Goody Two Shoes (song)

"Goody Two Shoes"
Single by Adam Ant
from the album Friend or Foe
B-side "Red Scab"
Released 7 May 1982
Format 7" single
Recorded 1982
Genre New wave[1]
Length 3:28 (album version)[2]
3:15 (single version)[3]
Label CBS
Writer(s) Adam Ant and Marco Pirroni
Producer(s) Adam Ant, Marco Pirroni, Chris Hughes
Certification Silver (BPI)[4]
Adam Ant singles chronology
"Goody Two Shoes"
(1982)		 "Friend or Foe"
(1982)

"Goody Two Shoes" is a song by Adam Ant, which was released on the album Friend or Foe in 1982. The title phrase is a disparaging term for someone who is overly virtuous or conformist.

History

Following the dissolution of Adam and the Ants in early 1982, Adam Ant pursued a solo career. His début as a solo artist, "Goody Two Shoes" was written by Adam Ant and Marco Pirroni and produced by Ant, Pirroni and Chris Hughes. The song details Ant's frustration with press intrusion, which was reinforced by the video and his clean cut image.

The song was an instant hit, reaching number one on the UK Singles Chart for a fortnight in June 1982 and later repeating the feat in Australia. Despite the success, this was his third and final number one single. In the US, the song was his first and biggest hit, peaking at number 12 on the Billboard Hot 100.

There are two versions of the cover. The first has Adam and the Ants across the top of the sleeve and the later version just Adam Ant. This is probably due to the confusion around the timing of Adam going solo, particularly as the song was performed by three fifths of the band—Adam, Marco and Merrick (Hughes).[5]

There are also two different studio versions of the song. The UK 7" single version is notably different from the re-recorded version which appears on Friend or Foe. The single version has a different, more reverberating drum track. The Friend or Foe version, instead of Hughes on drums, features Bogdan Wiczling, drummer on the rest of the album.[6] This version also appeared on the US edition of the single.

"Red Scab"

It was fairly common for Adam to rerecord old Adam and the Ants tracks for the B-side of his singles. For "Goody Two Shoes'" an old Ants song from 1977 called "Red Scab" was used.[5] This particular version was recorded in 1982 by Adam, Marco and Merrick.

Track listing

All songs written by Adam Ant except as noted.[3]

  1. "Goody Two Shoes" (Adam Ant/Marco Pirroni) – 3:15
  2. "Red Scab" – 4:06

Chart performance

Weekly charts

Chart (1982–1983) Peak
position
Australia (Kent Music Report)[7] 1
Belgium (Ultratop 50 Flanders)[3] 16
Belgium (VRT Top 30 Flanders)[8] 19
Canada (CHUM)[9] 3
Canada Top Singles (RPM)[10] 4
Germany (Media Control Charts)[11] 5
Ireland (IRMA)[12] 2
Italy (FIMI)[13] 41
Netherlands (Dutch Top 40)[14] 8
Netherlands (Single Top 100)[15] 13
New Zealand (Recorded Music NZ)[16] 29
Poland (LP3)[17] 22
UK Singles (Official Charts Company)[18] 1
US Billboard Hot 100[19] 12
US Billboard Top Tracks[19] 7
US Cash Box[20] 12

Year-end charts

Chart (1982) Position
Australia (Kent Music Report)[21] 40
Netherlands (Single Top 100)[22] 100
Chart (1983) Position
Canada (RPM Top Singles)[23] 36
US Billboard Hot 100[24] 51
US Cash Box[25] 80

Preceded by
"House of Fun" by Madness		 UK Singles Chart number-one single
12 June 1982 – 19 June 1982 (2 weeks) 		Succeeded by
"I've Never Been to Me" by Charlene
Preceded by
"I Ran (So Far Away)" by A Flock of Seagulls		 Australian Kent Music Report number-one single
16 August 1982 – 23 August 1982 (2 weeks) 		Succeeded by
"The Other Woman" by Ray Parker, Jr.

Music video

The video presents a stylized vision of a day in the life of Adam Ant, from dressing in the morning to performing on stage, to being hounded by the media. At the end of the day, he takes home a woman journalist played by British actress Caroline Munro, in effect answering the song's theme question, "What do you do?". The video also starred veteran actors Graham Stark as the butler and Dandy Nichols.

Other media

Covers

See also

References

  1. ↑ Erlewine, Stephen Thomas. "Adam Ant – Playlist: The Very Best of Adam Ant". AllMusic. All Media Network. Retrieved 25 June 2013.
  2. ↑ Erlewine, Stephen Thomas. "Adam Ant – Friend or Foe". AllMusic. All Media Network. Retrieved 24 June 2013.
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 "Ultratop.be – Adam Ant – Goody Two Shoes" (in Dutch). Ultratop 50. Retrieved 28 July 2013.
  4. ↑ "Certified Awards". BPI. Retrieved 3 June 2014.
  5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 Adam Ant & Marco Pirroni (7 May 1982). "Desperate But Not Serious". Adam-ant.net. EMI Music Publishing Ltd.
  6. ↑ "Official Adam Ant website". Adam-ant.net. Retrieved 28 July 2013.
  7. ↑ "Australia No. 1 hits -- 1980's". World Charts. Retrieved 9 June 2013.
  8. ↑ "Goody Two Shoes – ADAM ANT" (in Dutch). Top 30. Retrieved 28 July 2013. Hoogste notering in de top 30 : 19
  9. ↑ CHART NUMBER 1362 – Saturday, February 19, 1983 at the Wayback Machine (archived 29 July 2007). CHUM. Retrieved 3 June 2014.
  10. ↑ "Top RPM Singles: Issue 6213." RPM. Library and Archives Canada. Retrieved 4 June 2013.
  11. ↑ "Officialcharts.de – Adam Ant – Goody Two Shoes". GfK Entertainment. Retrieved 28 July 2013.
  12. ↑ "The Irish Charts – All there is to know". Irishcharts.ie. Retrieved 28 July 2013.
  13. ↑ "Indice per Interprete: A" (in Italian). Hit Parade Italia. Creative Commons. Retrieved 28 July 2013.
  14. ↑ "Nederlandse Top 40 – Adam Ant - Goody Two Shoes search results" (in Dutch) Dutch Top 40. Retrieved 28 July 2013.
  15. ↑ "Dutchcharts.nl – Adam Ant – Goody Two Shoes" (in Dutch). Single Top 100. Retrieved 28 July 2013.
  16. ↑ "Charts.org.nz – Adam Ant – Goody Two Shoes". Top 40 Singles. Retrieved 28 July 2013.
  17. ↑ "GOODY TWO SHOES – Adam Ant" (in Polish). LP3. Retrieved 28 July 2013.
  18. ↑ "Archive Chart: 1982-06-12" UK Singles Chart. Retrieved 28 July 2013.
  19. ↑ 19.0 19.1 "Adam Ant – Awards". AllMusic. All Media Network. Retrieved 29 May 2013.
  20. ↑ CASH BOX Top 100 Singles – Week ending FEBRUARY 5, 1983 at the Wayback Machine (archived 11 September 2012). Cash Box magazine. Retrieved 3 June 2014.
  21. ↑ "Forum – ARIA Charts: Special Occasion Charts – Top 100 End of Year AMR Charts – 1980s". Australian-charts.com. Hung Medien. Retrieved 3 June 2014.
  22. ↑ "Jaaroverzichten – Single 1982" (in Dutch). Single Top 100. Hung Medien. Retrieved 3 June 2014.
  23. ↑ "Top Singles – Volume 39, No. 17, December 24, 1983". RPM. Library and Archives Canada. Retrieved 3 June 2014.
  24. ↑ "Top 100 Hits for 1983". The Longbored Surfer. Retrieved 3 June 2014.
  25. ↑ The CASH BOX Year-End Charts: 1983 at the Wayback Machine (archived 11 September 2012). Cash Box magazine. Retrieved 3 June 2014.
  26. ↑ Phares, Heather. "Original Soundtrack – Hot Fuzz [Cherry Tree]". AllMusic. All Media Network. Retrieved 25 June 2013.
  27. ↑ Egenthal, Mike. "Various Artists – Before You Were Punk [1997]". AllMusic. All Media Network. Retrieved 28 July 2013.
  28. ↑ Curry, Andrew. "Here Comes The Reign Again: The Second British Invasion". Kickstarter. Retrieved 2 August 2014.