music.wikisort.org - Composition

"Beautiful World" is a song by American new wave band Devo, written by Gerald Casale and Mark Mothersbaugh. It appears on their fourth studio album New Traditionalists.

"Beautiful World"
Single by Devo
from the album New Traditionalists
Released	1981
Genre	New wave synth-pop
Length	3:35
Label	Warner Bros.
Songwriter(s)	Gerald Casale Mark Mothersbaugh
Producer(s)	Devo
Devo singles chronology
"Through Being Cool" (1981) "Beautiful World" (1981) "Working in the Coal Mine" (1981)

Most of the songs on New Traditionalists are darker and more direct than on previous Devo albums. The exception to this is "Beautiful World," whose message seems optimistic at first but changes as the song progresses. This is made even clearer by the song's promotional video.

In addition to the standard 7-inch single, "Beautiful World" was also released as a picture disc. This version features the same image of a paper mask of a cosmonaut's face as the standard single sleeve and is cut in the shape of the cosmonaut's head. The picture disc version also includes a different B-side: the spoken word "Nu-tra Speaks (New Traditionalist Man)."[1]^{[better source needed]}

Promotional music video

The music video was inspired by the works of experimental film collagist Bruce Connor.[2][3] The video features the character Booji Boy prominently, as he initially watches scenes of beautiful women, futuristic cars and other happy elements, which by the end of the song have been replaced by images of race riots, the Ku Klux Klan, World War I, famine in Africa, car crashes and nuclear explosions, which puts a much darker slant on the song's lyrics.

Track listing

Chart performance

Chart (1981-1982)	Position
US Billboard Bubbling Under the Hot 100[4][5]	102
Australia ARIA Top 100[6]	14
New Zealand RIANZ Top 50[7]	15

Cover versions

• Indie rock band Harvey Danger[8]
• Synth-pop band Information Society, with vocals by Gerald Casale of Devo.[9]
• Rap rock group Rage Against the Machine on their final studio album Renegades[10]

References

External links

• Official music video
• Audio only video

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