Modern Rock Tracks No. 1s - Peter Gabriel and "Steam"
Peter Gabriel turns the page on his morose self-indulgence and brings back the best parts of his '80s peak with "Steam," a fun track with an absurd but enjoyable music video
Peter Gabriel - “Steam”
Weeks atop the Billboard Modern Rock Tracks chart: 5 weeks (December 12, 1992 to January 9, 1993)
Previous Modern Rock Tracks #1 hit: Soul Asylum - “Somebody To Shove”
Next Modern Rock Tracks #1 hit: Ned’s Atomic Dustbin - “Not Sleeping Around”
Billboard Hot 100 chart toppers during this time:
Whitney Houston - “I Will Always Love You” (7 total weeks, beginning 11/28/92)
A few weeks ago, I wrote at length about Peter Gabriel and his first Modern Rock Tracks chart topping single, “Digging In The Dirt.” I was not kind to that track; indeed, I was looking for something more in line with Gabriel’s hits from the ‘70s and ‘80s. I appreciated his desire to be introspective and, speaking as someone who writes with a level of personal introspection as part of this Substack “art form” you’re reading right now, I understand the desire to put a part of your soul into whatever you create, regardless of how it’ll be received critically.
As I re-read that article about “Digging In The Dirt” and then listened to the next Peter Gabriel track to top the MRT chart, I couldn’t help but be reminded of this particular paragraph from my write-up:
“Digging in the Dirt” is an unusual follow-up to the big hits that Gabriel produced in the mid ‘80s. So many of his songs featured up-tempo flourishes, significant post-production polish, and really catchy tunes propped up with amazing music videos airing around the clock during MTV’s peak. While “Dirt” strives to achieve the music-video vibe and aesthetic of its predecessors, the song falls flat and seems like an odd track to make its way to the top spot on the MRT charts.
So it came to pass that I found myself listening to Gabriel’s second and final Modern Rock Tracks #1 hit, “Steam,” a song that I remembered from before my Musical Awakening™️ and recalled enjoying quite a bit back in the day. Even 30+ years removed from its heyday, I think the song holds up really well, and captures a lot of the aesthetic that I lamented was missing from “Digging In The Dirt.”
Make no mistake: This is not Peter Gabriel expressing his sadness over the difficulties he was facing in his life at that time. If anything, the music video makes pretty clear what the song’s intentions are: This dude is loving/lusting after a lady who seems to have a pretty keen sense of what’s going on around her, and even though he’s ignorant to it all, there’s one thing he does know: she’s steamy, and he’s here for it.
“Digging In The Dirt” definitely did its best to capture the music-video aesthetic that made Gabriel a household name as a solo artist in the mid ‘80s, but I think they accomplished it better with “Steam.” Directed by Stephen R. Johnson, who also directed Gabriel’s “Sledgehammer” (arguably one of the greatest music videos of all time) and “Big Time,” the video is crammed full of fun visual effects, sexy moments, and features the best early ‘90s-era computer technology available at the time. I’m not going to say it looks amazing with 30 years of hindsight, but I will say that it holds up well enough for what it is: a goofy mish-mash of absurd moments.
The funky bass line and harmonies really seem to evoke the best parts of both “Sledgehammer” and “Big Time,” along with the occasional saxophone flourishes and Gabriel’s trademark high-octave screams during the refrains. This is a clear attempt to capture the aesthetics and excesses of the ‘80s and carry them into a new decade, and in that, “Steam” succeeds. This feels like it would fit as another single off Gabriel’s multi-platinum “Go” album, even though it came out several years later.
I’m not going to lie: This attachment to the ‘80s aesthetic of those music videos is probably why I like “Steam” a lot more than “Digging In The Dirt.” I appreciate when a musician or band will move in new and interesting artistic directions, but there is something to be said for taking an old formula and manipulating it into something new. “Steam” works in the same way Warren G and Nate Dogg’s “Regulate” works for me: an homage to an earlier terrific song (Michael McDonald’s superlative “I Keep Forgettin’”) which takes a great song and builds upon the best parts to turn it into something fresh but familiar. (Plus, it gives me an opportunity here to post one of the very best mashups out there: “Regulate (Jammin Remix).”)
“Steam” marked the pinnacle of Peter Gabriel’s success in the U.S., at least from a music chart perspective. In addition to the five weeks the song topped the MRT chart, “Steam” also found its way into the Hot 100 top 40, peaking at a respectable #32. The album “Us,” which featured “Steam” and “Digging In The Dirt,” is certified platinum in the U.S., the last of his albums to attain that designation. Follow-up singles “Kiss That Frog” and “Lovetown” would become modest hits on the MRT chart, but subsequent singles would only go on to chart in the U.K. and other European countries.
Kudos to Peter Gabriel for innovating in so many different ways during the first 20 years of his career, beginning with his involvement in Genesis and the burgeoning prog-rock movement of the 1970s, all the way through to his commercial crossover successes as a solo artist in the ‘80s and ‘90s. It goes without saying that Gabriel is one of the most memorable acts to come across this section of Substack, and whether you like him at his most self-indulgent or his most animated and quirky, there’s usually a little something for everyone when you listen to one of his tracks. “Steam” is not his best, but it’s definitely a solid swan song to his commercial peak in the U.S.
Rating: 8/10
Chart Check
Other notable MRT chart songs from this time period
Mrs. Robinson makes a comeback, R.E.M. gets even more political, Blind Melon talks about something other than the lack of rain, Eddie Van Halen propels an ‘80s one-hit wonder into the Modern Rock Tracks chart top 10, and, yes, we’re going to Dizz Knee Land.
“Dizz Knee Land” by dada (#5): The band dada’s highest charting single, “Dizz Knee Land,” is not actually about the theme park of the same name. I’m just going to cite the explanation for the song’s meaning straight from the Wikipedia page, which quotes bassist Joie Calio thusly: “It has more to do with the craziness of the juxtaposition of the state of your every day. Just looking around you. You could see a guy's head being chopped off and, you know, a leg flying away and someone embracing someone in a lovely kiss and then flip the channel and then a chainsaw goes buzzing through, you know, some butter and it accidentally cuts your mom's head off and then you flip again and they're making love and then you flip again and it's Montana going 'I'm going to Disneyland'. You know, it's just that whole thing, how insane it is, but you know, it's just the natural state.”
Yeah. But heck, it’s a decent track, regardless of your interpretation, and it peaked at a respectable #5 behind Peter Gabriel.
“Ignoreland” by R.E.M. (#5): R.E.M. gets super political with this promo single from “Automatic For The People,” which peaked at #5 behind “Steam.” Michael Stipe really doesn’t hold back on his vitriol for the presidencies of Carter, Reagan and the first Bush, though I’d argue that the song works fine even if you’re not diving too deep into the politics. Compared to the band’s recent MRT chart-topping hit “Drive,” it’s a lot more lively.
“Mrs. Robinson” by The Lemonheads (#8): Following the top-10 MRT chart success of “It’s A Shame About Ray,” The Lemonheads released their cover of Simon & Garfunkel’s classic “Mrs. Robinson” to rave reviews. While it only managed a #8 peak behind “Steam,” the band laid the foundation for a successful run to the top of the charts with their next album. We’ll talk about that one eventually.
“Eastern Bloc” by Thomas Dolby (#9): I know, right? Thomas Dolby, the guy from the early ‘80s who was blinded by science within a fun synth-pop nugget that hit #5 on the Hot 100, managed to crack the top 10 of the Modern Rock Track charts in the early ‘90s with “Eastern Bloc.” It’s a decent track, to be honest, one I hadn’t heard until I put this section together. Fun fact: The track features Eddie Van Halen on the guitar. The song peaked at #9 on the MRT charts behind Peter Gabriel, and would be the last time Thomas Dolby hit the top 10 in any U.S. chart.
“Tones of Home” by Blind Melon (#20): Just before Blind Melon hit it big with their “Bee Girl” music video, they found a spot on the Modern Rock Tracks chart with “Tones of Home,” a solid alt-rock banger that peaked at #20 behind Peter Gabriel. The music video attached to this song was recorded after the success of “No Rain,” a track we’ll cover in depth in the not-too-distant future.
"Steam" is a great song but I'm glad you mentioned dada! They're a band that didn't get enough attention. The album "Puzzle," from which Dizz Knee Land came, is really solid from start to finish. It really showed the songwriting talents within the band.