Teenage Kicks
1978 debut single by the Undertones
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"Teenage Kicks" is the debut single by Northern Irish punk rock band the Undertones. Written in the summer of 1977 by J.J. O'Neill, the band's rhythm guitarist and principal songwriter, the song was recorded on 15 June 1978 and initially released that September on independent Belfast record label Good Vibrations, before the band signed to Sire Records on 2 October 1978.[6] Sire Records obtained all copyrights to the material released upon the Teenage Kicks EP and the song was re-released as a standard vinyl single on Sire's label on 14 October that year, reaching number 31 in the UK Singles Chart two weeks after its release.[7][8]
| "Teenage Kicks" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ||||
| Single by The Undertones | ||||
| from the album The Undertones | ||||
| B-side | "True Confessions" | |||
| Released | 21 October 1978 | |||
| Recorded | 15 June 1978 | |||
| Studio | Wizard Studios (Belfast)[1] | |||
| Genre | ||||
| Length | 2:28 | |||
| Label | Sire | |||
| Songwriter | J. J. O'Neill | |||
| The Undertones singles chronology | ||||
| ||||
| Teenage Kicks | |
|---|---|
 | |
| EP by | |
| Released | September 1978 |
| Recorded | 15 June 1978 |
| Studio | Wizard Studios (Belfast) |
| Length | 7:51 |
| Label | |
| Producer | Davy Shannon |
| Alternative cover | |
 Fold-out of sleeve of original Good Vibrations release of Teenage Kicks EP | |
| Music video | |
| "Teenage Kicks" on YouTube | |
The single was not included upon the original May 1979 release of the band's debut album The Undertones. The October 1979 re-release of this debut album included both "Teenage Kicks" and the Undertones' second single, "Get Over You".
Influential BBC Radio 1 DJ John Peel said "Teenage Kicks" to be his all-time favourite song, from 1978 until his death in 2004. When he first played the song on his show on 25 September, he played the song twice (something he had never done).[9] Peel also requested sections of the lyrics of the song be engraved upon his tombstone.[10]
In 2008, the song served as the theme song to the ITV sitcom of the same name.
In 2012, the song was featured and played in the biographical film Good Vibrations, which chronicles its journey from an independent release by record shop owner Terri Hooley to a national sensation.[11] The film depicts the track's rise after it was championed by BBC Radio 1 DJ John Peel; in the film he plays the song twice in a row during its first broadcast on 25 September 1978, later declaring it his favorite song of all time.[n 1] [12][13]
The song Teenage Kicks features prominently in Season 3, Episode 5 of the television series Derry Girls ("The Reunion") which aired in 2022. A cover band plays the song, referring to it as "our national anthem".[14][15]
Impact
John Peel
Upon first hearing "Teenage Kicks" in September 1978, BBC Radio 1 DJ John Peel is reported to have burst into tears, and readily admitted to still being moved to tears upon hearing the song in interviews granted to journalists up until his death.[16] To judge songs he had heard for the first time as to worthiness of airplay upon his show, Peel often rated new bands' songs with a series of asterisks, with each song judged upon a scale of one to five asterisks: Peel was so taken by "Teenage Kicks", he awarded the song 28 stars. On one occasion, he is known to have played the song twice in a row, with the explanation given to his audience being, "It doesn't get much better than this."[17]
In a 2001 interview given to The Guardian, Peel stated that apart from his name, the only words he wished to be engraved upon his gravestone were the opening lyrics to "Teenage Kicks", "Teenage dreams so hard to beat"[18]
In February 2008, a headstone engraved with these words was placed on his grave in the Suffolk village of Great Finborough.[19][20]
In 2004, a mural in tribute to Peel, featuring the opening line of "Teenage Kicks", appeared on a Belfast flyover.[n 2]
Documentaries
- Teenage Kicks - The Undertones is a 2001 documentary film directed by Tom Collins.[23]
- Here Comes the Summer: The Undertones Story is a 2012 BBC-commissioned documentary focusing upon the Undertones.[24] The documentary was broadcast on BBC Four in September that year. This documentary also features interviews with current and former members of the Undertones (with the exception of Feargal Sharkey) in addition to fans, friends and additional personnel involved in the band's recordings and career.
Track listing
| No. | Title | Written by | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Teenage Kicks" | J. J. O'Neill | 2:26 |
| 2. | "True Confessions" | J. J. O'Neill, Michael Bradley, Damian O'Neill | 1:53 |
| No. | Title | Written by | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Smarter Than U" | J. J. O'Neill, Michael Bradley, Billy Doherty | 1:36 |
| 2. | "Emergency Cases" | J. J. O'Neill | 1:56 |
Charts
Certifications
| Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
|---|---|---|
| United Kingdom (BPI)[26] | Platinum | 600,000‡ |
|
‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone. | ||
Covers
- "Teenage Kicks" was acoustically covered by Snow Patrol in a tribute to John Peel, and was played at his funeral.
- The Swedish rockabilly band The Go Getters included a cover of "Teenage Kicks" on their 2003 album "Motormouth".[27]
- Busted covered "Teenage Kicks" on their second album A Present for Everyone released on 17 November 2003.
- One Direction covered "Teenage Kicks" (in a medley with Blondie's single "One Way or Another") for the 2013 Comic Relief single "One Way or Another (Teenage Kicks)".[28]
- The Waco Brothers covered "Teenage Kicks" on their 2023 album The Men That God Forgot.
- Nouvelle Vague did a cover of "Teenage Kicks" on their 2004 eponymous debut album.
Notes
- While Peel often recounted playing the song twice in a row, some music historians note that the first broadcast audio actually shows him playing it once, though he did break his own rules to play it twice on subsequent occasions due to its popularity.
- This mural was removed in 2013.[21] Following a public outcry, the mural was reinstated in March 2015.[22]