"Paranoid Android (Song)" | ||||||||
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Single by Radiohead | ||||||||
from the album OK Computer | ||||||||
Released | 26 May 1997 | |||||||
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Genre | Alternative rock, Progressive rock | |||||||
Length | 6:27 | |||||||
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Writer(s) | Radiohead | |||||||
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Radiohead singles chronology | ||||||||
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"Paranoid Android" is a song by the English alternative rock band Radiohead, released as the lead single from their third studio album OK Computer (1997) on 26 May 1997. The darkly humorous lyrics were written primarily by singer Thom Yorke following an unpleasant experience in a Los Angeles bar. The song is more than six minutes long and contains four distinct sections. "Paranoid Android" takes its name from Marvin the Paranoid Android of Douglas Adams' The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy series.
Released as the lead single from OK Computer, "Paranoid Android" charted at number three on the UK Singles Chart. It was well received by music critics. The track has appeared regularly on lists of the best songs of all time, including Rolling Stone's 500 Greatest Songs of All Time. Its animated music video, directed by Magnus Carlsson, was placed on heavy rotation on MTV, although the network censored portions containing nudity in the US. At the 1998 Brit Awards, the song was nominated for Best British Single. Since its release, the track has been covered by numerous artists working in a variety of musical genres. The song was included in the 2008 Radiohead: The Best Of collection.
Radiohead fused together parts from three different songs, each written by a different member of the band. The idea to combine the pieces into a single track was inspired in part by the through-composed structure of The Beatles' "Happiness Is a Warm Gun".