"Monkey Gone to Heaven" was the first Pixies song to feature guest musicians: two cellists, Arthur Fiacco and Ann Rorich, and two violinists, Karen Karlsrud and Corine Metter.

The band had signed to Elektra Records at the end of 1988,[2] so the "Monkey Gone to Heaven" single was their first American and major label release.

It was critically well-received; Rolling Stone's David Fricke said "Monkey Gone to Heaven" was "a corrosive, compelling meditation on God and garbage.

Francis later expanded on the significance of the lyrics in an interview to Alternative Press, saying "It's a reference from what I understand to be Hebrew numerology, and I don't know a lot about it or any of it really.

I just remember someone telling me of the supposed fact that in the Hebrew language, especially in the Bible, you can find lots of references to man in the 5th and Satan in the 6th and God in the 7th.

Ben Sisario, author of Doolittle 33⅓, offers a slightly different interpretation of the song: "Neptune, the god of this realm [in reference to Francis' ocean comment], the 'underwater guy who controlled the sea,' hung out down there, the personification of man's relationship with the earth.

Man the divine manifestation effectively dies, and what remains is his degraded animal nature; the chintzy halo stuck on the primate's head is the symbol of that unhappy fall".

[6] In February 2022, Black Francis elaborated on the song's meaning: "I guess it's loosely inspired by the so-called human dilemma of existence, our existential problem on whether we can survive as a race.

At the end of the second chord progression, the song's main backing restarts again, with Francis screaming "Then God is seven" as the chorus approaches.

The string section of "Monkey Gone to Heaven" was recorded while Doolittle was being mixed at Carriage House Studios in Stamford, Connecticut.

[10] The production team, led by Norton, asked the studio owner John Montagnese to bring in string players for one evening session.

Montagnese hired four classical musicians from a local orchestra for the recording, with the session taking place on the afternoon of December 4, 1988.

Fiacco was surprised to find there were no scores written for the musicians to play; he then wrote a part based on riffs Francis had shown him.

British magazine NME, reviewing the UK 7-inch single in March 1989, said: "All the smart bastards are mixing strings with grunge guitars nowadays and the Pixies are no exception.

'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'.

"[1] 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.

"[16] Rolling Stone's David Fricke, reviewing Doolittle, said "Monkey Gone to Heaven" was "a corrosive, compelling meditation on God and garbage.