“Wicked Game” by Chris Isaak

Chris Isaak’s “Wicked Game” may read as if the narrator is simply reflecting on a lost love. Putting this statement differently, the singer is addressing a romantic interest. And basically he is lamenting the dissolution of their relationship. But more specifically, the message he is putting forth is more along the lines of regretting the two of them having hooked up in the first place. Thus the “wicked game” he is referring to is actually something like a half-hearted romance. Or looking at it from another perspective, he was never really in love with this lady. 

And according to the second verse, the same can be said about her in relation to him. But they went ahead and did it anyway. And the way Chris presents the situation is as one that is common in “this world”, as in it being normal for romantic relationships to fail. And his knowledge of this reality is yet another reason why he should have been more cautious.

What Chris Isaak has said about “Wicked Game”

In terms of the real-life origin of “Wicked Game”, Chris Isaak wrote it as he was about to engage in what Wikipedia has described as a “casual” sensual affair.

And Isaak himself further described the tune as being based on being attracted to someone who brings you nothing good. So we can say, if nothing else, that he had reservations about hooking up with that particular female.  That is he understood that they may be playing with emotional fire by engaging in such an act. And thus we can conclude that such is the underlying sentiment which this song is actually based on. So despite being understood to the contrary, this track can actually be deciphered as a cautionary tale, if you will, against letting fleeting “desire” dictate whom an individual gets romantically involved with.

Multiple Music Videos

This song has two official music videos. First is the critically-acclaimed version, which was filmed in Hawaii. Herb Ritts handled the directing of that version. It also featured a supermodel by the name of Helena Christensen.  This rendition took home three trophies at the 1991 MTV Video Music Awards. One of these awards was the award for “Best Male Video”. Moreover it has been placed on ‘best music video’ lists by a number of respected institutions, such as VH1 and Rolling Stone.

The second version was directed by the renowned American filmmaker and actor David Lynch. Lynch was also the same filmmaker who wrote and directed the romantic comedy movie entitled “Wild at Heart”. As such, it featured footage from the film.

First Chris Isaak Hit Song

“Wicked Game” was the first hit song of Chris Isaak’s career.

It was originally featured on his 1989 album, which is titled “Heart Shaped World”.  However, its official release date, via Reprise Records, was on 8 November 1990. And it didn’t blow up until it (the instrumental specifically) was featured on the Nicholas Cage film “Wild at Heart”, which came out that same year. And being a fan of the tune, Atlanta-based DJ Lee Chesnut started playing “Wicked Game”, and it caught on nationwide.

“Wicked Game” charted in over 10 countries, including scoring a number 1 in Belgium. It also scored a number 10 in Britain and number 6 Isaak’s own country, the United States.

Moreover the track has been certified Gold in Denmark, Italy, Britain and America.

Countless Artists have covered “Wicked Game”

Despite the song’s modest accomplishments, it is one of the world’s most covered tunes. This classic is recognized as one of the most-heavily utilized songs in pop media as well as one of the most-covered by other artists. In fact it has been put forth that “Wicked Game” may actually be “the most influential love song in modern music”.

Amongst the well-known names that have covered this song throughout the years are:

• R.E.M. (1995)
• HIM (1998)
• Il Divo (2011)
• Pink (2013)
• Parra for Cuva (2013)

And the media franchises that have utilized “Wicked Game” include the popular sitcom “Friends” (1996), another Nicholas Cage film, “The Family Man” (2000) and the modern adventure classic “Game of Thrones” (2016).

Did Chris Isaak write “Wicked Game”?

This legendary track was written exclusively by Chris Isaak. And in terms of the energy he had to put behind its composition, he’s on record as saying that “Wicked Game” was one of the easiest songs he had ever written.