Show Your Hand

"Show Your Hand" is a song by Welsh rock band Super Furry Animals and was the first single from their 2007 album, Hey Venus!. The single was made available for download on 16 July 2007 as an iTunes exclusive and was later released in physical formats on 13 August in the UK. The track failed to penetrate the UK singles chart's Top 40, peaking at #46.

According to lead singer Gruff Rhys the track is "a song about gambling" and was originally going to be left off Hey Venus! for being "too generic" before Rough Trade boss Geoff Travis persuaded the band to reconsider their decision. Critical reaction to the track was mixed with some reviewers claiming "Show Your Hand" was "ponderously mature" and "more like the generic pop songs one would find on the radio" while others hailed the track as "classic Furries".

Unlike the two other singles taken from Hey Venus!, "Run-Away" and "The Gift That Keeps Giving", no music video was produced for "Show Your Hand".

Origins and recording

In an interview with Pitchfork Media given before the release of Hey Venus!, singer Gruff Rhys claimed "Show Your Hand" was "a song about gambling. There's lots of card-playing going on in the Super Furry Animals [tour bus], which may have [had] a slight influence on the subject matter". Rhys went on to state that the song was initially left off Hey Venus! for being "too generic":

Show Your Hand (album)

Show Your Hand is the first album by Scottish funk band Average White Band, released in 1973 by MCA Records. After the success of AWB, the album was re-issued in 1975 with a new title, Put It Where You Want It, a different opening track and new cover artwork. The re-issued version finally made it to the Billboard Top 200, peaking at #39.

Track listing

Side one

Side two

On the 1975 re-issue (Put It Where You Want It) "The Jugglers" is replaced by "How Can You Go Home" (AWB)

Personnel