"Lips Like Sugar" is a single by Echo & the Bunnymen which was released in August 1987. It was the second single from their 1987 eponymous album. It reached number 36 on the UK Singles Chart^[1] and number 24 on the Irish Singles Chart.^[2] The single was released as a 7-inch single and a 12-inch single by WEA Records and by Sire Records as a 12-inch single in the U.S.

Overview [link]

The B-side to the 7-inch single is a track called "Rollercoaster". This track was moved to the A-side alongside a remixed version of the title track for the British 12-inch single and was released as a double A-side backed with a cover version of The Doors' "People Are Strange", which was recorded for the soundtrack of the film The Lost Boys and was released as a single in its own right the following year (1988). The U.S. 12-inch single had the same A-side as the British 12-inch single with two other mixes of the title track on the B-side.

Ian McCulloch wrote the lyrics to "Lips Like Sugar" and "Rollercoaster". The music to "Lips Like Sugar" was written by McCulloch, Will Sergeant and Les Pattinson and the music to "Rollercoaster" was written by McCulloch, Sergeant, Pattinson and Pete de Freitas. "Lips Like Sugar" was produced by Laurie Latham, "Rollercoaster" was produced by The Bunnymen and Gil Norton and "People Are Strange" was produced by Ray Manzarek.

Packaging [link]

The 7-inch single came in a gate-fold sleeve with a picture of McCulloch on the front cover, Sergeant on the back cover and Pattinson and de Freitas on the two inside covers. The 7-inch single was also available in a limited edition boxed packaging containing the single and three postcards. The 12-inch single and the boxed 7-inch single had the same picture on the front covers as the standard edition 7-inch single.

Cover versions [link]

A video of Coldplay performing "Lips Like Sugar" live is included on their 2002 DVD single "The Scientist". An audio only version was then included on the Australian release of their 2003 single "God Put a Smile upon Your Face". Seal recorded a version of the song featuring the reggae singer Mikey Dread for the soundtrack of the 2004 film 50 First Dates. A version of the song, performed by Solina, is included on the 2005 Spanish tribute album Play the Game: Un Tributo a Echo & The Bunnymen. The Smashing Pumpkins covered "Lips Like Sugar" on their 2008 Europe and Australian tour. A performance of the song was recorded on Australia's MTV.

Track listings [link]

All tracks written by Will Sergeant, Ian McCulloch and Les Pattinson except where noted.

7-inch release (WEA YZ144)

1. "Lips Like Sugar"
2. "Rollercoaster" (Sergeant, McCulloch, Pattinson, Pete de Freitas)

UK 12-inch release (WEA YZ144T)

1. "Lips Like Sugar"
2. "Rollercoaster" (Sergeant, McCulloch, Pattinson, de Freitas)
3. "People Are Strange" (Robby Krieger, Jim Morrison)

U.S. 12-inch release (Sire 0-20784)

1. "Lips Like Sugar (12" mix)"
2. "Rollercoaster" (Sergeant, McCulloch, Pattinson, de Freitas)
3. "Lips Like Sugar (dub)"
4. "Lips Like Sugar (single mix)"

Chart positions [link]

Personnel [link]

Musicians [link]

• Ian McCulloch – vocals, guitar
• Will Sergeant – lead guitar
• Les Pattinson – bass
• Pete de Freitas – drums

Production [link]

• Laurie Latham – producer ("Lips Like Sugar")
• The Bunnymen – producer ("Rollercoaster")
• Gil Norton – producer ("Rollercoaster"), engineer ("Rollercoaster")
• Ray Manzarek – producer ("People Are Strange")
• Bruce Lampcov - mixing ("Lips Like Sugar"), remix ("Lips Like Sugar (12" mix)")
• François Kevorkian - remix ("Lips Like Sugar (dub)" and "Lips Like Sugar (single mix)")
• Michael R. Hutchinson - remix ("Lips Like Sugar (dub)" and "Lips Like Sugar (single mix)")

References [link]

External links [link]

• Lyrics at MTV.com
• Promotional video on Echo & the Bunnymen official website