O Superman - Laurie Anderson

'O Superman' by Laurie Anderson was an unlikely chart hit. Anderson had never reached the charts before, and she never would again. Anderson constructed the song as a cover of the aria 'O Souverain, o juge, o père' from Jules Massenet's 1885 opera Le Cid. The first line of the song is a part-translation of that title: 'O Superman / O judge / O mom and dad'. The lines 'Cause when love is gone, there's always justice / And when justice is gone, there's always force / And when force is gone, there's always Mom' were derived from the fourth sentence of Chapter 38 of the Tao Te Ching: 'When Tao is lost, there is goodness. When goodness is lost, there is kindness. When kindness is lost, there is justice. When justice is lost, there ritual. Now ritual is the husk of faith and loyalty, the beginning of confusion.'

My copy of the single was housed in a custom WEA Records single sleeve. The label features some specially designed artwork. Although picture sleeves do exist, I still feel this is a great alternative.

My collection: 7" single no. 232
Found: Disco Market, Den Haag, 1984
Cost: 2 guilders
Tracks: 'O Superman' / 'Walk the dog'
Download: Album 'Big Science', including both tracks