“Precious” by Depeche Mode

"Precious" was the lead single from Playing the Angel, Depeche Mode's eleventh studio album, released in October 2005 by Mute, Sire and Reprise. Martin Gore wrote it and Dave Gahan sings it, and it finds the band in fine, brooding form.

Ben Hillier produced, and the sound is sleek and electronic, with a beat that glides and synth lines that shimmer and ache, while Gahan's voice, deep and worn, carries the melody with a quiet tenderness. It's alternative dance music for people who'd rather not dance alone.

Europe took it to heart: it topped the charts in Denmark, Italy, Spain and Sweden, went top ten in Austria, Wallonia, Canada, Finland, Germany and Norway, and reached number 4 in the UK. In America it got to 23 on the Modern Rock Tracks chart and 71 on the Hot 100.

Written with AI assistance from RockLists chart data, MusicBrainz and Wikipedia.