| "She Sells Sanctuary" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Single by the Cult | ||||
| from the album Love | ||||
| B-side |
| |||
| Released | 17 May 1985[1] | |||
| Genre | ||||
| Length |
| |||
| Label | Beggars Banquet | |||
| Songwriter(s) | ||||
| Producer(s) | Steve Brown | |||
| The Cult singles chronology | ||||
| ||||
| Official audio | ||||
| "She Sells Sanctuary" on YouTube | ||||
| 1993 remix cover | ||||
 "Sanctuary MCMXCIII" | ||||
| Audio sample | ||||
An excerpt from "She Sells Sanctuary". | ||||
"She Sells Sanctuary" is a song by British rock band the Cult. It is from their second studio album, Love (1985), and was released as a single on 13 May 1985, peaking at number 15 on the UK Singles Chart in July of the same year. In March 2023, the British Phonographic Industry (BPI) awarded the song a platinum certification for sales and streams of over 600,000.[5] In January 1993, the song was re-released as "Sanctuary MCMXCIII" and experienced chart success once more, matching its original peak on the UK Singles Chart and entering the top 10 in New Zealand.
One of the earliest songs written for what would become the Love album, "She Sells Sanctuary" was first performed during the Dreamtime tour in the fall of 1984, and would become the last song to be recorded with the Cult's longtime drummer, Nigel Preston, who was fired from the band shortly after its release. According to Cult guitarist Billy Duffy, the iconic introduction effects were the result of all the guitar effects pedals being on at the same time. The recording was edited to include the introduction with the effects, whereas earlier versions started the song more abruptly. Duffy says he found a violin bow lying around the studio and started playing the guitar with it "like Jimmy Page" to amuse singer Ian Astbury, hit every effects pedal he had "to make it sound weirder", and then played the middle section of the song. "And we decided to start the song with that mystical sound. If I hadn't found that violin bow laying around, we wouldn't have gone there," said Duffy.[6]
- ^ "New Singles" (PDF). Music Week. 11 May 1985. p. 18. Retrieved 29 July 2021.
- ^ Spracklen, Karl; Spracklen, Beverley (2018). The Evolution of Goth Culture: The Origins and Deeds of the New Goths. Emerald Group Publishing. p. 63. ISBN 978-1-78714-677-8.
- ^ Masley, Ed (28 September 2019). "Here's your guide to the best fall concerts in Phoenix". The Arizona Republic. Retrieved 18 January 2020.
- ^ Gerard, Chris (7 April 2021). "The 100 Best Alternative Singles of the 1980s: 60 - 41". PopMatters. p. 4. Retrieved 8 January 2023.
- ^ Cite error: The named reference
BPIwas invoked but never defined (see the help page). - ^ DeMarco, Johnny (14 August 2006). "Billy Duffy of the Cult: Rockin' with Roland & BOSS" (PDF). Roland Insider.