pasalaska Posted November 13, 2011 Share Posted November 13, 2011 This week’s Song of the Week is one of Green Day’s most famous songs; the live anthem Minority off their 6th studio album, Warning, released in 2000. Minority was Warning’s first single, released in October 2000, and spent 5 weeks in the number 1 spot on the Billboard Modern Rock charts. The song also featured on 2005’s live DVD/album, Bullet in a Bible. Most importantly, however, it’s what GDA got its name from. While Minority’s lyrics very much fit in with Green Day’s previous ‘celebration of the outsider’ lyrical content (“The song is about being an individual and how you have to drift through the darkness to find where you belong" - Billie), it also marks the point in Green Day’s career where their song writing started to pick up more of a political influence. The song makes reference to the ‘Moral Majority’, which was an evangelical christian political lobby group that disbanded in the 1980s, and the American pledge of allegiance, which Billie “twisted upside down a bit”. The incredibly catchy chorus of the song coupled with its upbeat, marching drumbeat and funky accordion make Minority a sort of anthem for the outcast, and what makes it such a live favourite – it’s been a staple of Green Day’s live show since Warning was released. It’s also one of Jason Freese and Jason White’s shining moments, so that makes it extra special live, for me. Minority’s music video adds another dimension to Minority’s greatness – another relatively simple performance video that captures the band’s energy perfectly. (video credit: GreenxxDay) And this is Minority live from Bullet in a Bible, in glorious 1080 HD. (video credit: BulletInABibleHD) Lyrics: I want to be the minority I don't need your authority Down with the moral majority 'Cause I want to be the minority I pledge allegiance to the underworld One nation underdog There of which I stand alone A face in the crowd Unsung, against the mould Without a doubt Singled out The only way I know I want to be the minority I don't need your authority Down with the moral majority 'Cause I want to be the minority Stepped out of the line Like a sheep runs from the herd Marching out of time To my own beat now The only way I know One light, one mind Flashing in the dark Blinded by the silence of a thousand broken hearts "For crying out loud" she screamed unto me A free for all Fuck 'em all You are your own sight I want to be the minority I don't need your authority Down with the moral majority 'Cause I want to be the minority One light, one mind Flashing in the dark Blinded by the silence of a thousand broken hearts "For crying out loud" she screamed unto me A free for all Fuck 'em all You are your own sight I want to be the minority I don't need your authority Down with the moral majority 'Cause I want to be the minority I want to be the minority I want to be the minority I want to be the minority I want to be the minority ********************************************************************************************************* You can nominate songs for discussion as Song of the Week in the SotW Nominations and Archive thread, which contains links to each previous Song of the Week in its first post. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dylan. Posted November 13, 2011 Share Posted November 13, 2011 =O Great choice Aska! I will post a more in depth response later, but for now, I will say that this song means...the world to me. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheJesusOfSuburbiaIsALie Posted November 13, 2011 Share Posted November 13, 2011 Awesome song to be chosen! This song really has a lot of meaning Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WestboundSign! Posted November 13, 2011 Share Posted November 13, 2011 Minority hasn't been song of the week so far? Wow, I thought a song like that has already been choosen. But great that it's song of the week now. It's just an amazing song and I really love how you can refer to (nearly) every line of the lyrics. And this meaning makes the song so special for me. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
a peculiar name Posted November 13, 2011 Share Posted November 13, 2011 Yay! Minority is definitely onw of my all time favorite GD Songs. I want to get "stepped out of the line" tattooed on my foot. <3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Silverlight Posted November 13, 2011 Share Posted November 13, 2011 Minority has to be my favourite song off Warning, but it's far from their greatest song. I must admit, it's so much fun to sing and makes a great karaoke tune Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DecanoLP Posted November 13, 2011 Share Posted November 13, 2011 This is the percect example of an overplayed song. The (catchy) chorus bothers me so much in the meantime and I can totally understand them dropping it for the end of their US tour last year. Sure, it's a good song and really good live since everyone knows the words, but it has an annoying smack which is hard to describe. The only part that still gets me live every time is the breakdown with only Tre playing his drumbeat and the confetti flying around during the last chorus Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Undómiel Posted November 13, 2011 Share Posted November 13, 2011 WAHEEEEY! I couldn't help but sing in my head the intro to this song when I saw it was SOTW... It's such a great song. One of my favourite's live (other than the fact that they nearly always play it near the end these days, so you know the show is definitely entering it's last quarter)... the best live has got to be when Billie sings "a free for all.." and the crowd yells "FUCK THEM ALL!!" it's just so great and makes me smile every time. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JDookie Posted November 13, 2011 Share Posted November 13, 2011 Minority… Perfect song from every point of view! I love the music, the video, the lyrics! It’s definitely one of my favourite Green Day songs. If I were able to make a chart (but there’s no hope for me, I am not able ), it would surely be in a very high position. When I firstly heard this song I immediately felt like it was describing exactly what I am or, better, what I try to be. I wanna be the minority! I don’t know if it’s just a question of pride, but I wanna be different, I wanna be what I like to be. And I also hate people imitating other people. I really can’t stand this annihilation of their own personality! I have got a lot of friends who base their personal taste on those of other friends who look perfect in their eyes, but I really can’t understand how a person could do this… In my eyes, they don’t look as “charming” as the person who they wanna be like, they only look like their shadow. Some people should respect more themselves. But, back to the song, I wanna add that I love the sentence “marching out of time”. Like the heart of Jimmy, that is beating out of time, it reminds me of that feeling of being not in the same frequency of the world you live in, of looking people and things that happen and thinking: is that the world in which I live? It’s not a positive feeling, maybe you will feel a bit isolated, but when I see some events, well... I'm proud of marching out of time. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Undómiel Posted November 13, 2011 Share Posted November 13, 2011 Having said that though... this is probably my favourite part. One light, one mind Flashing in the dark Blinded by the silence of a thousand broken hearts "For crying out loud" she screamed unto me Although since one my friends sang loudly in my ear "she screamed under me"... it's never quite been the same. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WestboundSign! Posted November 13, 2011 Share Posted November 13, 2011 Having said that though... this is probably my favourite part. One light, one mind Flashing in the dark Blinded by the silence of a thousand broken hearts "For crying out loud" she screamed unto me Exactly this has always been my favorite part too.. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
San Miguel Posted November 13, 2011 Share Posted November 13, 2011 Yeah! Thanks pasalaska for making this song of the week and for your piece about it. It's such a great song, esp live, and is a fitting tribute to Bullet In A Bible's anniversary As i've said elsewhere, Billie Joe's comments during the performance make it an anthem for 2011, for people all over the world; "don't let these bastards dictate your life or try to tell you what to do" Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brigister Posted November 13, 2011 Share Posted November 13, 2011 Fits perfectly to me right now, such a great choice Aska Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Artificial Idiot Posted November 13, 2011 Share Posted November 13, 2011 This song has taught me to be myself and to be pround of being an outsider. Plus I'm Native American so I really am the minority Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gloria123 Posted November 13, 2011 Share Posted November 13, 2011 i really love think song!! this song is my anthem, it just said 'i'm an outsider and i'm proud of it!' ^that sounds really cheesy... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kayfabe Posted November 13, 2011 Share Posted November 13, 2011 Best live song? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
November's Storms Posted November 13, 2011 Share Posted November 13, 2011 It's no surprise, considering where I'm from but I love how Minority is a really great song to dance to, some parts of it really have an "Irish jig" feel to it. I remember reading somewhere that Green Day were on tour at some festival and they played this before its release to some of the guys from Dropkick Murphys and Flogging Molly and they loved it, thanking them for writing a song like that. I think Mike has said once that its his favourite song to play live because of the crowd reactions. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ConfirmPassword Posted November 13, 2011 Share Posted November 13, 2011 This song teached me anything My absolutly favorite song Seriously this song made me realise that you have to be yourself and it's okay to be a outsider, and you can be proud of it If I didn't know this song I wouldn't be who I am today A few times when I have watched BIAB, this song had made me cry Like really cry Oh and I love that it's so catchy The moment they played it in Skive, was one of the happiest moments of my life It's no surprise, considering where I'm from but I love how Minority is a really great song to dance to, some parts of it really have an "Irish jig" feel to it. I remember reading somewhere that Green Day were on tour at some festival and they played this before its release to some of the guys from Dropkick Murphys and Flogging Molly and they loved it, thanking them for writing a song like that. I think Mike has said once that its his favourite song to play live because of the crowd reactions. I love the Irish too Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Margo 39 smooth Posted November 13, 2011 Share Posted November 13, 2011 It took me some time to really understand how important the meaning of this song was, and sure its a simple song, but that's whats so great. It gets across a deep message in such a simple way. Also this song is fantastic live and thanks to it there's confetti all over the walls of my room Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lizziebix Posted November 13, 2011 Share Posted November 13, 2011 When I dragged my hubby to our first Green Day concert, I was convinced he wasn't enjoying it as much as me until they played Minority. His favorite song. There was this moment of, ah now he's going to enjoy this show. (I shouldn't have worried because he liked it all, but hearing Minority was definitely a highlight for him.) I'll never forget that moment and that makes this song much more special to me. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DoodleBob Posted November 13, 2011 Share Posted November 13, 2011 So, when I first heard this song I didn't like it, but much like with the album Warning, it grew on me rapidly. I've always loved Green Day for speaking their mind and connecting with other people, and this song does both those things. I mean, everybody wants to be unique and say 'Fuck em all' at one point in their lives. I'd have to say my favorite lyric is: One light, one mind, Flashing in the dark. Blinded by the silence of a thousand broken hearts. "For crying out loud" she screamed unto me, A free for all, Fuck 'em all, You are your own sight. These lyrics mean alot, and are often very underrated. "One light, one mind, flashing in the dark" can be referred to as one person (Or people) striving to be different. And "Blinded by the silence of a thousand broken hearts" is referring to all of the people (Or person) that want to stand up and say something, but instead sit in silence, heartbroken. "fuck em all, you're at your own sight" is stating who gives a damn about what people think? Be yourself. And the accordion is kickass, if I do say so myself. The music video is awesome too. I love the bit with the capes. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Charlotte. Posted November 13, 2011 Share Posted November 13, 2011 I never really realised just how great this song is until I heard it live, and now it's one of my favourites both on CD and live. A couple of people have already mentioned my favourite part of the song ("one light, one mind, flashing in the dark..."). I absolutely love it, and in my opinion it's definitely one of their best live songs. The energy is brilliant yet it still has a great meaning behind it, and that's one of the things that Green Day are able to do so well. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KilljoyFromDetroit Posted November 13, 2011 Share Posted November 13, 2011 This song plainly made me who i am today. "I dont need your athourity, down with the moral majority, cause i want to be he minority". Pretty much sums up what i think about others opinions. This song was also the song that got me more into Green Day. Minority will always be one of my favorite Green Day songs, just because it has done so muh for me. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Göta Posted November 13, 2011 Share Posted November 13, 2011 I love this song mainly because of its message, but also because of its energy and everything it has done for me. This song helped my self-confidence to grow back in the days when I needed it the most, and it also made me more open-minded to other people. I nearly exploded with joy when they started playing it when they were here in 2010, and it still never fails to cheer me up when I listen to it when I'm down. Without a doubt one of my all-time favorites. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Penguin Puffball Posted November 13, 2011 Share Posted November 13, 2011 Gah! I fucking love this song! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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