| Dookie | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Studio album by Green Day | ||||
| Released | February 1, 1994 | |||
| Recorded | September–October 1993 at Fantasy Studios, Berkeley, California | |||
| Genre | Punk rock, alternative rock, pop punk | |||
| Length | 39:38 | |||
| Label | Reprise | |||
| Producer | Rob Cavallo and Green Day | |||
| Green Day chronology | ||||
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| Singles from Dookie | ||||
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Dookie is the third studio album by the American punk rock band Green Day. It was released on February 1, 1994 through Reprise Records. It was the band's first collaboration with producer Rob Cavallo and its major record label debut. Dookie became a worldwide commercial success, peaking at number two on the U.S. Billboard 200 and charting in seven countries. The album helped to propel Green Day into mainstream popularity, amid claims from the punk rock community that the band had "sold out". This is considered by many fans to be their magnum opus
Dookie produced five hit singles for the band: "Longview", the re-recorded "Welcome to Paradise", "Basket Case", "When I Come Around", and the radio-only single "She". As of 2010[update], Dookie is the band's best-selling album, with 15 million copies sold worldwide.[1] Dookie won the Grammy Award for Best Alternative Music Album in 1995. In 2003, Rolling Stone ranked Dookie at 193 on the list of The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time.
Contents |
Following the underground success of the band's second studio album Kerplunk (1992), a number of major record labels became interested in Green Day.[2] Representatives of these labels attempted to entice the band to sign by inviting them for meals to discuss a deal, with one manager even inviting the group to Disneyland.[3] The band declined these advances until meeting producer and Reprise representative Rob Cavallo. They were impressed by his work with fellow Californian band The Muffs, and later remarked that Cavallo "was the only person we could really talk to and connect with".[3]
Eventually, the band left their independent record label Lookout! Records on friendly terms, and signed to Reprise. Signing to a major label caused many of the band's original fans from the independent music club 924 Gilman Street to regard Green Day as sell-outs.[4][5] The club has banned Green Day from entering since the major label signing.[3] Reflecting back on the period, lead vocalist Billie Joe Armstrong told Spin magazine in 1999, "I couldn't go back to the punk scene, whether we were the biggest success in the world or the biggest failure [...] The only thing I could do was get on my bike and go forward."[6]
Cavallo was chosen as the main producer of the album, with Jerry Finn as the mixer. Green Day originally gave the first demo tape to Cavallo, and after listening to it during the car ride home he sensed that "[he] had stumbled on something big."[2] The band's recording session lasted three weeks and the album was remixed twice.[3] Armstrong claimed that the band wanted to create a dry sound, "similar to the Sex Pistols' album or first Black Sabbath albums."[7] The band felt the original mix to be unsatisfactory. Cavallo agreed, and it was remixed at Fantasy Studios in Berkeley, California.[7] Armstrong later said of their studio experience, "Everything was already written, all we had to do was play it."[3][7]
Much of the album's content was written by Armstrong, except "Emenius Sleepus" written by bassist Mike Dirnt, and the hidden track, "All by Myself", which was composed and written by drummer Tré Cool. The album touched upon various experiences of the band members and included subjects like anxiety and panic attacks, masturbation, sexual orientation, boredom, and ex-girlfriends.[3]
The single "Longview" had a signature bass line that bassist Dirnt wrote while under the influence of LSD.[8] He originally forgot much of it, but the remembered portions were included in the song. Armstrong stated that the song was mainly about boredom, masturbation, and smoking cannabis, as evident in some of the lyrics ("When masturbation's lost its fun/You're fucking lonely" (inaccurately quoted as "You're fucking breaking" in the liner notes)).
"Welcome to Paradise", the second single from Dookie, was originally on the band's second studio album, Kerplunk. The song was re-recorded with a less grainy sound for Dookie.[2] The song never had an official music video; however, a certain live performance of the song is often associated as a music video. The video is located on Green Day's official website.[9]
The hit single "Basket Case", which appeared on many singles charts worldwide,[10][11] was also inspired by Armstrong's personal experiences. The song deals with Armstrong's anxiety attacks and feelings of "going crazy" prior to being diagnosed with a panic disorder.[7] The music video was filmed in an abandoned mental institution.
The radio-only single, "She", was written by Armstrong about a former girlfriend who showed him a feminist poem with an identical title.[7] In return, Armstrong wrote the lyrics of "She" and showed them to her.[7] She later moved to Ecuador, prompting Armstrong to put "She" on the album. The same ex-girlfriend is the topic of the songs "Sassafras Roots" and "Chump".[7]
The final single, "When I Come Around", was again inspired by a woman, though this time being about Armstrong's wife, then former girlfriend, Adrienne. Following a dispute between the couple, Armstrong left Adrienne to spend some time alone.[2] The video featured the three band members walking around Berkeley and San Francisco at night, eventually ending up back at the original location. Future touring back up guitarist, Jason White, made a cameo in the video with his then-girlfriend.[3]
Another song, "Coming Clean", deals with Armstrong's coming to terms with his bisexuality when he was 16 and 17 years old.[12] In his interview with The Advocate magazine, he says that although he has never had a relationship with a man, his sexuality has been "something that comes up as a struggle in me".
Billie Joe Armstrong wrote the song "In the End" about his mother and her husband. He is quoted saying: "That song is about my mother's husband, it's not really about a girl, or like anyone directly related to me in a relationship. In the End's about my mother."[13]
Armstrong also wrote the song "Having a Blast" when he was in Cleveland in 1992.[14]
Bassist Mike Dirnt stated in an interview that although he used a Gibson G3 bass at the time, he recorded Dookie with varied Fender Precision Basses.
The name of the album is a reference to the band members often suffering from diarrhea, which they referred to as "liquid dookie", as a result of eating spoiled food whilst on tour. Initially the band were to name the album "Liquid Dookie"; however, this was deemed "too gross", and so they settled on the name "Dookie".[3][7]
The cover art is an illustration by Richie Bucher, which depicts bombs being dropped on people and buildings. In the center, there is an explosion, with the band's name at the top. Armstrong has since explained the meaning of the artwork:
| “ | I wanted the art work to look really different. I wanted it to represent the East Bay and where we come from, because there's a lot of artists in the East Bay scene that are just as important as the music. So we talked to Richie Bucher. He did a 7-inch cover for this band called Raooul that I really liked. He's also been playing in bands in the East Bay for years. There's pieces of us buried on the album cover. There's one guy with his camera up in the air taking a picture with a beard. He took pictures of bands every weekend at Gilman's. The robed character that looks like the Mona Lisa is the woman on the cover of the first Black Sabbath album. Angus Young is in there somewhere too. The graffiti reading "Twisted Dog Sisters" refers to these two girls from Berkeley. I think the guy saying "The fritter, fat boy" was a reference to a local cop.[15] | ” |
The back cover on early prints of the CD featured a plush toy of Ernie from Sesame Street, which was airbrushed out of later prints for fear of litigation, however, Canadian prints still feature Ernie still intact on the back cover.[3] Some rumors suggest that it was removed because it led parents to think that Dookie was a child's lullaby album or that the creators of Sesame Street had sued Green Day.[2]
Upon its release, Dookie charted in seven countries. The album peaked at number two on the Billboard 200 in the United States,[4] and was a success in several other countries, peaking as high as number one in New Zealand;[16] the lowest peak in any country was in the United Kingdom at number 13.[11] While all the singles from the album charted in a few countries, the hit single "Basket Case" entered the top 10 in the United Kingdom and Sweden. Later in 1995, the album received a Grammy Award for Best Alternative Music Album, with "Longview" and "Basket Case" each being nominated for a Grammy.
Throughout the 1990s, Dookie continued to sell well, eventually receiving diamond certification[17] in 1999; as of 2007, Dookie had sold over 15 million copies worldwide and remains the band's best-selling album.[18]
| Professional ratings | |
|---|---|
| Review scores | |
| Source | Rating |
| Allmusic | [19] |
| Robert Christgau | (A-)[20] |
| Rolling Stone | [21] |
The album was well-received by some critics, with Allmusic describing Dookie as "a stellar piece of modern punk that many tried to emulate but nobody bettered".[19] In 1994, Time claimed Dookie as the third best album of the year, but the best rock album of 1994.[22] The New York Times, in early 1995, described the sound of Dookie as, "Punk turns into pop in fast, funny, catchy, high-powered songs about whining and channel-surfing; apathy has rarely sounded so passionate."[23]
However, many other music critics, and even some other mainstream bands, claimed that Green Day had sold out for signing to a major record label, and called the group "watered-down punk imposters".[3] The New York Times, while complimentary on the album's overall quality, noted that Dookie's pop sound only remotely resembled punk music.[24] The band did not respond initially to these comments, but later claimed that they were "just trying to be themselves" and that "it's our band, we can do whatever we want".[3] Dirnt claimed that the follow-up album, Insomniac, one of the band's hardest albums lyrically and musically, was the band releasing their anger at all the criticism from critics and former fans.[3]
Since its release, Dookie has been featured heavily in various "must have" lists compiled by the music media. Some of the more prominent of these lists to feature Dookie are shown below; this information is adapted from Acclaimed Music.[25]
| Publication | Country | Accolade | Year | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kerrang! | United Kingdom | The Kerrang! 100 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die[26] | 1998 | 33 |
| Classic Rock & Metal Hammer | United Kingdom | The 200 Greatest Albums of the 90s[27] | 2006 | N/A |
| Robert Dimery | United States | 1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die[28] | 2005 | N/A |
| Rolling Stone | United States | The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time[29] | 2003 | 193 |
| Rolling Stone | United States | Best Albums of 1994 (Readers Choice)[30] | 1994 | 1 |
| Rolling Stone | United States | Best Albums of the 90s [31] | 2010 | 30 |
| Spin | United States | 100 Greatest Albums, 1985–2005[32] | 2005 | 44 |
| Rock and Roll Hall of Fame | United States | The Definitive 200[33] | 2005 | 50 |
Immediately following the release of Dookie, the band embarked on an international tour, beginning in the United States, for which they used a bookmobile belonging to Tré Cool's father to travel between shows.[3] An audience of millions saw Green Day's performance at Woodstock '94 on Pay-per-view, helping the band attract more fans. This event was the location of the infamous[34] mud fight between the band and the crowd, which continued beyond the end of Green Day's set.[35] During the fight, Dirnt was mistaken for a fan by a security guard, who tackled him and then threw him against a monitor, causing him to injure his arm and break two of his teeth.[36]
The band also appeared at Lollapalooza and the Madison Square Garden charity event, where Armstrong performed the song "She" naked.[37] Having toured throughout the United States and Canada, the band played a few shows in Europe before beginning the recording sessions for the subsequent album, Insomniac. During the tour, Armstrong was quite homesick. His wife, Adrienne Armstrong, whom he had married shortly after the release of Dookie, was pregnant during most of the tour, and Armstrong was upset about being unable to help and care for her. Being away from his family during the Dookie tour, and the following tours for the next few albums, eventually caused the band to break up temporarily.[3]
All lyrics written by Billie Joe Armstrong, except where noted, all music composed by Green Day.
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Burnout" | 2:07 |
| 2. | "Having a Blast" | 2:44 |
| 3. | "Chump" | 2:54 |
| 4. | "Longview" | 3:59 |
| 5. | "Welcome to Paradise" | 3:44 |
| 6. | "Pulling Teeth" | 2:31 |
| 7. | "Basket Case" | 3:01 |
| 8. | "She" | 2:14 |
| 9. | "Sassafras Roots" | 2:37 |
| 10. | "When I Come Around" | 2:58 |
| 11. | "Coming Clean" | 1:34 |
| 12. | "Emenius Sleepus" (lyrics written by Mike Dirnt) | 1:43 |
| 13. | "In the End" | 1:46 |
| 14. | "F.O.D." "All by Myself" (lyrics written by Tré Cool) |
5:46 |
|
Total length:
|
39:38 | |
A number of outtakes for Dookie have circulated. Some of which have been officially released, though most have not. All known outtakes are listed below.
| Song | Length | Release(s) |
|---|---|---|
| "Haushinka" | 3:18 3:27 3:14 |
Re-recorded for Nimrod in 1997. |
| "J.A.R. (Jason Andrew Relva)" | 2:52 2:39 |
Re-recorded for Insomniac; released as its own single in 1995; featured on the soundtrack to the film Angus the same year; featured on the compilation album International Superhits! in 2001. |
| "Don't Wanna Fall in Love" | 1:56 | Re-recorded for Insomniac; released as a b-side to the "Geek Stink Breath" single in 1995; featured on the compilation album Shenanigans in 2002. |
| "Walking the Dog" | 2:48 | Originally performed by Rufus Thomas; featured on the circulating bootleg of demos from Dookie in 1993; never officially released. |
| "Last Ride In" | 1:16 | A demo version of the instrumental re-recorded for Nimrod in 1997. |
| "Untitled" | 1:34 | An untitled instrumental track; featured on the circulating bootleg of demos from Dookie in 1993; never officially released. |
| "409 in Your Coffeemaker" | 2:54 | Re-recorded version of the song that originally appeared on the extended play Slappy; released on the U.K. edition of the "Basket Case" single in 1994. |
| "2,000 Light Years Away" | 2:55 | Remix by Rob Cavallo and Jerry Finn of the Kerplunk track; featured on the soundtrack to the film Jerky Boys in 1995. |
| "On the Wagon" | 2:48 | Released as a b-side to the "Longview" single in 1994; originally intended to be the final track on Dookie. |
| "Tired of Waiting for You" | 2:33 | Written by Ray Davies; originally performed by The Kinks; released as a
b-side to the U.S. edition of the "Basket Case" single in 1994. |
Production
| Chart | Peak position | Certification | Sales |
|---|---|---|---|
| Australian Albums Chart[38] | 1 | 5× Platinum[39] | 350,000 |
| Canadian Albums Chart[40] | 1 | Diamond[41] | 1,000,000 |
| Belgian Albums Chart (Flanders) | 13 | ||
| Belgian Albums Chart (Wallonia) | 13 | ||
| Finnish Albums Chart | 5[42] | Gold[43] | 35,205 |
| New Zealand Albums Chart | 1 | ||
| Polish Albums Chart | Gold[44] | 20,000[45] | |
| Swedish Album Chart[46] | 3 | Gold[47] | 20,000[48] |
| UK Albums Chart[11] | 13 | 3× Platinum[49] | 900,000[49] |
| US Billboard 200[4] | 2 | Diamond[50] | 10,000,000[51] |
| Chart (1990–1999) | Position |
|---|---|
| U.S. Billboard 200[52] | 33 |
| Year | Song | Peak chart positions | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| US Mod [53] |
US Main [54] |
UK [11] |
CAN [55][56] |
SWE [46] |
NZ [16] |
FRA [57] |
||
| 1994 | "Longview" | 1 | 13 | 30 | — | — | — | — |
| 1994 | "Welcome to Paradise" | 7 | — | 20 | — | — | 21 | — |
| 1994 | "Basket Case" | 1 | 9 | 7 | 12 | 3 | 21 | 35 |
| 1995 | "When I Come Around" | 1 | 2 | 27 | 3 | 28 | 4 | — |
| 1995 | "She" | 5 | 18 | — | — | — | — | — |
