Special Cases

❧

Wikipedia

"Special Cases"
Single by Massive Attack
from the album 100th Window
Released24 February 2003 (2003-02-24)
StudioSony (London, England)[1]
Length
  • 5:09 (album version)
  • 3:46 (radio edit)
LabelVirgin
Songwriters
Producers
  • Robert Del Naja
  • Neil Davidge
Massive Attack singles chronology
"Inertia Creeps"
(1998)		 "Special Cases"
(2003)		 "Butterfly Caught"
(2003)

"Special Cases" is a song by English trip hop group Massive Attack featuring vocals from Irish singer-songwriter Sinéad O'Connor, who also co-wrote the track. It appears on Massive Attack's fourth full-length album, 100th Window, and was released as the first single on 24 February 2003.

The single reached number 15 on the UK Singles Chart, number 19 in Greece, number 22 in Italy, and number 46 in Ireland. "Special Cases" is the group's only song to chart in Canada, where it reached number 25 on the Canadian Singles Chart. Despite being one of the band's higher-charting singles, it did not appear on their 2006 singles compilation, Collected.[2] Two separate music videos were made for the song.

Track listings

In addition to a radio edit of the original song, the single release contains a remix by Canadian electronica artist Akufen, as well as "I Against I", a song performed with Mos Def that appeared on the soundtrack of the 2002 film Blade II. 12-inch vinyl releases contain an additional remix of "Special Cases" by Vladislav Delay, who is credited as "Luomo" for this release. The enhanced CD contains one of the music videos, and the other video is on a rare DVD release of the single.

UK and European CD single[3]

  1. "Special Cases" (radio edit) – 3:46
  2. "Special Cases" (Akufen remix) – 9:56
  3. "I Against I" (featuring Mos Def) – 5:40
  4. "Special Cases" (video version 2) – 5:09

UK 12-inch single[4]

A. "Special Cases" (Akufen Remix) – 9:56
B. "Special Cases" (Luomo's Casing) – 7:56

UK DVD single[5]

  1. "Special Cases" (video version 1) – 5:09
  2. "Special Cases" (radio edit) – 3:46
  3. "Special Cases" (Akufen Remix) – 9:56
  4. "Special Cases" (Luomo's Casing edit) – 4:43

Australian CD single[6]

  1. "Special Cases" (radio edit) – 3:46
  2. "Special Cases" (Akufen remix) – 9:56
  3. "I Against I" (featuring Mos Def) – 5:40

Charts

Chart (2003) Peak
position
Canada (Nielsen SoundScan)[7] 25
Europe (Eurochart Hot 100)[8] 46
Greece (IFPI)[9] 19
Ireland (IRMA)[10]46
Italy (FIMI)[11]22
Scotland Singles (OCC)[12]32
UK Singles (OCC)[13]15
UK Dance (OCC)[14]2

Release history

Region Date Format(s) Label(s) Ref.
United Kingdom 24 February 2003
  • 12-inch vinyl
  • CD
  • DVD
 Virgin [15]
Australia 17 March 2003 CD [16]

References

  1. ↑ 100th Window (liner notes). Virgin Records. 2003. 724358123920.
  2. ↑ "Massive Attack – Collected". AllMusic. Retrieved 2 March 2021.
  3. ↑ Special Cases (UK & European CD single liner notes). Virgin Records. 2003. VSCDT1839, 724354699702.
  4. ↑ Special Cases (UK 12-inch single sleeve). Virgin Records. 2003. VST1839, VST1939.
  5. ↑ Special Cases (UK DVD single case). Virgin Records. 2003. VSDVD1839, 724349057692.
  6. ↑ Special Cases (Australian CD single liner notes). Virgin Records. 2003. 5469972, 724354699726.
  7. ↑ "Massive Attack Chart History (Canadian Digital Songs)". Billboard. Retrieved 4 January 2019.
  8. ↑ "Eurochart Hot 100 Singles" (PDF). Music & Media. Vol. 21, no. 12. 15 March 2003. p. 11. Retrieved 15 March 2020.
  9. ↑ "Top 50 Singles Εβδομάδα 29/03 – 04/04" (in Greek). IFPI. Archived from the original on 14 April 2003. Retrieved 29 June 2020. See Best column.
  10. ↑ "Irish-charts.com – Discography Massive Attack". Irish Singles Chart. Retrieved 27 January 2020.
  11. ↑ "Massive Attack – Special Cases". Top Digital Download. Retrieved 29 April 2018.
  12. ↑ "Official Scottish Singles Sales Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 29 April 2018.
  13. ↑ "Official Singles Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 29 April 2018.
  14. ↑ "Official Dance Singles Chart Top 40". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 29 April 2018.
  15. ↑ "New Releases – For Week Starting 24 February 2003: Singles" (PDF). Music Week. 22 February 2003. p. 31. Retrieved 2 September 2021.
  16. ↑ "The ARIA Report: New Releases Singles – Week Commencing 17th March 2003" (PDF). ARIA. 17 March 2003. p. 26. Archived from the original (PDF) on 6 April 2003. Retrieved 14 March 2025.