Unpopular Green Day Opinions

[DookieLukie]

People are saying Dookie is overrated and not influential. Do you guys even realize (or were alive for) what went on in 1994? Dookie was MASSIVELY influential. It carried punk rock/ punk-pop back into the mainstream. It was a brutally honest take on teenage angst, possibly the front running album for depicting the feelings of growing up. Dookie has AMAZING songs that we probably overlook due to hearing them so much.

Not just that, but Dookie was a cultural phenomenon. The nation (world?) was captivated and entranced by three guys who seems to feel very much like them. Green Day provided the long gone sound of punk rock with a modern edge. The Ramones helped to develop punk rock; Green Day perfected it with Dookie. People were obsessed even to the point of the sweater from the When I Come Around video being worn as a popular outfit; a new fashion so to speak. Dookie was everywhere. Green Day was everywhere. And Dookie's fame alone kept Green Day in the spotlight for almost 7 years without recording another smash album.

I'm no music expert, but I know that what Green Day did with Dookie was special and unique, and that they inspired hundreds of bands. They also carried older bands into the mainstream and newer bands became famous just by saying that Green Day was an influence. Dookie was huge. Please show some respect to one of the greatest albums of all time.

[Z J]

Changing course from the Trilogy theme for a while—I think 21st Century Breakdown does nearly as good a job as American Idiot of capturing the vibe and emotions of the era it was recorded in. Yes, it's all over the place and doesn't really seem to have a goal or focus of any kind, but think about it for a sec. The album is an uncanny prediction of movements like Occupy Wall Street that railed against "the system" but had no set goals, no rules, no agenda common to all participants. No one in Occupy knew what it was fighting exactly, and so it morphed into everyone fighting for his own personal cause. Hence, on 21st Century Breakdown, we get vague, repetitious railing against "authority" ("Know Your Enemy", which I still half-believe was intentionally shoddy lyrically), and all-over-the-place protest songs that swing from anti-violence to anti-religion to anti-corporate America. As I said, it's obviously a precursor to Occupy rather than a tribute to it, as it was written two years before the protests began, but that just makes it all the more uncanny in its accuracy. It also serves as a cautionary tale—unlike Occupy, Christian's movement turns violent ("Horseshoes and Hand Grenades", "American Eulogy") and ends up enbroiling America in anarchy. Mixed in with this are good old-fashioned love songs ("Last Night on Earth") and social commentary ("Static Age") that serve as vignettes of life continuing to go on even as chaos unfolds around it. I still maintain that American Idiot is the better album—it's a more personal story, the political songs are harder-hitting because they're used sparingly, and Billie's vocals aren't annoyingly overproduced, and the fact that it isn't all over the place like its follow-up means it's easier to relate to. But 21CB is still fantastic at capturing the zeitgeist of an era, and I believe that, in retrospect, critics will rank it with Dookie, Warning, Nimrod, and American Idiot as among the band's best work.

I love you.

[NowhereBound]

No offense, but I strongly disagree with this. I think Holiday is an incredible live song.

No worries, you're not offending me. That's what opinions are for!

i thought they played most of their songs fast live, not just holiday.

Yeah, I have noticed that. I believe all the other songs sound fine live when they're faster, it just feels like an odd arrangement to me/sounds weird.

it is often the case, that songs are sped up live, it's simply due to the more energy intense setting, i'd say.

Pretty much what I said above...haha. I think the thing that bothers me so much with Holiday live is that fact that Billie doesn't elongate the notes he sings; he cuts them off too short, which is not what I'm used to from the studio version.

I just came here to say that I think that Holiday is their best live song and that I like more live than studio version, then I saw this So yeah we disagree

Mission accomplished then.

*By the way, a little side note: I've noticed this thread has been quite tense lately, and not to say that you guys who quoted me would jump down my throat, but I'm glad you didn't. I whole-heartedly appreciate your opinions and kind responses.

[munns6691]

I like 21CBD alot more lately (the album), but the "Story" of Christian and Gloria is a little weak"

[Strype]

Most of the songs that really get you won't be realized by people who have not lived it - i.e. if you've never been broke as ____, standing by a phone booth relying on the kindness of others to give you a quarter for a pay phone call in the 90's just so you could buy the cigarettes you were addicted to... Yea some things you just will not get. Most of what is said or inferred is from $2 Bill's teenage angst - still.

[Anaïs.]

I love you.

Why thank you.

[WhiteTim]

People are saying Dookie is overrated and not influential. Do you guys even realize (or were alive for) what went on in 1994? Dookie was MASSIVELY influential. It carried punk rock/ punk-pop back into the mainstream. It was a brutally honest take on teenage angst, possibly the front running album for depicting the feelings of growing up. Dookie has AMAZING songs that we probably overlook due to hearing them so much.

Not just that, but Dookie was a cultural phenomenon. The nation (world?) was captivated and entranced by three guys who seems to feel very much like them. Green Day provided the long gone sound of punk rock with a modern edge. The Ramones helped to develop punk rock; Green Day perfected it with Dookie. People were obsessed even to the point of the sweater from the When I Come Around video being worn as a popular outfit; a new fashion so to speak. Dookie was everywhere. Green Day was everywhere. And Dookie's fame alone kept Green Day in the spotlight for almost 7 years without recording another smash album.

I'm no music expert, but I know that what Green Day did with Dookie was special and unique, and that they inspired hundreds of bands. They also carried older bands into the mainstream and newer bands became famous just by saying that Green Day was an influence. Dookie was huge. Please show some respect to one of the greatest albums of all time.

I dont think anyone said Dookie WASN'T influencial... just overrated... which it is

Dookie was huge but its not even in top 50 of greatest albums of all time imo

[DookieLukie]

I dont think anyone said Dookie WASN'T influencial... just overrated... which it is

Dookie was huge but its not even in top 50 of greatest albums of all time imo

I'm not saying it's in the Top 50. I'm just saying that you saying it's not even in your Top 5 Green Day albums was sort of disappointing.

[WhiteTim]

I'm not saying it's in the Top 50. I'm just saying that you saying it's not even in your Top 5 Green Day albums was sort of disappointing.

Dookie isnt bad im sorry if im coming off as a Dookie hater but I think albums like Insomniac Warning AI 21st Nimrod are better

But maybe I've played Dookie so much since 94 I've just grown tired of it lol

[St. Christian Of Suburbia]

Desensitized is in my top five GD songs but I find the freak-out at the beginning hard to listen to so I edited it out.

[DookieLukie]

Dookie isnt bad im sorry if im coming off as a Dookie hater but I think albums like Insomniac Warning AI 21st Nimrod are better

But maybe I've played Dookie so much since 94 I've just grown tired of it lol

Idk. I love Insomniac. American Idiot is phenomenal. I just don't get all the 21CB and Warning love. Kinda bland to me (mostly).

[Hermione]

Alright well regardless of me being misinformed, the the albums all certainly went in the direction of being stripped down. All of their shows are reflecting that as well. Notice the lack of explosives and fire. I don't mark the trilogy down because I read that quote. I mark it down because of lyrics like:

Sex, drugs & violence

English, math & science,

Safety in numbers

Give me, give me danger

Oh baby, baby eyes

Oh baby, baby I was born to... Kill!

Hey, you got yourself a pretty little mouth

I think I wanna rub it the wrong way

When you fall

You're gonna need a parachute

Or a used pair of shoes to go

And walk away

And throw all of 'missing you' in to that boat as well. I only cited that quote because someone said that you can't compare Green Day's albums to each other. That misquote is not why I mark down the trilogy. The trilogy does it to its self.

EDIT: The trilogy lyrics are weak compared to other Green Day material. Not necessarily overall.

I don't think there's anything wrong with any of those lyrics

Sex, drugs & violence

English, math & science,

Safety in numbers

Give me, give me danger

This is a contrast between the sensible fundamental things you learn at school and the fundamental vices that people always fall back to (and also perhaps a contrast between what kids are supposed to be doing at school and what they really do when parents and teachers aren't looking as someone suggested in another thread recently). And then another contrast between the sensible adage of "safety in numbers" and the reckless slogan of "give me danger". It's all a contrast between the sensible things we're taught and the dangerous things we're tempted by.

Oh baby, baby eyes

Oh baby, baby I was born to... Kill!

Just a simple badass way of describing a badass character (maybe the kind of character people would secretly like to be). The "....Kill!" part is particularly badass. I like the wordplay of "baby, Baby Eyes" and then "baby, baby I" too.

Hey, you got yourself a pretty little mouth

I think I wanna rub it the wrong way

A bit of dirty flirting with play on "rub you the right way". Pretty funny and sexy imo.

When you fall

You're gonna need a parachute

Or a used pair of shoes to go

And walk away

This is actually one of my favourite lines . The idea of rhyming "parachute" and "pair of shoes" in this way is so weird it's genius. Bit silly maybe but I like it. And it makes sense, when you "fall" in life you'll need some kind of safety net or solution to pick yourself up and "walk away".

Besides, you can take any song from any album and pull out one line to make it look weak. Just because one line is simple or nonsensical on its own it doesn't mean it's bad in the context of the song.....simple and nonsensical lines have their place in some songs. Also just because the lyrics of an album are more complex or deal with more serious subject matter it doesn't mean they're better. Some songs call for complex lyrics, some for simple. Some songs call for serious lyrics, some for fun ones. There's a place for all of them within music and none are automatically better than any other based on those things. I think the Trilogy has some beautifully simple lyrics, some clever one liners, some hilarious silly and tongue in cheek humour, some sweet romantic lyrics, and plenty of thoughtful, dark, personal lyrics too. The style of lyrics may be different to their other albums (in fact most of their albums have different lyrical styles), but I find them just as good.

[tammy_cool]

See You Tonight/Fuck Time is one of my favorite Green Day songs ever. SWTRLF and Stray Heart are ok. The rest of the album is disposable for me.

Agreed. Dos is their weakest album by far in my opinion

[tammy_cool]

After reading this trilogy debate I went and made a playlist of all my fav songs from the three albums. I ended up with 14. Enough for one great album

[munns6691]

After reading this trilogy debate I went and made a playlist of all my fav songs from the three albums. I ended up with 14. Enough for one great album

What songs?

[Anaïs.]

Another 21CB-era unpopular opinion—"Last Night on Earth" should've been a single instead of "Last of the American Girls". It's the perfect slow dance song.

[Hermione]

After reading this trilogy debate I went and made a playlist of all my fav songs from the three albums. I ended up with 14. Enough for one great album

That's why it's cool that they released so many songs, the likelihood of them choosing the same 14 as you are tiny so chances are if they'd only released 14 you would've missed out on ever hearing a load of your favourites. Or if they'd picked the same as you someone with different favourites would've missed out. I love having three different albums of songs to choose from, it means there's something for everyone.

[bioshockerxx]

After reading this trilogy debate I went and made a playlist of all my fav songs from the three albums. I ended up with 14. Enough for one great album

I made my own like 3 months ago lol

It's called Wow! That's loud

1. Nuclear Family

2. Let Yourself Go

3. Makeout Party

4. Stop When The Red Lights Flash

5. 99 Revolutions

6. Rusty James

7. Stay The Night

8. Missing You

9. Fuck Time

10. Stray Heart

11. 8th Avenue Serenade

12. Amy

13. X-Kid

14. DRB

15. Troublemaker

16. Loss Of Control

17. Oh Love

18. Wow! That's Loud

19. Walk Away

These aren't some of my favs but I put songs that would've made 1 good actual length album

[DookieLukie]

Another 21CB-era unpopular opinion—"Last Night on Earth" should've been a single instead of "Last of the American Girls". It's the perfect slow dance song.

Too repetitive and slow for radio.

[munns6691]

If they didn't do the trilogy theme uno-dos-tre Wow, That's Loud or 99 Revolutions would have been good titles. Maybe Dirty Rotten Bastards

[Hermione]

Another 21CB-era unpopular opinion—"Last Night on Earth" should've been a single instead of "Last of the American Girls". It's the perfect slow dance song.

Pretty sure the only reason they released Last of the American Girls as a single instead of a better song was because at that point they'd basically stopped promoting the album and were focusing on the AI musical instead, and Last of the American Girls was the only song from 21st CB that was in the musical that they hadn't released yet. Can't see any other explanation for it.

[Sir Psycho Sexy]

If they didn't do the trilogy theme uno-dos-tre Wow, That's Loud or 99 Revolutions would have been good titles. Maybe Dirty Rotten Bastards

Nuclear Family?

[Eva]

I don't get why everyone is saying that the trilogy is better than 1039SOSH and Kerplunk. I think that those are two of Green Days most relatable, and influential albums.

I think 1039SOSH and Kerplunk are better than the Trilogy. I hate to say it, but I can relate to "I find it hard to be myself, can you please explain, I do not think it's my health, and you're the one to blame" a lot more than I can to something like, "She gave up on Jesus, for living on Venus, all dressed up with nowhere to go."

Plus, 1039SOSH and Kerplunk have more of a "classic" punk sound than the Trilogy and I'm a sucker for punk.

People are saying Dookie is overrated and not influential. Do you guys even realize (or were alive for) what went on in 1994? Dookie was MASSIVELY influential. It carried punk rock/ punk-pop back into the mainstream. It was a brutally honest take on teenage angst, possibly the front running album for depicting the feelings of growing up. Dookie has AMAZING songs that we probably overlook due to hearing them so much.

Not just that, but Dookie was a cultural phenomenon. The nation (world?) was captivated and entranced by three guys who seems to feel very much like them. Green Day provided the long gone sound of punk rock with a modern edge. The Ramones helped to develop punk rock; Green Day perfected it with Dookie. People were obsessed even to the point of the sweater from the When I Come Around video being worn as a popular outfit; a new fashion so to speak. Dookie was everywhere. Green Day was everywhere. And Dookie's fame alone kept Green Day in the spotlight for almost 7 years without recording another smash album.

I'm no music expert, but I know that what Green Day did with Dookie was special and unique, and that they inspired hundreds of bands. They also carried older bands into the mainstream and newer bands became famous just by saying that Green Day was an influence. Dookie was huge. Please show some respect to one of the greatest albums of all time.

I was with you until you said "The Ramones helped to develop punk rock; Green Day perfected it with Dookie."

/punk elitist

I do agree with you though. Dookie was and still is an amazing record. You can relate to it, it's catchy, and it's fun.

I don't think there's anything wrong with any of those lyrics

I personally love Sex, Drugs & Violence. Other people may think the lyrics are stupid, and while I agree the chorus is a bit weak, I absolutely love the verses. I can relate to them quite a bit, too, because I think the lyrics are about struggling in school and fucking up while you're a kid so you don't really know what the hell you're doing. As an unmotivated kid in high school, I really get where the guy is comin' from.

[tammy_cool]

That's why it's cool that they released so many songs, the likelihood of them choosing the same 14 as you are tiny so chances are if they'd only released 14 you would've missed out on ever hearing a load of your favourites. Or if they'd picked the same as you someone with different favourites would've missed out. I love having three different albums of songs to choose from, it means there's something for everyone.

Yea I understand that not everyone is gunna pick the same songs as me lol Everyone's different. I was just surprised that I only picked 14. It seemed such a tiny number. I was a little disappointed.

And in regards to the songs:

Nuclear Family

Stay The Night

Carpe Diem

Kill The DJ

Fell For You

Sweet 16

Fuck Time

Stray Heart

Brutal Love

Missing You

8th Avenue Serenade

X-Kid

Dirty Rotten Bastards

99 Revolutions

Green Day themselves may not have picked these songs, like you said, but I love them lol

[Hermione]

Yea I understand that not everyone is gunna pick the same songs as me lol Everyone's different. I was just surprised that I only picked 14. It seemed such a tiny number. I was a little disappointed.

And in regards to the songs:

Nuclear Family

Stay The Night

Carpe Diem

Kill The DJ

Fell For You

Sweet 16

Fuck Time

Stray Heart

Brutal Love

Missing You

8th Avenue Serenade

X-Kid

Dirty Rotten Bastards

99 Revolutions

Oh I see haha! Well I see you have Brutal Love and Kill The DJ on your list so I approve of it