Suicide Is Painless

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"Suicide Is Painless" is a song written by Johnny Mandel (music) and Mike Altman (lyrics), which is best known for being featured as the theme song for both the movie and TV series M*A*S*H.

Mike Altman is the son of the original film's director, Robert Altman, and was 14 years old when he composed the song's lyrics. On an appearance on The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson in the 1980s, Robert Altman said that his son earned more than a million dollars for co-writing the song while he only made $70,000 for directing the movie. In addition to being sung by Johnny Mandel over the film's opening credits, the movie also features a scene that begins when Walter Koskiusko Waldowski, a dentist nicknamed “Painless Pole”, declares his intention to commit suicide, and the song is sung by Ken Prymus (playing Sergeant Seidman) during the suicide scene. Several instrumental versions of the song were used as the theme for the TV series (in which “Painless Pole” was mentioned, but never appeared).

First released in 1970, it belatedly became a number one hit in the UK in 1980 after being championed by BBC Radio 1 DJ Noel Edmonds. The refrain is well-known:

'Cause suicide is painless,

It brings on many changes,

And I can take or leave it if I please

[edit] Cover versions

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• Ahmad Jamal recorded an instrumental jazz-funk version of the song on his 1974 release Jamalca titled "Theme From M.A.S.H." This version was included on some re-releases of the soundtrack album.
• Bill Evans recorded a jazz piano trio version of the song for You Must Believe in Spring, an album posthumously released in 1981, having made it a staple of his live sets for some years.
• Manic Street Preachers released a cover version as a charity single to help The Spastics Society (now Scope) in 1992. It was their first UK top ten hit. See Suicide Is Painless (Manic Street Preachers song).
• Marilyn Manson, well known for recording cover versions, did a version for the soundtrack of Book of Shadows: Blair Witch 2 in 2000. He calls the original "more depressing and offensive than anything I've ever done."^{[citation needed]}
• Royal Trux recorded a version for the BBC John Peel radio show in 1993. It was later released on a Royal Trux compilation called "Singles, Live, Unreleased." On the compilation the song is titled "Theme from M.A.S.H."
• Killarmy sampled the music for their 1997 track "5 Stars" from the Silent Weapons for Quiet Wars album.
• Kelis does her own interpretation of the song in her single "Lil Star" (with Cee-Lo, from Gnarls Barkley).
• Art Of Noise, perform a short instrumental interpolation, on their 1984 track, "A Time for Fear (Who's Afraid)". Featured on both Who's Afraid of the Art of Noise? and Daft.
• Cal Tjader recorded a version on his album The Shining Sea (1981).
• Jimmy Smith recorded a version on his album Off the Top (1982).
• Barði Jóhannson and Keren Ann cover this song on their collaboration called Lady and Bird (2003).
• Matt Costa, singer-songwriter from Huntington Beach, California, covered the song on his six-track The Elasmosaurus E.P. in 2005.
• Lady and Bird, on the self-titled album of this collaboration of singer/songwriter Keren Ann and Barði Jóhannson, lead singer of Icelandic band Bang Gang.
• Al De Lory recorded a jazz piano version entitled "Song from MASH" that was an adult contemporary hit a few months after the movie was released in 1970.
• Paul Desmond (alto saxophone) played together with Ed Bickert (e-guitar), Ron Carter (bass) and Connie Kay (drums) an instrumental version on his album Pure Desmond in 1974.
• Nick drake also did a cover on this

[edit] Other appearances

• The refrain also is heard in the Family Guy movie Stewie Griffin: The Untold Story, when a drunken Stewie sings it to Brian at the Drunken Clam.
• Similarly, a drunken Toby Ziegler absently mumbles the song to himself in The West Wing episode "The Stormy Present", while flying on Air Force One to the funeral of a former president.
• In the 2007 independent New Zealand film Manders, the lead character whispers this song constantly while torturing his victims.
• In the 20th issue of The Sandman comic book series by Neil Gaiman, the character Element Girl sings this song to Death while asking to be released from life.
• Australian comedy band, Tripod, have a song which outlines the (fictional) annoyance that the writer of "Suicide is Painless" has, as a result of everyone knowing the song as "The Theme from MASH"

[edit] External links

• Suicide Is Painless
• MASH opening credit sequences 1972-1983 - compares different recordings of the theme throughout the show's run

Preceded by "What's Another Year" by Johnny Logan

UK number one single May 25 1980

Succeeded by "Crying" by Don McLean

v • d • e M*A*S*H
Film:	MASH · Differences between book, film and TV versions of M*A*S*H · "Suicide Is Painless"
TV series:	M*A*S*H (episodes: Season 1 · 2 · 3 · 4 · 5 · 6 · 7 · 8 · 9 · 10 · 11; finale; guest stars) · Trapper John, M.D. · AfterMASH · W*A*L*T*E*R
Characters:	Hawkeye Pierce · Trapper John McIntyre · Duke Forrest · B.J. Hunnicutt · Henry Blake · Sherman T. Potter · Frank Burns · Margaret Houlihan · Charles Winchester · Radar O'Reilly · Father Mulcahy · Maxwell Klinger · Nurse Kellye · Igor Straminsky · Luther Rizzo · Sidney Freedman · Col. Flagg · Spearchucker Jones · Ugly John · Walter Koskiusko Waldowski · Ho-Jon · Nurse Bigelow · Lieutenant Dish · Donald Penobscot · Zelmo Zale · Staff Sgt. Vollmer
Books:	MASH: A Novel About Three Army Doctors · M*A*S*H Goes to Maine

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