Dear God (Midge Ure song) explained

"Dear God" is a song by Midge Ure as the single from his album Answers to Nothing. It was his first and only song to reach the U.S. Billboard Hot 100, where it peaked at number 95.^[2] Elsewhere, the song also charted in the Netherlands and the UK.

Background

In a 2015 interview with Songfacts, Ure said that he conceived the song soon after waking up. He subsequently rushed over to the recording studio located at the bottom of his garden to get these musical ideas on tape. For the song's lyrical content, Ure centered the central theme around the weaponization of religion for acts of violence, saying that he found it both "bizarre" and "obscene" that "staunch radical people will happily kill somebody else because they don't believe in the same God". He further added that the song was "like a child's prayer...It's a question and an explanation at the same time."^[3] The song's lyrics contains a plea for a worldwide religion, although Ure said that this was unlikely to be fully realised.^[4]

Ure recorded "Dear God" without knowing that XTC had released a song with the same title a few years prior. He only learned of the song's existence in early 1989 after his record company sent him a cassette containing the XTC track. When comparing the two songs, Ure labeled XTC's track as "a bit more cynical than mine, but a similar sort of sentiment, except mine was more questioning and theirs was a bit more sort of a statement."^[4]

Critical reception

Tom Demalon of AllMusic thought that "Dear God" was Ure's best attempt at assessing the state of the world on his album Answers to Nothing.^[5] Writing for the Los Angeles Times, Mike Boehm felt that "Dear God" grew stale after repeated listens and was inferior to "Hymn", a prayer-oriented song co-written by Ure during his time with Ultravox.^[6]

Track listing

• 7" single

1. "Dear God" – 4:52
2. "Music #1" – 4:41

• CD Maxi

1. "Dear God" – 8:07
2. "Music #1" – 4:41
3. "Remembrance Day" – 4:25

Personnel

• Midge Ure – vocals, guitars, keyboards
• Robbie Kilgore – additional keyboards
• Steve Brzezicki – bass guitar
• Mark Brzezicki – drums

Chart performance

Chart (1988–1989)	Peak position
Netherlands (Single Top 100)[7]	29
U.S. Billboard Hot 100[8]	95
U.S. Billboard Mainstream Rock[9]	6
U.S. Billboard Modern Rock Tracks[10]	4

Notes and References

1. Web site: Music Week. 50.
2. Web site: Wuenich. Kevin. 31 March 2016. Dear God, how could Midge Ure only hit the charts once in the U.S.?. Tampa Bay Times. 29 September 2024.
3. Web site: Prato . Greg . Midge Ure: Songwriter Interview . 29 September 2024 . Songfacts.
4. Web site: Willman . Chris . 12 February 1989 . Midge Ure writes a ‘Dear God’ letter; a song on the line from They Might Be Giants; Tracie Spencer, 13, a real teen. . live . https://web.archive.org/web/20240930015440/https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1989-02-12-ca-2811-story.html . 30 September 2024 . 30 September 2024 . Los Angeles Times.
5. Web site: Demalon . Tom. Answers to Nothing . AllMusic . 29 September 2024 . en.
6. Web site: Boehm. Mike . 29 April 1989. POP MUSIC REVIEW : Midge Ure Could Have Pumped Up His Concert With a Little Hot Air . 29 September 2024 . Los Angeles Times . en-US.
7. Web site: Dear God . Hung Medien. MegaCharts. nl. ASP. 29 September 2024.
8. Web site: 11 March 1989 . Billboard Hot 100. live . https://web.archive.org/web/20210521080412/https://www.billboard.com/charts/hot-100/1989-03-11. 21 May 2021 . 29 September 2024 . Billboard.
9. Web site: 18 March 1989 . Mainstream Rock Airplay . live . https://web.archive.org/web/20220221200834/https://www.billboard.com/charts/hot-mainstream-rock-tracks/1989-03-18 . 21 February 2022 . 29 September 2024 . Billboard.
10. Web site: 11 February 1989 . Alternative Airplay . live . https://web.archive.org/web/20211121223423/https://www.billboard.com/charts/alternative-airplay/1989-02-11/ . 21 November 2021 . 29 September 2024 . Billboard.