Teenage kicks

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Teenage kicks
The Undertones
publication 1978
length 2:26
Genre (s) Powerpop
Author (s) John O'Neill
Publisher (s) Good Vibrations Records
album 7``, single

Teenage Kicks is a song by the Northern Irish punk rock band The Undertones that was first released in 1978. It was the favorite song of the famous DJ John Peel .

History of origin

Cover of the reissue from Sire Records, WEA (1978)

The song was written by John O'Neill and released as a single on Good Vibrations Records in Northern Ireland in 1978 . Feargal Sharkey (vocals), John O'Neill, Damian O'Neill (both guitar), Michael Bradley (bass) and Billy Doherty (drums) played on the recording . It also marked the band's first release and landed a deal with Sire Records , WEA , which released the single in the rest of the UK. It was not included on their debut album The Undertones . The text deals with the subject of love from the perspective of a teenager .

Single release

A side
  1. Teenage Kicks - 2:26
  2. Smarter Than U - 1:35
B side
  1. True Confessions - 1:54
  2. Emergency cases - 1:53

Music video

The video was shot on Primrose Hill . The setting was created on the day of shooting. At that time, the concept of “music video” was still in its infancy. The video only shows the band playing teenage kicks on an imaginary stage. The only direction from the director was to pretend to play his instruments. Still, the band members were unsure. But Feargal Sharkey drove them to deliver the best performance. Michael Bradley later called the video the best of their videos, with the possible exception of My Perfect Cousin .

meaning

The song peaked at # 31 in the UK Top 40 in October 1978 but was best known as the favorite song of radio host John Peel , who regularly played the song on his shows. As recently as 2001, Peel said of the song in an interview with The Guardian :

“It is the Undertones' Teenage Kicks, still, after 23 years, the record by which all others must be judged. Maybe once a fortnight, after a few days of listening to sizzling new releases and worrying that the music is merging into angst but otherwise characterless soup, I play Teenage Kicks to remind myself exactly how a great record should sound. ”

“After 23 years, The Undertones' Teenage Kicks is still the one release that everyone else should be judged by. Perhaps every two weeks after listening to new releases and worrying that music will become meaningless or get lost in a characterless soup, I play teenage kicks again to remind myself how a great song should sound. "

- John Peel : The Guardian
Tombstone of John Peel .

He himself doesn't know why he admires the song so much and can give the only reason that it is a song that simply cannot be improved any more. He also wanted the first two lines, “Teenage dreams, so hard to beat”, as a grave inscription. When Peel passed away in 2004, his wish was granted. However, the tombstone was only placed on the grave in 2008.

The song also became the club anthem of the Derry City football club . It also served as the namesake of a punk label from Augsburg .

Teenage Kicks is also the title of a BBC documentary about the band's history and is also the subtitle of a tribute album to John Peel released in 2005 .

Cover versions

The song was by a number of bands gecovert . The following list is only a selection.

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Michael Bradley: Liner Notes . In: The Undertones Re-Release . Union Square Music, 2009.
  2. ↑ Search via Everyhit.com. Retrieved July 15, 2011 .
  3. ↑ a b “Teenage Kicks: the lyrics I want on my tombstone”. October 27, 2004, accessed July 15, 2011 .
  4. ^ Sally Peck: John Peel gets Teenage Kicks epitaph. The Telegraph , February 13, 2008, accessed July 15, 2011 .
  5. ↑ Teenage + Kicks at Discogs