Where Is My Mind? is a song by the Pixies, and it is the seventh track on the band’s 1988 debut album Surfer Rosa. The song was released as single on March 21, 1988. It is one of the band’s signature songs, and has inspired a multitude of covers. The song was featured on the 2021 version of Rolling Stone magazine‘s 500 Greatest Songs of All Time, ranked at No. 493. The song was written by frontman Black Francis while he attended the University of Massachusetts Amherst, inspired by his experiences while scuba diving in the Caribbean. He later said he had “this very small fish trying to chase me. I don’t know why—I don’t know too much about fish behavior.”
Guitarist Joey Santiago composed the song’s guitar line. He recalled of his part, “This was actually the first thing I tried. A lazy potato that instantly sounded strong and hooky.”
After being featured in the 1999 film Fight Club (in which the song plays over the final scene), the song gained an even wider audience. Where Is My Mind? was voted number 29 in the Hottest 100 of All Time music poll conducted by Australian radio station Triple J in 2009. Over half a million votes were cast in the poll.
Tracklist:
- Where Is My Mind?
- Planet Of Sound Tame
- Debaser
Pixies
Black Francis: vocals , rhythm guitar , acoustic guitar
Kim Deal: bass guitar , backing vocals , credited as Mrs. John Murphy)
Joey Santiago: lead guitar
David Lovering: percussion
