"Midnight in a Perfect World"
Single by DJ Shadow
from the album Endtroducing.....
B-side
  • "Mutual Slump"
  • "The Number Song"
  • "Red Bus Needs to Leave"
  • Remixes
ReleasedSeptember 2, 1996
Recorded1996
StudioThe Glue Factory (San Francisco)
Genre
Length
  • 4:57 (LP version)
  • 5:02 (radio version)
Label
Songwriter(s)
Producer(s)DJ Shadow
DJ Shadow singles chronology
"Hardcore (Instrumental) Hip Hop" / "Fully Charged on Planet X"
(1996)		 "Midnight in a Perfect World"
(1996)		 "Stem"
(1996)

"Midnight in a Perfect World" is a song by American DJ and music producer DJ Shadow. It was released as the lead single from his debut studio album, Endtroducing....., on September 2, 1996. The song peaked at number 52 on the Scottish Singles Chart and number 54 on the UK Singles Chart.

Composition

Featuring a soulful vocal line and a slow drum beat,[2][3] "Midnight in a Perfect World" is based around mournful piano sampled from the 1969 song "The Human Abstract" by David Axelrod.[4] Aside from the Axelrod sample, the track also samples "Sower of Seeds" by Baraka,[5] "Sekoilu Seestyy" by Pekka Pohjola,[5] "Releasing Hypnotical Gases" by Organized Konfusion,[6] "Dolmen Music" by Meredith Monk,[3] and "California Soul" by Marlena Shaw.[7]

Release

"Midnight in a Perfect World" was released as both a 12-inch single and CD single on September 2, 1996 in England,[8] and later in America too.[9] In January 1997, the song was released to American college and modern rock radio stations.[10]

Both releases have different artwork, with the American release featuring a photo of John Hillyard who owned a record store where DJ Shadow found many of the records he sampled on his album.[11] The photograph was taken by B Plus,[11] who also directed a music video for the song that was also released and gained much airplay on the MTV program Amp.[12]

Track listing

UK release

Side A
No.TitleLength
1."Midnight in a Perfect World" (Radio Vision)5:02
2."Midnight in a Perfect World" (Gab Mix)5:21
Side B
No.TitleLength
1."Midnight in a Perfect World" (Extended Vision)9:53
2."Mutual Slump"4:03

US release

Side A
No.TitleLength
1."Midnight in a Perfect World"4:57
2."The Number Song"4:40
3."Red Bus Needs to Leave"2:41
Side B
No.TitleLength
1."Midnight in a Perfect World" (Gab Mix)5:20
2."The Number Song" (Cut Chemist Party Mix)5:09

Charts

Chart (1996) Peak
position
Scotland (OCC)[17] 52
UK Singles (OCC)[18] 54

Release history

Region Date Label Format Catalogue no.
 United Kingdom September 2, 1996 Mo' Wax MW057[13][14]
 United States January 1997
  • 12"
  • CD
 162-531 084[15][16]

"Midnight in a Perfect World" at Discogs (list of releases)

References

  1. ↑ 10 Essential Plunderphonics Tracks|Treble
  2. ↑ O'Neil, Tim (June 10, 2005). "DJ Shadow: Endtroducing..." PopMatters. Archived from the original on February 1, 2013. Retrieved June 8, 2016.
  3. 1 2 "The Top 200 Tracks of the 1990s: 20–01". Pitchfork Media. September 3, 2010. Archived from the original on April 24, 2013. Retrieved June 8, 2016.
  4. ↑ Patrin, Nate (October 9, 2006). "Dungen". Seattle Weekly. Archived from the original on December 2, 2013. Retrieved June 8, 2016.
  5. 1 2 Endtroducing... (liner notes). DJ Shadow (deluxe ed.). Island Records. 1996. 0602498286821.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  6. ↑ Lee, Jordan (May 1, 2013). "Midnight In A Perfect Sample". WYMS. Archived from the original on August 7, 2016. Retrieved June 8, 2016.
  7. ↑ Diver, Mike (July 14, 2011). "DJ Shadow: Endtroducing..." BBC Music. BBC. Archived from the original on January 13, 2013. Retrieved June 8, 2016.
  8. ↑ "Midnight in a Perfect World – DJ Shadow". AllMusic. Archived from the original on March 25, 2015. Retrieved June 8, 2016.
  9. ↑ "DJ Shadow – Midnight In A Perfect World (Master)". Discogs. 1996. Retrieved June 8, 2016.
  10. ↑ "Out Of The Shadows". Billboard. New York. November 23, 1996. p. 21. Retrieved June 8, 2016.
  11. 1 2 Gaunt, James (2023-12-29). "Remembering John Hillyard". DJ Shadow Reconstructed. Retrieved 2023-12-29.
  12. ↑ "Endtroducing…". BAM. San Francisco. April 4, 1997. Archived from the original on April 13, 2014. Retrieved June 8, 2016.
  13. 1 2 "DJ Shadow – Midnight In A Perfect World (Vinyl) (UK)". Discogs. 2 September 1996. Retrieved June 8, 2016.
  14. 1 2 "DJ Shadow – Midnight In A Perfect World (CD) (UK)". Discogs. 2 September 1996. Retrieved June 8, 2016.
  15. 1 2 "DJ Shadow – Midnight In A Perfect World (Vinyl) (U.S.)". Discogs. 1997. Retrieved June 8, 2016.
  16. 1 2 "DJ Shadow – Midnight In A Perfect World (CD) (U.S.)". Discogs. 1998. Retrieved June 8, 2016.
  17. ↑ "Official Scottish Singles Sales Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 8 June 2016.
  18. ↑ "DJ Shadow: Artist Chart History". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 8 June 2016.
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