Monkey Gone to Heaven episode artwork

EPISODE · Jul 31, 2026 · 15 MIN

Monkey Gone to Heaven

from Spoken Wikipedia Podcast · host Daniel913

"Monkey Gone to Heaven" is a song by the American alternative rock band Pixies. Recorded in November 1988 during the sessions for the band's 1989 album Doolittle, it was released as a single in March, and included as the seventh track on the album when it was released a month later in April. The song was written and sung by frontman Black Francis and was produced by Gil Norton. Referencing environmentalism and biblical numerology, the song's lyrics mirrored themes that were explored in Doolittle. "Monkey Gone to Heaven" was the first Pixies song to feature guest musicians: two cellists, Arthur Fiacco and Ann Rorich, and two violinists, Karen Karlsrud and Corine Metter. The band had signed to Elektra Records at the end of 1988, so the "Monkey Gone to Heaven" single was their first American and major label release. It was critically well-received; Rolling Stone's David Fricke said "Monkey Gone to Heaven" was "a corrosive, compelling meditation on God and garbage." In the years since its… Read by Daniel913. Recorded June 19, 2010; the article may have changed since. The article as it stood when recorded: https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?oldid=367723911 Article today: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Monkey_Gone_to_Heaven Original recording: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:En-monkey_gone_to_heaven.ogg License: CC BY-SA 3.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0). This episode is a format-shifted (MP3) copy redistributed under the same license. This show is an independent community project, not affiliated with or endorsed by the Wikimedia Foundation.

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Monkey Gone to Heaven

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