

The 7-inch version of "Mad World" is the same mix of the song found on The Hurting. The lyric "the dreams in which I'm dying are the best I've ever had" suggests that dreams of intense experiences such as death will be the best at releasing tension. The song was influenced by the theories of Arthur Janov, author of The Primal Scream. Not that Bath is very mad – I should have called it "Bourgeois World"!

That came when I lived above a pizza restaurant in Bath and I could look out onto the centre of the city. The band then opted to re-record "Mad World" with producers Ross Cullum and Chris Hughes, the latter a former drummer with Adam and the Ants. "Mad World" was intended to be the B-side for the band's second single " Pale Shelter (You Don't Give Me Love)", but their record company stated that "Mad World" could be a single in its own right. After a few false starts with Orzabal on vocals, he suggested Smith sing it and "suddenly it sounded fabulous". "Mad World" was originally written on acoustic guitar when Orzabal was 19 after being inspired to write a new wave song in the vein of Duran Duran's " Girls on Film".

" Mad World" is a 1982 song by British band Tears for Fears.
