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"What's on Your Mind (Pure Energy)"
Single by Information Society
from the album Information Society
Released	April 26, 1988 (US) June 21, 1988 (UK)
Genre	Synth-pop acid house
Length	4:33 (album version) 3:36 (single version)
Label	Tommy Boy – TB 911
Songwriter(s)	Paul Robb Kurt Harland
Producer(s)	Fred Maher
Information Society singles chronology
"Running" (1985) "What's on Your Mind (Pure Energy)" (1988) "Walking Away" (1989)
Audio sample
"Pure Energy" file help
Music video
"What's on Your Mind (Pure Energy)" on YouTube

"What's on Your Mind (Pure Energy)" is a song by American synth-pop band Information Society that was released as a single in 1988. The "Pure Energy" subtitle derives from a sample of Leonard Nimoy's voice from the Star Trek episode "Errand of Mercy". There are also samples of DeForest Kelley (the character Dr. McCoy) in the song's introduction, saying, "it's worked so far, but we're not out yet." and Richard Tatro's (The Android Norman) voices from the episode "I, Mudd". John Leland of Spin magazine called it a "pretty potent dance record".

In 2009, VH1 ran a countdown of the 100 Greatest One Hit Wonders of the '80s. Information Society's "What's on Your Mind (Pure Energy)" placed at number 74 on the countdown.

The song was a big hit in the US, spending 25 weeks on the Billboard Hot 100, peaking at number three in October 1988. The single was certified gold by the RIAA on January 18, 1989, selling 500,000 copies.

The song was featured in the feature films Loverboy and American Psycho. A remixed version was included in American Psycho's soundtrack.

In 1989, Pittsburgh radio station WYDD-FM played this song non-stop in a loop for 25½ hours—focusing on a repeat of the "Pure Energy" sample from Leonard Nimoy as Star Trek's Mr. Spock. The marketing stunt caused listeners to call emergency services, concerned that some calamity had befallen the DJs and other station employees. Bob Hank, general manager at the time, told reporters he was only trying to draw attention to the station's switch in format and new call letters WNRJ (N-R-J = "energy"). "We were just trying to draw a little bit of attention," Hank said. "We never dreamed it would go this far."

Composition

The song started out as a 10-minute instrumental jam, when Information Society was trying to record their first album. Tommy Boy Records grew frustrated that the band was spending so much money in the studio but had nothing to show for it, and pressured them to make a hit. Paul Robb came up with a chorus he said was partly inspired by "Sledgehammer" by Peter Gabriel, as well as Duran Duran. After the chorus, he wrote verses with Kurt Harland.

Robb emulated minimalist New Wave artists such as Gary Numan and Devo by trying to write lyrics that "said as little as possible". He said the verses were "just sort of a random collection of emotional impressions. ... But when you look back at it now, it's a clear narrative about the difficulty that people have communicating with each other. At the time, we weren't writing it with that in mind, but it's so clear when you just read through the lyrics. It's a very simple and very clear-cut story."

Track listings

1988

7": Tommy Boy * London / 886 420-7 (Netherlands)

1. "What's on Your Mind (Pure Energy)" (Pure Energy Radio Edit) – 3:35
2. "What's on Your Mind (Pure Energy)" (Club Radio Edit) – 3:15

12": Tommy Boy / TB 911 (US)

1. "What's on Your Mind (Pure Energy)" (Club Mix) – 8:00
2. "What's on Your Mind (Pure Energy)" (The 54 Mix) – 5:12
3. "What's on Your Mind (Pure Energy)" (Percappella) – 4:09
4. "What's on Your Mind (Pure Energy)" (Pure Energy Mix) – 4:33
5. "What's on Your Mind (Pure Energy)" (What's on Your Dub Mix) – 6:22

• tracks 1–3 remixed by "Little" Louie Vega, Roman Ricardo
• track four is the album version.
• also available on MC (TBC 911)
• also available on CD (TBCD 911)

12": London / LONX 211 (UK)

1. "What's on Your Mind (Pure Energy)" (Club Mix) – 8:00
2. "What's on Your Mind (Pure Energy)" (Pure Energy Mix) – 4:33
3. "What's on Your Mind (Pure Energy)" (What's on Your Dub Mix) – 6:22

• also available on CD (LONCD 211)

1998

12": Cleopatra Records CLP 0327

Side A

1. "What's on Your Mind" (Girl Eats Boy Mix)
2. "What's on Your Mind" (Remixed by David J of Love & Rockets)

Side B

1. "What's on Your Mind" (Remixed by Christian B./Daren Kramer for CKB Production)
2. "What's on Your Mind" (Remixed by Judson Leach and Exhibition)

• All of these remixes would make a second appearance on the remix album InSoc Recombinant.

2001

CD single: Tommy Boy silver label

1. "What's on Your Mind (Pure Energy)" (Pure Energy 2001 Edit) – 3:48
2. "What's on Your Mind (Pure Energy)" (Boris & Beck Exit Edit) – 3:58
3. "What's on Your Mind (Pure Energy)" (Junior's Blue Zone Club Mix) – 9:08
4. "What's on Your Mind (Pure Energy)" (Boris & Beck Exit Mix) – 8:46
5. "What's on Your Mind (Pure Energy)" (Sugarpussy Psychic Funk Mix) – 6:38

Charts

Year-end charts

See also

• List of number-one dance singles of 1988 (U.S.)

References

1. Breihan, Tom (July 5, 2023). "The Alternative Number Ones: Siouxsie And The Banshees' "Peek-A-Boo". Stereogum. Retrieved December 16, 2024. ...the only track that sounded anything like acid house was "What's On Your Mind (Pure Energy)", a single from the Minneapolis synthpop group Information Society.(Subscription required.)
2. "Errand of Mercy clip". Star Trek. Archived from the original on 2021-12-14 – via YouTube.
3. Leland, John (August 1988). "Singles". Spin. p. 80.
4. "VH1's 100 Greatest One Hit Wonders of the '80s: Do You Agree?". EW.com. Retrieved 7 April 2015.
5. "The Hot 100: Week of October 22, 1988". Billboard.com. Retrieved 7 April 2015.
6. "Gold & Platinum". RIAA.com. Retrieved 22 January 2022.
7. Puig, Claudia (May 22, 1989). "Radio". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 16 December 2015.
8. ^ Prato, Greg (March 16, 2016). "Paul Robb of Information Society : Songwriter Interviews". Songfacts.com. Retrieved February 20, 2021.
9. "RPM Weekly" (PDF). Rpmimages.3345.ca. 15 October 1988. Retrieved 22 January 2022.
10. "RPM Weekly" (PDF). Rpmimages.3345.ca. 12 November 1988. Retrieved 22 January 2022.
11. "Barry's Hits of All Decades Pop rock n roll Music Chart Hits". Archived from the original on 2020-10-20.
12. "RPM Weekly" (PDF). Rpmimages.3345.ca. 19 November 1988. Retrieved 22 January 2022.
13. "Barry's Hits of All Decades Pop rock n roll Music Chart Hits".
14. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2009-06-02. Retrieved 2011-07-06.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
15. "Information Society: Artist Chart History". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 4 May 2020.
16. ^ "Information Society - Information Society | Songs, Reviews, Credits | AllMusic". AllMusic.
17. "Cash Box Top 100 10/22/88". Cashboxmagazine.com.
18. "Barry's Hits of All Decades Pop rock n roll Music Chart Hits".
19. "Top 25 Dance Singles of '88" (PDF). RPM. Vol. 49, no. 10. 24 December 1988. p. 10. Retrieved 14 July 2019.
20. "Top 100 Hits for 1988". The Longbored Surfer. Retrieved 13 July 2014.

v t e Leonard Nimoy
Filmography Discography
Films directed	Star Trek III: The Search for Spock (1984) Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home (1986) Three Men and a Baby (1987) The Good Mother (1988) Body Wars (1989) Funny About Love (1990) Holy Matrimony (1994)
Discography	Leonard Nimoy Presents Mr. Spock's Music from Outer Space "The Ballad of Bilbo Baggins" Two Sides of Leonard Nimoy The Way I Feel The Touch of Leonard Nimoy The New World of Leonard Nimoy Highly Illogical Alien Voices
Books	I Am Not Spock I Am Spock Shekhina
Related	Adam Nimoy (son) Susan Bay (second wife) Primortals (comic book) Mind Meld (2001 documentary) For the Love of Spock (2016 documentary) Remembering Leonard Nimoy (2017 documentary) Symphony Space
Category

• 1988 songs
• 1988 singles
• Information Society (band) songs
• Music videos directed by Mark Pellington
• Tommy Boy Records singles
• Leonard Nimoy