Wake Me Up When September Ends

"Wake Me Up When September Ends"
Single by Green Day
from the album American Idiot
Released	June 13, 2005
Format	Digital download, CD single, vinyl
Recorded	2004
Genre	Alternative rock
Length	4:45
Label	Reprise
Writer(s)	Billie Joe Armstrong / Green Day
Producer	Rob Cavallo, Green Day
Certification	Platinum (RIAA)
Green Day singles chronology
"Holiday" (2005) "Wake Me Up When September Ends" (2005) "Jesus of Suburbia" (2005)
Music video "Wake Me Up When September Ends" on YouTube

"Wake Me Up When September Ends" is a song by American rock band Green Day released as the fourth single from their seventh album, American Idiot. The single peaked at number six in the United States, becoming Green Day's second Top 10 single. It also peaked at number eight in Canada and the UK, while making number 13 in Australia. "Wake Me Up When September Ends" had sold 1,652,000 copies as of May 2010, and was the second highest selling single in the U.S. from American Idiot, behind only the multi-platinum "Boulevard of Broken Dreams".

Music video

Like the majority of the videos from the album American Idiot, Samuel Bayer was the director. The video features Green Day's support guitarist, Jason White. This is the second time Jason White has appeared in a Green Day video, first appearing in "When I Come Around", ten years earlier but not as a band member.

The video focuses on a very loving couple (played by Jamie Bell and Evan Rachel Wood). The boyfriend promises never to leave his girlfriend but they later argue when the boyfriend enlists in the United States Marine Corps. The boyfriend interprets his actions as a way to show her that he loves her so much that he would put his life on the line to keep her safe; the girlfriend, however, is heartbroken, as he broke his vow to never leave her, and terrified at the thought of him being killed in war. The video then shows the boyfriend in battle in Iraq being ambushed by insurgents. This scene is intercut with scenes of the girlfriend tearfully mourning in a quiet field. The video ends on this juxtaposition, emphasizing the pain and heartache of losing loved ones due to the war.

This video adds to the American Idiot anti-war sentiment of the U.S. occupation of Iraq. The song eventually became a tribute song to the victims of Hurricane Katrina, and sound bites were added from various news coverages to the song. A live version of the song, recorded on September 3, 2005, at Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, Massachusetts was released soon after and dedicated to the hurricane's victims. The song was performed live with U2 guitarist The Edge in the pregame show of the Monday Night Football game between the New Orleans Saints and the Atlanta Falcons; it was the first game played in the Superdome in New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina.

Track listing

CD 1
No.	Title	Length
1.	"Wake Me Up When September Ends"	4:45
2.	"Give Me Novacaine" (live at VH1 Storytellers, Culver City, California on February 15, 2005)	3:38

CD 2
No.	Title	Length
1.	"Wake Me Up When September Ends"	4:45
2.	"Homecoming" (live at VH1 Storytellers, Culver City, California on February 15, 2005)	9:24
3.	"Hitchin' a Ride"	2:52

AUS CD
No.	Title	Length
1.	"Wake Me Up When September Ends"	4:45
2.	"Give Me Novacaine" (live at VH1 Storytellers, Culver City, California on February 15, 2005)	3:38
3.	"Homecoming" (live at VH1 Storytellers, Culver City, California on February 15, 2005)	9:24

Live (iTunes Exclusive)
No.	Title	Length
1.	"Wake Me Up When September Ends" (live at Foxboro, Massachusetts on September 3, 2005)	5:41

7" picture disc

Side A
No.	Title	Length
1.	"Wake Me Up When September Ends"	4:45

Side B
No.	Title	Length
1.	"Give Me Novacaine" (live at VH1 Storytellers, Culver City, California on February 15, 2005)	3:38

Chart positions

Chart (2005)	Peak position
Australian Singles Chart	13
Austrian Top 75 Singles	15
Belgium Ultratop 50 Singles	3
Belgium Ultratop 40 Singles	2
Canadian Singles Chart	1
Dutch Singles Chart	44
German Singles Chart	22
Ireland Singles Chart	13
Italian Singles Chart	33
New Zealand Singles Chart	10
Swedish Singles Chart	21
UK Singles Chart	8
US Billboard Hot 100	6
US Alternative Songs	2
US Mainstream Rock Tracks	12
US Pop Songs	3
US Adult Pop Songs	2
US Adult Contemporary	13
Chart (2011)	Peak position
UK Rock (The Official Charts Company)	28