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Jesus of Suburbia

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"Jesus of Suburbia"
Song

"Jesus of Suburbia" is the fifth and final single to be released from Green Day's seventh studio album, American Idiot. The single was released on October 25, 2005. Billie Joe Armstrong had stated that it would almost be a prequel for the movie American Idiot[citation needed]. The original song ran just over 9 minutes, which was considered to be unfriendly for radio appeal, so it was cut down to around 6½ minutes for the radio edit.

Song information

The song was co-written by Green Day (with Billie Joe Armstrong writing the lyrics), and was co-produced by Rob Cavallo. In this epic song, Green Day detail the life and times of a so-called Jesus of Suburbia, the fictional protagonist of American Idiot. His real name is Jimmy, which is revealed in the extended music video when a girl calls him that and in the cut version of the video when he writes "Saint Jimmy" on a bathroom stall (later on in the American Idiot album, he officially changed his name in the song "St. Jimmy"). The name "Jesus of Suburbia" may just mean he is the savior of the rebels in suburbia. He is a resident of Jingletown, USA, and the son of a divorced mother. His younger years were spent on a "steady diet of soda pop and Ritalin", watching television, experimenting with drugs, and loitering in front of convenience stores. Although everything seems alright at first, Jimmy feels trapped and bored in Jingletown and longs for escape, as he narrates in City of the Damned.

In a coming of age move, Jimmy leaves Jingletown by the end of the song to explore The City. His exploits in The City are not described in this song, but are described in greater detail in the rest of the album, especially in "Holiday" and "Boulevard of Broken Dreams". Nevertheless, to describe the essence of the personality of Jimmy, Green Day proclaims, "I'm the son of rage and love. The Jesus of Suburbia, from the bible of none of the above, on a steady diet of soda pop and ritalin..."

"Jesus of Suburbia" is made up of five songs segued together:

  • I. "Jesus of Suburbia"
  • II. "City of the Damned"
  • III. "I Don't Care"
  • IV. "Dearly Beloved"
  • V. "Tales of Another Broken Home"

The song was also featured on their live album, Bullet in a Bible.

Music video

The music video of "Jesus of Suburbia" was directed by Samuel Bayer. He also directed the music videos for the first four singles releasewd from American Idiot, and had high hopes for the music video. The official music video premiered October 14, 2005 in the UK and on October 25, 2005 on the MTV network for viewers residing in the U.S. Two offical versions exist: One is a twelve-minute edit, complete with dialogue while the other is a six and a half-minute director's cut, inclusive solely of the music itself and void of additives. Starring Lou Taylor Pucci as the main character (a indie actor who starred in Thumbsucker and The Chumscrubber), Although Billie Joe was originally tipped to provide the acting role of the main character, this was altered pre-filming.

The plot of the video essentialy follows that of the song.

Trivia

  • "Jesus of Suburbia" was featured on MuchMusic's 100 Greatest Music Videos Countdown at #8.

References

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