The Radiohead song inspired by Louis Armstrong
It makes sense that Radiohead’s list of influences is a colourful menagerie. Their back catalogue is one of the most varied in alt-rock history. From the alternative rock of their early years to the shimmering ambient textures of the Oxford quintet’s recent offerings, the band have pulled from across the spectrum of music to create distinctive and dynamic sounds.
Arguably, Radiohead have the most fascinating creative arc in rock. Constantly pushing themselves to improve, this exemplary attitude to their work has produced consistent classic albums and confirmed them as one of the most influential groups in history. Their list of triumphs is extensive, from marking the end of the analogue age with OK Computer to changing the parameters of what a contemporary band can be.
Although 1995’s The Bends signalled the innovation that was to come from Radiohead, its follow-up 1997’s OK Computer was the record with which the group unshackled themselves from the manacles of the past and the hit they hate the most in ‘Creep’. It saw them start carving out the unique space they have long since burrowed further into.
Brimming with highlights, one of the most notable tracks included on the album is the dream-like ‘No Surprises’. When creating this song, the band looked to one of their most surprising influences, jazz great Louis Armstrong, and his timeless classic, ‘What a Wonderful World’. The group have always been open about their love of jazz, a genre that would become increasingly prominent in their work as time wore on, yet, with this track, the inspiration of the 1967 hit was packaged more subtly.
Driven by the narcotic guitar of Ed O’Brien and Jonny Greenwood’s chiming glockenspiel, at face value, the number evokes the essence of the Beach Boys’ masterpiece Pet Sounds, which the band concede they were actively aiming for. It wasn’t just the 1968 album they were drawing from, though, with Radiohead also explaining Marvin Gaye and ‘What a Wonderful World’ fuelling the song’s final version.
“It was meant to be like a nursery rhyme,” Ed O’Brien told Melody Maker in 1997. “Strangely, it was the very first song we did for the album. Didn’t exactly set the tone, did it? It’s a bit like Louis Armstrong’s ‘[What a] Wonderful World.'”
Frontman Thom Yorke echoed this sentiment in Humo that year: “We wanted it to have the atmosphere of Marvin Gaye. Or Louis Armstrong’s ‘Wonderful World.'”
Listen to ‘No Surprises’ below.
