Whammy!

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This article is about the 1983 album by The B-52's. For the game show that aired on Game Show Network, see Whammy! The All-New Press Your Luck. For other uses, see Whammy.

Professional reviews
Whammy!

Studio album by The B-52's
Released	April, 1983
Recorded	December, 1982
Genre	New Wave
Length	37:17
Label	Warner Brothers
Producer(s)	Steven Stanley
All Music Guide link
The B-52's chronology
Mesopotamia (1982)	Whammy! (1983)	Bouncing off the Satellites (1986)

Whammy! is the third studio album by New Wave band The B-52's, released in 1983. While not as successful as their two previous records, it spawned the underground hit singles "Legal Tender" and "Song for a Future Generation". It is also the only album to date to have all five members of the band producing every song on an album.

The track "Don't Worry" is a cover of a song by Yoko Ono. It was removed from later pressings due to legal issues with Ono, who claimed the B-52's had not asked permission or paid her to cover her song. This is controversial; Ono's song, on the 1971 album Fly, is titled "Don't Worry, Kyoko (Mummy's Only Looking For Her Hand in the Snow" and is musically entirely different to the B-52's track. In fact, all the two songs have in common are the two-word "lyrics" — a repetitively chanted "Don't worry". While the legal fact that she had been credited would suggest she was entitled to profit, The B-52's had credited Ono with songwriting on the track probably more out of tribute than seriousness. On subsequent pressings, the song was replaced with "Legal Tender"'s B-side, "Moon 83" — a remake of their earlier track "There's A Moon In The Sky (Called The Moon)".

1 Track listing
2 Miscellanea
3 Personnel
4 Production
5 Charts
6 References

[edit] Track listing

"Legal Tender" (The B-52's, Strickland, Waldrop) – 3:40
"Whammy Kiss" (The B-52's) – 5:20
"Song for a Future Generation" (The B-52's) – 4:00
"Butterbean" (The B-52's) – 4:14
"Trism" (The B-52's) – 3:23
"Queen of Las Vegas" (The B-52's) – 4:40
"Don't Worry" (Yoko Ono) – 3:58 / "Moon 83" (on later pressings)
"Big Bird" (The B-52's) – 4:14
"Work That Skirt" (The B-52's) – 3:48

[edit] Miscellanea

Originally intended to be mixed into two continuous tracks, like the previous Party Mix! album, Warner Brothers vetoed this decision in favour of the more traditional track order.^[1]

[edit] Personnel

David Buck - trumpet
Ralph Carney - saxophone
Kate Pierson - vocals
Fred Schneider - vocals
Keith Strickland - vocals, multiple instruments
Adey Wilson - vocals, multiple instruments
Cindy Wilson - vocals
Ricky Wilson - vocals, multiple instruments

[edit] Production

Producer: Steven Stanley
Engineer: Steven Stanley
Assistant Engineer: Benji Armbrister, Dennis Halliburton
Art Direction: Gene Greif
Mastering: Ted Jensen
Clothing/Wardrobe: Vikki Warren

[edit] Charts

Album

Year	Chart	Position
1983	Billboard 200	29

Singles

Year	Single	Chart	Position
1983	"Legal Tender"	Hot 100	81
1983	"Whammy Kiss/Legal Tender/Song For A Future Generation"	Hot Dance Music/Club Play	9

Discography
The B-52's
Fred Schneider \| Kate Pierson \| Cindy Wilson \| Keith Strickland \| Ricky Wilson
Studio albums: The B-52's \| Wild Planet \| Party Mix! \| Mesopotamia \| Whammy! \| Bouncing off the Satellites \| Cosmic Thing \| Good Stuff \| Time Capsule: Songs for a Future Generation \| Nude on the Moon: The B-52's Anthology
DVDs: The B-52's 1979-1989 \| The B-52's Time Capsule: Videos for a Future Generation 1979-1998