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“Shake the Disease” by Depeche Mode

Released 1985

“Shake the Disease” by Depeche Mode appears on 38 radio countdowns from 11 stations between 1985 and 2023. It was first released in 1985. Its best result is #1 on the KROQ Top 106.7 Songs of 1985. In the combined RockLists rankings it is the #6 alternative song of 1985, #432 alternative song of all time and #150 of the '80s.

38countdowns
11stations
#1best position
1#1 finishes
2top 10 finishes
1985–2023years charted

Watch

Depeche Mode - Shake the Disease (Remastered)

Video from YouTube (DepecheModeVEVO). Pressing play loads YouTube's player. Watch on YouTube

Depeche Mode put out "Shake the Disease" as a single on 29 April 1985, a fresh Martin Gore song meant for that year's two compilations, The Singles 81→85 and Catching Up with Depeche Mode, rather than for a proper studio album. Gore wrote the words and the music, and Daniel Miller and Gareth Jones produced it.

It's a gorgeous, bruised thing: cold, glinting electronics wrapped around a melody that aches and pleads, the machines sounding more human than they have any right to. It arrived between the "Blasphemous Rumours" / "Somebody" single and "It's Called a Heart", and the countdowns have held on to it for decades.

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

RockLists rankings

Alternative & Modern Rock

Indie & Adult Alternative

All Rock Formats

Year-end countdowns

Year#StationCountdownof
1985 1 KROQ Los Angeles, CA KROQ Top 106.7 Songs of 1985 107
1985 9 91X San Diego, CA / Tijuana 91X Top 91 Songs of 1985 91

All-time and decade countdowns

Year#StationCountdownof
1988 107 KROQ KROQ Flashback 500 (Memorial Day 1988) 496
1988 184 Live 105 Live 105 Top 500 Songs of All-Time (Memorial Day 1988) 501
1988 36 WLIR / WDRE WLIR Top 200 Songs of All-Time (1988) 200
1989 195 WOXY 97X WOXY Modern Rock 500 (1989) 500
1990 274 Live 105 Live 105 Top 300 Songs of All-Time (Memorial Day 1990) 299
1991 97 Live 105 Live 105 Top 300 Songs of All-Time (Memorial Day 1991) 302
1991 161 CFNY 102.1 The Edge CFNY Top 1002 Songs of All-Time (1991 Edition) 1002
1992 336 KROQ KROQ Flashback 500 (Memorial Day 1992) 500
1992 80 Live 105 Live 105 Top 300 Songs of All-Time (Memorial Day 1992) 299
1994 401 KROQ KROQ Flashback 500 (Memorial Day 1994) 497
1994 171 Live 105 Live 105 Revolutionary 500 (July 1994) 500
1995 386 KROQ KROQ Flashback 500 (Memorial Day 1995) 500
1996 321 KROQ KROQ Flashback 500 (Memorial Day 1996) 500
1996 336 Q101 Q101 Top 500 Songs of All-Time (1996) 500
1998 330 KROQ KROQ Flashback 500 (Memorial Day 1998) 488
1999 51 Channel 104.9 Channel 104.9 Top 101 Songs of the '80s (February 1999) 104
1999 297 91X 91X Fat 500 Songs of All-Time (July 1999) 500
1999 1019 CD101 CD101 Top 2000 Songs of All-Time (December 1999) 2000
1999 773 CFNY 102.1 The Edge CFNY Top 1002 Songs of All-Time (November 1999) 1002
2000 764 CD101 CD101 Top 2001 Songs of All-Time (December 2000) 2001
2001 764 CD101 CD101 Top 2002 Songs of All-Time (December 2001) 2002
2002 764 CD101 CD101 Top 2003 Songs of All-Time (December 2002) 2003
2002 940 Fred (XM 44) Fred XM Top 2002 Songs of All-Time (July 2002) 2002
2003 764 CD101 CD101 Top 2004 Songs of All-Time (December 2003) 2004
2003 395 Fred (XM 44) Fred XM Top 2044 Songs of All-Time (July 2003) 2044
2004 764 CD101 CD101 Top 2005 Songs of All-Time (December 2004) 2005
2005 764 CD101 CD101 Top 2006 Songs of All-Time (December 2005) 1994
2006 492 Live 105 Live 105 500 Co-Op Countdown (Memorial Day 2006) 500
2007 788 CD101 CD101 Top 2008 Songs of All-Time (December 2007) 2008
2008 736 CD101 CD101 Top 2009 Songs of All-Time (December 2008) 2009
2009 753 CD101 CD101 Top 2010 Songs of All-Time (December 2009) 2010
2010 771 CD101 CD101 Top 2011 Songs of All-Time (December 2010) 2011
2011 798 CD101 CD101 Top 2012 Songs of All-Time (December 2011) 2011
2013 809 CD101 CD101 Top 2013 Songs of All-Time (December 2013) 2012
2014 817 CD101 CD101 Top 2014 Songs of All-Time (2014) 2013
2023 642 The Colorado Sound The Colorado Sound Top 850 Songs of the 1980s 850

Also listed as: Shake The Disease.

Charting alongside it in 1985

Best songs of 1985 →
  1. 1Alive and KickingSimple Minds
  2. 2The Perfect KissNew Order
  3. 3In Between DaysThe Cure
  4. 4Take On Mea-ha
  5. 5Road to NowhereTalking Heads
  6. 7ShoutTears for Fears

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