Big Scary Animal

"Big Scary Animal" (titled "It's Too Real (Big Scary Animal)" in the United States and Japan) is a song written by American singer-songwriter Belinda Carlisle with Charlotte Caffey and Ralph Schuckett, and produced by Schuckett for Carlisle's fifth studio album, Real (1993). The song was released on September 13, 1993 by Virgin Records, as the album's lead single. The CD single includes two B-sides: "Windows of the World", also from the Real album, and "Change", which is an eight-track demo. "Big Scary Animal" peaked at number 12 on the UK Singles Chart, reached number 26 in Iceland, and became a minor hit in Australia, Canada, and Germany. Three music videos were produced for the song.

"Big Scary Animal"
Single by Belinda Carlisle
from the album Real
B-side	"Windows of the World"
Released	September 13, 1993 (1993-09-13)
Length	4:08
Label	Virgin
Songwriter(s)	Charlotte Caffey Belinda Carlisle Ralph Schuckett
Producer(s)	Ralph Schuckett
Belinda Carlisle singles chronology
"Little Black Book" (1992) "Big Scary Animal" (1993) "Lay Down Your Arms" (1993)
Music video
"Big Scary Animal" on YouTube

Critical reception

Alan Jones from Music Week gave the song four out of five, writing, "Belinda's quirky upfront vocal style suits this acoustically jangling song which cames complete with appropriate jungle motifs via drums and sound effects. Tougher than a lot of her whimsical singles and a promising taster for her Real album."^[1] Push, writing for Melody Maker, could hear elements of the J. Geils Band's "Centerfold", Men Without Hats' "The Safety Dance", Adam and the Ants' "Kings of the Wild Frontier" and Dinosaur Jr.'s "Freak Scene" in the track. He felt that such influences would be "a recipe for disaster", but noted the song's catchiness, commenting that "having played this record just the once, I can't stop humming it."^[2]

Music video

There are three versions of the accompanying music video for "Big Scary Animal": the international UK video (directed by French filmmaker Michel Gondry), the director's cut, and US version (directed by Jim Gable).

Track listings

• US cassette single^[3]
• Japanese mini-CD single^[4]

1. "It's Too Real (Big Scary Animal)" – 4:08
2. "Windows of the World" – 3:26

• Non-US 7-inch and cassette single^[5][6][7]
• European CD single^[8]

1. "Big Scary Animal"
2. "Windows of the World"

• UK CD single^[9]

1. "Big Scary Animal"
2. "Windows of the World"
3. "Change" (8 track demo)
4. "Too Much Water" (8 track demo)

• European maxi-CD and Australian CD single^[10]

1. "Big Scary Animal"
2. "Windows of the World"
3. "Change" (8 track demo)

Charts

Chart (1993)	Peak position
Australia (ARIA)^[11]	56
Canada Top Singles (RPM)^[12]	70
Europe (Eurochart Hot 100)^[13]	40
Europe (European Hit Radio)^[14]	15
Germany (Official German Charts)^[15]	63
Iceland (Íslenski Listinn Topp 40)^[16]	26
UK Singles (OCC)^[17]	12
UK Airplay (Music Week)^[18]	7

Release history

Region	Date	Format(s)	Label(s)	Ref.
United Kingdom	September 13, 1993	7-inch vinyl CD cassette	Virgin Offside	^[19]
Japan	October 20, 1993	Mini-CD		^[20]

References

1. Jones, Alan (September 18, 1993). "Market Preview: Mainstream – Singles" (PDF). Music Week. p. 16. Retrieved February 1, 2023.
2. Push (September 25, 1993). "Singles". Melody Maker. p. 31.
3. It's Too Real (Big Scary Animal) (US cassette single sleeve). Belinda Carlisle. Virgin Records. 1993. 4KM-38402.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
4. Big Scary Animal (Japanese mini-CD single liner notes). Belinda Carlisle. Virgin Records, Offside Records. 1993. VJDP-10211.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
5. Big Scary Animal (UK 7-inch single sleeve). Belinda Carlisle. Virgin Records, Offside Records. 1993. VS 1472, 7243 8 92103 7 8.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
6. Big Scary Animal (UK cassette single sleeve). Belinda Carlisle. Virgin Records, Offside Records. 1993. VSC 1472.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
7. Big Scary Animal (Australian cassette single sleeve). Belinda Carlisle. Virgin Records, Offside Records. 1993. 8921034.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
8. Big Scary Animal (European CD single liner notes). Belinda Carlisle. Virgin Records, Offside Records. 1993. VSCDE 1472, 7243 8 92119 2 4.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
9. Big Scary Animal (UK CD single liner notes). Belinda Carlisle. Virgin Records, Offside Records. 1993. VSCDX 1472.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
10. Big Scary Animal (European maxi-CD & Australian CD single liner notes). Belinda Carlisle. Virgin Records, Offside Records. 1993. VSCDT 1472, 7243 8 92103 23.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
11. "The ARIA Australian Top 100 Singles Chart – Week Ending 06 Feb 1994". ARIA. Retrieved February 22, 2016.
12. "Top RPM Singles: Issue 2326." RPM. Library and Archives Canada. Retrieved August 6, 2019.
13. "Eurochart Hot 100 Singles" (PDF). Music & Media. Vol. 10, no. 41. October 9, 1993. p. 15. Retrieved October 18, 2020.
14. "EHR Top 40" (PDF). Music & Media. Vol. 10, no. 42. October 16, 1993. p. 30. Retrieved April 10, 2024.
15. "Belinda Carlisle – Big Scary Animal" (in German). GfK Entertainment charts. Retrieved August 6, 2019.
16. "Íslenski Listinn Topp 40 (4.–10. nóv.)". Dagblaðið Vísir (in Icelandic). November 4, 1993. p. 20. Retrieved September 30, 2019.
17. "Official Singles Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved August 6, 2019.
18. "The Airplay Chart" (PDF). Music Week. October 9, 1993. p. 34. Retrieved May 2, 2024.
19. "Single Releases" (PDF). Music Week. September 11, 1993. p. 23. Retrieved November 9, 2022.
20. "イッツ・トゥー・リアル | ベリンダ・カーライル" [It's Too Real | Belinda Carlisle] (in Japanese). Oricon. Retrieved November 21, 2023.