Tarantula

Album: Cracker Island (2023)
Play Video

Songfacts®:

  • Here, Gorillaz virtual vocalist 2-D desires a romantic partner who can love him and anchor him.

    I need you, I need you, I need you
    If you're good for me
    Then I'm good for you
    And that's all I need


    2-D would be a caring and devoted partner who would sacrifice his own well-being to support his loved one.
  • Gorillaz recorded "Tarantula" for Cracker Island. It's the most romantic track on the album, but there's no mention of any spiders in the lyric. According to Spotify's Storyline of the song, when Damon Albarn, co-creator of the virtual band, arrived at Montevideo Airport on the first day of Gorillaz's South American tour, he saw a tarantula walking about at baggage claim. The large hairy spider inspired this song. "It's a very beautiful creature," he said. "A simple thing that charms you."
  • Gorillaz's cartoon bass player, Murdoc Niccals, offered his commentary on this disco ballad in his own inimitable way during a Cracker Island listening party.

    "2-D claims the inspiration was, he met a tarantula that looked like George Michael," he said. "Total rubbish! It was inspired by a dream I had. I was being chased by giant spiders! I woke up screaming, and gradually my scream of terror morphed and mellowed into a brilliant riff. Behold, the track was born. Trigger warning: arachnophobes might want to mute."

Comments

Be the first to comment...

Editor's Picks

Jack Blades of Night Ranger and Damn Yankees

Jack Blades of Night Ranger and Damn YankeesSongwriter Interviews

Revisit the awesome glory of Night Ranger and Damn Yankees: cheesily-acted videos, catchy guitar licks, long hair, and lyrics that are just plain relatable.

Meshell Ndegeocello

Meshell NdegeocelloSongwriter Interviews

Meshell Ndegeocello talks about recording "Wild Night" with John Mellencamp, and explains why she shied away from the spotlight.

Emmylou Harris

Emmylou HarrisSongwriter Interviews

She thinks of herself as a "song interpreter," but back in the '80s another country star convinced Emmylou to take a crack at songwriting.

Loudon Wainwright III

Loudon Wainwright IIISongwriter Interviews

"Dead Skunk" became a stinker for Loudon when he felt pressure to make another hit - his latest songs deal with mortality, his son Rufus, and picking up poop.

Harry Shearer

Harry ShearerSongwriter Interviews

Harry is Derek Smalls in Spinal Tap, Mark Shubb in The Folksmen, and Mr. Burns on The Simpsons.

Lou Gramm - "Waiting For A Girl Like You"

Lou Gramm - "Waiting For A Girl Like You"They're Playing My Song

Gramm co-wrote this gorgeous ballad and delivered an inspired vocal, but the song was the beginning of the end of his time with Foreigner.