THE 1000 BEST SONGS IN THE WORLD EVER.

747-Franz Ferdinand-Take Me Out.

2004-Number 3 single.

Best Bit-At 0.55. The bit which hits you like a Glasgow kiss.

Franz Ferdinand were formed in Glasgow, Scotland, in 2002, by Alex Kapranos, (lead vocals, lead guitar, keyboards), Nick McCarthy, (rhythm guitar, keyboards, vocals), Bob Hardy, (bass guitar, percussion) and Paul Thomson (drums, percussion, and backing vocals.) Julian Corrie, (keyboards, lead guitar, backing vocals) and Dino Bardot, (rhythm guitar, backing vocals) joined the band in 2017, after Nick McCarthy left in 2016. Another founding member Paul Thompson left the group in 2021, and was replaced by Audrey Tait (drums, percussion.) In total there have been seven different members of Franz Ferdinand come and go, and at the time of writing they remain active. All of the bands original lineup had played in other various bands during the 1990’s, and when coming together they chose the stage name ‘Franz Ferdinand,’ after seeing a racehorse with that name in action on television. It got the band members discussing the horses namesake, the ‘Archduke Ferdinand of Austria, (1863-1914) whose assassination in 1914 was one of the main events leading up to the outbreak of ‘World War I.’ Their thinking was that his death had left a significant mark in history, and the bands goal was also to leave a significant mark in music’s history. The groups percussionist Paul Thomson has said,’I like the idea that, if we become popular, maybe the words Franz Ferdinand will make people think of the band instead of the historical figure.’

The discography of Franz Ferdinand includes five studio Albums released between 2004-2018, and 27 singles issued between 2003-2022, there are also two official compilation Albums, and two live Albums available. In the UK, nine of their singles have reached the top 40, with ‘Take Me Out,’ peaking the highest at Number 3. In America, they have made the Billboard Hot 100 on two occasions, with ‘Take Me Out’ charting the highest at Number 66. In 2015 Franz Ferdinand got together with the American Rock band ‘Sparks,’ (see also best songs 840) to form the ‘supergroup’ ‘FFS.’ together they released the critically acclaimed Album ‘FFS,’ which peaked at Number 15 in the UK, and there were also three singles released from the Album.

‘Take Me Out’ was co-written by Franz Ferdinand band members Alex Kapranos, and Nick McCarthy, with the production being by Tore Johansson. The song was the second of five singles issued from the groups self titled debut Album, from February 2004. The Album received universal critical acclaim, winning the 2004 British ‘ Mercury Music Prize,’ In the UK the Album has sold in excess of 1.2 million copies, and worldwide it has sold in excess of 3.6 million, with at least one million copies sold in America. Tore Johansson who produced ‘Take Me Out,’ and co-produced the Album with Franz Ferdinand, was born on November 6th, 1959, in Sweden. Prior to working with Franz Ferdinand, Johansson had been the producer for the Swedish Rock band ‘The Cardigans,’ having produced five of their six studio Albums between 1994-2005.

Alex Kapranos got the idea for ‘Take Me Out’ after watching the 2001 war film ‘Enemy At The Gates.’ The film is set during the Second World War, around the siege of Stalingrad. One of the themes of the film is this stand off between two snipers. Alex Kapranos has said,’Jude Law is the Soviet sniper, and Ed Harris is the evil Nazi. They’re both kind of tucked away, hidden from each other, waiting for the other to make a move and expose themselves. ‘Cause as soon as the other makes a move, the other will know where they are and will take them out. This image of the two snipers left quite an impact on me, it felt like a very good metaphor for the kind of romantic situations that we sometimes find ourselves in, you know, where you both know you’re into the other but no one wants to kind of, like, expose their vulnerability and make a move, and let the other know how they feel. And so I could write the song so you can’t really tell what I’m talking about. Am I talking about snipers or am I talking about some kind of romantic situation?’

‘Take Me Out’ appears to continue the theme of assassination, comparing lovers to snipers aiming at each other. Alex Kapranos told the ‘New Musical Express,’ It’s about how you’d rather be shot, than continue the tension.’

‘So if you’re lonely, you know I’m here waiting for you. I’m just a crosshair, I’m just a shot away from you. And if you leave here, you leave me broken, shattered, I lie. I’m just a crosshair, I’m just a shot, then we can die.’