The Bad Touch
Encyclopedia
"The Bad Touch" is the first single
by the Bloodhound Gang
of their 1999
album Hooray for Boobies
. It was released in 1999 internationally and, a year later, in the US
and UK
. The song was also remixed by God Lives Underwater
and Eiffel 65
. Like much of the Bloodhound Gang's other music, the song contains a wide variety of sexual colloquialisms. The sleeve for the single features a photo of two zebras in copula.
(including the Place de l'Estrapade, Avenue de Saxe, and Champ de Mars), and the Eiffel Tower
is visible in many shots. During the video, the band uses blowgun
s to shoot tranquilizer darts into the buttocks
of four passing young women dressed in black with short skirts and stockings, then carrying them away. They then use a fishing rod
to dangle a croissant in front of a group of French chefs
, enticing them to follow. The band members dance around for a few seconds and then lure three chefs into following them. The band members swallow several mealworm
s, before finding two stereotypically effeminate
gay
men in a café
, who are then beaten over the head with baguette
s and knocked unconscious. A dwarf
mime artist
is captured in a net
and then thrown into a cage
with the four women, three chefs and the gay couple in a clear parody of animal collectors capturing frightened specimens. The band leap around the cage taunting their captives. As the song draws to an end, the prisoners are released and all dance together in formation in the street. The mime artist escapes and is run over by a speeding Renault 5
car driven by Lüpüs Thünder.
The uncensored version of the video shows the band playing with and eating a brown semi-liquid food, with the implication that it is feces
, and a beginning which features them feigning sex in a doggystyle position rather than dancing as in the clean version. The violent capture of the gay couple is also missing from some versions.
The video reached #11 on MuchMusic's 50 Most Controversial Videos for references to zoophilia
, sexual lyrics, insulting French people
, gay people
and chef
s.
ranked "The Bad Touch" at #49 on the list of the 100 Worst Songs Ever, stating that the song was "very juvenile", but that the lyric, "You and me, baby, ain't nothin' but mammals, / So let's do it like they do on the Discovery Channel
," was "pretty clever."
Canada Promo
Europe Promo
Europe Single
Europe Single
Australia & Europe Maxi-CD
Europe Maxi-CD
UK Promo
Spain Vinyl 12"
http://www.discogs.com/Bloodhound-Gang-The-Bad-Touch/master/132330
Single (music)
In music, a single or record single is a type of release, typically a recording of fewer tracks than an LP or a CD. This can be released for sale to the public in a variety of different formats. In most cases, the single is a song that is released separately from an album, but it can still appear...
by the Bloodhound Gang
Bloodhound Gang
Bloodhound Gang is a Collegeville, Pennsylvania-based American comedy band, although it began as a rap group and gradually changed its genre throughout the years...
of their 1999
1999 in music
-Events:*January 7**After eight years of marriage, Rod Stewart and supermodel wife Rachel Hunter announce their separation.**Paul McCartney attends the first of his stepdaughter Heather's first housewares collection in Georgia....
album Hooray for Boobies
Hooray for Boobies
Hooray for Boobies is the third studio album by American alternative rock band Bloodhound Gang, released on October 4, 1999 in Europe and February 29, 2000 in the US. Produced by Jimmy Pop and Richard Gavalis, it was the band's second release on Geffen Records following the gold-selling One Fierce...
. It was released in 1999 internationally and, a year later, in the US
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
and UK
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...
. The song was also remixed by God Lives Underwater
God Lives Underwater
God Lives Underwater was an industrial rock band from rural Perkiomenville, Pennsylvania , formed in 1993 by band members David Reilly and Jeff Turzo. God Lives Underwater was originally signed to American Recordings after being discovered by Rick Rubin, who subsequently produced the band's first...
and Eiffel 65
Eiffel 65
Eiffel 65 is an Italian three-piece group formed in the late 1990s and best known for pioneering in pitch-correction and autotune, and for their international hit "Blue ". Their other hit singles include "Move Your Body" and "Too Much of Heaven", all of which appeared on their album Europop,...
. Like much of the Bloodhound Gang's other music, the song contains a wide variety of sexual colloquialisms. The sleeve for the single features a photo of two zebras in copula.
Music video
The song's video, shot during the summer of 1999, features the band dressed in "MonkeyRat" costumes with oversized ears, in various locations in ParisParis
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
(including the Place de l'Estrapade, Avenue de Saxe, and Champ de Mars), and the Eiffel Tower
Eiffel Tower
The Eiffel Tower is a puddle iron lattice tower located on the Champ de Mars in Paris. Built in 1889, it has become both a global icon of France and one of the most recognizable structures in the world...
is visible in many shots. During the video, the band uses blowgun
Blowgun
"Blowpipe" and "blow tube" redirect here. For other uses of the terms, see GlassblowingA blowgun is a simple weapon consisting of a small tube for firing light projectiles, or darts....
s to shoot tranquilizer darts into the buttocks
Buttocks
The buttocks are two rounded portions of the anatomy, located on the posterior of the pelvic region of apes and humans, and many other bipeds or quadrupeds, and comprise a layer of fat superimposed on the gluteus maximus and gluteus medius muscles. Physiologically, the buttocks enable weight to...
of four passing young women dressed in black with short skirts and stockings, then carrying them away. They then use a fishing rod
Fishing rod
A fishing rod or a fishing pole is a tool used to catch fish, usually in conjunction with the pastime of angling, and can also be used in competition casting. . A length of fishing line is attached to a long, flexible rod or pole: one end terminates in a hook for catching the fish...
to dangle a croissant in front of a group of French chefs
Chef
A chef is a person who cooks professionally for other people. Although over time the term has come to describe any person who cooks for a living, traditionally it refers to a highly skilled professional who is proficient in all aspects of food preparation.-Etymology:The word "chef" is borrowed ...
, enticing them to follow. The band members dance around for a few seconds and then lure three chefs into following them. The band members swallow several mealworm
Mealworm
Mealworms are the larval form of the mealworm beetle, Tenebrio molitor, a species of darkling beetle. Like all holometabolic insects, they go through four life stages: egg, larva, pupa, and adult...
s, before finding two stereotypically effeminate
Effeminacy
Effeminacy describes traits in a human male, that are more often associated with traditional feminine nature, behaviour, mannerisms, style or gender roles rather than masculine nature, behaviour, mannerisms, style or roles....
gay
Gay
Gay is a word that refers to a homosexual person, especially a homosexual male. For homosexual women the specific term is "lesbian"....
men in a café
Café
A café , also spelled cafe, in most countries refers to an establishment which focuses on serving coffee, like an American coffeehouse. In the United States, it may refer to an informal restaurant, offering a range of hot meals and made-to-order sandwiches...
, who are then beaten over the head with baguette
Baguette
A baguette is "a long thin loaf of French bread" that is commonly made from basic lean dough...
s and knocked unconscious. A dwarf
Dwarfism
Dwarfism is short stature resulting from a medical condition. It is sometimes defined as an adult height of less than 4 feet 10 inches , although this definition is problematic because short stature in itself is not a disorder....
mime artist
Mime artist
A mime artist is someone who uses mime as a theatrical medium or as a performance art, involving miming, or the acting out a story through body motions, without use of speech. In earlier times, in English, such a performer was referred to as a mummer...
is captured in a net
Net (device)
A net, in its primary meaning, comprises fibers woven in a grid-like structure, and is very infrequently mentioned in discussions of philosophy. It blocks the passage of large items, while letting small items and fluids pass...
and then thrown into a cage
Cage (enclosure)
A cage is an enclosure made of mesh, bars or wires, used to confine, contain or protect something or someone. A cage can serve many purposes, including keeping an animal in captivity, capturing, and being used for display of an animal at a zoo.-History:...
with the four women, three chefs and the gay couple in a clear parody of animal collectors capturing frightened specimens. The band leap around the cage taunting their captives. As the song draws to an end, the prisoners are released and all dance together in formation in the street. The mime artist escapes and is run over by a speeding Renault 5
Renault 5
The Renault 5 was first unveiled on 10 December 1971, being launched at the beginning of 1972.The Renault 5 was styled by Michel Boué, who died before the car's release, the R5 featured a steeply sloping rear hatchback and front dashboard...
car driven by Lüpüs Thünder.
The uncensored version of the video shows the band playing with and eating a brown semi-liquid food, with the implication that it is feces
Feces
Feces, faeces, or fæces is a waste product from an animal's digestive tract expelled through the anus or cloaca during defecation.-Etymology:...
, and a beginning which features them feigning sex in a doggystyle position rather than dancing as in the clean version. The violent capture of the gay couple is also missing from some versions.
The video reached #11 on MuchMusic's 50 Most Controversial Videos for references to zoophilia
Zoophilia
Zoophilia, from the Greek ζῷον and φιλία is the practice of sex between humans and non-human animals , or a preference or fixation on such practice...
, sexual lyrics, insulting French people
French people
The French are a nation that share a common French culture and speak the French language as a mother tongue. Historically, the French population are descended from peoples of Celtic, Latin and Germanic origin, and are today a mixture of several ethnic groups...
, gay people
LGBT
LGBT is an initialism that collectively refers to "lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender" people. In use since the 1990s, the term "LGBT" is an adaptation of the initialism "LGB", which itself started replacing the phrase "gay community" beginning in the mid-to-late 1980s, which many within the...
and chef
Chef
A chef is a person who cooks professionally for other people. Although over time the term has come to describe any person who cooks for a living, traditionally it refers to a highly skilled professional who is proficient in all aspects of food preparation.-Etymology:The word "chef" is borrowed ...
s.
Critical reception
Most recently, on September 11, 2010, Matthew Wilkening of AOL RadioAOL Radio
AOL Radio powered by Slacker, , is an online radio service available only in the United States.- Roots :...
ranked "The Bad Touch" at #49 on the list of the 100 Worst Songs Ever, stating that the song was "very juvenile", but that the lyric, "You and me, baby, ain't nothin' but mammals, / So let's do it like they do on the Discovery Channel
Discovery Channel
Discovery Channel is an American satellite and cable specialty channel , founded by John Hendricks and distributed by Discovery Communications. It is a publicly traded company run by CEO David Zaslav...
," was "pretty clever."
Track listings
Promo Single- 1 The Bad Touch 4:20
Canada Promo
- 1 The Bad Touch [Radio Version] 3:37
- 2 The Bad Touch (Eiffel 65Eiffel 65Eiffel 65 is an Italian three-piece group formed in the late 1990s and best known for pioneering in pitch-correction and autotune, and for their international hit "Blue ". Their other hit singles include "Move Your Body" and "Too Much of Heaven", all of which appeared on their album Europop,...
Remix) 3:34
Europe Promo
- 1 The Bad Touch [Radio Version] 3:37
Europe Single
- 1 The Bad Touch [Album Version] 4:19
- 2 The Bad Touch [Eiffel 65 Remix]3:33
- 3 Along Comes Mary [BHG Mix] 3:23
Europe Single
- 1 The Bad Touch [LP] 4:23
- 2 Along Comes Mary [The Bloodhound Gang Mix] 3:20
Australia & Europe Maxi-CD
- 1 The Bad Touch [LP]
- 2 The Bad Touch [The God Lives Underwater Mix]
- 3 The Bad Touch [The K.M.F.D.M. Mix]
- 4 Along Comes Mary [The Bloodhound Gang Mix]
- Video Kiss Me Where It Smells Funny (Video)
Europe Maxi-CD
- 1 The Bad Touch [The Bloodhound Gang Mix] 4:20
- 2 The Bad Touch [The Eiffel 65 Mix] 4:28
- 3 The Bad Touch [The Rollergirl Mix] 5:59
- 4 The Bad Touch [The God Lives Underwater Mix] 4:23
UK Promo
- 1 The Bad Touch [The Bloodhound Gang Mix] 4:20
- 2 The Bad Touch [The K.M.F.D.M. Mix] 4:19
- 3 The Bad Touch [The God Lives Underwater Mix] 4:23
- 4 The Bad Touch [The Eiffel 65 Mix] 4:29
- 5 The Bad Touch [The Rollergirl Mix] 6:00
- 6 The Bad Touch [The Eiffel 65 Acapella Mix]
Spain Vinyl 12"
- A1 The Bad Touch [Eiffel 65 Extended Mix] 4:30
- A2 The Bad Touch [12" Rollerblade Remix] 6:02
- B1 The Bad Touch [Eiffel 65 Instrumental] 4:30
- B2 The Bad Touch [Album Version] 4:20
http://www.discogs.com/Bloodhound-Gang-The-Bad-Touch/master/132330
Charts performances
| Chart (1999–2000) | Peakposition |
|---|---|
| Australian Singles Chart | 5 |
| Belgian Ultratop 50 Ultratop 50 Ultratop 50 singles, often just Ultratop 50, is the weekly chart of fifty best-selling singles in Flanders, Belgium, and is produced and published by the Ultratop organization. The chart has existed since March 31, 1995... Singles (Flanders) |
1 |
| Canadian Singles Chart RPM (magazine) RPM was a Canadian music industry publication that featured song and album charts for Canada. The publication was founded by Walt Grealis in February 1964, supported through its existence by record label owner Stan Klees. RPM ceased publication in November 2000.RPM stood for "Records, Promotion,... |
9 |
| Dutch Mega Top 50 MegaCharts MegaCharts is responsible for the composition and exploitation of a broad collection of official charts in the Netherlands, of which the Mega Top 50 and the Mega Album Top 100 are the most known ones. Mega Charts also provides information to the Stichting Nederlandse Top 40, of which the Dutch Top... |
19 |
| German Singles Chart Number-one hits of 1999 (Germany) This is a list of the German Media Control Top100 Singles Chart number-ones of 1999.-References:* * ----... |
1 |
| Italian Singles Chart Federation of the Italian Music Industry The Federation of the Italian Music Industry is an umbrella organization that keeps track of virtually all aspects of the music recording industry in Italy.... |
1 |
| Irish Singles Chart Irish Singles Chart The Irish Singles Chart is Ireland's music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by the Irish Recorded Music Association and compiled on behalf of the IRMA by Chart-Track. Chart rankings are based on sales, which are compiled through over-the-counter retail data captured... |
1 |
| New Zealand Top 40 Recording Industry Association of America The Recording Industry Association of America is a trade organization that represents the recording industry distributors in the United States... |
4 |
| UK Singles Chart UK Singles Chart The UK Singles Chart is compiled by The Official Charts Company on behalf of the British record-industry. The full chart contains the top selling 200 singles in the United Kingdom based upon combined record sales and download numbers, though some media outlets only list the Top 40 or the Top 75 ... |
4 |
| US Billboard Hot 100 Billboard Hot 100 The Billboard Hot 100 is the United States music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine. Chart rankings are based on radio play and sales; the tracking-week for sales begins on Monday and ends on Sunday, while the radio play tracking-week runs from Wednesday... |
52 |
| US Billboard Hot Modern Rock Tracks | 6 |
Cultural references
The song contains many cultural references. These include (in order):- PrincePrince (musician)Prince Rogers Nelson , often known simply as Prince, is an American singer, songwriter, musician, and actor. Prince has produced ten platinum albums and thirty Top 40 singles during his career. Prince founded his own recording studio and label; writing, self-producing and playing most, or all, of...
, an American musician - Siskel and Ebert, a popular movie-review duo
- Two-Hand TouchTouch football (American)Touch football is a variant of American football in which the basic rules are similar to those of the mainstream game , but instead of tackling players to the ground, the person carrying the ball need only be touched by a member of the opposite team to end a down...
, a gentler variant of American footballAmerican footballAmerican football is a sport played between two teams of eleven with the objective of scoring points by advancing the ball into the opposing team's end zone. Known in the United States simply as football, it may also be referred to informally as gridiron football. The ball can be advanced by... - Waffle HouseWaffle HouseWaffle House is a restaurant chain with over 1600 locations found in 25 states in the United States. Most of the locations are in the Southern United States, where the chain remains a regional cultural icon...
, a Southern and Mid-Western United States restaurant chain - FedExFedExFedEx Corporation , originally known as FDX Corporation, is a logistics services company, based in the United States with headquarters in Memphis, Tennessee...
- Coca-ColaCoca-ColaCoca-Cola is a carbonated soft drink sold in stores, restaurants, and vending machines in more than 200 countries. It is produced by The Coca-Cola Company of Atlanta, Georgia, and is often referred to simply as Coke...
- Daylight Saving TimeDaylight saving timeDaylight saving time —also summer time in several countries including in British English and European official terminology —is the practice of temporarily advancing clocks during the summertime so that afternoons have more daylight and mornings have less...
- The Discovery Channel
- Small craft advisorySmall craft advisoryA small craft advisory is a type of warning issued by the National Weather Service in the United States, most frequently in coastal areas. It is issued when winds have reached, or are expected to reach within 12 hours, a speed marginally less than gale force....
, an advisory saying that the seas are too rough for small craft - BattleshipBattleship (game)The game Battleship is a guessing game played by two people. It is known throughout the world as a pencil and paper game which predates World War I. It was published by Milton Bradley Company in 1931 as the pad-and-pencil game "Broadsides, the Game of Naval Strategy".-Description:The game is...
, a popular paper-and-pencil game. The line "You sunk my battleship" is drawn from a memorable television commercial that ran in the 1970s for the commercial version of the game. - Mr. CoffeeMr. CoffeeMr. Coffee is a registered trademark of Sunbeam Products, Inc. d/b/a Jarden Consumer Solutions. The Mr. Coffee brand manufactures automatic-drip kitchen coffee machines as well as other products.-History:...
- Tool Time, a show-within-a-show on the sitcom Home Improvement
- Lyle LovettLyle LovettLyle Pearce Lovett is an American singer-songwriter and actor. Active since 1980, he has recorded thirteen albums and released 21 singles to date, including his highest entry, the number 10 chart hit on the U.S. Billboard Hot Country Songs chart, "Cowboy Man"...
, an American singer-songwriter - The X-FilesThe X-FilesThe X-Files is an American science fiction television series and a part of The X-Files franchise, created by screenwriter Chris Carter. The program originally aired from to . The show was a hit for the Fox network, and its characters and slogans became popular culture touchstones in the 1990s...