Playground Twist

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Playground Twist is a song by the English post-punk band Siouxsie and the Banshees, released in 1979 as the only single from their second album, Join Hands. The 3-minute track was recorded in 1978 and written by Susan Ballion (Siouxsie), Kenny Morris, John McKay, and Steven Severin, with production by Nils Stevenson and Mike Stavrou for Polydor. The B-side is "Pulled to Bits."

The song was praised by NME’s Roy Carr for its powerful, almost Bergman-like sound—featuring church bells, phased guitars, heavy percussion, a surreal sax, and Siouxsie’s distinctive vocals, best enjoyed at high volume. The music video shows the band on an indoor climbing frame as children race around; at the end the kids pull Siouxsie to the floor while she lip-syncs the final word, "drown." In the UK, the single reached No. 28 on the charts in July 1979 after entering at No. 47, and the band performed it on Top of the Pops. A live version of the B-side, "Pulled to Bits," appeared on the 1983 Nocturne live album and DVD. "Pulled to Bits" was covered by The Mars Volta in 2007 for their Wax Simulacra release.