Prison Sex

---

title: "Prison Sex" type: doc version: 1 created: 2026-02-28 author: "Wikipedia contributors" status: active scope: public tags: ["1993-songs", "1993-debut-singles", "music-video-controversies", "obscenity-controversies-in-music", "songs-about-child-abuse", "songs-about-prison", "songs-about-sexual-assault", "songs-written-by-adam-jones-(musician)", "songs-written-by-maynard-james-keenan", "songs-written-by-danny-carey", "songs-written-by-paul-d'amour", "stop-motion-animated-music-videos", "tool-(band)-songs", "zoo-entertainment-(record-label)-singles"] description: "1993 single by Tool" topic_path: "arts" source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prison_Sex" license: "CC BY-SA 4.0" wikipedia_page_id: 0 wikipedia_revision_id: 0

::summary 1993 single by Tool ::

::data[format=table title="Infobox song"]

Field	Value
name	Prison Sex
cover	Prisonsex.jpg
type	single
artist	Tool
album	Undertow
released	1993
recorded
studio	Grand Master (Hollywood)
genre	Alternative metal
length	4:56
label	Zoo
lyricist	Maynard James Keenan
next_title	Sober
next_year	1994
::

| name = Prison Sex | cover = Prisonsex.jpg | alt = | type = single | artist = Tool | album = Undertow | released = 1993 | recorded = | studio = Grand Master (Hollywood) | genre = Alternative metal | length = 4:56 | label = Zoo | composer =

• Adam Jones
• Maynard James Keenan
• Danny Carey
• Paul D'Amour | lyricist = Maynard James Keenan | producer =
• Sylvia Massy
• Tool | prev_title = | prev_year = | next_title = Sober | next_year = 1994

"Prison Sex" is a song by American rock band Tool. Featuring lyrics written by frontman Maynard James Keenan, it was released as the first single from their debut studio album, Undertow (1993). The song uses a modified drop-D tuning (which is originally tuned as DADGBE, however, Prison Sex is tuned as BADGBE). The track features an "anti-climax" coda, in which memorable verses and choruses dissolve into an unrelated, quiet final section.

Music video

The video for "Prison Sex" was created with stop-motion animation techniques, and was directed by the band's guitarist Adam Jones (who had previous experience in art direction and animation, including work on the dinosaurs in Jurassic Park) and was edited by Ken Andrews. The video was removed from the MTV playlist due to its disturbing content. "Prison Sex" was also nominated for 1994's MTV Music Video Awards' [[MTV Video Music Award for Best Special Effects|Best Special Effects]] category.

The video primarily revolves around a battered white humanoid, robotic-like doll figure trapped in a room full of cabinets that contain other humanoids, such as a caterpillar with the main humanoid's face, a jar with a wasp inside, a robotic character with a little child's face that twists and turns, and a being made out of what looks like meat and feces. During various points in the video the main character is confronted by a larger black humanoid who causes the doll to go catatonic. While catatonic, the black figure molests the doll with a paintbrush. In the beginning of the video, the black figure severs the doll's legs (even though they still move by themselves) and hangs them out of reach of the doll. By the end of the video, the doll subjects itself to the abuse by painting itself. In the final shot, it is revealed that the doll was in its own cabinet the whole time when the black figure closes the cabinet door.

Controversy

With the release of the 1993 single "Prison Sex" and its music video, directed and created by Adam Jones, MuchMusic called the band into question by deeming the video too graphic and offensive, later running an episode of its Too Much 4 Much series to discuss the video.

MTV stopped airing the "Prison Sex" video after a few viewings due to its symbolism depicting the sensitive subject of child abuse. Maynard James Keenan, who wrote the lyrics, has been quite clear in concerts about his dislike for his stepfather.

Track listing

UK version

1. "Prison Sex"
2. "Undertow" (live)
3. "Opiate" (live)
4. "Prison Sex" (radio edit)

German version

1. "Prison Sex"
2. "Intolerance" (live)
3. "Undertow" (live)
4. "Opiate" (live)

Australian

1. "Prison Sex"
2. "Intolerance" (live)
3. "Undertow" (live)
4. "Opiate" (live)
5. "Prison Sex" (radio edit)

Promotional radio version

1. "Prison Sex" (radio edit)
2. "Prison Sex"

Charts

::data[format=table] | Chart (1994) | Peak position | Australia (ARIA) | |---|---|---| | 172 | | | ::

::data[format=table] | Chart (2019) | Peak position | |---|---| ::

References

References

1. (1993). "Undertow". [[Zoo Entertainment (record label).
2. Wiederhorn, Jon. (July 10, 2020). "The Story Behind The Song: Tool's Prison Sex".
3. https://www.songsterr.com/a/wsa/tool-prison-sex-tab-s20476
4. https://flypaper.soundfly.com/tips/a-primer-on-tools-use-of-the-drop-b-tuning/
5. Osborn, Brad. (2013). "Subverting the Verse–Chorus Paradigm: Terminally Climactic Song Forms in Recent Rock Music". Music Theory Spectrum.
6. Circus magazine]]
7. Roman Sokal. (2001). "Stepping Out From the Shadows".
8. (1994). "A Tool for the Truly Cool - Big hit of Lollapalooza tour gears up for second album". San Francisco Chronicle.
9. Kabir Akhtar. "F10.". The Tool FAQ.
10. "Tool ARIA chart history (to August 2025)". ARIA.

::callout[type=info title="Wikipedia Source"] This article was imported from Wikipedia and is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Content has been adapted to SurfDoc format. Original contributors can be found on the article history page. ::