Tears for Fears are an English pop rock band formed in the early 1980s by Roland Orzabal and Curt Smith. Founded after the dissolution of their first band, the mod-influenced Graduate, they were initially associated with the New Wave synthesizer bands of the early 1980s, but later branched out into mainstream rock and pop which led to international chart success. The band have sold more than 22 million albums worldwide (including over 8 million in the United States alone).
"Mad World" is a song by the British band Tears for Fears. Written by Roland Orzabal and sung by bassist Curt Smith, it was the band's third single release and first chart hit, reaching #3 on the UK Singles Chart in November 1982. Both "Mad World" and its b-side, "Ideas As Opiates", would turn up on the band's debut LP The Hurting the following year. The song would eventually become Tears for Fears' first international success, reaching the Top 40 in several countries between 1982 and 1983.
Two decades later, the song made a popular resurgence when it was covered in a much slower, ballad-like style by composers Michael Andrews and Gary Jules for the soundtrack to the movie.