Wicked Game
"Wicked Game" has been covered by a wide variety of musicians and has been featured in numerous films, television series, and commercials, to the point that Dazed magazine questioned whether it might be the most influential love song in modern music.[5] Although it is often interpreted as a ballad about unrequited love,[6][7] Chris Isaak has said that the song was inspired by a telephone call from a woman seeking to arrange a hook-up and is about "what happens when you have a strong attraction to people that aren't necessarily good for you".James Calvin Wilsey wrote and played the distinctive guitar lead using a Fender Stratocaster's whammy bar;[10][11][12] both the bassline and drums were sampled from previous recordings of the song and looped."[14] Grant Walters of Albumism praised the song as a "pristine union of Isaak's aching vocal and the desolate wail of James Calvin Wilsey's '65 Stratocaster."He added, "Underneath, the brushed drum loop, simple bass line, and muted background vocals create a simmering atmospheric buzz."[17] Joe Rhodes from Entertainment Weekly stated that this is "perhaps the album's darkest mood piece," noting its "otherworldly" opening guitar line.[24][25] It features scenes of Lula Pace Fortune (Laura Dern) and Sailor Ripley (Nicolas Cage) from the film, interspersed with black-and-white footage of Isaak and his band performing the song.The Finnish band HIM remade this song, first using it in their demo This Is Only the Beginning, then on their 1996 EP 666 Ways to Love: Prologue, followed by another recording of it on their first album Greatest Lovesongs Vol.[97] In 2024, Texan heavy-metal band Oceans of Slumber released a cover of "Wicked Game" on their album Where Gods Fear to Speak.