| Ship of Fools | |
| Cover: | Ship of Fools World Party.jpg |
| Type: | single |
| Artist: | World Party |
| Album: | Private Revolution |
| B-Side: | World Groove (Do The Mind Guerrilla) |
| Released: | 25 November 1986 |
| Genre: | Rock |
| Length: | 4:27 |
| Label: | Chrysalis Records – |
| Producer: | Karl Wallinger |
| Prev Title: | Private Revolution |
| Prev Year: | 1986 |
| Next Title: | in the Box |
| Next Year: | 1990 |
"Ship of Fools" (subtitled "Save Me from Tomorrow"[1]) is a rock song by World Party released as a second single from the 1987 debut album Private Revolution. It was written and produced by singer and multi-instrumentalist Karl Wallinger, formerly of The Waterboys. Wallinger was the sole member of World Party at the time of release.[2]
It was World Party's sole Billboard Top 40 single, debuting on that chart on 4 April 1987 and peaking at number 27. It also reached no. 42 on the UK singles chart, no. 5 on the Billboard Mainstream Rock chart, and no. 4 on the Australian Music Report chart.
A longer version, at 6 minutes and 40 seconds, was released as a 12" single, with a double B Side of World Groove (Do The Mind Guerrilla) and Nowhere Man (Ensign ENYX 6606).
Owing to its environmentalist lyrics and content, the song has also been included on over a dozen compilations, including Greenpeace's Rainbow Warriors compilation.[2]
World Party performed “Ship Of Fools” on one of the last editions of "Whistle Test", recorded at BBC Cymru Wales's Studio C1, in Cardiff. They were a last minute replacement for The Smiths, who pulled out following the death of Morrissey’s grandmother.
All songs by Karl Wallinger except where noted
7-inch single
12-inch single
| Chart (1987) | Peak position | |
|---|---|---|
| Australia (Kent Music Report)[3] | 4 | |
| U.S. Billboard Hot 100[4] | 27 | |
| U.S. Billboard Hot Mainstream Rock Tracks[5] | 5 |
Australian indie pop/rock band Something for Kate released an acoustic cover version of the song on their Live at the Corner album in 2008. A 2017 episode of the TV show Fargo (S3E5 "The House of Special Purpose)[7] features a minimalist cover of "Ship of Fools" performed for the series by show runner Noah Hawley and composer Jeff Russo. In 2021 alternative rock band Lazlo Bane released a music video for the song[8] and later included it on their 2021 album Someday We'll Be Together.
