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{{Short description|1997 single by Radiohead}}
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{{Use dmy dates|date=April 2022}}
{{Infobox song
| name          = Paranoid Android
| cover         = Paranoid_Android_CD1.jpg
| alt           = 
| border        = yes
| type          = single
| artist        = [[Radiohead]]
| album         = [[OK Computer]]
| B-side        = * "Polyethylene (Parts 1 & 2)"
* "Pearly*"
* "A Reminder"
* "Melatonin"
| released      = 26 May 1997
| recorded      = 
| studio        = 
| venue         = 
| genre         = * [[Alternative rock]]
* [[art rock]]
* [[neo-prog]]
* [[progressive rock]]
| length        = 6:27
| label         = *[[Parlophone]]
*[[Capitol Records|Capitol]]
| writer        = Radiohead
| producer      = * [[Nigel Godrich]]
* Radiohead
| prev_title    = [[The Bends (song)|The Bends]]
| prev_year     = 1996
| next_title    = [[Karma Police]]
| next_year     = 1997
| misc          = {{External music video|{{YouTube|fHiGbolFFGw|"Paranoid Android"}}}}
}}

"'''Paranoid Android'''" is a song by English [[alternative rock]] band [[Radiohead]], released as the lead single from their third studio album, ''[[OK Computer]]'' (1997), on 26 May 1997. The lyrics were written by singer [[Thom Yorke]] following an unpleasant experience in a Los Angeles bar. The song is over six minutes long and contains four [[section (music)|sections]]. The name is taken from [[Marvin the Paranoid Android]] from the science fiction series ''[[The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy]].''

"Paranoid Android" charted at number three on the [[UK Singles Chart]], Radiohead's highest-charting position in the UK to date. It received acclaim, with critics claiming it to be the band's ''[[magnum opus]]'', comparing it to the songs "[[Happiness Is a Warm Gun]]" by [[the Beatles]] and "[[Bohemian Rhapsody]]" by [[Queen (band)|Queen]]. It has appeared regularly on lists of the best songs of all time, including ''[[NME]]''{{'}}s and ''[[Rolling Stone]]''{{'}}s respective 500 Greatest Songs of All Time lists. Its animated [[music video]], directed by [[Magnus Carlsson (illustrator)|Magnus Carlsson]], was placed on [[heavy rotation]] on [[MTV]], although the network censored portions containing nudity in the US. At the [[1998 Brit Awards]], the song was nominated for [[1998 Brit Awards#The awards|Best British Single]]. The track has been covered by artists in a variety of genres. It was included in the 2008 ''[[Radiohead: The Best Of]].''

==Writing and recording==

As with many other ''OK Computer'' tracks, "Paranoid Android" was recorded in [[St Catherine's Court]], a 15th-century mansion near the village of [[St Catherine, Somerset|St Catherine]], near [[Bath, Somerset]].<ref name="RSblurb">{{cite magazine |url=http://www.rollingstone.com/news/story/6596101/paranoid_android |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20061228111132/http://www.rollingstone.com/news/story/6596101/paranoid_android |archive-date=2006-12-28 |title=Paranoid Android |date=9 December 2004 |magazine=[[Rolling Stone]] |access-date=4 October 2008}}</ref> It was produced by [[Nigel Godrich]].<ref name=":0" />

Inspired by the [[through-composed music|through-composed]] structure of the [[The Beatles|Beatles]]' 1968 song "[[Happiness Is a Warm Gun]]", Radiohead fused parts from three different songs.<ref>{{Cite book|title=Everything in its Right Place: Analyzing Radiohead|last=Osborn|first=Brad|publisher=Oxford University Press|year=2016}}</ref> Other inspirations included [[Queen (band)|Queen's]] "[[Bohemian Rhapsody]]" and the work of the [[Pixies (band)|Pixies]].<ref>{{cite magazine |last=Sutherland |first=Mark |date=31 May 1997 |title=Return of the Mac! |magazine=[[Melody Maker]] <!--|url=http://colin-greenwood-interviews.blogspot.com/2007/04/melody-maker-31051997.html-->}}</ref> 

The first version was over 14&nbsp;minutes long and included a long [[Hammond organ]] outro performed by [[Jonny Greenwood]].<ref>{{cite magazine |title=Thom Yorke loves to skank |magazine=[[Q (magazine)|Q]] |date=12 August 2002}}</ref><ref name="Doheny62">Doheny, 2002. p. 62.</ref> The guitarist [[Ed O'Brien]] said: "We'd be pissing ourselves while we played. We'd bring out the [[glockenspiel]] and it would be really, really funny."<ref name="Doheny62" /> The singer, [[Thom Yorke]], sarcastically referred to this version as "a [[Pink Floyd]] cover".<ref name="Footman, 54">Footman, 2007. p. 54</ref> Greenwood said later that the organ solo was "hard to listen to without clutching the sofa for support".<ref name=":0">{{Cite magazine|url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-features/radioheads-ok-computer-an-oral-history-196156/|title=Radiohead's 'OK Computer': An Oral History|last=Greene|first=Andy|date=16 June 2017|magazine=Rolling Stone|language=en-US|access-date=24 May 2019}}</ref> Godrich said: "Nothing really happened with the outro. It just spun and spun and it got very [[Deep Purple]] and went off."<ref name=":0" /> An early extended version was included on the 2019 compilation ''[[MiniDiscs (Hacked)|MiniDiscs [Hacked]]]''.<ref name=":02">{{Cite web|url=https://pitchfork.com/thepitch/radiohead-ok-computer-leak-best-songs/|title=The best, weirdest, and most revealing moments on Radiohead's ''OK Computer'' sessions leak|last1=Larson|first1=Jeremy D.|last2=Greene|first2=Jayson|date=12 June 2019|website=Pitchfork|access-date=12 June 2019}}</ref>

Influenced by the editing of the Beatles' ''[[Magical Mystery Tour]]'', Radiohead shortened the song to six and a half minutes,<ref name="Randall150s">Randall, 2004. pp. 150–151.</ref> with the organ solo replaced with a shorter guitar outro.<ref name="Kitts">Kitts, 2002. p. 151.</ref> The bassist, [[Colin Greenwood]], said the band "felt like irresponsible schoolboys ... Nobody does a six-and-a-half-minute song with all these changes. It's ridiculous."<ref>Randall, 2002. pp. 214–215.</ref> For the ending, Yorke recorded himself shouting gibberish into a [[Dictaphone]].<ref name="Gordon-2023">{{Cite magazine |last=Gordon |first=Jason Thomas |date=2023-09-08 |title=The songs that make Thom Yorke cry |url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-features/thom-yorke-neil-young-bob-dylan-makes-him-cry-1234819196/ |access-date=2023-09-08 |magazine=[[Rolling Stone]] |language=en-US}}</ref> Godrich edited the parts together with tape. He said: "It’s a very hard thing to explain, but it’s all on [[24-track]] and it runs through ... I was very pleased with myself. I sort of stood there and said, 'You guys have ''no idea'' what I've just done.' It was pretty clever."<ref name=":0" /> 

The title is taken from [[Marvin the Paranoid Android]] from the science fiction series ''[[The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy]].'' Yorke said the title was a joke: "It was like, 'Oh, I'm so depressed.' And I just thought, that's great. That's how people would ''like'' me to be ... The rest of the song is not personal at all."<ref name="Jam" />

==Composition==
{{Listen|filename=Paranoid Android.ogg|title="Paranoid Android"|description=Audio sample from the middle of the second section to the beginning of the first guitar solo}}
"Paranoid Android" is described as [[alternative rock]],<ref>{{cite web|last=Hogan|first=Marc|date=13 October 2011|title=Is Radiohead's 'Paranoid Android' the Best Song in 15 Years?|url=https://www.spin.com/2011/10/radioheads-paranoid-android-best-song-15-years/|access-date=18 November 2015|website=[[Spin (magazine)|Spin]]}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |last=Sigur|first=Matthew|date=1 October 2020|title=The Ringer's Top 100 Radiohead Songs, Ranked|url=https://www.theringer.com/music/2020/10/1/21494313/radiohead-best-songs-ranked|access-date=19 June 2023|website=[[The Ringer (website)|The Ringer]]}}</ref> [[art rock]],<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/musictv/popontrial/decades/index.shtml?d=90s&a=show&t=show&c=show&n=46&q=hide&m=hide&|title=Pop on Trial - 1950s - 1990s|work=BBC Music|access-date=18 November 2015}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|last=Smith|first=Troy L.|date=29 April 2020|title=90 greatest Rock and Roll Hall of Fame songs of the 1990s|url=https://www.cleveland.com/entertainment/2020/04/90-greatest-rock-and-roll-hall-of-fame-songs-of-the-1990s.html|access-date=5 August 2021|website=[[cleveland.com]]}}</ref><ref>{{cite magazine|url=https://www.spin.com/2020/12/the-35-best-albums-of-the-last-35-years/|title=The 35 Best Albums of the Last 35 Years|first=Ryan|last=Reed|date=6 December 2020|magazine=[[Spin (magazine)|Spin]]|access-date=7 June 2025|quote=...and volatile art-rock suite “Paranoid Android.”}}</ref> [[progressive rock]]<ref>{{cite web|last=Reed|first=Ryan|date=28 July 2021|title=Top 50 Progressive Rock Songs|url=https://ultimateclassicrock.com/progressive-rock-songs/|access-date=5 August 2021|website=Ultimate Classic Rock}}</ref> and [[neo-prog]].<ref>{{cite book|last=Letts|first=Marianne Tatom|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=3HSuhm6DRGgC&pg=PA29|title=Radiohead and the Resistant Concept Album: How to Disappear Completely|publisher=Indiana University Press|year=2010|isbn=978-0-253-00491-8|page=29}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|last=Moore|first=Allan F.|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=S0g4DwAAQBAJ&pg=PA263|title=Rock: The Primary Text: Developing a Musicology of Rock|date=3 October 2017|publisher=[[Routledge]]|isbn=978-1-351-21872-6|page=263}}</ref><ref>{{cite magazine|last=Greene|first=Andy|date=24 September 2020|title=500 Greatest Albums: Radiohead's Futuristic Breakthrough 'OK Computer'|url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-features/500-greatest-albums-radiohead-ok-computer-1059469/|access-date=9 July 2021|magazine=[[Rolling Stone]]}}</ref> It has four distinct sections, potentially defining the track as a "[[Rhapsody (music)|rhapsody]]", each played in [[standard tuning]], and a {{music|time|4|4}} [[time signature]], although several three-[[Bar (music)|bar]] segments in the second section are played in {{music|time|7|8}} timing.

The opening is played in the [[musical key|key]] of [[G minor]]<ref name="Griffiths, 92">Griffiths, 2004. p. 92.</ref> with a [[tempo]] of 82 beats per minute (BPM),<ref name="Griffiths, 33">Griffiths, 2004. p. 33.</ref> and begins with a mid-tempo acoustic guitar backed by [[Idiophone|shaken]] [[percussion]] before layered with electric guitar and Yorke's vocals.<ref name="Footman, 51">Footman, 2007. p. 51.</ref> The melody of the opening vocal lines spans an [[octave]] and a third.<ref>Tate, 2005. p. 175</ref><!--Self published source: The final chord progression in this section uses C [[Dorian mode|Dorian]] and C [[Mixolydian mode|Mixolydian]].<ref>{{cite book |first=Julio |last=Baca |url=https://archive.org/details/radiohead-a-musical-analysis/page/206/mode/2up?view=theater |title=Radiohead – A Musical Analysis |year=2017}}</ref>-->

The second section is written in the key of [[A minor]]<ref name="Griffiths, 92" /> and begins about two minutes into the song. Although the second section retains the tempo of the first, it differs rhythmically.<ref>Griffiths, 2004. p. 52.</ref> Ending the second section is a distorted [[guitar solo]] by Jonny Greenwood, which lasts from 2:43 to 3:33.<ref name="Footman, 51" />

The third section was written by Jonny Greenwood,<ref>{{cite magazine |first=Randall |last=Mac |date=April 1998 |url=https://www.guitarworld.com/article/radiohead_the_golden_age_of_radiohead?page=0%2C0 |title=Radiohead: The Golden Age of Radiohead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081030192144/http://www.guitarworld.com/article/radiohead_the_golden_age_of_radiohead?page=0%2C0 |archive-date=30 October 2008 |magazine=[[Guitar World]] |access-date=5 October 2008}}</ref> and reduces the tempo to 62 BPM.<ref name="Griffiths, 33" /> The harmonies form a looped chord progression resembling a [[Baroque music|Baroque]] [[passacaglia]], with the tonality split between C minor and D minor.<ref>{{Cite thesis|title = Beyond Verse and Chorus: Experimental Formal Structures in Post-Millennial Rock Music|last = Osborn|first = Brad|year = 2010|location = University of Washington|page = 41|url = https://digital.lib.washington.edu/researchworks/handle/1773/15910| type=PhD thesis }}</ref> This section uses multi-tracked, [[Choir|choral]] vocal arrangement<ref name="Footman, 51" /> and according to Dai Griffiths, a "chord sequence [that ordinarily] would sound seedy, rather like something by the band [[Portishead (band)|Portishead]]".<ref>Griffiths, 2004. p. 53.</ref>

The fourth and final section, which begins at 5:35, is a brief instrumental [[reprise]] of the second section that serves as a [[coda (music)|coda]].<ref name="Footman, 51" /> After a second solo, a brief guitar [[riff]] is introduced, which Jonny Greenwood says "was something I had floating around for a while and the song needed a certain burn. It happened to be the right key and the right speed and it fit right in."<ref>{{cite magazine |last=Gulla |first=Bob |date=October 1997 |title=Radiohead&nbsp;– At Long Last, A Future For Rock Guitar |magazine=[[Guitar World]]}}</ref> Jonny Greenwood's solo tone during the solo is achieved by passing the guitar through a Mutronics Mutator rack unit.<ref>{{cite web |date=Nov 1, 2024 |url=https://mixdownmag.com.au/features/rig-rundown-radioheads-ok-computer/ | title=Gear Rundown: Radiohead’s OK Computer |magazine=[[Mixdown]] |access-date=18 November 2025}}</ref> The song ends, as does the second section, with a short [[Chromatic scale|chromatically]] descending guitar [[Motif (music)|motif]].<ref>Tate, 2005. p. 144</ref>

The style of the song was likened to [[Queen (band)|Queen]] by ''[[Rolling Stone]]''{{'}}s [[Mark Kemp]],<ref name="RSrev">{{cite magazine |author-link=Mark Kemp |last=Kemp |first=Mark |date=10 July 1997 |url=http://www.rollingstone.com/reviews/album/230055/review/5945298/ok_computer |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071015155509/http://www.rollingstone.com/reviews/album/230055/review/5945298/ok_computer |archive-date=2007-10-15 |title=OK Computer |magazine=[[Rolling Stone]] |access-date=4 October 2008}}</ref> while other critics, including [[David Browne (journalist)|David Browne]] of ''[[Entertainment Weekly]]'',<ref name="EWrev">{{cite magazine |author-link=David Browne (journalist) |last=Browne |first=David |date=23 May 2008 |url=https://ew.com/article/1997/07/11/ok-computer/ |title=OK Computer |magazine=[[Entertainment Weekly]] |access-date=4 October 2008 |archive-date=30 September 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120930071153/http://www.ew.com/ew/article/0,,20202376,00.html |url-status=dead }}</ref> Jon Lusk of the [[BBC]]<ref>{{cite web |last=Lusk |first=Jon |date=25 April 2007 |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/music/reviews/wcp2/ |title=Radiohead, Paranoid Android |work=[[BBC Music]] |access-date=4 October 2008}}</ref> and Simon Williams of ''[[NME]]''<ref name="NMErev" /> wrote about its similarity to Queen's "[[Bohemian Rhapsody]]".

=== Lyrics ===
"Paranoid Android" is categorised by three distinct moods written in what Yorke referred to as three different states of mind.<ref name="Randall150s" /> The lyrics tie in with a number of themes common in ''OK Computer'', including insanity, violence, slogans, and political objection to capitalism.<ref>Footman, 2007. pp. 144–150.</ref> Yorke's lyrics were based on an unpleasant experience at a Los Angeles bar during which he was surrounded by strangers who were high on cocaine. Yorke was frightened by a woman who became violent after someone spilled a drink on her. He characterised the woman as "inhuman", and said "There was a look in this woman's eyes that I'd never seen before anywhere.&nbsp;... Couldn't sleep that night because of it." The woman inspired the line "kicking squealing [[Gucci]] little piggy" in the song's second section.<ref>{{cite magazine |date=October 1997 |title=Death Is All Around&nbsp;... |url=http://www.followmearound.com/presscuttings.php?year=1997&cutting=46 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070711130842/http://www.followmearound.com/presscuttings.php?year=1997&cutting=46 |archive-date=11 July 2007 |access-date=20 July 2024 |magazine=[[Q (magazine)|Q]]}}</ref> Yorke, referring to the line "With your opinion, which is of no consequence at all", said that "Again, that's just a joke. It's actually the other way around&nbsp;– it's actually ''my'' opinion that is of no consequence at all."<ref name="Jam">{{cite magazine |last=Sakamoto |first=John |date=2 June 1997 |title=Radiohead talk about their new video |url=http://www.greenplastic.com/coldstorage/articles/jam6297.html |url-status=usurped |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20061109073538/http://www.greenplastic.com/coldstorage/articles/jam6297.html |archive-date=9 November 2006 |access-date=20 October 2008 |magazine=[[Jam!]]}}</ref>

==Music video==
Yorke said that many people suggested Radiohead make another "moody and black and dark" music video for "Paranoid Android", similar to the video for their single "[[Street Spirit]]". However, Radiohead wanted an entertaining and "sick" video instead. Yorke said: "We had really good fun doing this song, so the video should make you laugh."<ref name="Jam" /> 

Radiohead commissioned the Swedish animator [[Magnus Carlsson (illustrator)|Magnus Carlsson]] to make the video. Radiohead were fans of his animated series ''[[Robin (TV series)|Robin]].'' Jonny Greenwood described Robin as "affectionate" and "vulnerable", while Yorke said he found Robin "quite the vulnerable character, but he's also violently cynical and quite tough and would always get up again".<ref name="Jam" /> At first, Carlsson sought to work on a video for "[[No Surprises]]" and was uncertain as to how to approach "Paranoid Android". To conceive the video, he locked himself in his office for over 12 hours to stare out of the window, listen to the song on repeat and jot down visual ideas.<ref name="Randall166167">Randall, 2004. pp. 166–167.</ref> According to Yorke, the band did not send Magnus the lyrics as they did not want the video to be too literal.<ref name="Jam" /> The concept for the video was based entirely on the song's sound.<ref name="Footman, 160">Footman, 2007. p. 160.</ref> 

=== Summary ===
[[File:Paranoid Android video.png|thumb|The video's protagonist, Robin.]]

Like ''Robin'', the "Paranoid Android" video is drawn in a simplistic style that emphasises bold colours and clear, strong lines.<ref name="Footman, 160" /> It features Robin and his friend Benjamin venturing into the world, running into miserable [[European Union|EU]] representatives, bullying pub patrons, a prostitute, kissing leathermen, a drug addict, deranged businessmen, mermaids, and an angel who plays table tennis with Robin. 

The band appears in cameo at a bar, where they drink while watching a man with a head coming out of his belly dancing on their table.<ref>Tate, 2005. pp. 58–59, p. 68.</ref> However, in this cameo only the versions of Yorke and Jonny Greenwood resemble themselves;<ref name="Footman, 160" /> O'Brien said "If you freeze-frame it on the video, the guy with the five strands of hair slicked back, that's Colin. It looks nothing like him."<ref>Randall, 2000. p. 168.</ref> Colin Greenwood said "there was no way that we could appear in it to perform in it because that would be so [[Spinal Tap (band)|Spinal Tap]]" and that having animations that did not resemble the band members allowed the video to be "twisted and colourful which is how the song is anyway".<ref name="Glover">{{cite magazine |last=Glover |first=Adrian |date=August 1997 |title=Radiohead&nbsp;– Getting More Respect |magazine=[[Circus (magazine)|Circus]] <!--|url=http://colin-greenwood-interviews.blogspot.com/2007/04/circus-magazine-81997.html-->}}</ref> 

=== Reception ===
Yorke was pleased with the video, saying that it "is really about the violence around [Robin], which is exactly like the song. Not the same specific violence as in the lyrics, but everything going on around him is deeply troubling and violent, but he's just drinking himself into oblivion. He's there, but he's not there. That's why it works. And that's why it does my head in every time I see it."<ref name="Jam" />

While the single did not receive significant radio play in the US, [[MTV]] placed its video on high rotation. The version most often shown was edited to remove the mermaids' bare breasts. Colin Greenwood said, "We would've understood if they had a problem with some guy chopping his arms and legs off, but I mean, a woman's breasts! And mermaids as well! It's fucked up."<ref name="Randall166167" /> [[MTV Europe]] played the video uncut for two weeks because the channel's official censor was ill and unable to work. After that time the channel ran the cut version of the video.<ref name="Jam" /> A later US version of the video has the mermaids wearing bathing suits.<ref name="Randall166167" /> 

Evan Sawdey of [[PopMatters]] described the video as "bizarre yet fitting",<ref name="PopMatters" /> and ''[[Melody Maker]]'' said it represented a stunning "psycho-cartoon".<ref>{{cite magazine |title=Radiohead revealed: The inside story of the year's most important album |magazine=[[Melody Maker]] |date=March 2000 <!--|url=http://www.followmearound.com/presscuttings.php?year=2000&cutting=66-->}}</ref> Adrian Glover of ''[[Circus (magazine)|Circus]]'' called the animation incredible and the video "really cool".<ref name="Glover" /> The MTV vice president of music Lewis Largent told ''[[Spin (magazine)|Spin]]:'' "You can watch 'Paranoid Android' a hundred times and not figure it all out."<ref>{{cite magazine |last=Blashill |first=Pat |date=January 1998 |title=Radiohead&nbsp;– Band of the Year |magazine=[[Spin (magazine)|Spin]] <!--|url=http://www.followmearound.com/presscuttings.php?year=1998&cutting=51-->}}</ref>

==Artwork==
[[File:Paranoid Android CD2 back.JPG|thumb|The back of the CD2 release of "Paranoid Android" illustrates the release's use of images from the ''OK Computer'' artwork, the change in tint from the CD1 release, and the "cathedral of white" message.]]
[[Stanley Donwood]] worked with Yorke to design the artwork for most of the "Paranoid Android" releases,<ref>Footman, 2007. p. 126</ref> although both the images and design were ultimately credited to "dumb computers".<ref name="CD1" /><ref name="CD2" /> The cover illustration accompanying the single depicts a hand-drawn dome that contains the phrase "God loves his children, yeah!", the last line of the song, written above on the uppermost plane. Images from the ''OK Computer'' artwork reappear, including a pig and two human figures shaking hands. Writer [[Tim Footman]] suggested that these images are borrowed from Pink Floyd, respectively corresponding to the ''[[Animals (Pink Floyd album)|Animals]]'' and ''[[Wish You Were Here (Pink Floyd album)|Wish You Were Here]]'' cover.<ref>Footman (2007). p. 52</ref>

The two versions of the single have different messages on the reverse. Both the CD1 and [[Japan]]ese releases state:
{{quote|To kill a [[demon]] made of wet sawdust. This sort of demon is almost impossible to kill the only way to do it is to cover its face with wet bread and karate chop its head off otherwise you are in trouble and so is the neighbourhood. Wet sawdust demons like to terrorise. N.B. pressing its face into wet bread that is on the ground works best though you can get a result just by throwing the bread at its face.<ref name="CD1">(1997) Artwork for "Paranoid Android" (CD1) by Radiohead. Parlophone (CDODATAS01).</ref><ref>(1997) Artwork for "Paranoid Android" by Radiohead. Toshiba EMI (TOCP40038).</ref>}}

Written on the back of the CD2 single is:

{{quote|A cathedral of white in a suburban shanty town two up two down houses with just the [[asbestos]] and the skeletons left.<ref name="CD2">(1997) Artwork for "Paranoid Android" (CD2) by Radiohead. Parlophone (CDNODATA01).</ref>}}

==Release==
{{Quote box
| quote = Each time I'd hear it, I'd keep thinking about people doing intricate jobs in factories&nbsp;– working on industrial lathes&nbsp;– getting injured from the shock of being exposed to it.
| source = — [[Thom Yorke]], on potential responses to "Paranoid Android" being played on [[BBC Radio 1]]<ref name="Mojo" />
| quoted = 1
| width = 35%
}}

While Colin Greenwood said the song was "hardly the radio-friendly, breakthrough, buzz bin unit shifter [radio stations] have been expecting",<ref>{{Cite web |title=Paranoid Android |url=https://citizeninsane.eu/discog/03/paranoidandroid.html |access-date=2024-04-02 |website=citizeninsane.eu}}</ref> Capitol supported Radiohead's choice for "Paranoid Android" as the lead single from ''OK Computer''.<ref name="SUTHERLAND">{{cite magazine |last=Sutherland |first=Mark |date=24 May 1997 |title=Rounding the Bends |magazine=[[Melody Maker]]}}</ref> Radiohead chose it to prepare listeners for the musical direction of the album.<ref name=":1" /> 

"Paranoid Android" was premiered on the [[BBC Radio 1]] programme ''The Evening Session'' in April 1997, nearly a month before its release as a single.<ref>Randall, 2000. p. 201.</ref> It was released on 26 May 1997.<ref name=":1">{{cite magazine |last=Broc |first=David |date=June 2001 |title=Remembering the Future&nbsp;– Interview with Jonny Greenwood |magazine=Mondo Sonoro}}</ref>{{fcn|reason=Mondo Sonoro is written in Spanish. This appears to be a translation. Please cite the original title|date=July 2024}} Despite an initial lack of radio play, "Paranoid Android" charted at number three on the UK Singles Chart, giving Radiohead their highest singles chart position.<ref name="Randallcharts">Randall, 2000. pp. 242–43.</ref> As the song's popularity grew, Radio 1 played it up to 12 times a day.<ref name="Select">{{cite magazine |title=Renaissance Man |magazine=[[Select (magazine)|Select]] |date=December 1997 <!--|url=http://www.followmearound.com/presscuttings.php?year=1997&cutting=48-->}}</ref> Yorke described its appearance on Radio 1 as one of his proudest moments of the ''OK Computer'' era.<ref name="Mojo">{{cite magazine |author-link=Nick Kent |last=Kent |first=Nick |date=June 2001 |title=Happy Now? |magazine=[[Mojo (magazine)|Mojo]] <!--|url=http://www.followmearound.com/presscuttings.php?year=2001&cutting=121-->}}</ref> It also spent two weeks on [[Australia]]'s [[ARIA Singles Chart]], where it reached number 29.<ref name="australiancharts">{{cite web |url=http://australian-charts.com/showitem.asp?interpret=Radiohead&titel=Paranoid+Android&cat=s |title=Radiohead&nbsp;– Paranoid Android |website=australian-charts.com |access-date=4 October 2008}}</ref>

Each release of "Paranoid Android" included one or more [[A-side and B-side|B-sides]]. "Polyethylene (Parts 1 & 2)", included on the CD1, 7-inch vinyl, and Japanese releases of the single, were a multi-section piece formatted much like "Paranoid Android" itself. The first part of the song consists of Yorke's vocals over acoustic guitar; the second part contains distorted guitar and [[Organ (music)|organ]] and uses complex time signature changes. "Pearly*", featured on the CD1 and Japanese releases of the single, was described by Yorke as a "dirty song for people who use sex for dirty things".<ref>Footman, 2007. pp. 173–174.</ref> "A Reminder", which appears on the CD2 release, features fuzzed guitar, thumping drums, and [[electric piano]]. According to Yorke, this song was inspired by "this idea of someone writing a song, sending it to someone, and saying: 'If I ever lose it, you just pick up the phone and play this song back to remind me.{{'"}}<ref>Footman, 2007. p. 168.</ref> "Melatonin", also on the CD2 release, is a synthesiser-based song with lyrics similar to that of a [[lullaby]], but with an undercurrent of menace in lines like "Death to all who stand in your way".<ref>Footman, 2007. pp. 171–172.</ref> The ''OK Computer'' track "Let Down" is also included on the Japanese single.

The 2006 anime ''[[Ergo Proxy]]'' uses "Paranoid Android" as the main theme. The song is featured in the credits.<ref>{{cite web |title=Ergo Proxy (TV Series 2006) |website=IMDb |url=https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0791205/soundtrack/ |access-date=2022-07-30 |language=en}}</ref>{{bsn|reason=IMDb is an [[WP:RS/P|unreliable source]]|date=July 2024}} When Radiohead were asked about it being featured as the theme, they originally declined, but after being shown a preview of the anime they obliged and allowed it to be used.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Ergo Proxy Music by Radiohead |url=https://www.animenewsnetwork.com/news/2006-02-15/ergo-proxy-music-by-radiohead |access-date=2022-07-30 |website=Anime News Network |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=The List – 7 Times Western Music Invaded Anime |url=https://www.animenewsnetwork.com/the-list/2018-09-22/.136812 |access-date=2022-07-30 |website=Anime News Network |language=en}}</ref>

== Reception ==
"Paranoid Android" received acclaim. ''[[NME]]'' chose it as its "Single of the Week", and the journalist Simon Williams described how the song "sprawls out like a plump man on a small sofa, featuring all manner of crypto-flamenco shufflings, medieval wailings, furiously wrenched guitars and ravishingly over-ambitious ideas. Possesses one of the most unorthodox 'axe' solos known to mankind."<ref name="NMErev">{{cite magazine |last=Williams |first=Simon |date=24 May 1997 |title=Paranoid Android |magazine=[[NME]] <!--|url=http://www.geocities.com/sulkygirl_23/rh_files/s/pa_nme.html-->}}</ref> Simon Williams of ''[[NME]]'' described the song as "not unlike 'Bohemian Rhapsody' being played backwards by a bunch of [[Vietnam War|Vietnam]] vets high on Kings Cross-quality crack".<ref name="NMErev" /> Kemp praised the mix of acoustic and electronic instrumentation to produce "complex tempo changes, touches of dissonance, ancient [[choral music]] and a [[King Crimson]]-like melodic structure".<ref name="RSrev" /> Browne wrote of "celestial call-and-response vocal passages, dynamically varied sections, and Thom Yorke's high-voiced bleat".<ref name="EWrev" /> ''[[The A.V. Club]]'' called the song unforgettable and an "amazing epic single".<ref>{{cite magazine |last=Thompson |first=Stephen |date=29 March 2002 |url=https://www.avclub.com/content/node/11025 |title=OK Computer |magazine=[[The A.V. Club]] |access-date=4 October 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081210025422/http://www.avclub.com/content/node/11025 |archive-date=10 December 2008 }}</ref>

Several reviewers noted the song's ambition. ''[[Slant Magazine]]'' described the song's lyrics as a "multipart anti-[[yuppie]] anthem whose ambition is anything but ugly",<ref>{{cite magazine |last=Cinquemani |first=Sal |date=27 May 2007 |url=https://www.slantmagazine.com/music/music_review.asp?ID=1136 |title=Radiohead: OK Computer |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090813213756/http://www.slantmagazine.com/music/music_review.asp?ID=1136 |archive-date=13 August 2009 |magazine=[[Slant Magazine]] |access-date=4 October 2008}}</ref> and Andy Gill wrote in ''[[The Independent]]'' that "Paranoid Android" could be the most ambitious single since [[Jimmy Webb]]'s "[[MacArthur Park (song)|MacArthur Park]]".<ref>{{cite news |last=Gill |first=Andy |date=29 April 2005 |title=First Impression: 'OK Computer' by Radiohead, 13 June 1997 |newspaper=[[The Independent]] |page=5}}</ref> Craig McLean of ''[[The Sydney Morning Herald]]'' described "Paranoid Android" as "a titanic guitar [[opera]] in three movements and 6½ minutes".<ref>{{cite news |last=McLean |first=Craig |date=14 June 2003 |url=https://www.smh.com.au/articles/2003/06/13/1055220766407.html |title=Don't worry, be happy |newspaper=[[The Sydney Morning Herald]] |access-date=4 October 2008}}</ref> ''[[PopMatters]]''{{'}} Evan Sawdey called the song ''OK Computer''{{'}}s "sweeping, multi-tiered centerpiece",<ref name="PopMatters">{{cite web |last=Sawdey |first=Evan |date=2 June 2008 |url=https://www.popmatters.com/pm/review/59186/radiohead-the-best-of-dvd/ |title=Radiohead: The Best Of [DVD] |website=[[PopMatters]] |access-date=4 October 2008}}</ref> Peter and Jonathan Buckley wrote in ''The Rough Guide to Rock'' that it was the album's "breathtaking high point".<ref>Buckley, 2003. p. 83.</ref> ''[[AllMusic]]''{{'s}} [[Stephen Thomas Erlewine]] called "Paranoid Android" "complex, multi-segmented&nbsp;... tight, melodic, and muscular", and said it displayed Radiohead at their most adventurous.<ref>{{cite web |author-link=Stephen Thomas Erlewine |last=Erlewine |first=Stephen Thomas |url={{Allmusic|class=album|id=r278014|pure_url=yes}} |title=OK Computer > Review |website=[[AllMusic]] |access-date=4 October 2008}}</ref> Browne admitted that, partially because of "Paranoid Android", ''OK Computer'' was significantly more expansive than ''[[The Bends (album)|The Bends]]''.<ref name="EWrev" /> ''Rolling Stone'' placed the song at number 256 on its list of "[[500 Greatest Songs of All Time|The 500 Greatest Songs of All Time]]",<ref>{{cite magazine |url=http://www.rollingstone.com/news/coverstory/500songs/page/3 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080625061023/http://www.rollingstone.com/news/coverstory/500songs/page/3 |archive-date=2008-06-25 |title=The RS 500 Greatest Songs of All Time (201–300) |magazine=[[Rolling Stone]] |access-date=5 October 2008}}</ref> and ''[[Pitchfork (magazine)|Pitchfork]]'' included the song at number 4 on their ''Top 200 Tracks of the 90s''.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://pitchfork.com/features/staff-lists/7853-the-top-200-tracks-of-the-1990s-20-01/2/|title=Staff Lists|website=Pitchfork|date=3 September 2010 }}</ref> In 2019, ''[[American Songwriter]]'' ranked the song number three on their list of the 20 greatest Radiohead songs,<ref>{{cite web|url=https://americansongwriter.com/the-20-best-radiohead-songs/4/|title=The 20 Best Radiohead Songs of All Time|first=Jim|last=Beviglia|website=[[American Songwriter]]|date=27 October 2019|access-date=14 March 2022}}</ref> and in 2020, ''[[The Guardian]]'' ranked the song number one on their list of the 40 greatest Radiohead songs.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.theguardian.com/music/2020/jan/23/radioheads-40-greatest-songs-ranked|title=Radiohead's 40 greatest songs – ranked!|first=Jazz|last=Monroe|website=[[The Guardian]]|date=23 January 2020|access-date=14 March 2022}}</ref>

==Track listings==
All songs were written by [[Thom Yorke]], [[Jonny Greenwood]], [[Ed O'Brien]], [[Colin Greenwood]], and [[Philip Selway]].
{{col-begin}}
{{col-break}}
'''UK CD1''' <small>(CDODATAS 01)</small><ref>{{cite AV media notes|title=Paranoid Android|author=[[Radiohead]]|year=1997|type=UK CD1 liner notes|publisher=[[Parlophone]]|id=CDODATAS 01}}</ref>
# "Paranoid Android"&nbsp;– 6:27
# "Polyethylene (Parts 1 & 2)"&nbsp;– 4:23
# "Pearly*"&nbsp;– 3:34

'''UK CD2''' <small>(CDNODATA 01)</small><ref>{{cite AV media notes|title=Paranoid Android|author=Radiohead|year=1997|type=UK CD2 liner notes|publisher=Parlophone|id=CDNODATA 01}}</ref>
# "Paranoid Android"&nbsp;– 6:27
# "A Reminder"&nbsp;– 3:52
# "Melatonin"&nbsp;– 2:08
{{col-break}}
'''UK 7-inch single''' <small>(NODATA 01)</small><ref>{{cite AV media notes|title=Paranoid Android|author=Radiohead|year=1997|type=UK 7-inch single vinyl disc|publisher=Parlophone|id=NODATA 01}}</ref>
# "Paranoid Android"
# "Polyethylene (Parts 1 & 2)"

'''Japanese CD single''' <small>(TOCP-40038)</small><ref>{{cite AV media notes|title=Paranoid Android|author=Radiohead|year=1997|type=Japanese CD single liner notes|publisher=Parlophone|id=TOCP-40038}}</ref>
# "Paranoid Android"&nbsp;– 6:26
# "Polyethylene (Parts 1 & 2)"&nbsp;– 4:22
# "Pearly*"&nbsp;– 3:33
# "[[Let Down (Radiohead song)|Let Down]]"&nbsp;– 4:59
{{col-break}}
{{col-end}}

==Charts==
{{col-begin}}
{{col-2}}

===Weekly charts===
{|class="wikitable sortable plainrowheaders" style="text-align:center"
|+Weekly chart performance for "Paranoid Android"
!Chart (1997)
!Peak<br/>position
|-
{{single chart|Australia|29|artist=Radiohead|song=Paranoid Android|rowheader=true|access-date=15 February 2020}}
|-
{{single chart|Flanders Tip|15|artist=Radiohead|song=Paranoid Android|rowheader=true}}
|-
!scope="row"|Europe ([[European Hot 100 Singles|Eurochart Hot 100]])<ref>{{cite magazine|url=https://worldradiohistory.com/UK/Music-and-Media/90s/1997/MM-1997-06-14.pdf|title=Eurochart Hot 100 Singles|magazine=[[Music & Media]]|volume=14|issue=24|page=15|date=14 June 1997|access-date=28 July 2020}}</ref>
|9
|-
!scope="row"|Iceland ([[Íslenski listinn|Íslenski Listinn Topp 40]])<ref>{{cite news|url=https://timarit.is/page/2957313#page/n7/mode/2up|title= Íslenski Listinn NR. 231 Vikuna 24.7. '97 – 30.7. '97|newspaper=[[Dagblaðið Vísir]]|page=22|date=25 July 1997|access-date=8 April 2018}}</ref>
|4
|-
{{single chart|Ireland2|4|artist=Radiohead|song=Paranoid Android|rowheader=true|access-date=15 February 2020|refname="Irish S"}}
|-
!scope="row"|Netherlands ([[Dutch Top 40|Dutch Top 40 Tipparade]])<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.top40.nl/tipparade/1997/week-29|title=Tipparade-lijst van week 29, 1997|lang=dutch| publisher=[[Dutch Top 40]]|access-date=20 March 2023}}</ref>
|5
|-
{{single chart|Dutch100|61|artist=Radiohead|song=Paranoid Android|rowheader=true}}
|-
{{single chart|Scotland|2|date=19970607|artist=Radiohead|song=Paranoid Android|rowheader=true}}
|-
{{single chart|Sweden|53|artist=Radiohead|song=Paranoid Android|rowheader=true}}
|-
{{single chart|UK|3|date=19970607|rowheader=true}}
|}
{{col-2}}

===Year-end charts===
{|class="wikitable plainrowheaders" style="text-align:center"
|+Year-end chart performance for "Paranoid Android"
!Chart (1997)
!Position
|-
!scope="row"|Iceland (Íslenski Listinn Topp 40)<ref>{{cite news|url=https://timarit.is/page/2963913?iabr=on#page/n15/mode/2up/|title=Árslistinn 1997 – Íslenski Listinn – 100 Vinsælustu Lögin|newspaper=Dagblaðið Vísir|language=is|page=25|date=2 January 1998|access-date=15 February 2020}}</ref>
|23
|-
!scope="row"|UK Singles (OCC)<ref>{{cite magazine|title=Top 100 Singles 1997|magazine=[[Music Week]]|page=27|date=17 January 1998}}</ref>
|80
|}
{|class="wikitable plainrowheaders" style="text-align:center"
!Chart (2001)
!Position
|-
!scope="row"|Canada ([[Nielsen SoundScan]])<ref>{{cite web|url=http://jamshowbiz.com/JamMusicCharts/2001_singles2.html|title=Canada's Top 200 Singles of 2001|publisher=[[Jam!]]|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20020726120310/http://jamshowbiz.com/JamMusicCharts/2001_singles2.html|archive-date=26 July 2002|access-date=28 March 2022}}</ref>
|193
|}
{{col-end}}

==Certifications==
{{Certification Table Top|caption=Certifications and sales for "Paranoid Android"}}
{{Certification Table Entry|region=Canada|type=single|artist=Radiohead|title=Paranoid Android|award=Gold|relyear=1997|certyear=2021|access-date=10 March 2021}}
{{Certification Table Entry|region=New Zealand|type=single|title=Paranoid Android|artist=Radiohead|award=Gold|relyear=1997|certyear=2023|source=radioscope|access-date=2 September 2025}}
{{Certification Table Entry|region=United Kingdom|type=single|artist=Radiohead|title=Paranoid Android|award=Gold|relyear=1997|certyear=2022|id=13135-1730-1|access-date=7 October 2022}}
{{Certification Table Bottom|nosales=true|noshipments=true|streaming=true}}

==Cover versions==
* [[Jazz piano|Jazz pianist]] [[Brad Mehldau]] recorded a nine-minute [[Cover version|cover]] of "Paranoid Android" on his album ''[[Largo (Brad Mehldau album)|Largo]]'' (2002), featuring percussionists [[Jim Keltner]] and [[Matt Chamberlain]], as well as a horn section. Additionally, Mehldau performed a 19-minute version of the song on ''[[Live in Tokyo (Brad Mehldau album)|Live in Tokyo]]'' (2004).<ref>Footman, 2007. p. 193</ref>
* The [[University of Massachusetts Amherst]]'s [[University of Massachusetts Minuteman Marching Band|Minuteman Marching Band]] covered the song live in a version featuring [[xylophone]]s, [[Tubular bells|chimes]], [[snare drum]]s, [[cymbal]]s, [[bass drum]] and [[timpani]].<ref>{{cite web|last=Cory|date=6 April 2004|title=UMASS Front Percussion Ensemble: 'Paranoid Android' [Track Review]|url=https://www.pitchforkmedia.com/article/track_review/29652-paranoid-android|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080407101743/https://www.pitchforkmedia.com/article/track_review/29652-paranoid-android|archive-date=7 April 2008|access-date=12 October 2008|website=[[Pitchfork (website)|Pitchfork]]}}</ref>
* Numerous Radiohead [[tribute album]]s include a version of "Paranoid Android", including ''Rockabye Baby! Lullaby Renditions of Radiohead'' and ''Plastic Mutations: The Electronic Tribute to Radiohead''.
* The [[reggae]] group [[Easy Star All-Stars]] covered ''OK Computer'' in its entirety for ''[[Radiodread]]'' (2006).<ref>Footman, 2007. p. 196</ref> Producer Michael G noted that "Paranoid Android" was particularly difficult to arrange for reggae, saying "There are songs like 'Paranoid Android', which flips between 4/4 time and 7/8 time about 13 times, and I also had to think about other ways to reinterpret those parts with horns, melodica, organ&nbsp;... it was a great challenge."<ref>{{cite magazine |last=Lawrence |first=Eddy |date=14 August 2006 |url=https://www.timeout.com/london/music/easy-star-all-stars-3 |title=Easy Star All Stars |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160305165456/http://www.timeout.com/london/music/easy-star-all-stars-3 |archive-date=5 March 2016 |magazine=[[Time Out (company)|Time Out]] |access-date=24 October 2008}}</ref>
* [[Sia]] covered the song for the [[neo soul]] tribute ''[[Exit Music: Songs with Radio Heads]]'' (2006), and this version later appeared on ''[[The O.C.]]'' episode "[[The Chrismukk-huh?]]".
* Los Angeles [[string quartet]] the Section recorded the song for ''Strung Out on OK Computer: The String Quartet Tribute to Radiohead'' (2001);<ref>Footman, 2007. p. 194</ref> half of this quartet went on to form the Section Quartet, who performed "Paranoid Android" and the rest of ''OK Computer'' during two concerts in October 2006.<ref>{{cite web |last=Solarski |first=Matthew |date=11 October 2006 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090114075834/http://www.pitchforkmedia.com/article/track_review/29652-paranoid-android |archive-date=14 January 2009 |title=String Quartet Tackles Radiohead's ''OK Computer'' |website=[[Pitchfork (website)|Pitchfork]] |url=http://www.pitchforkmedia.com/article/news/39082-string-quartet-tackles-radioheads-ok-computer |access-date=12 October 2011}}</ref>
* [[Weezer]] covered "Paranoid Android" in both a live studio version released as a [[YouTube]] video and in concerts during their 2011 summer tour.<ref>{{cite magazine |url=https://www.nme.com/news/weezer/56956 |title=Radiohead's 'Paranoid Android' - video |magazine=NME |date=29 May 2011 |access-date=7 August 2011}}</ref> ''Pitchfork''{{'}}s Tom Breihan called the Weezer cover "a ''fucking weird'' experience",<ref>{{cite web |last=Breihan |first=Tom |date=27 May 2011 |url=https://pitchfork.com/news/42657-watch-weezer-cover-radioheads-paranoid-android |title=Weezer Cover Radiohead's 'Paranoid Android' |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111111010505/http://www.pitchfork.com/news/42657-watch-weezer-cover-radioheads-paranoid-android/ |archive-date=11 November 2011 |website=[[Pitchfork (magazine)|Pitchfork]] |access-date=7 August 2011}}</ref> and [[Jenny Eliscu]] of ''Rolling Stone'' criticised the song as "mainly boring" for not venturing far enough from Weezer's traditional sound.<ref>{{cite magazine |last=Eliscu |first=Jenny |date=13 June 2011 |title=Paranoid Android by Weezer |magazine=[[Rolling Stone]] |url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/songreviews/paranoid-android-20110613 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110619201741/https://www.rollingstone.com/music/songreviews/paranoid-android-20110613| archive-date=19 June 2011 |url-status=dead}}</ref>
* The Montreal duo Stick&Bow recorded a 6:14 cover of "Paranoid Android" on their 2019 album Resonance, arranged for the cello and marimba.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Musbach |first=Julie |title=Stick&Bow Present RESONANCE |url=https://www.broadwayworld.com/montreal/article/StickBow-Present-RESONANCE-20191018 |access-date=8 April 2022 |website=[[BroadwayWorld]] |language=en}}</ref>
* On 23 October 2020, Australian indie rock band [[Ball Park Music]] performed a cover of the song live for [[Triple J]]'s ''[[Like a Version]]'' segment, alongside a performance of their track "[[Cherub (song)|Cherub]]".<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.nme.com/en_au/news/music/ball-park-music-cover-paranoid-android-radiohead-for-triple-j-like-a-version-2795282/ |title=Ball Park Music cover a Radiohead classic for triple j's Like a Version |website=[[NME Australia]] |date=23 October 2020 |access-date=23 October 2020 |last=Bruce |first=Jasper}}</ref> ''[[Music Feeds]]'' thought the cover "play[ed] it fairly safe", additionally stating the cover had been "execute[d] with such finesse",<ref>{{cite web |url=https://musicfeeds.com.au/news/watch-ball-park-music-cover-radioheads-paranoid-android-for-like-a-version/ |title=Watch Ball Park Music cover Radiohead's 'Paranoid Android' for Like a Version |website=[[Music Feeds]] |date=23 October 2020 |access-date=24 October 2020 |last=Gallagher |first=Alex}}</ref> whilst ''[[Junkee]]'' felt it was "performed with energy and enthusiasm, by a bunch of committed and attentive musicians".<ref>{{cite web |url=https://junkee.com/ball-park-music-radiohead/275437/ |title=Watch Ball Park Music tear apart Radiohead's 'Paranoid Android' for Like a Version |website=[[Junkee]] |date=23 October 2020 |access-date=24 October 2020 |last=Earp |first=Joseph}}</ref>

==Notes==
{{Reflist}}

==References==
* {{cite book|last1=Buckley|first1=Peter|last2=Jonathan Buckley|title=The Rough Guide to Rock|publisher=[[Rough Guides]]|year=2003|isbn=1-84353-105-4|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=haEfq-nKqjgC }}
* {{cite book |last=Doheny |first=James |title=Radiohead: Back to Save the Universe: The Stories Behind Every Song |publisher=Thunder's Mouth Press |year=2002 |isbn=1-56025-398-3}}
* {{cite book|last=Footman|first=Tim|title=Welcome to the Machine: OK Computer and the Death of the Classic Album|publisher=Chrome Dreams|year=2007|isbn=978-0-634-04619-3|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=MEU1AAAACAAJ}}
* {{cite book |last=Griffiths |first=Dai |title=OK Computer |publisher=[[Continuum International Publishing Group]] |year=2004 |isbn=0-8264-1663-2 |url-access=registration |url=https://archive.org/details/okcomputer0000grif }}
* {{cite book|last1=Kitts|first1=Jeff|last2=Tolinski, Brad |title=Guitar World Presents the 100 Greatest Guitarists of All Time|publisher=[[Hal Leonard Corporation]]|year=2002|isbn=0-634-04619-5|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Fg838EcECUwC}}
* {{cite journal|last=Neary|first=Clara|title='Please Could You Stop the Noise': The Grammar of Multimodal Meaning-Making in Radiohead's 'Paranoid Android.' |journal=Language and Literature|volume=28|issue=1 |date=February 2019|pages=41–60 |doi=10.1177/0963947019827073|hdl=10034/622492|s2cid=150770537 |hdl-access=free}}
* {{cite book |last=Osborn |first=Brad |title=Beyond Verse and Chorus: Experimental Formal Structures in Post-Millennial Experimental Rock Music |publisher=PhD Dissertation, University of Washington |year=2010 |isbn=978-1244582774}}
* {{cite book |last=Randall |first=Mac |title=Exit Music: The Radiohead Story |publisher=[[Omnibus Press]] |orig-year=2000|date=2004 |isbn=1-84449-183-8|url=https://archive.org/details/exitmusicradiohe0000rand |url-access=registration }}
* {{cite book|last=Tate|first=Joseph|title=The Music and Art of Radiohead|publisher=[[Ashgate Publishing]]|year=2005|isbn=0-7546-3980-0|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Or21d_EctfsC |display-authors=etal}}
* {{cite book|title=OK Computer: Radiohead: Guitar, Tablature, Vocal|publisher=Alfred Publishing Company|year=2001|isbn=0-7579-9166-1}}

==External links==
* {{YouTube|fHiGbolFFGw|"Paranoid Android"}}

{{Radiohead}}
{{Ivor Novello Best Song}}
{{Authority control}}

[[Category:1997 songs]]
[[Category:1997 singles]]
[[Category:Radiohead songs]]
[[Category:Animated music videos]]
[[Category:Art rock songs]]
[[Category:Ball Park Music songs]]
[[Category:British progressive rock songs]]
[[Category:Parlophone singles]]
[[Category:Song recordings produced by Nigel Godrich]]
[[Category:Songs written by Colin Greenwood]]
[[Category:Songs written by Ed O'Brien]]
[[Category:Songs written by Jonny Greenwood]]
[[Category:Songs written by Philip Selway]]
[[Category:Songs written by Thom Yorke]]