Kiss the Dirt (Falling Down the Mountain)

"Kiss the Dirt (Falling Down the Mountain)"
Cover art for Australian and US vinyl editions
Single by INXS
from the album Listen Like Thieves
ReleasedMarch 1986
22 August 1986 (UK)[1]
RecordedAugust 1985
StudioRhinoceros Studios, Sydney
GenreAlternative rock, pop rock, college rock[2]
Length3:56
LabelAtlantic
Songwriter(s)Andrew Farriss
Michael Hutchence
Producer(s)Chris Thomas
INXS singles chronology
"What You Need"
(1985) 		"Kiss the Dirt (Falling Down the Mountain)"
(1986) 		"Listen Like Thieves"
(1986)
Music video
Kiss the Dirt on YouTube

"Kiss the Dirt (Falling Down the Mountain)" is a song by the Australian rock band INXS. It was written by Andrew Farriss and Michael Hutchence from the 1985 album Listen Like Thieves.

It was released as the album's third single in March 1986 and reached #15 on the Australian singles chart,[3] becoming the band's tenth Top 20 hit in their country.[3] It was, however, the band's seventh single that failed to chart in the United States, but it did manage to reach #24 on the Mainstream Rock Tracks chart.[4]

In 2002, "Kiss the Dirt (Falling Down the Mountain)" was included on the soundtrack of the popular and critically acclaimed Rockstar video game Grand Theft Auto: Vice City on its in-game radio station "Flash FM".

The music video shows the band performing on a salt lake and on the moon plains in Coober Pedy in South Australia. The band flew direct from the United States to the site and filmed the clip overnight then flew back to the United States. In the bridge, the band is shown performing while fire and gloom cover the area, before the skies clear up at the end.

It was directed by Alex Proyas.

Charts

Chart (1986) Peak
position
Australia (Kent Music Report)[3] 15
New Zealand (Recorded Music NZ)[5] 42
UK Singles Chart[6] 54
US Billboard Album Rock Tracks[4] 24

References

  1. ^ Smith, Robin (16 August 1986). "News Digest". Record Mirror. p. 49.
  2. ^ Erlewine, Stephen Thomas. INXS - Shine Like It Does: The Anthology (1979-1997) (2001) Review at AllMusic. Retrieved March 7, 2024.
  3. ^ a b c Kent, David (1993). Australian Chart Book 1970–1992 (Illustrated ed.). St. Ives, N.S.W.: Australian Chart Book. p. 149. ISBN 0-646-11917-6. N.B. the Kent Report chart was licensed by ARIA between mid 1983 and 19 June 1988.
  4. ^ a b "Billboard > Artists / INXS > Chart History > Mainstream Rock Songs (page 2)". Billboard. Retrieved 30 March 2016.
  5. ^ "charts.nz > INXS – Kiss the Dirt (Falling Down the Mountain) (song)". Hung Medien. Retrieved 30 March 2016.
  6. ^ "Official Charts > INXS". The Official UK Charts Company. Retrieved 30 March 2016.