Epic (Faith No More song)

"Epic"
"Flying Mike" reissue cover
Single by Faith No More
from the album The Real Thing
Released	January 29, 1990
Format	CD, cassette, vinyl
Recorded	December 1988 – January 1989, Studio D, Sausalito, California
Genre	Rap metal funk metal alternative metal
Length	4:54
Label	Slash
Writer(s)	Lyrics: Mike Patton Music: Billy Gould Jim Martin Roddy Bottum Mike Bordin
Producer(s)	Matt Wallace
Faith No More singles chronology
"From out of Nowhere" (1989) "Epic" (1990) "Falling to Pieces" (1990)
Music sample Epic

"Epic" is a song by the American rock band Faith No More. It was released as the second single from their third album The Real Thing in 1989 in US and in 1990 in the UK and Europe. The song was a breakthrough hit. It peaked at number nine on the Billboard Hot 100 (the band's only Top Ten hit in the United States), and their first Number One single on the Australian charts. It is among the band's most popular songs and a staple in their concerts.

"Epic" was ranked number 30 on VH1's 40 Greatest Metal Songs, number 67 on their 100 Greatest One-Hit Wonders list, in 2009, it was named the 54th best hard rock song of all time also by VH1, also in 2009 it charted number 46 on the Triple J Hottest 100 of All Time, the largest music poll in the world.

Directed by Ralph Ziman, the music video for "Epic" which featured surreal images combined with performance footage of the band soaked by an artificial rainstorm on a sound stage, was subject to controversy because of the treatment of a fish, who is out of water and appeared to be dying on camera.

During an interview, the band joked that the fish seen flopping around in the music video belonged to Icelandic singer Björk, who at the time was the singer for the band The Sugarcubes, and they claimed to have stolen it from her at a party. There are also stories of Björk giving the fish to the keyboardist Roddy Bottum after a poetry reading in San Francisco. This was confirmed by the singer who defended the group, saying that "I know those guys, I know they wouldn't do anything to harm [him]. But I know, if I had gone home with MY fish, which was given to ME, none of this would have ever happened."

Guitarist Jim Martin was a schoolmate, close friend and fan of the late Metallica bassist Cliff Burton. In the video he can be seen wearing a T-shirt with a photo of Cliff with the words "A Tribute to Cliff Burton". In addition, Mike Patton can be seen wearing a Mr. Bungle shirt that reads "There's A Tractor In My Balls Again".