The Red Right Hand

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Lore & Background

The liner notes for Murder Ballads state that the phrase "red right hand" is from a line in John Milton's epic poem Paradise Lost that refers to divine vengeance. The opening song on the album, "Song of Joy," states of a murderer: "It seems he has done many, many more, / quotes John Milton on the walls in the victim's blood. / The police are investigating at tremendous cost. / In my house he wrote 'his red right hand'. / That, I'm told, is from Paradise Lost." The aforementioned appearance in Paradise Lost (Book II, 170-174) is: "What if the breath that kindled those grim fires, / Awaked, should blow them into sevenfold rage, / And plunge us in the flames; or from above / Should intermitted vengeance arm again / His red right hand to plague us?" The term itself appears to be Milton's translation of the term "rubente dextera" in Horace's Ode I.2,2-3. Co-writer Mick Harvey recalled that the song originated during the songwriting process for the band's 1994 album Let Love In. The lyrics describe "a shadowy, alluring, and manipulative figure, stalking the land and striking a combination of fear and awe everywhere he goes" who is "seemingly part deity, part demon". While writing the lyrics, Cave "filled an entire notebook" with descriptions of the town the song is set in, "including maps and sketches of prominent buildings, virtually none of which made it into the lyrics." Cave later said that the town and landscape depicted in the song is a "reconstructed" version of Wangaratta, his hometown. Biographer Mark Mordue notes that it is "still somewhere real enough for those lyrics to serve as a map that could guide you from one point to another with an eerie familiarity." In 2004, researcher Kim Beissel claimed that "Red Right Hand" was loosely based on the 1987 Tom Waits song "Way Down in the Hole".

In Their Own Story

The song has become best known for its use in the Scream film series and later as the theme song to the British period crime drama TV series Peaky Blinders, which resulted in the song receiving a re-release single in 2014. It has been covered by ex-partner PJ Harvey, Arctic Monkeys, Iggy Pop, Pete Yorn, Jarvis Cocker and Snoop Dogg, among others. In 2005, Cave was a guest performer on his former girlfriend Anita Lane's cover of the song. The song was used in the first three films in the Scream franchise, as well as in the fifth, sixth and seventh installments of the series. Scream 4 stands as the only film in the franchise not to feature the song. The original version appeared on the soundtrack album for the first film in 1996, while a remixed version by DJ Spooky appears on the Scream 2 (1997) album. Nick Cave recorded another version, sometimes referred to as "Red Right Hand 2", for Scream 3 (2000) and released it on his 3CD compilation album, B-Sides & Rarities (2005).

Reader's Guide

The song was used in the South Australian Tourism Board's Barossa Valley television commercial campaign, Barossa, Be Consumed, directed by Jeffrey Darling. The song was used by New York design firm GrandArmy in a promotional clip for the Mexican tequila company El Jimador. It appeared in the films Dumb and Dumber (1994), Songs in the Key of X: Music from and Inspired by the X-Files (1996), Scream (1996), Box of Moonlight (1996), Hellboy (2004) in a cover version by Pete Yorn, Cirque du Freak: The Vampire's Assistant (2009), Jack Irish: Bad Debts (2012), Peaky Blinders (2013–2022) as the title track, Peaky Blinders: The Immortal Man (2026) for which a version was made, Wentworth (2019–2021), The Lost City (2022), and Dexter: Resurrection (2025). The song was used in the 1994 The X-Files episode "Ascension", playing during Duane Barry's car ride, with Dana Scully in the trunk. In the liner notes for the compilation album, Songs in the Key of X: Music from and Inspired by the X-Files (1996) The X-Files producer Chris Carter explained that the song was the direct inspiration for the anthology. It was used as the main theme for the BBC television show Peaky Blinders. A version by popular English rock band Arctic Monkeys appeared in episode 3 of series 2, a version by US punk and garage rock band Fidlar in the opening episode of series 4, and a cover by British folk singer Laura Marling in the season 4 finale. The song was the main theme song for ABC television program Jack Irish, starring Guy Pearce. The song was used in the Apple TV+ television sports comedy-drama show Ted Lasso episode "International Break". The song was used in the first episode of "Dexter: Resurrection".

Did You Know?

• The title comes from John Milton's epic poem Paradise Lost (1667), in which it refers to the vengeful hand of God.
• Only "The Mercy Seat" has appeared in more of Nick Cave's live sets since 1984 than "Red Right Hand".
• The song was the direct inspiration for the anthology album Songs in the Key of X: Music from and Inspired by the X-Files, according to X-Files producer Chris Carter.
• Scream 4 is the only film in the Scream franchise not to feature the song.
• In 2004, researcher Kim Beissel claimed that "Red Right Hand" was loosely based on the 1987 Tom Waits song "Way Down in the Hole".