Reception
In general, "Monkey Gone to Heaven" received a positive critical reaction. British magazine NME, reviewing the UK 7" single in March 1989, said: "All the smart bastards are mixing strings with grunge guitars nowadays and the Pixies are no exception. Snarled vocals, sci-fi lyrics, and the usual molten lava flow of guitars burn another crater where your ears used to be. 'Monkey Gone to Heaven' pukes acid and poetry into America's AOR heartland before being splattered by the faster and more direct sting of the second track 'Manta Ray'." Upon the release of Doolittle in April 1989, NME's Edwin Pouncey added: "the wonderful 'Monkey Gone to Heaven' is laced with lush but unobtrusive strings which nibble round the edge of the song and push it into a new realm of arrangement for the band. The opportunity to give 'Monkey' the full Philharmonic treatment, complete with heavenly harp, must have been a temptation to them. Wisely such a folly has been resisted."
Q, in their review of Doolittle, described "Monkey Gone to Heaven": "It's not pretty, but its carefully structured noise and straight forward rhythmic insistence makes perfect sense: a gut feeling that is doubled when it gets within sniffing distance of a tune, as on 'Monkey Gone to Heaven' or 'Debaser'." Rolling Stone's David Fricke, reviewing Doolittle, said "Monkey Gone to Heaven" was a "a corrosive, compelling meditation on God and garbage." The critical success of "Monkey Gone to Heaven" was also reflected commercially; the song reached number five on the Billboard Modern Rock Tracks chart, marking the Pixies' debut in the American charts. However, the song did not perform as well in the British charts, reaching a peak position of number 60 and falling off the charts after three weeks.
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