pasalaska Posted April 2, 2012 Share Posted April 2, 2012 This week’s Song of the Week is the whimsical Private Ale, track 5 off Green Day’s 2nd album Kerplunk, released in 1992. As with much of Green Day’s earlier material, Private Ale is all about unrequited teenage love and the woes of growing up. Rather than worry about what the future’s going to bring (“I don’t seem to care”), the narrator of the song instead lets his “imagination go” while sitting by the home of the girl he’s infatuated with. There’s a very whimsical feeling about Private Ale – despite the fact that the narrator can’t be with the girl he has feelings for, he’s still oddly content with his life and is happy to simply ‘daydream’ (or masturbate, if that’s what the “And through my veins temptation flows” line really is means) away his problems. This week’s video is an oldie – it looks to be from around ’92 or ’93, but unfortunately the video description doesn’t give any details. Regardless, it’s a neat performance. Lyrics: I wonder down these streets all by myself Think of my future now I just don't know I don't seem to care I stop to notice that I'm by your home I wonder if you're sitting all alone Or is your boyfriend there Because I feel so right Let my imagination go Until you're in my sight And through my veins temptation flows Whoa oh… Oh no… So I sit down here on the hard concrete Think of my future now I just don't know I don't seem to care So I sit across the street from your home I wonder if you're sitting all alone Or is your boyfriend there Because I feel so right Let my imagination go Until you're in my sight And through my veins temptation flows Whoa oh… Oh no… [Weird southern voice “I lo-lo-love it”] Because I feel so right Let my imagination go Until you're in my sight And through my veins temptation flows Whoa oh… Oh no… ********************************************************************************************************* 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...
Fuzz Posted April 2, 2012 Share Posted April 2, 2012 DAMN! We made up our own SOTW for this weeks Static Noise. It's alright. We'll do this next weekend. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WestboundSign! Posted April 2, 2012 Share Posted April 2, 2012 Private Ale hasn't been SOTW before? But even better for me it is now! This song has always sounded pretty extraordinary to me and that's probably what I love about it the most. I just can't describe it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
greendaytone Posted April 2, 2012 Share Posted April 2, 2012 In the words of Jimmy Douglas... "this is a gooood song" Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
frunsi Posted April 2, 2012 Share Posted April 2, 2012 i love this song. one of my favourites off kerplunk. the "uh huh aww yeah" part is great Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fuzz Posted April 2, 2012 Share Posted April 2, 2012 Young Billie was such a romantic all the time. You can see where he got so much of his motivation from back then. Musically, this song has never been one of my favorites, though I do really like the melody. It's one of those that will stay stuck in my head for a while. Problem is, I never know which song it is. Even now as I saw the song title I thought "I need to wait for this video to play before I remember which one it is." Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DecanoLP Posted April 2, 2012 Share Posted April 2, 2012 A video of them playing it at the soundcheck in Miami in 2009: I really like that song. It has always been one of my favourites on Kerplunk. Would love to see it live someday Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sofouska Posted April 2, 2012 Share Posted April 2, 2012 Private Ale is a CRAZY song The lyrics, the context, the weird voices and the scream in the middle, it's just what every alienated young person needs to listen to Really great song! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brigister Posted April 2, 2012 Share Posted April 2, 2012 Oh Private Ale! I was listening to it a few minutes ago Too bad in the live version there's not the scream Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sweet Armataged Chump Posted April 2, 2012 Share Posted April 2, 2012 This has turned into one of my favorites. I can't stop listening to it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
E!!i Posted April 2, 2012 Share Posted April 2, 2012 like this song, sounds catchy and I like the screaming but I always thought he sings "Private Ale, Private Ale" instead of "Whoa oh…Oh no…" no, I thought he sings "Ale, Private Ale" Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gwen Stacy Posted April 3, 2012 Share Posted April 3, 2012 I always thought that it would make for an interesting opener. Imagine the whole place completely blacked out and then all the sudden, just hearing the guitar part and waiting for everything to go insane. But, then again, there's a reason I'm not in charge of making Green Day's setlist. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
justcause Posted April 3, 2012 Share Posted April 3, 2012 I love the sound of this - cool, in the sense that it has this detachment to it, it's original and unexpected, and it lends to the meandering thoughtfulness of the lyrics. It doesn't have any kind of permanent stamp on it, it's just considering lots of options, and there's this freedom to it. I love the flow of it - it takes you with it, wandering the streets, stopping off at thought-points. 'I sit down here on the hard concrete' - that little line is so fucking great because it brings all of the musing to a physical place, sitting across the road from the house where this girl lives, the distance between yourself and your dreams, and what are you gonna do about it ? It reminds of that line in 'Anniversary Song' - 'the time has come today, but I stopped two blocks away'. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BJA TC MD Posted April 4, 2012 Share Posted April 4, 2012 I don't know exactly what it is about this song but I love it. Nice choice Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bjrules Posted April 4, 2012 Share Posted April 4, 2012 Love this song, a real gem from Kerplunk I really would love to hear this song live one day, but I doubt that will ever happen Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MariaWhereDidYouGo? Posted April 5, 2012 Share Posted April 5, 2012 This song is one of my favorites on Kerplunk. I love the sound and the scream Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nemo. Posted April 5, 2012 Share Posted April 5, 2012 i love that song. and i hate it that there are so little live versions. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stuart telegraph Posted April 6, 2012 Share Posted April 6, 2012 Great song! The live performance btw is in Little Rock, Arkansas in 1991. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bastard of 1967 Posted April 6, 2012 Share Posted April 6, 2012 I love the sound of this - cool, in the sense that it has this detachment to it, it's original and unexpected, and it lends to the meandering thoughtfulness of the lyrics. It doesn't have any kind of permanent stamp on it, it's just considering lots of options, and there's this freedom to it. I love the flow of it - it takes you with it, wandering the streets, stopping off at thought-points. 'I sit down here on the hard concrete' - that little line is so fucking great because it brings all of the musing to a physical place, sitting across the road from the house where this girl lives, the distance between yourself and your dreams, and what are you gonna do about it ? It reminds of that line in 'Anniversary Song' - 'the time has come today, but I stopped two blocks away'. "Or is your boyfriend there?" ....yeah, he even knows she's already attached to someone else. "What are you gonna do about it?" I think the answer Private Ale offers is: dream. Just dream. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
E!!i Posted April 7, 2012 Share Posted April 7, 2012 Love this song, a real gem from Kerplunk I really would love to hear this song live one day, but I doubt that will ever happen why not? They already played songs like "Maria", I even experienced this, that are rare played as well so why shouldn't they maybe play it in the future? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Isabel Posted April 7, 2012 Share Posted April 7, 2012 "I wander down these streets all by myself, Think of my future now I just don't know, Well I don't seem to care." Fuck. This song is just, I can't even comprehend how much I love this song, I am genuinely incapable of doing so....therefore I will stop trying. p.s I heard them soundcheck this in Manchester. It was beyond everything that has ever been amazing in this world. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
spark in the night Posted April 7, 2012 Share Posted April 7, 2012 Good song Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bjrules Posted April 8, 2012 Share Posted April 8, 2012 why not? They already played songs like "Maria", I even experienced this, that are rare played as well so why shouldn't they maybe play it in the future? I wasn't saying that they shouldn't, play it, because I would love to hear it, I was just saying that because its so rare that they play it live, it's very unlikely that I will be able to hear it. Also, Maria isn't that rare; they used to play it all the time on the American Idiot tour. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Forever Now Posted April 8, 2012 Share Posted April 8, 2012 One of my favorites off of Kerplunk. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
E!!i Posted April 8, 2012 Share Posted April 8, 2012 I wasn't saying that they shouldn't, play it, because I would love to hear it, I was just saying that because its so rare that they play it live, it's very unlikely that I will be able to hear it. Also, Maria isn't that rare; they used to play it all the time on the American Idiot tour. really? ok sorry didn't know that but maybe I'm too optimistic Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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