Velouria

"Velouria" is a song by the American alternative rock band Pixies, written and sung by the band's frontman Black Francis. "Velouria" is featured on their album Bossanova, was the first single to be released from it and was the band's first UK Top 40 hit. The song features extensive use of theremin. It featured on the influential 1990 Madchester compilation album Happy Daze.

Lyrics

Unlike many of the band's other songs, the lyrics to "Velouria" are those of a straightforward love song. Black Francis said of the lyrics to the song in an interview with SongFacts, "It's folklore based; the Rosicrucians of 1920s San Jose California had some pretty interesting ideas."

Video

As "Velouria" was climbing up the UK Top 40, the band was offered a spot on Top Of The Pops. However, a BBC rule stated that only singles with videos could be performed on the show. To counter this, a cheap video was made with the band being filmed running down a quarry.

In the video, twenty-three seconds of footage (the time needed for the band members to reach the camera) is slowed in order to last for the duration of the song. However, the effort in filming the video was in vain; Pixies did not play "Velouria" on Top of The Pops while the single was in the charts.