The Only Ones – Another Girl, Another Planet …Powerpop Friday

The Only Ones were a British band formed in 1976. Despite releasing three well-regarded albums between 1978 and 1980, The Only Ones faded away with this song as their best-known song and some critics say it’s a small masterpiece. Once the song gets going it is filled with guitar hooks.

Written by guitarist and lead vocalist Peter Perrett, “Another Girl, Another Planet” is as good as it got for The Only Ones. This uptempo number was the second track on their eponymous debut album. It was released twice as a single in 1978, both times on the CBS label. The first time it was backed by “Special View”, the second by “My Wife Says”.

This review by Allmusic is complimentary, to say the least.

In a world rife with injustice, the music industry has seen — if not perpetrated — more than its fair share of travesties (the sad saga of Badfinger comes immediately to mind). But one of the biggest involves, arguably, the greatest rock single ever recorded: the Only Ones’ “Another Girl, Another Planet.” The word “timeless” and “transcendent” get bandied about far too often when describing a song or an album, but in the case of “Another Girl,” even those terms are probably inadequate. The song marks that rare confluence of lyrical, instrumental, and vocal poetry that is so complete, so absolute, that it renders everything else — in, on, above, below, and around it — irrelevant while it plays. 

The song did peak at 57 in the UK Charts when re-released in 1992. Its first chart appearance was in1981 at #44, for one week, on the New Zealand chart.

Other covers of this song included: Greg Kihn, The Replacements, Blink-182, The Dogs D’Amour, Beatsteaks and Babyshambles

From Songfacts

Although the song originally failed to chart, it has been re-released and covered more than once, and is surprisingly well known, although few would go as far as Andy Claps who in reviewing it for Allmusic said it is “that rare confluence of lyrical, instrumental, and vocal poetry that is so complete, so absolute, that it renders everything else – in, on, above, below, and around it – irrelevant while it plays.”

The song did eventually chart after being re-released in 1992, peaking at #57 in the UK. 

Peter Perrett on writing the song: “I can remember what caused me to write ‘Another Girl, Another Planet.’ It would have been about April ’77 because we had it recorded by June. It was inspired by this girl from Yugoslavia. I didn’t go out with her, but she was like a total space cadet, which when I was really young I found interesting. She was just a bit weird- she’d say crazy things, and it just got me thinking that every girl has something to offer.

The Only Ones split in 1982 after being dropped by their label. They reformed in 2007 as a result of this song being used in a Vodafone advertising campaign.

Speaking about the writing of the song to Uncut August 2015,

It would have been written on my Guild acoustic. I think any good song should sound all right on acoustic guitar.”

Some radio stations refused to play the song because of its supposed drug content. Perrett told Uncut: “I put in drug-related imagery, but it wasn’t about drugs. At that time I was more addicted to sex and infatuation than I was to drugs.”

 

Another Girl, Another Planet

I always flirt with death
I could kill, but I don’t care about it
I can face your threats
And stand up straight and tall and shout about it

I think I’m on another world with you, with you
I’m on another planet with you, with you

You get under my skin
I don’t find it irritating
You always play to win
But I won’t need rehabilitating, oh no

I think I’m on another world with you, with you
I’m on another planet with you, with you

Another girl, another planet
Another girl, another planet

Space travels in my blood
There ain’t nothing I can do about it
Long journeys wear me out
But I know I can’t live without it, oh no

I think I’m on another world with you, with you
I’m on another planet with you, with you

Another girl is loving you now
Another planet, is holding you down
Another planet