History Repeating (song)
"History Repeating" is a song written by Alex Gifford and originally performed by Propellerheads featuring Shirley Bassey in 1997. The single was a #1 hit on the UK Indie Chart, and was also Bassey's first top ten appearance on any US chart since 1973's "Never Never Never", making #10 on the US Dance Club Chart. According to Bassey, Gifford wrote the song especially for her. It was released shortly before the Propellerheads album "Decksandrumsandrockandroll" (their only album to date), released in 1998 by Wall of Sound in Europe and DreamWorks in the US and Japan . The song is a fusion of several different styles of big beat, breakbeat and jazz combined with the powerful vocals of Bassey. It samples from the soundtrack of the 1968 Russ Meyer film Finders Keepers, Lovers, Weepers!. The sleeve cover, an illustration by Duke D. Jukes, takes its inspiration from classic album sleeve from the Capitol 1957 release "Just One Of Those Things (album)" by Nat King Cole. Critical reception. The song received favorable reviews from music critics. Adam Webb from "Daily Herald" stated, "Miss Shirley Bassey's vocals keep "History Repeating" jazzy while the Propellerheads try to speed things  up in the background." A reviewer from "NME" wrote, "The 'Miss' is a sharp touch, the sleeve a masterpiece of retro-cool, and the whole notion something of a glam-pop wet dream in the making. Inevitably, alas, the end product isn't quite the ermine-upholstered, chandelier-hung ballroom full of champagne that it should have been. Sure, La Bassey laps up her imperious seen-it-all vocal like she's sucking down a mouthful of melted Belgian chocolate, but the Props seem too awestruck and reverential to provide anything but jaunty cha-cha-cha beats and some skittish  techno-lite for afters." "Sunday Mercury" noted the singer's "passionate performance". Ian Hyland from "Sunday Mirror" rated the song eight out of ten. He commented, "Continuing their Bond obsession the 'heads enlist the not-bad vocal talents of Shirley Bassey in a corking dance-meets-diva style." Music video. The retro style of the song was also continued with the music video, directed by Pedro Romhanyi and filmed in monochrome. The opening of which is themed on a BBC TV jazz show called "Jazz 1200", hosted by Roger Humphries, clearly refers to music shows of the 1960s, such as  Jazz 625. Scenes from the video shoot were included in the "Divas are Forever" DVD. Track 1 only appears on side A Cover versions. It has been covered by Matt Dusk on his album "Back In Town" (2006). The song has also been covered by REAX Mexican powerfusion duet on their album No Cover album (2006) and Ukrainian pop music singer Jamala in 2009. Caro Emerald covers this song in live shows. In popular culture. An edit mix of the original is the theme or title music to the BBC's "Later... with Jools Holland". It featured on the original  soundtrack of the film "There's Something About Mary" (1998), and served as the opening theme tune to the Channel 4 show "So Graham Norton". In 1999, Geri Halliwell released her debut album "Schizophonic" with the lead single "Look at Me", which took creative influence from this song. In 2000, the song was used in a TV commercial for Jaguar automobiles. In 2000, the song was used in the "Daria" episode "Psycho Therapy". In 2004, the song was featured in a TV promo for "Sex and the City". In 2009, it was used in the movie "It's Complicated" starring  Meryl Streep, Alec Baldwin, and Steve Martin. It was used in a Pantene Pro-V shampoo commercial. In 2010, the song by Regine Velasquez for the opening of GMA's 60th Anniversary entitled GMA @ 60: The Heart of Television. In 2011, the song featured in Series 3 of the Television series "Being Human". (Episode 7: Though the Heavens Fall). In 2011, Jamala released her debut album "For Every Heart", using the song as a bonus track. In 2020, the song was used in the trailer for Netflix's second season promotion of "The Politician".