Time (Clock of the Heart)


"Time " is a song by the British new wave band Culture Club, released as a stand-alone single in most of the world and as the second single from their debut album Kissing to Be Clever in North America. As the follow-up single to their global hit, "Do You Really Want to Hurt Me", "Time " peaked at #2 on the US Billboard Hot 100, kept from the #1 spot by Irene Cara's "Flashdance... What a Feeling". "Time" was also a major hit in the band's native UK, reaching #3 on the UK Singles Chart and selling over 500,000 copies in that country.
The song appears on the North American version of Culture Club's album Kissing to Be Clever. In Europe and other regions, it does not appear on the album, but instead was released as a stand-alone single in November 1982. For many of these markets, its first inclusion on a Culture Club album was on the band's 1987 greatest hits album, This Time: The First Four Years.

Critical reception

Cash Box said the song has "a gentle funk anchor on an otherwise airy romantic ballad." In a retrospective review of the song, Allmusic journalist Stewart Mason wrote: "Of all of Culture Club's early hits, Time has probably aged the best. Boy George drops the cryptic self-mythology long enough to deliver a tender, heartfelt lyric on lost love."
In 2022, Rolling Stone ranked it the 10th best song of 1982 on their list "100 Best Songs of 1982".

Formats and track listing

  • 7" Single
  1. "Time " – 3:42
  2. "White Boys Can't Control It" – 3:42
  • 7" Single
  1. "Time " – 3:41
  2. "Romance Beyond the Alphabet" – 3:34
  • 12" Single
  1. A1."Time " – 3:42
  2. B1."White Boys Can't Control It" – 3:42
  3. B2."Romance Beyond the Alphabet" – 3:44
  • 12" Single
  1. A1."Time " – 3:42
  2. B1."Romance Beyond The Alphabet" – 3:42
  3. B2."I'm Afraid Of Me " –
  • 12" Single/EP
  1. A1."Time " – 3:42
  2. A2."White Boy "
  3. B1."I'm Afraid Of Me " –
  4. B2."Do You Really Want To Hurt Me " –

Personnel

; Culture Club
; Additional members:

Charts

Weekly charts

Chart Peak
position
Belgian VRT Top 309
Dutch Top 407
Irish Singles Chart4
UK Singles Chart3
Chart Peak
position
Australia 12
Austrian Singles Chart9
Canadian RPM Singles Chart4
Finland 7
German Singles Chart16
New Zealand RIANZ Singles Chart4
Swedish Singles Chart11
Swiss Singles Chart9
US Billboard Hot 1002
US Billboard Adult Contemporary6
US Billboard Black Singles34