Wicked Game…

My all-time favorite song!

Wicked Games is the fifth song on Chris Isaac’s third studio album, 1989’s Heart Shaped World. The track was written by Isaac himself in a matter of minutes and explores the intoxicating temptation of a relationship you know is bad for you. Apparently, Chris Isaac came up with the idea for the song after agreeing to see a woman he knew was bad for him, but saying yes, because of his attraction to her. The song itself is known for its brooding guitar riff and sensual tone, as well as Chris Isaac’s falsetto vocals. The song gained attention after being featured in David Lynch’s 1990 film, Wild at Heart, which led to its famous music video, featuring a topless Helena Christensen running in the surf with a shirtless Chris Isaac.

Why this song is important to me…

As I mentioned in this week’s episode, this song is arguably my all-time favorite song… ever. I first heard this song at an outdoor food court at a sunny San Diego mall in 2012 while on a family vacation. I Shazamed the song, bought it on iTunes, and have been listening to it ever since. Just on my laptop alone, the song has been played 458 times, not even counting the hundreds of times I’ve played the song on my phone over the years. The song has always been a muse for me whenever I need to write something angsty or heartbreaking from a relationship perspective. Over the years, the song has directly and indirectly inspired dozens of story ideas or scenes that I’ve used in my writing. I love the song’s extremely unique tone, and it’s subject matter. It’s not often that we get a ballad like Wicked Game.