The demo of “Murder On The Dancefloor” in the New Radicals version has now appeared on the Internet.
New Radicals singer and co-writer of ‘Murder On The Dancefloor’ Gregg Alexander has revealed that the song almost became his band’s debut single. The New Radicals’ demo version of the track, which ultimately became a hit in 2001 when sung by Sophie Ellis-Bextor, can now be heard online for the first time.
“Murder On The Dancefloor” only entered the charts again at the beginning of 2024. The song owes its renewed success primarily to the film “Saltburn,” in which it serves as musical accompaniment to the final scene in which the protagonist dances naked and exuberantly through the house.
Nonsense text based on a gut feeling
When asked about his involvement in the hit, Gregg Alexander shared with Guardian how the track was created in 1994: “I had a moment of anger because I couldn’t get into the house clubs in Detroit.” He continued: “’Murder On The Dancefloor’ wasn’t something that came from deep in my subconscious. With nonsense lyrics that I sang just for fun.”
That’s why Gregg Alexander decided against “Murder On The Dancefloor”
After the musician recorded a demo of “Murder On The Dancefloor”, he also wrote the single “You Get What You Give”. “I almost flipped a coin between the two songs,” Alexander said of choosing the first New Radicals single. “The record company wanted something very quickly and I had neither the time nor the budget to finish both songs.” Regarding the decision to use “You Get What You Give” as his group’s debut release, he said in an interview with “Guardian”: “ I felt like ‘Murder’ was a monster, but ‘You Get What You Give’ was a real masterpiece. It was everything I always wanted to say in just under five minutes.”
New Radicals demo of “Murder On The Dancefloor”
Nevertheless, he now shared a demo of “Murder On The Dancefloor”. Listen here Gregg Alexander’s versions of the track.
More about New Radicals
New Radicals disbanded after achieving major success in 1998 with the hit “You Get What You Give” from their only album MAYBE YOU’VE BEEN BRAINWASHED TOO. Gregg Alexander disappeared from the public eye for a while, moved from Detroit to England and wrote for artists such as Sophie Ellis-Bextor, Santana, Hanson and Rod Stewart and later the soundtrack for the film “Begin Again”, which won him an Oscar in 2013 – brought in the nomination. In 2021, the New Radicals reunited for the first time in 22 years to perform at Joe Biden’s virtual inauguration.