This article is about the song by American punk rock band Ramones. For the English punk band, see
Blitzkrieg Bop (band).
"Blitzkrieg Bop" is a song by the American punk rock band Ramones. It was released as the band's debut single in April 1976 in the United States. It appeared as the opening track on the band's debut album, Ramones, also released that month.
The song, whose composition was credited to the band as a whole, was written by drummer Tommy Ramone (music and lyrics) and bassist Dee Dee Ramone (lyrics).[2] Based on a simple three-chord pattern, "Blitzkrieg Bop" opens with the chant "Hey! Ho! Let's go!" The song is popular at sporting events where "Hey! Ho! Let's go!" is sometimes shouted as a rallying cry.
"Blitzkrieg Bop" is number 92 on the Rolling Stone list of The 500 Greatest Songs of All Time. In March 2005, Q magazine placed it at number 31 in its list of the 100 Greatest Guitar Tracks, and in 2008 Rolling Stone placed it number 18 on top 100 of Best Guitar Songs of All Time. In 2009 it was named the 25th greatest hard rock song of all time by VH1.[3]
[edit] Origin and meaning
"Blitzkrieg Bop" was named after the German World War II tactic blitzkrieg, which literally means "lightning war". The song was mainly written by drummer Tommy Ramone, while bassist Dee Dee Ramone came up with the title (the song was originally called "Animal Hop"). Dee Dee also changed one line: The original third verse had the line "shouting in the back now", but Dee Dee changed it to "shoot 'em in the back now". The precise meaning and subject matter of the song are, unlike many of The Ramones' other early compositions, somewhat vague and obscure. It may be a reference to attacking the exposed flank of tanks during a blitzkrieg operation, while some fans contend, based on lines such as "Shoot 'em in the back now", that the song tells of gang violence, which would seem to be more in line with the band's other songs of that era. But it is more likely that the song is simply about having a good time at a concert, perhaps an ode to early punk fans.
[edit] Composition
The time signature for this song is 4/4. The first chordal pattern in the intro goes as follows A, D, E. Until the lyrical motif of "Hey! Ho! Let's go!" occurs. The chorus contains a slight variation of the first chord progression (introduced in the intro) chord pattern with a B three bars before the end of the chorus (D,A,D,A,D,B,D,E).
[edit] Dedications
- The punk rock band Blitzkrieg Bop took their name after the song title.
- A monthly club night at the Arches in Glasgow is named after the song.
[edit] Notable covers
- The song has been covered by various artists including studio versions by Rob Zombie (for his 2003 released album Past, Present & Future), The Beautiful South, Jason Mraz, Screeching Weasel and The Hanson Brothers.
- Die Toten Hosen covered the song for the 1991 cover album Learning English, Lesson One. It features Joey Ramone as a guest musician.
- Alvin and the Chipmunks covered this song for their 2007 video game Alvin and the Chipmunks.
- Dee Dee Ramone performed bass and backing vocals for the Youth Gone Mad version, included on the Ramones Maniacs tribute album and the posthumous Youth Gone Mad featuring Dee Dee Ramone album.
- Green Day covered this song along with "Teenage Lobotomy" at the 2002 Rock and Roll Hall of Fame induction ceremony for the remaining member of the Ramones, and regularly play the song live, sometimes getting kids out of the audience to play the song on their instruments, though more usually the song "Knowledge".
- Pennywise has done a cover version dedicated to Joey Ramone. At Warped Tour July 26, 2008 at Nassau Colosseum, C. J. Ramone came on stage during Pennywise's set and played Blitzkrieg Bop with the band.
- Shonen Knife recorded the song on their 2011 album of Ramones covers, Osaka Ramones.[4]
- New Found Glory recorded the song for the deluxe version of their seventh album, Radiosurgery, which was released on October 4, 2011.
[edit] Bibliography
- Bessman, Jim (1993). Ramones: An American Band (New York: St. Martin's). ISBN 0-312-09369-1
[edit] References
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