Main Index Pablo Honey The Bends OK Computer Kid A Amnesiac Hail to the Thief In Rainbows The King of Limbs A Moon Shaped Pool Thom Yorke Jonny Greenwood Ed O'Brien Colin Greenwood Philip Selway
'Bullet Proof' had its live premiere along with 'Lozenge Of Love' during an acoustic set on June 15th 1993 at the FNAC Auditorium in Nancy, France. At this early stage the lyrics bear little resemblance to the final ones, only the first verse is roughly in place:
limb by limb and cheek by cheek
crawling up inside of me
every day, every hour
i wish that i was bullet proof

there's something wrong, something near
i can feel it in my bones
everywhere everyhow
wish that it was bullet proof

something near, something's burning
right inside my mind
something near, something's burning
i wish that i was bullet proof
When Thom recorded the song for a syndicated American radio broadcast by Westwood One (probably in late june 1993), the lyrics were already more developed than in the Nancy debut:
limb by limb and tooth by tooth
crawling up inside of me
every day, every hour
wish that i was bullet proof

crawling up from under me
crawling up under me
every day, every hour
wish that i was bullet proof

something here has gone wrong
something deep inside of me
every day, every hour
wish that i was bullet proof
At the end of touring for Pablo Honey, on november 26th 1993 in Madrid, Thom recorded another acoustic rendition for the Spanish national radio channel Radio 3. While the first and second verse have already reached their final form, this version features a completely different third verse, which is only documented in this recording:
limb by limb and tooth by tooth
stirring up inside of me
every day, every hour
wish that i was bullet proof

wax me, mould me
heat the pins and stab them in
you have turned me into this
just wish that it was bullet proof

so say a prayer, pray for me
as i fall out of here
tumble down, down a cliff
just wish that i was bullet proof
The song was included on this august 1994 work-in-progress tape compilation. The handwriting is Thom's. While Side A of the cassette also lists a few rough mixes, it appears to contain the finished version of the 'Bullet Proof':


Phil: Did the drum take after a five mile run - it shows.
Ed: The only song that I've ever played on when I was not allowed to hear the backing track. "Just make whooping oodle noises for three minutes", was the cry from the control room. 'Bastards', I thought at the time.

Jonny: The backing vocal (counter-melody) in the final chorus is utterly beautiful - so are Ed's bubbles in the second verse....

Colin: More mellow stuff.

Thom: In L.A. if you drive round in a limo in the wrong area someone might resent it and shoot randomly into the blacked out glass.
Phil: "The song had a texture to it with Thom sitting down to play acoustic. Naturally you don't want to blare away with four-on-the-floor, with big tree trunks of sticks. I suppose I draw my drum parts mainly from Thom; he's got a very good sense of rhythm."
  Kid A tour june 2000 july 2000 september 2000 october 2000
The Bends [14] 01 02 07 12 15 19 23 25 29 02 06 08 11 17
Bones [19] 13 15 17 18 19 21 22 25 26 27 30 01 07 01 07 11 12 28 08
(Nice Dream) [7] 13 25 27 04 07 15 20
Bullet Proof..I Wish I Was [3] 19 22 08
  Amnesiac tour may 2001 june 2001 07/'01 august 2001 september 2001 10/2001
The Bends [20] 26 28 30 01 02 04 09 18 23 27 29 07 30 03 14 16 17 09 14 04
Bones [4] 28 30 18 20
Bullet Proof..I Wish I Was [2] 28 30
  Hail to the Thief tour (1st half) may 2003 june 2003 july 2003 august 2003
The Bends [3] 08 12 21
Bones [4] 07 08 14 03
(Nice Dream) [1] 18
Bullet Proof..I Wish I Was [1] 24
  Hail to the Thief tour (2nd half) sept. 2003 october 2003 november 2003 dec. 2003 april/may 2004
The Bends [8] 11 19 22 23 27 29 01 04
(Nice Dream) [2] 15 24
Bullet Proof..I Wish I Was [1] 18
  In Rainbows tour (1st half) may 2008 june 2008 july 2008
The Bends [4] 06 18 12 25
Bullet Proof..I Wish I Was [1] 05
  In Rainbows tour (2nd half) august 2008 october 2008 march 2009 august 2009
The Bends [9] 01 09 12 13 25 28 01 16 23
(Nice Dream) [3] 21 23 29
Bullet Proof..I Wish I Was [1] 08