Monkey Wrench

"Monkey Wrench" is the lead single from The Colour and the Shape. It was released on April 28, 1997. The song comes after the short opening track "Doll" and is followed by "Hey, Johnny Park!".

Song meaning
"Monkey Wrench" is about a person freeing themselves from a relationship in response to being the problem of it. The song's lyrics are based on Dave's divorce with Jennifer Youngblood.

Other versions

 * The earliest public performance of "Monkey Wrench" was during an episode of TFI Friday on May 2, 1997 at the Channel 4 Studios in London. The performance was taped early in the day and later broadcast at 6:30 p.m. The performance was intended to be live but after the band went into a tirade of obscenities during a dress rehearsal that they mistakenly believed to be the actual live broadcast, the producers of TFI Friday decided to pre-record instead.
 * A version recorded during Episode 4 of Series 9 of Later... with Jools Holland on May 31, 1997 at the BBC Television Centre was released on the DVD Later... with Jools Holland: The First 15 Years.

Live versions

 * A live version recorded on February 1, 2000 at the Chapel in Melbourne, Australia was released on the CD2 & Australian versions of the "Breakout" single.
 * A live version recorded on February 29, 2000 at the Melkweg in Amsterdam, Netherlands was released on the Live in Holland Disc 2 version of the "Next Year" single.
 * A live version recorded on December 4, 2002 at the Oslo Spektrum in Oslo, Norway was released on the special Norwegian edition of One by One.
 * A live version filmed at Hyde Park on June 17, 2006 was released on the Live at Hyde Park DVD.
 * A live version filmed at Wembley Stadium on June 7, 2008 was released on the Live at Wembley Stadium DVD.

Track listing
CD #1:
 * 1) "Monkey Wrench"
 * 2) "Up in Arms" (Slow version)
 * 3) "The Colour and the Shape"

CD #2:
 * 1) "Monkey Wrench"
 * 2) "Down in the Park" (Tubeway Army cover)
 * 3) "See You" (Acoustic version)

Netherlands CD and UK 7" Vinyl:
 * 1) "Monkey Wrench"
 * 2) "The Colour and the Shape"

In other media
"Monkey Wrench" is a playable track in a handful of music rhythm titles, including a cover version in . The actual track was available in ', ', every other ' video game since 2008, and as DLC for '. Additionally, "Monkey Wrench" was mashed up with the Beastie Boys song "Sabotage" in .

"Monkey Wrench" played in the ending credits for the  episode "Too Cute".