I wanna hold her, wanna hold her tight. Get teenage kicks right through the night.
From 1978, the classic and timeless "Teenage Kicks" - surely amongst the annals of greatest singles ever - by Derry's finest, The Undertones. Wonderful pop-punk influenced by American bands like The Ramones and later outifits like the Misfits, this truly is a milestone on the road to Punk/Post Punk Heaven!!
"Teenage Kicks"is a beautiful bijou of raging male hormones (aka a "love song"!) Taut and minimalist, with an amazing unforgettable relentless riff, the song clocks in - as per the classic punk template - at under 2 minutes! Two magic minutes of pure Heaven!!
"Teenage Kicks" came out when I was a little kid. It was on the radio a lot back then and I saw the band belt it out on TV a few times. It was the first punk song I got into. I wasn't even yet a teenager but I knew what they were singing about and I dug the energy! I really loved the song then. I love it just as much all these years later!
"Teenage Kicks" was released by the Northern Irish punk band The Undertones in 1978, and was composed by the band's main songwriter, John O'Neill.Although released by the relatively unknown "Good Vibrations" - a tiny Belfast label and music store, founded by music pioneer Terri Hooley in the early 1970’s - the song achieved popularity amazingly fast, even crossing over to the mainstream Top 30.
Terri Hooley was actually very unsure at first whether to sign up The Undertones, saying;
“I wasn’t sure about them because nobody liked them. People crossed the road just to spit at Feargal Sharkey.”
The success of "Teenage Kicks" was thanks in no small part to being championed by the late great BBC DJ, and bastion of immaculate music taste, John Peel - who descibed "Teenage Kicks" as his all-time favourite song!
Upon getting his paws on the single, Peely played the song twice in a row on his Radio 1 show! John often rated new bands' songs with 1 to 5 stars - however, he loved "Teenage Kicks" so much he awarded it 28 stars!!
When the Undertones' Teenage Kicks had first come out - only the fourth single ever released by the small fledgling label - Terri Hooley “hustled it around every record company in London and they all hated it. I came back to Belfast and cried my eyes out! That night John Peel played it on the radio and said, ‘wasn’t that the most wonderful record you’ve heard in your life?’ and played it again.”
In 2001, John Peel wrote in The Guardian newspaper that, apart from his name, all he wanted on his gravestone were the words, "Teenage dreams, so hard to beat", from the lyrics of "Teenage Kicks".In February 2008, some 4 years after his sad death, a headstone engraved with the line was placed on his grave in Great Finborough, Suffolk!
In December 2008, Radio2XS listeners voted the song the best all-time rock single. The station allowed votes for any rock track from 1956 to 2008. Well, except for Queen's vile 'Bohemian Rhapsody', with DJ Jeff Cooper claiming that "no-one in their right mind would ever want to hear that pretentious twaddle again"! ... Hear f*cking hear!!!
"Teenage Kicks" has been hugely influential and has been performed by an array of acts like Buzzcocks, Razorlight, Ash, Skunk Anansie, The Pink Spiders, Busted, Groovie Ghoulies, Sahara Hotnights, The Saw Doctors, Therapy?, Dža ili Bu, Nouvelle Vague, Green Day, Boom Boom Kid, Thee Headcoatees, Franz Ferdinand, Supergrass, The Young Fresh Fellows, Snow Patrol, KT Tunstall, The Coral, The Raconteurs, Violent Delight, Criminal Mischief, The Ukulele Orchestra of Great Britain, Beatsteaks, Seabear, Maroon, Every Dirty Street, Pelucas Rosas, mittelfit and Pretendo.
A teenage dream’s so hard to beat
Every time she walks down the street
Another girl in the neighbourhood
Wish she was mine, she looks so good
I wanna hold her, wanna hold her tight
Get teenage kicks right through the night
I'm gonna call her on the telephone
Have her over cos I'm all alone
I need excitement, oh I need it bad
And it's the best I've ever had
I wanna hold her, wanna hold her tight
Get teenage kicks right through the night
Alright
A teenage dream’s so hard to beat
Every time she walks down the street
Another girl in the neighbourhood
Wish she was mine, she looks so good
I wanna hold her, wanna hold her tight
Get teenage kicks right through the night
I'm gonna call her on the telephone
Have her over cos I'm all alone
I need excitement, oh I need it bad
And it's the best I've ever had
I wanna hold her, wanna hold her tight
Get teenage kicks right through the night
Alright
I wanna hold her, wanna hold her tight
Get teenage kicks right through the night
Alright
By John O’Neill
Here's a very rare promotional video for the classic "Teenage Kicks"!
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