Captain Sensible" (in French). InfoDisc. Select CAPTAIN SENSIBLE and click OK. 
  9. Carr, Daphne. "Dolly Mixture – Artist Biography". AllMusic. Retrieved 22 December 2013.
  10. Deming, Mark. "Women & Captains First – Overview". AllMusic. Retrieved 22 December 2013.
  11. "Forum – ARIA Charts: Special Occasion Charts – CHART POSITIONS PRE 1989, part 2". Australian-charts.com. Hung Medien. Retrieved 6 January 2014.
  12. "Captain Sensible – Wot!" (in German). Ö3 Austria Top 40. Retrieved 6 January 2014.
  13. "Captain Sensible – Wot!" (in Dutch). Ultratop 50. Retrieved 6 January 2014.
  14. "InfoDisc : Tous les Titres par Artiste". InfoDisc (in French). Select "Captain Sensible" from the artist drop-down menu. Retrieved 6 January 2014.
  15. "The Irish Charts – Search Results – Wot". Irish Singles Chart. Retrieved 6 January 2014.
  16. "Nederlandse Top 40 – week 49, 1982" (in Dutch). Dutch Top 40. Retrieved 6 January 2014.
  17. "Captain Sensible – Wot!" (in Dutch). Single Top 100. Retrieved 6 January 2014.
  18. "Captain Sensible – Wot!". Top 40 Singles. Retrieved 6 January 2014.
  19. "Captain Sensible – Wot!". Swiss Singles Chart. Retrieved 6 January 2014.
  20. "Offiziellecharts.de – Captain Sensible – Wot!" (in German). GfK Entertainment charts. Retrieved 6 January 2014.
  21. "TOP – 1982". Top-france.fr (in French). Retrieved 6 January 2014.
  22. "Top 100–Jaaroverzicht van 1982" (in Dutch). Dutch Top 40. Retrieved 3 June 2014.
  23. "Top 100 Singles–Jahrescharts 1983" (in German). GfK Entertainment. Retrieved 22 June 2023.
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