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Cover of Elemental by Tears for Fears
Cover: Elemental

Song · Tears for Fears

“Break It Down Again” by Tears for Fears

From the album Elemental (1993)

“Break It Down Again” by Tears for Fears appears on 22 radio countdowns from 8 stations between 1993 and 2022. It was first released in 1993 on the album Elemental. Its best result is #12 on the KROQ Top 106.7 Songs of 1993. In the combined RockLists rankings it is the #28 alternative song of 1993 and #1,111 alternative song of all time.

22countdowns
8stations
#12best position
0#1 finishes
0top 10 finishes
1993–2022years charted

Watch

Tears For Fears - Break It Down Again (Music Video), Full HD (AI Remastered and Upscaled)

Video from YouTube (Enhanced Music Videos). Pressing play loads YouTube's player. Watch on YouTube

"Break It Down Again" was the first single from Tears for Fears' fourth album, Elemental, out on Mercury in May 1993, and it's the sound of the band pushing on without Curt Smith, who had left. Roland Orzabal wrote it with Alan Griffiths, and the two produced it alongside Tim Palmer, giving it a bright, rolling pop-rock sheen and a chorus that swells like a hymn.

In the US it went all the way to number one on Billboard's Modern Rock Tracks chart, and it did especially well in Canada and Iceland. Dani Jacobs directed the video.

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
1993 12 KROQ Los Angeles, CA KROQ Top 106.7 Songs of 1993 107
1993 42 91X San Diego, CA / Tijuana 91X Top 91 Songs of 1993 91
1993 44 Live 105 San Francisco, CA Live 105 Top 105 Songs of 1993 105
1993 14 Q101 Chicago, IL Q101 Top 101 Songs of 1993 101

All-time and decade countdowns

Year#StationCountdownof
1994 400 Live 105 Live 105 Revolutionary 500 (July 1994) 500
1999 1070 CD101 CD101 Top 2000 Songs of All-Time (December 1999) 2000
2000 1072 CD101 CD101 Top 2001 Songs of All-Time (December 2000) 2001
2001 1074 CD101 CD101 Top 2002 Songs of All-Time (December 2001) 2002
2002 1073 CD101 CD101 Top 2003 Songs of All-Time (December 2002) 2003
2003 1058 CD101 CD101 Top 2004 Songs of All-Time (December 2003) 2004
2003 1420 Fred (XM 44) Fred XM Top 2044 Songs of All-Time (July 2003) 2044
2004 1058 CD101 CD101 Top 2005 Songs of All-Time (December 2004) 2005
2005 1059 CD101 CD101 Top 2006 Songs of All-Time (December 2005) 1994
2007 613 CD101 CD101 Top 2008 Songs of All-Time (December 2007) 2008
2008 619 CD101 CD101 Top 2009 Songs of All-Time (December 2008) 2009
2009 634 CD101 CD101 Top 2010 Songs of All-Time (December 2009) 2010
2010 654 CD101 CD101 Top 2011 Songs of All-Time (December 2010) 2011
2011 674 CD101 CD101 Top 2012 Songs of All-Time (December 2011) 2011
2013 685 CD101 CD101 Top 2013 Songs of All-Time (December 2013) 2012
2014 688 CD101 CD101 Top 2014 Songs of All-Time (2014) 2013
2021 144 90.9 The Bridge 90.9 The Bridge Top 909 Songs of the '90s 908
2022 693 The Colorado Sound The Colorado Sound Top 900 Songs of the '90s 900

Also listed as: Break it Down Again; Break it down Again.

Charting alongside it in 1993

Best songs of 1993 →
  1. 1CannonballThe Breeders
  2. 2CreepRadiohead
  3. 3LingerThe Cranberries
  4. 4PlushStone Temple Pilots
  5. 5No RainBlind Melon
  6. 6Soul to SqueezeRed Hot Chili Peppers

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