To the Moon and Back (Savage Garden song)

1996 single by Savage Garden

"To the Moon and Back" is a song by Australian pop duo Savage Garden, released in Australia on 4 November 1996 as the second single from their self titled 1997 album. It was the follow up to their first hit "I Want You", and won the 1997 ARIA Music Award for Song of the Year. The song became the band's first number one single in their native country, reached number three on the UK Singles Chart, and peaked at number 24 on the US Billboard Hot 100.

In an interview with Apple Music about their debut album, singer Darren Hayes explained the origins of the song. "I was a big science fiction fan I loved Blade Runner. I wrote it from that point of view, or the idea of what it means to be human. That idea of yearning to express your emotions and your feelings and for that to be legitimized. There was also someone in my life whose persona was very standoffish and who pushed everyone who loved her away. But I could see underneath that hard shell, there was so much pain and all that stuff that I identified with mum never loved her much, daddy never kept in touch, these are things actually bothering this person."

After the international success of their debut single, "I Want You", there were high expectations for the song as its follow up. During the song's first charting in the US after its release there in July 1997, the song entered the top 40 of the Billboard Hot 100 for only one week, peaking at number 37 the final week of August 1997. In the United Kingdom, the single was originally released in September 1997, and there it failed to chart in the top 40, stalling at number 55 for one week. A reviewer from Music Week rated the song three out of five, saying that it is not as hook driven as "I Want You", "but it's still commercial enough to win over ILR and clinch a Top 30 place."

There have been three different music videos for the song. The first, accompanying the Australian release of the song, was directed by Catherine Caines and Chris Bentley, and was shot in black and white. This version features Hayes and Jones performing on what appears to be a space vessel, whilst a female passenger watches. The second, accompanying the United States and original United Kingdom release of the song, was directed by Nigel Dick, and features Darren and Daniel performing in an apartment in Malibu whilst a female records the performance. It was filmed between 17 and 18 April 1997. This American video features Hayes with long hair. The third version was filmed in New York and features a sad looking teenage girl traveling by the metro to meet her friends (apparently other misfits like herself). This video features Hayes with short hair, and is the most well known of the three versions. A version of the video accompanied by a dance remix of the track was also released, which included some footage of the second video.

RegionDateFormat(s)Label(s)Ref(s). (Reference(s))Australia4 November 1996CD, cassetteWarner Music Group, Warner Music, Village Roadshow, RoadshowUnited States27 May 1997Contemporary hit radioColumbia8 July 1997CD, cassetteJapan30 July 1997CDSonyUnited Kingdom15 September 1997CD, cassetteColumbiaUnited Kingdom (re release)10 August 1998