I'm So Bored with the USA
Encyclopedia
"I'm So Bored with the U.S.A." is a song by British
punk rock
band The Clash
, featured on their eponymous 1977 debut album
, which was released in the United States
in July 1979 as their second album after Give Em Enough Rope. It was the album's third track in the original version and second in the US version.
. According to Keith Topping
's book The Complete Clash, the song was about Jones's then girlfriend, the same woman who was the topic of "Deny".
According to the story often told by the song's authors Joe Strummer
and Jones, including on the documentary Westway to the World
, the change came about by Strummer mishearing the song's title when Jones played it to him during their first meeting at their Davies Road squat. The band's early recordings, including the popular live bootleg
5 Go Mad At The Roundhouse
, include the song in its original form. However, by the time of the concert on 20 September 1976 at the Roundhouse, Camden
, the song was performed using its new title.
(later denounced on the Sandinista!
track "Washington Bullets
"), and popular police drama series Starsky and Hutch
and Kojak
. It also criticizes Richard Nixon
, mentioning the Watergate scandal
's tapes
.
"I'm So Bored with the U.S.A." was a mainstay in the band's set until 1978, when its appearances became less frequent, except in the US, where it was often used as the band's opening song.
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
punk rock
Punk rock
Punk rock is a rock music genre that developed between 1974 and 1976 in the United States, the United Kingdom, and Australia. Rooted in garage rock and other forms of what is now known as protopunk music, punk rock bands eschewed perceived excesses of mainstream 1970s rock...
band The Clash
The Clash
The Clash were an English punk rock band that formed in 1976 as part of the original wave of British punk. Along with punk, their music incorporated elements of reggae, ska, dub, funk, rap, dance, and rockabilly...
, featured on their eponymous 1977 debut album
The Clash (album)
The album received positive reviews from critics and peaked at number 12 in the UK charts. In December 1979, critic Robert Christgau named it his favorite album of the 1970s....
, which was released in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
in July 1979 as their second album after Give Em Enough Rope. It was the album's third track in the original version and second in the US version.
Song information
The song was originally titled "I'm So Bored With You",Related news articles: a love song written by Mick JonesMick Jones (The Clash)
Michael Geoffrey "Mick" Jones is the former lead guitarist, secondary vocalist and co-founder for the British punk rock band The Clash until his dismissal in 1983. He went on to form the band Big Audio Dynamite with Don Letts before line-up changes led to the formation of Big Audio Dynamite II and...
. According to Keith Topping
Keith Topping
Keith Andrew Topping , is an author, journalist and broadcaster most closely associated with his work relating to the BBC Television series Doctor Who and for writing numerous official and unofficial guide books to a wide variety of television and film series, specifically Buffy the Vampire...
's book The Complete Clash, the song was about Jones's then girlfriend, the same woman who was the topic of "Deny".
According to the story often told by the song's authors Joe Strummer
Joe Strummer
John Graham Mellor , best remembered by his stage name Joe Strummer, was the co-founder, lyricist, rhythm guitarist and lead vocalist of the British punk rock band The Clash. His musical experience included his membership in The 101ers, Latino Rockabilly War, The Mescaleros and The Pogues, in...
and Jones, including on the documentary Westway to the World
Westway to the World
The Clash: Westway to the World is a 2000 documentary film about the British punk rock band The Clash. In 2003 it won the Grammy Award for Best Long Form Music Video....
, the change came about by Strummer mishearing the song's title when Jones played it to him during their first meeting at their Davies Road squat. The band's early recordings, including the popular live bootleg
Bootleg recording
A bootleg recording is an audio or video recording of a performance that was not officially released by the artist or under other legal authority. The process of making and distributing such recordings is known as bootlegging...
5 Go Mad At The Roundhouse
The Roundhouse
The Roundhouse is a Grade II* listed former railway engine shed in Chalk Farm, London, England, which has been converted into a performing arts and concert venue. It was originally built in 1847 as a roundhouse , a circular building containing a railway turntable, but was only used for railway...
, include the song in its original form. However, by the time of the concert on 20 September 1976 at the Roundhouse, Camden
Camden Town
-Economy:In recent years, entertainment-related businesses and a Holiday Inn have moved into the area. A number of retail and food chain outlets have replaced independent shops driven out by high rents and redevelopment. Restaurants have thrived, with the variety of culinary traditions found in...
, the song was performed using its new title.
Themes
Originally demoed with slightly different lyrics during The Clash's second demo session with their soundman Mickey Foote as producer, "I'm So Bored with the U.S.A."'s lyrics does exactly what its title suggests, condemns several aspects of the American society, such as drugs problems in the US Army (particularly heroin), the support of the American government to dictatorships in the Third WorldThird World
The term Third World arose during the Cold War to define countries that remained non-aligned with either capitalism and NATO , or communism and the Soviet Union...
(later denounced on the Sandinista!
Sandinista!
Sandinista! is the fourth studio album by the English punk rock band the Clash. It was released on 12 December 1980 as a triple album containing 36 tracks, with 6 songs on each side...
track "Washington Bullets
Washington Bullets (song)
"Washington Bullets" is a song from The Clash's 1980 album Sandinista!. A politically charged song, it is a simplified version of Latin American history from the 1959 Cuban Revolution to the Nicaraguan Sandinistas of the 1980s, with mention of the Bay of Pigs Invasion, the Soviet-Afghan War, the...
"), and popular police drama series Starsky and Hutch
Starsky and Hutch
Starsky and Hutch is a 1970s American cop thriller television series that consisted of a 90-minute pilot movie and 92 episodes of 60 minutes each; created by William Blinn, produced by Spelling-Goldberg Productions, and broadcast between April 30, 1975 and May 15, 1979 on the ABC...
and Kojak
Kojak
Kojak is an American television series starring Telly Savalas as the title character, bald New York City Police Department Detective Lieutenant Theo Kojak. It aired from October 24, 1973, to March 18, 1978, on CBS. It took the time slot of the popular Cannon series, which was moved one hour earlier...
. It also criticizes Richard Nixon
Richard Nixon
Richard Milhous Nixon was the 37th President of the United States, serving from 1969 to 1974. The only president to resign the office, Nixon had previously served as a US representative and senator from California and as the 36th Vice President of the United States from 1953 to 1961 under...
, mentioning the Watergate scandal
Watergate scandal
The Watergate scandal was a political scandal during the 1970s in the United States resulting from the break-in of the Democratic National Committee headquarters at the Watergate office complex in Washington, D.C., and the Nixon administration's attempted cover-up of its involvement...
's tapes
Watergate tapes
The Watergate tapes, a subset of the Nixon tapes, are a collection of recordings of conversations between Richard Nixon and his fellow conspirators plotting a break in to the Watergate Hotel. U.S. President Richard Nixon and various White House staff started communicating on February 1971 and...
.
"I'm So Bored with the U.S.A." was a mainstay in the band's set until 1978, when its appearances became less frequent, except in the US, where it was often used as the band's opening song.
Covers
- Prominent CanadianCanadaCanada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
indie rockIndie rockIndie rock is a genre of alternative rock that originated in the United Kingdom and the United States in the 1980s. Indie rock is extremely diverse, with sub-genres that include lo-fi, post-rock, math rock, indie pop, dream pop, noise rock, space rock, sadcore, riot grrrl and emo, among others...
band Arcade Fire often use the song's chorus as an introduction to their own "Windowsill" at live performances.