| American Idiot | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Studio album by Green Day | ||||
| Released | September 21, 2004 | |||
| Recorded | April, 2003 – March, 2004 at Studio 880, Oakland, California; Ocean Way Recording, Hollywood | |||
| Genre | Alternative rock, punk rock | |||
| Length | 57:12 | |||
| Label | Reprise | |||
| Producer | Rob Cavallo, Green Day | |||
| Green Day chronology | ||||
| ||||
| Singles from American Idiot | ||||
Released: May 24, 2006
Released: August 25, 2006
Released: June 16, 2007
Released: October 11, 2007 | ||||
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The album achieved popularity worldwide, charting in 26 countries and reaching number one in nineteen of them, including the United States and the United Kingdom. Since its release, American Idiot has sold over 14 million copies worldwide[2] and over 6 million copies in the US alone.[3] including 267,000 in its opening week.[4][5] The album won numerous awards including a Grammy for Best Rock Album, and received acclaim by critics.
Background and recording[]
In mid-2005, Green Day convened at Studio 880 in Oakland, California, and recorded about 20 songs for an album titled Cigarettes and Valentines.[6][7] However, the master tracks went missing.[8] The band, wondering if it should re-record the songs, consulted with producer Rob Cavallo over what to do. Cavallo told the band members to ask themselves if the missing tracks represented their best work.[9] Guitarist Billie Joe Armstrong said the band members "couldn't honestly look at ourselves and say, 'That was the best thing we've ever done.' So we decided to move on and do something completely new."[6] The band members agreed to spend the next three months writing new material.[10]
The first new song Green Day wrote was "American Idiot". The band had difficulty following it up. One day, bassist Mike Dirnt was in the studio recording a 30-second song by himself. Armstrong decided he wanted to do the same, and drummer Tré Cool followed suit. Armstrong recalled, "It started getting more serious as we tried to outdo one another. We kept connecting these little half-minute bits until we had something." This musical suite became "Homecoming", and the band subsequently wrote another suite, "Jesus of Suburbia". Armstrong was so emboldened by the creation of the two suites that he decided to make the record an album-long conceptual piece. The band took inspiration from concept records by The Who, as well as musicals including West Side Story and Jesus Christ Superstar.[6] During their sessions at Studio 880, the members of Green Day spent their days writing material and would stay up late, drinking and discussing music. The band set up a pirate radio station from which it would broadcast jam sessions, along with occasional crank calls.[8]
With demos completed, Green Day relocated to Los Angeles to continue work on the album.[11] The group first recorded at Ocean Way Recording, then moved to Capitol Studios to complete the album.[6] Armstrong said, "As a songwriter, I get so deep into what I'm writing about, it's almost like I have to stir up shit to write about it." The band admitted to partying during the L.A. sessions; Armstrong had to schedule vocal recording sessions around his hangovers. Armstrong described the environment, "For the first time, we separated from our pasts, from how we were supposed to behave as Green Day. For the first time, we fully accepted the fact that we're rock stars."[8]
Music[]
American Idiot is a concept album that tells the story of a central character named Jesus of Suburbia. The album was a departure from Green Day's typical way of writing music. Armstrong said, "As soon as you abandon the verse-chorus-verse-chorus-bridge [song] structure ... it opens up your mind to this different way of writing, where there really are no rules." Armstrong said the band aimed to be ambitious, which he felt many contemporary rock bands were not.[6] The band favored loud guitar sounds for the record; Armstrong said "we were like, 'Let's just go balls-out on the guitar sound--plug in the Les Pauls and Marshalls and let it rip'". The guitarist played more lead guitar on the album than he had on any previous release, which he said he previously shied away from for fear of sounding "corny". Armstrong added tracks of acoustic guitar-playing throughout the record to augment his electric guitar rhythms and Cool's drumming, creating a percussive sound.[6]
Story[]
The album's protagonist, Jesus of Suburbia, emerged out of Armstrong asking himself what sort of person the title of "American Idiot" referred to. Armstrong described the character as essentially an anti-hero, a powerless "everyman" desensitized by a "steady diet of soda pop and Ritalin".[6] Jesus of Suburbia hates his town and those close to him, so he leaves for the city.[12] As the album progresses the characters St. Jimmy and Whatsername are introduced. St. Jimmy is a punk rock freedom fighter. Whatsername, inspired by the Bikini Kill song "Rebel Girl", is a "Mother Revolution" figure that Armstrong described as "kind of St. Jimmy's nemesis in a lot of ways". Both characters illustrate the "rage vs. love" theme of the album, in that "you can go with the blind rebellion of self-destruction, where Saint Jimmy is. But there's a more love-driven side to that, which is following your beliefs and ethics. And that's where Jesus of Suburbia really wants to go", according to Armstrong. Near the end of the story, St. Jimmy apparently commits suicide. While the singer did not want to give away the details of the story's resolution, he said the intention is for the listener to ultimately realize that Jesus of Suburbia is really St. Jimmy, and Jimmy is "part of the main character that pretty much dies". In the album's final song, "Whatsername", Jesus of Suburbia loses his connection with Whatsername as well.[6]
Release and reception[]
| [hide] Professional ratings | |
|---|---|
| Review scores | |
| Source | Rating |
| About.com | [13] |
| Allmusic | [14] |
| Alternative Press | [15] |
| Robert Christgau | (C+)[16] |
| Entertainment Weekly | (B+)[17] |
| The Guardian | [18] |
| Pitchfork Media | (7.2/10)[19] |
| Rolling Stone | [20] |
| Slant Magazine | [21] |
| Uncut | [22] |
Allmusic gave the album a 5 out of 5 and praised the album from both perspectives; either as "a collection of great songs", or as a whole.[14] Pitchfork Media rewarded the album with a 7.2/10 and said the "ambitious" album was successful in getting across its message, and "keeps its mood and method deliberately, tenaciously, and angrily on point".[19] Uncut wrote that although the album was heavily politically focused, "slam-dancing is still possible", in a moderate review,[22] while The New York Times praised Green Day for trumping "any pretension with melody and sheer fervor".[23]
Entertainment Weekly said that despite being based on a musical theater concept "that periodically makes no sense", Green Day "make the journey entertaining enough". It described most of the songs as forgettable, though, arguing the album focuses more on lyrics than music.[17] Robert Christgau said the album featured "emotional travails of two clueless punks" using "devices that sunk under their own weight back when The Who invented them",[16] and The Guardian called American Idiot a mess—"but a vivid, splashy, even courageous mess".[18] Rolling Stone said the album could have been, and was, a mess, but that the "individual tunes are tough and punchy enough to work on their own".[20]
In 2007, American Idiot won a Grammy for Best Rock Album and was nominated in four other categories including Album of the Year. The album helped Green Day win seven of the eight awards they were nominated for at the 2007 MTV Video Music Awards; the "Boulevard of Broken Dreams" video won six of those awards. A year later, "Boulevard of Broken Dreams" won a Grammy for Record of the Year. In 2009 Kerrang! named American Idiot the best album of the decade,[24] NME ranked it #60 in a similar list,[25] and Rolling Stone ranked it 22nd.[26] Rolling Stone also listed "Boulevard of Broken Dreams" and "American Idiot" among the 100 best songs of the 2000s, at #65 and #47 respectively.[27][28]
Accolades[]
| Publication | Accolade | Rank |
|---|---|---|
| NARM | The Definitive 200 Albums of All Time[29] | 61 |
| Rolling Stone | The 100 Greatest Albums of the Decade[30][31] | 22 |
| Rolling Stone (Readers Choice) | The 100 Greatest Albums of the Decade[32] | 1 |
| Kerrang | 100 Greatest Rock Albums of All Time[33] | 13 |
| NME | The Top 100 Greatest Albums of the Decade[34] | 60 |
| NPR | The Decade's 50 Most Important Recordings[35] | * |
| Rhapsody | The 100 Best Pop Albums of the Decade[36] | 6 |
Adaptations[]
In late 2007, Dean Gray released a mash-up version of the album—called American Edit—and became a cause célèbre when the artist was served with a cease and desist order by Green Day's record label. Tracks include "Dr. Who on Holiday" and "Boulevard of Broken Songs". Billie Joe Armstrong later stated that he heard one of the songs on the radio and enjoyed it.[37] Shortly after the album was released there was speculation that American Idiot might be made into a film. VH1 quoted Armstrong as saying "We've definitely been talking about someone writing a script for it, and there's been a few different names that have been thrown at us. It sounds really exciting, but for right now it's just talk."[38] Armstrong later stated that shooting would begin for American Idiot: The Motion Picture in 2008, stressing, "We want to see how it turns out first so that it doesn't suck."[39] On June 1, 2008 Armstrong announced in an interview with MTV.com that "it's definitely unfolding" and that "every single week there's more ideas about doing a film for American Idiot, and it's definitely going to happen",[40] but the band later said, "It is gonna take a little while." In Summer of 2010, talk about creating a movie adaption was brought up again, after actor Tom Hanks was interested in producing the movie. In an interview with Virgin Radio, when asked if the movie was "true, a lie, or a mystery?" Tré Cool responded by saying that it was "a true mystery".[41]
The American Idiot stage musical adaptation premiered at the Berkeley Repertory Theatre in September 2009. It was initially intended to run through October 11, but before the premiere, the theatre announced a three week extension. The musical is a collaboration between Green Day and director Michael Mayer.[42] Green Day does not appear in the production, but the show features an onstage band.[43] According to Susan Medak, managing director of the Berkeley Repertory, the theater was part of the producing team and had been looking for work that crosses generational lines. The production transferred to Broadway at the St. James Theatre, began previews on March 24, 2010 and officially opened on April 20, 2010. The show received mixed to positive reviews from critics, but got an all-important rave review from The New York Times.[44] American Idiot won two 2010 Tony Awards: Best Scenic Design of a Musical for Christine Jones, and Best Lighting Design of a Musical for Kevin Adams. It also received a nomination for Best Musical.[45]
The current cast features Tony award winner John Gallagher Jr. as Johnny, Michael Esper as Will, Stark Sands as Tunny, Tony Vincent as St Jimmy, Rebecca Naomi Jones as Whatsername, Mary Faber as Heather, and Christina Sajous as Extraordinary Girl. [46] The show features all of the songs from the album American Idiot, including b-sides, and songs from Green Day's follow-up album, 21st Century Breakdown.[47] On June 22, 2006, it was announced that Green Day lead singer Billie Joe Armstrong would be appearing in the Broadway production for a limited time (September 27-October 3, 2010) as St. Jimmy while Tony Vincent attends to a family matter.[48] Armstrong returned to the production in 2011 for a 50 performance run from January 1 through February 27.[49] In addition, singer Melissa Etheridge assumed the role of St. Jimmy the first week of February 2011.[50]
Track listing[]
All lyrics written by Billie Joe Armstrong except where noted, all music composed by Green Day.
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | "American Idiot" | 2:54 |
| 2. | "Jesus of Suburbia"
I. "Jesus of Suburbia" II. "City of the Damned" III. "I Don't Care" IV. "Dearly Beloved" V. "Tales of Another Broken Home" |
9:08 |
| 3. | "Holiday" | 3:52 |
| 4. | "Boulevard of Broken Dreams" | 4:20 |
| 5. | "Are We the Waiting" | 2:42 |
| 6. | "St. Jimmy" | 2:55 |
| 7. | "Give Me Novacaine" | 3:25 |
| 8. | "She's a Rebel" | 2:00 |
| 9. | "Extraordinary Girl" | 3:33 |
| 10. | "Letterbomb" | 4:06 |
| 11. | "Wake Me Up When September Ends" | 4:45 |
| 12. | "Homecoming"
I. "The Death of St. Jimmy" II. "East 12th St." III. "Nobody Likes You" (lyrics by Mike Dirnt) IV. "Rock and Roll Girlfriend" (lyrics by Tré Cool) V. "We're Coming Home Again" |
9:18 |
| 13. | "Whatsername" | 4:14 |
| Total length: | 57:12 | |
Personnel[]
- Billie Joe Armstrong – lead vocals, guitar
- Mike Dirnt – bass, backing vocals, lead vocals on "Nobody Likes You"
- Tré Cool – drums, percussion, backing vocals, lead vocals on "Rock and Roll Girlfriend"
- Rob Cavallo – piano
- Jason Freese – saxophone
- Kathleen Hanna – guest vocals on "Letterbomb"
- Rob Cavallo; Green Day – producers
- Doug McKean – engineering
- Brian "Dr. Vibb" Vibberts; Greg "Stimie" Burns; Jimmy Hoyson; Joe Brown; Dmitar "Dim-e" Krnjaic – assistant engineers
- Chris Dugan; Reto Peter – additional engineering
- Chris Lord-Alge – mixing
- Ted Jensen – mastering
Chart positions[]
Note: for all the certification definitions see: CertificationsNotes[]
- Spitz, Marc. Nobody Likes You: Inside the Turbulent Life, Times, and Music of Green Day. New York: Hyperion, 2006. ISBN 1-4013-0274-2
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