| That's When I Reach for My Revolver | |
| Artist: | Mission of Burma |
| Album: | Signals, Calls, and Marches |
| Released: | July 4, 1981 |
| Length: | 3:53 |
| Label: | Ace of Hearts |
| Producer: | Richard W. Harte |
"That's When I Reach for My Revolver" is a song by Mission of Burma that was written and sung by band member Clint Conley. It appears on their 1981 EP Signals, Calls and Marches. Moby covered the song in 1996 and released it as a single, reaching number fifty on the UK Singles Chart. Prior to this, Catherine Wheel also covered the song as a b-side to their single 30 Century Man in 1992.
The title is a reference to the often-mistranslated quotation: "When I hear the word 'culture', that's when I reach for my revolver"—the actual quote from Hanns Johst is "German: Wenn ich Kultur höre ... entsichere ich meinen Browning!" This translates as: "Whenever I hear [the word] 'culture'... I remove the safety from my Browning!"
| That's When I Reach for My Revolver | |
| Cover: | Moby That's When I Reach For My Revolver.jpg |
| Type: | single |
| Artist: | Moby |
| Album: | Animal Rights |
| Released: | August 26, 1996 |
| Recorded: | 1996 |
| Length: | 3:55 |
| Producer: | Moby |
| Prev Title: | Bring Back My Happiness |
| Prev Year: | 1995 |
| Next Title: | Come On Baby |
| Next Year: | 1996 |
American musician Moby covered the song in 1996 and released it as the first single from his fourth studio album, Animal Rights (1996). It was released on August 26, 1996 by Mute and Elektra, reaching number 50 on the UK Singles Chart.
The original version of "That's When I Reach for My Revolver" had substantially different lyrics, among which is "Tonight the sky is empty/But that is nothing new/Its dead eyes look upon us/And they tell me we're nothing but slaves." Moby provided an alternate vocal track to permit airplay on MTV; with subdued lyrics, the video version was retitled as "That's When I Realize It's Over".[1]
Mark Luffman from Melody Maker commented, "This is a joke, right? Moby makes a record that sounds like Jimmy Pursey singing with The Alarm? It's not a joke? Oh dear, oh dear."[2]
| Chart (1996) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Belgium Dance (Ultratop)[3] | 12 |
| Scotland (OCC)[4] | 43 |