Woman in Chains

1989 single by Tears for Fears featuring Oleta Adams

This article is about the song. For the French film, see La Prisonnière (film).

"Woman in Chains"

Single by Tears for Fears
from the album  The Seeds of Love
B-side|

* "Always in the Past"
* "My Life in the Suicide Ranks"

Released| 6 November 1989 (1989-11-06)
Length|

* 5:28 (single version)
* 6:30 (album version)

Label| Fontana
Songwriter(s)| Roland Orzabal
Producer(s)|

* Tears for Fears
* Dave Bascombe

Tears for Fears singles chronology
| "Sowing the Seeds of Love"
(1989)  | "Woman in Chains"
(1989)  | "Advice for the Young at Heart"
(1990)

|
|

Music video
"Woman in Chains" on YouTube
"Woman in Chains"

Single by Tears for Fears featuring Oleta Adams
from the album  Tears Roll Down (Greatest Hits 82–92)
B-side|

* "Ghost Papa"

Released| 13 April 1992 (1992-04-13)
Label| Fontana
Tears for Fears singles chronology
| "Laid So Low (Tears Roll Down)"
(1992)  | "Woman in Chains"
(1992)  | "Break It Down Again"
(1993)

|
|

Oleta Adams singles chronology
| "Don't Let the Sun Go Down On Me"
(1991)  | "Woman in Chains"
(1992)  | "I Just Had to Hear Your Voice"
(1993)

|
|

"Woman in Chains" is a song by English band Tears for Fears, released as the second single from their third studio album, The Seeds of Love (1989). It has been described as a "feminist anthem".[1][2] It was an international success, reaching the top 40 in several countries, including the United Kingdom, the United States, Canada, France, and the Netherlands.

The song prominently features vocals by Oleta Adams, who went on to achieve a successful solo career. It was re-released in 1992 – with a different B-side and now credited to "Tears for Fears featuring Oleta Adams" – to capitalise on the singer's solo success and to promote the Tears for Fears compilation Tears Roll Down (Greatest Hits 82–92). This time, it reached number 57 in the UK.

## Recording

[edit]

In early February 1988, Oleta Adams traveled to Townhouse Studios in London to meet up with Orzabal, Manu Katché, and Pino Palladino for the purpose of recording a series of demos, including "Woman in Chains". David Bascombe was responsible for recording and mixing the song from this session and remarked that "it was astounding to watch and hear them." At the time, he had expressed some reservations over the unstructured format and believed that the "indulgent" nature of these live sessions was not the optimal way to record. He recalled that the band eschewed jamming in favor of "endless takes" and included zero overdubs. The dates of the recording sessions were marked 8–9 February 1988 and transferred over to DAT.[3]

Until the assemblage of The Seeds of Love reissue in 2020, the DAT tapes were under the possession of Orzabal. The tape was sent to Abbey Road Studios and reviewed by Paul Sinclair, who later wrote the liner notes for the box set.[3] On 11 September 2020, the Live Jam Version of "Woman in Chains" was released, which followed the demo recording of "Rhythm of Life", which also emerged from The Townhouse recording sessions.[4]

Portions of the studio cut feature Phil Collins on drums. "Tears for Fears just wanted me to do that big drum thing from 'In the Air Tonight'..." Collins recalled. "'We want you to come in here in a big way.'"[5] Adams was pleased with the final recording and regarded it as "a classic record" that was "very personal" to Orzabal.[4]

## Content

[edit]

"Woman in Chains" was recorded as a duet. Orzabal explained the impetus for the lyric to Melody Maker: "I was reading some feminist literature at the time and I discovered that there are societies in the world still in existence today that are non-patriarchal. They don't have the man at the top and the women at the bottom. They're matricentric—they have the woman at the centre and these societies are a lot less violent, a lot less greedy and there's generally less animosity... but the song is also about how men traditionally play down the feminine side of their characters and how both men and women suffer for it."[citation needed]

During a 2021 interview with the Louder website, when asked if the song is the feminist anthem it’s usually read as, Orzabal replied: "Um... it was really about my mother. At one point in her life she was a stripper. My father and she ran an entertainment agency from a council house in Portsmouth. So she would go out to strip, and my father would send a driver out with her to spy on her. If she talked to another man, when she came back he would beat her up. So it's about domestic abuse."[6] He posited that the song was a byproduct from his time in therapy, which he believed was conducive for writing "emotional songs".[7]

## Critical reception

[edit]

David Giles from Music Week wrote, "The best track from the current LP, this starts out promising to be the portentous, pompous rock track that the right-on title suggests, but is rescued by the duo's intuitive pop touches. Watch out for some excellent guitar work."[8]

## Music video

[edit]

The accompanying music video for "Woman in Chains", directed by Andy Morahan,[9] was filmed in black and white. It focuses on the abusive relationship between a man (a boxer) and a woman (a pole-dancer, played by Angela Alvarado); interspersed with shots of the band and guest vocalist Oleta Adams performing the song. It also features Chris Hughes playing the drums.

## Track listings

[edit]

7-inch single (1989)[10]

1. "Woman in Chains"
2. "Always in the Past"

12-inch single (1989)[11]

1. "Woman in Chains"
2. "Always in the Past"
3. "My Life in the Suicide Ranks"
4. "Woman in Chains" (instrumental)

7-inch single (1992)[12]

1. "Woman in Chains"
2. "Badman's Song"

CD single (1992)[13]

1. "Woman in Chains"
2. "Badman's Song"
3. "Ghost Papa"

|

## Personnel

[edit]

* Roland Orzabal – vocals, keyboards, Fairlight programming, guitar
* Oleta Adams – vocals, keyboards
* Neil Taylor – guitar arpeggio
* Pino Palladino – bass guitar
* Manu Katché (start to 3:32) and Phil Collins (from 3:32) – drums
* Luís Jardim – percussion
* Tessa Niles – backing vocals
* Carol Kenyon – backing vocals

## Charts

[edit]

### Weekly charts

[edit]

Weekly chart performance for "Woman in Chains"  | Chart (1989–1990)  | Peak
position

|

Australia (ARIA)[14] | 39
Belgium (Ultratop 50 Flanders)[15] | 32
Canada Top Singles (RPM)[16] | 11
Europe (Eurochart Hot 100 Singles)[17] | 47
France (SNEP)[18] | 20
Ireland (IRMA)[19] | 21
Netherlands (Dutch Top 40)[20] | 12
Netherlands (Single Top 100)[21] | 16
New Zealand (Recorded Music NZ)[22] | 34
UK Singles (OCC)[23] | 26
US Billboard Hot 100[24] | 36
West Germany (GfK)[25] | 45

### Year-end charts

[edit]

Year-end chart performance for "Woman in Chains"  | Chart (1990)  | Position

|

Canada Top Singles (RPM)[26] | 87

## Certifications

[edit]

Certifications for "Woman in Chains"  Region  | Certification | Certified units/sales

|
|

United Kingdom (BPI)[27] | Silver  | 200,000‡

‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone.

## Release history

[edit]

Region  | Date  | Format(s)  | Label(s)  | Ref.

|
|
|
|

United Kingdom  | 6 November 1989  |

* 7-inch vinyl
* 12-inch vinyl
* CD
* cassette

| Fontana | [28]
Japan  | 21 December 1989  | Mini-CD  | [29]
5 February 1990  | Maxi-CD  | [30]
United Kingdom (re-release)  | 13 April 1992  |

* 7-inch vinyl
* 12-inch vinyl
* CD

| [31]

## References

[edit]

1. ^ Willman, Chris (24 September 1989). "Tears for Fears: Just So-So in 'The Seeds of Love'". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 17 November 2015.
2. ^ Holden, Stephen (27 September 1989). "The Pop Life". The New York Times.
3. ^ a b Sinclair, Paul (11 September 2020). "Hear an unreleased version of Tears For Fears' 'Woman in Chains' – SuperDeluxeEdition". Retrieved 14 October 2024.
4. ^ a b Kreps, Daniel (11 September 2020). "Hear Tears for Fears Unreleased Live Jam Version of Woman in Chains". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on 21 March 2023. Retrieved 14 October 2024.
5. ^ Ellen, Mark (30 October 2015). "Does Everybody Still Hate Phil Collins?*". Classic Rock. Retrieved 18 October 2018.
6. ^ Roberts, Chris (20 August 2021). "How Tears For Fears added prog to pop and ruled the 80s". Prog. Retrieved 17 October 2021.
7. ^ Shaffer, Claire (18 September 2020). "Tears for Fears Preview Seeds of Love Box Set With Unreleased Track". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on 9 March 2021. Retrieved 14 October 2024.
8. ^ Giles, David (11 November 1989). "Singles" (PDF). Music Week. p. 27. Retrieved 13 March 2023.
9. ^ Garcia, Alex S. "mvdbase.com - Tears For Fears - "Woman in chains"". Music Video DataBase. Retrieved 1 November 2015.
10. ^ Woman In Chains (UK 7-inch single sleeve). Tears for Fears. Fontana Records. 1989. IDEA 13, 876 248-7.`{{cite AV media notes}}`: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
11. ^ Woman In Chains (UK 12-inch single sleeve). Tears for Fears. Fontana Records. 1989. IDEAT 13, 876 249-1.`{{cite AV media notes}}`: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
12. ^ Woman In Chains (UK 7-inch single sleeve). Tears for Fears. Fontana Records. 1992. IDEA 16, 868 754-7.`{{cite AV media notes}}`: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
13. ^ Woman In Chains (UK CD single liner notes). Tears for Fears. Fontana Records. 1992. IDECD 16, 868 755-2.`{{cite AV media notes}}`: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
14. ^ "Tears for Fears – Woman in Chains". ARIA Top 50 Singles. Retrieved 10 April 2011.
15. ^ "Tears for Fears – Woman in Chains" (in Dutch). Ultratop 50. Retrieved 30 October 2018.
16. ^ "Top RPM Singles: Issue 6671." RPM. Library and Archives Canada. Retrieved 30 October 2018.
17. ^ "Eurochart Hot 100 Singles" (PDF). Music & Media. Vol. 6, no. 49\. 9 December 1989. p. IV. OCLC 29800226 - via World Radio History.
18. ^ "Tears for Fears – Woman in Chains" (in French). Le classement de singles. Retrieved 10 April 2011.
19. ^ "The Irish Charts – Search Results – Woman in Chains". Irish Singles Chart. Retrieved 30 October 2018.
20. ^ "Nederlandse Top 40 – Tears for Fears" (in Dutch). Dutch Top 40. Retrieved 30 October 2018.
21. ^ "Tears for Fears – Woman in Chains" (in Dutch). Single Top 100. Retrieved 10 April 2011.
22. ^ "Tears for Fears – Woman in Chains". Top 40 Singles. Retrieved 10 April 2011.
23. ^ "Official Singles Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 10 April 2011.
24. ^ "Tears for Fears Chart History (Hot 100)". Billboard. Retrieved 10 April 2011.
25. ^ "Offiziellecharts.de – Tears for Fears – Woman in Chains" (in German). GfK Entertainment charts. Retrieved 30 October 2018.
26. ^ "Top 100 Hit Tracks of 1990". RPM. Vol. 53, no. 6\. 22 December 1990. p. 8\. ISSN 0033-7064 - via Library and Archives Canada.
27. ^ "British single certifications – Tears for Fears – Woman in Chains". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved 18 July 2025.
28. ^ "New Singles". Music Week. 4 November 1989. p. 45.
29. ^ "ウーマン・イン・チェインズ | ティアーズ・フォー・フィアーズ" [Woman in Chains | Tears for Fears] (in Japanese). Oricon. Retrieved 6 September 2023.
30. ^ "ウーマン・イン・チェインズ | ティアーズ・フォー・フィアーズ" [Woman in Chains | Tears for Fears] (in Japanese). Oricon. Retrieved 6 September 2023.
31. ^ "New Releases: Singles". Music Week. 11 April 1992. p. 19.

* v
* t
* e

Oleta Adams

Discography

Studio albums|

* Going on Record (1983)
* Circle of One (1990)
* Evolution (1993)
* Moving On (1995)
* Come Walk with Me (1997)
* All the Love (2001)
* Christmas Time with Oleta (2006)
* Let's Stay Here (2009)
* Third Set (2017)

Compilation albums|

* The Very Best of Oleta Adams (1996)
* The Ultimate Collection (2004)

Singles|

* "Woman in Chains" (1989)
* "Get Here" (1991)
* "Don't Let the Sun Go Down on Me" (1991)
* "I Just Had to Hear Your Voice" (1993)
* "Never Knew Love" (1995)

Related articles|

* Tears for Fears

* v
* t
* e

Tears for Fears

* Roland Orzabal
* Curt Smith

* Manny Elias
* Ian Stanley

Studio albums|

* The Hurting
* Songs from the Big Chair
* The Seeds of Love
* Elemental
* Raoul and the Kings of Spain
* Everybody Loves a Happy Ending
* The Tipping Point
* Songs for a Nervous Planet

Live albums|

* Secret World Live in Paris
* Songs for a Nervous Planet

Compilations|

* Tears Roll Down (Greatest Hits 82–92)
* Saturnine Martial & Lunatic
* 20th Century Masters – The Millennium Collection: The Best of Tears for Fears
* Classic Tears for Fears: The Universal Masters Collection
* Shout: The Very Best of Tears for Fears
* The Collection
* Gold
* Rule the World: The Greatest Hits

Extended plays|

* Ready Boy & Girls?

Singles|

* "Suffer the Children"
* "Pale Shelter"
* "Mad World"
* "Change"
* "The Way You Are"
* "Mothers Talk"
* "Shout"
* "Everybody Wants to Rule the World"
* "Head over Heels"
* "I Believe (A Soulful Re-Recording)"
* "Sowing the Seeds of Love"
* "Woman in Chains"
* "Advice for the Young at Heart"
* "Famous Last Words"
* "Johnny Panic and the Bible of Dreams"
* "Laid So Low (Tears Roll Down)"
* "Break It Down Again"
* "Cold"
* "Goodnight Song"
* "Raoul and the Kings of Spain"
* "God's Mistake"
* "Secrets"
* "Falling Down"
* "Closest Thing to Heaven"
* "Everybody Loves a Happy Ending" / "Call Me Mellow"
* "I Love You but I'm Lost"
* "The Tipping Point"
* "No Small Thing"
* "Break the Man"

Other songs|

* "Standing on the Corner of the Third World"

Video releases|

* The Videosingles
* In My Mind's Eye
* Scenes from the Big Chair
* Sowing the Seeds
* Going to California
* Tears Roll Down (Greatest Hits 82–92)
* Secret World (Live in Paris)

Tours|

* The Tipping Point World Tour

Related articles|

* Discography
* Graduate
* Neon
* Soul on Board
* Tomcats Screaming Outside
* Halfway, Pleased

Authority control databases |

* MusicBrainz work
* MusicBrainz release group

|

*[Ref.]: Reference
*[v]: View this template
*[t]: Discuss this template
*[e]: Edit this template