Song · Erasure
“Ship of Fools” by Erasure
From the album The Innocents (1988)
“Ship of Fools” by Erasure appears on 4 radio countdowns from 3 stations between 1988 and 1991. It was first released in 1988 on the album The Innocents. Its best result is #46 on the Live 105 Top 105.3 Songs of 1988. In the combined RockLists rankings it is the #65 alternative song of 1988, #5,561 alternative song of all time and #411 of the '80s.
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"Ship of Fools" launched The Innocents, Erasure's third album, when Mute released it in February 1988. Vince Clarke and Andy Bell wrote it together, and Stephen Hague produced with Dave Jacob, who co-produced and engineered. It gave the pair their eighth single and fourth UK top 10, peaking at number 6.
It's a rueful song, and the critics split over it. Melody Maker's Ian Gittins found Bell's usual yelp hard going, yet felt the song finally connected, its hooks catching like a lump in the throat amid a lush sound full of regret. Number One's Colin Irwin wasn't having it, ranking it well below "The Circus" and grumbling that Bell still sounded just like Alison Moyet. Phillip Vile directed the video.
Written with AI assistance from RockLists chart data, MusicBrainz and Wikipedia.
RockLists rankings
Alternative & Modern Rock
All Rock Formats
Year-end countdowns
| Year | # | Station | Countdown | of |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1988 | 46 | Live 105 San Francisco, CA | Live 105 Top 105.3 Songs of 1988 | 106 |
| 1988 | 49 | WLIR / WDRE Long Island, NY | WLIR Top 100 Songs of 1988 | 100 |
All-time and decade countdowns
| Year | # | Station | Countdown | of |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1988 | 361 | Live 105 | Live 105 Top 500 Songs of All-Time (Memorial Day 1988) | 501 |
| 1991 | 851 | CFNY 102.1 The Edge | CFNY Top 1002 Songs of All-Time (1991 Edition) | 1002 |
Also listed as: Ship Of Fools.
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