Barrel of a Gun
1997 single by Depeche Mode
"Barrel of a Gun" is a song by English electronic music band Depeche Mode, released on 3 February 1997, by Mute Records, as the first single from their ninth studio album, Ultra (1997). The song is written by band member Martin L. Gore and produced by Tim Simenon. It reached No. 1 in the Czech Republic, Hungary, Spain and Sweden and reached the top 10 in the Denmark, Finland, Germany and the United Kingdom. In North America, the song reached No. 47 on the US Billboard Hot 100 and No. 3 on the Canadian Singles Chart. The accompanying music video was directed by Anton Corbijn and filmed in Morocco.
Song meaning
Guitarist Martin Gore said, "it's about understanding what you're about and realising that you don't necessarily fit into somebody else's scheme of things." Singer Dave Gahan, who was weakened from his battle with substance abuse at the time, added, "The song sums up the way I was treating myself and everybody around me. That's what life had in store for me every day.
“Barrel of a Gun” enters the record as 1997 single by Depeche Mode. Crown Archives preserves that source wording while asking what Barrel, single and Depeche can confirm, complicate or overturn.
Why this record matters
“Barrel of a Gun” is worth following because a concise public description often conceals a longer documentary argument. Here, Barrel, single and Depeche provides the most credible route into that argument.
The citation trail is more important than the brevity of the summary: it shows where individual claims can be examined in context. The source revision retrieved here is dated Sep 22, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q2625232. 1 of 1 selected statements include explicit references; 0 carry qualifiers and 0 use preferred rank. The first chronological checks are 1997.
Overview language is designed for orientation and should not be treated as a substitute for the evidence cited beneath it. The lead is largely declarative, so disagreement and counter-evidence require a deliberate search beyond the opening account. Authority statements aid reconciliation but still require their own references, qualifiers and ranks to be checked.
How to read it
Use the entry as an orientation point, then follow its citations and revision history. Names, dates and institutional relationships should be checked against the original record.
- Subject orientation
- Search vocabulary
- Locating named sources
The closest primary source, responsible institution and strongest cited specialist reference.
Three-step research path
- Establish the record: confirm the title “Barrel of a Gun”, its source revision and the description used here.
- Expand the search: follow Barrel of a Gun primary sources, Barrel of a Gun archive and Barrel research across catalogues and specialist indexes.
- Test the account: compare the strongest cited source with the responsible institution’s current record and note any disagreement.
Questions for further research
- Which source most directly establishes the central claim about “Barrel of a Gun”?
- Which cited source is closest to the event, object or claim?
- Which institution is responsible for the underlying evidence?
Search terms from this dossier
This entry incorporates text from “Barrel of a Gun” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.