"Corona" is a

protest song A protest song is a song that is associated with a movement for protest and social change and hence part of the broader category of ''topical'' songs (or songs connected to current events). It may be folk, classical, or commercial in genre. ...

by American

punk rock Punk rock (also known as simply punk) is a rock music genre that emerged in the mid-1970s. Rooted in 1950s rock and roll and 1960s garage rock, punk bands rejected the corporate nature of mainstream 1970s rock music. They typically produced sh ...

band

Minutemen Minutemen were members of the organized New England colonial militia companies trained in weaponry, tactics, and military strategies during the American Revolutionary War. They were known for being ready at a minute's notice, hence the name. Min ...

. It was included as the seventh song on the second side of their third studio album '' Double Nickels on the Dime'' (1984). The song was composed by lead singer and guitarist D. Boon and produced by Ethan James. Its minimalist composition harbors elements of neo-norteño and

polka Polka is a dance style and genre of dance music in originating in nineteenth-century Bohemia, now part of the Czech Republic. Though generally associated with Czech and Central European culture, polka is popular throughout Europe and the ...

. The song derives its title from a brand of Mexican beer of the same name. Lyrically, "Corona" is a Latino-inspired protest song with politically-charged lines. The song later became famous as the main theme song for the

MTV MTV (an initialism of Music Television) is an American cable television television channel, channel and the flagship property of the MTV Entertainment Group sub-division of the Paramount Media Networks division of Paramount Global. Launched on ...

reality stunt show '' Jackass''.

Background

Named after the brand of Mexican beer, "Corona" is a

. The song was inspired by a day trip the band members (Boon, bassist Mike Watt, and drummer George Hurley) had taken to

Mexico Mexico, officially the United Mexican States, is a country in North America. It is the northernmost country in Latin America, and borders the United States to the north, and Guatemala and Belize to the southeast; while having maritime boundar ...

on the

Fourth of July Independence Day, known colloquially as the Fourth of July, is a federal holiday in the United States which commemorates the ratification of the Declaration of Independence by the Second Continental Congress on July 4, 1776, establishing th ...

, 1982. (The same trip also inspired Watt's composition "I Felt Like a Gringo" on '' Buzz or Howl Under the Influence of Heat''.) Moved by his witnessing of some of the more downtrodden elements of the area, Boon set about writing a song in sympathy with the Mexican people.

Recording

Towards the end of their career, Minutemen started to branch out musically with their songs. In contrast to atypical

hardcore punk Hardcore punk (commonly abbreviated to hardcore or hXc) is a punk rock music genre#subtypes, subgenre and subculture that originated in the late 1970s. It is generally faster, harder, and more aggressive than other forms of punk rock. Its roots ...

tempos, the band experiments with neo-norteña sounds built on

rhythms for "Corona." Drawing from

post-punk Post-punk (originally called new musick) is a broad genre of music that emerged in late 1977 in the wake of punk rock. Post-punk musicians departed from punk's fundamental elements and raw simplicity, instead adopting a broader, more experiment ...

alongside more eclectic musical influences, their music is an interaction between Hurley's virtuosic drumming, Boon's trebly electric guitar, and Watt's busy

bassline Bassline (also known as a bass line or bass part) is the term used in many styles of music, such as blues, jazz, funk, Dub music, dub and electronic music, electronic, traditional music, traditional, and classical music, for the low-pitched P ...

. Regarding their songwriting, Watt claimed, "We don't write songs, we write rivers."

Composition

"Corona" is an uptempo hardcore punk and neo-norteña song that runs for a duration of two minutes and twenty-five seconds. The song is in the key of G major and is built mainly around the chords of G, B minor, and D, with an A minor chord appearing during the final line of each stanza. It features driving guitar riffs, a burly yet funky bassline, and frantic drumbeats. The song opens with an

introduction Introduction, The Introduction, Intro, or The Intro may refer to: General use * Introduction (music), an opening section of a piece of music * Introduction (writing), a beginning section to a book, article or essay which states its purpose and g ...

, where a twanging guitar riff is played. Its minimalist arrangement contains no choruses, and is instead composed of fifty-three words structured into three

stanza In poetry, a stanza (; from Italian ''stanza'', ; ) is a group of lines within a poem, usually set off from others by a blank line or indentation. Stanzas can have regular rhyme and metrical schemes, but they are not required to have either. ...

s. Lyrically, "Corona" is a Latino

and an elegiac complaint regarding the injustice and destructive greed of the United States. Lead singer-guitarist D Boon closes by singing about a bottle of Corona beer. The bottle is intended for a poor woman on a beach in Mexico, due to its five-cent deposit.

Critical reception

In his review of their album, Juan Gutierrez from ''

LA Weekly ''LA Weekly'' is a free weekly alternative newspaper in Los Angeles, California. The paper covers music, arts, film, theater, culture, and other local news in the Los Angeles area. ''LA Weekly'' was founded in 1978 by Jay Levin (among others), ...

'' wrote, "Minutemen's song 'Corona' finally broke big due to '' Jackass'', but it was D. Boon's political lyrics, driving guitar riffs, and George Hurley's frantic drumming that make ''Double Nickels on the Dime'' hardcore perfection. ''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertis ...

s Michael Azerrad's described the song as an "ocean of scrabbling

avant-funk Avant-funk (also called mutant disco in the early 1980s) is a music style in which artists combine funk or disco rhythms with an avant-garde or art rock mentality. Its most prominent era occurred in the late 1970s and 1980s among post-punk and ...

, Norteño two-step."

Commercial performance

In March 2020, "Corona" was among countless previously released songs with titles and lyrical themes about the world ending or human survival, prompting an increase in sales and

streaming Streaming media refers to multimedia delivered through a network for playback using a media player. Media is transferred in a ''stream'' of packets from a server to a client and is rendered in real-time; this contrasts with file downl ...

. This increase occurred as populations adjusted to life in self-quarantine during the worldwide coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. The gains "Corona" experienced included a 70% rise in digital song sales and a 26% increase in total on-demand U.S. streams to 63,000. The following week, "Corona" rose 95% in U.S. streams to 122,000 for the tracking week ending March 19.

Legacy

In the 2000s, "Corona" became world-famous as the

theme song Theme music is a musical composition which is often written specifically for radio programming, television shows, video games, or films and is usually played during the title sequence, opening credits, closing credits, and in some instances at ...

of the

reality television series '' Jackass''. The song was immortalized on the stunt show, which used its trademark opening guitar riff. In the series, stuntmen subject themselves to life-threatening tests of courage and self-harm. Watt said the royalty money that the band received from the song's use in ''Jackass'' was used to aid Boon's father, who was ill with emphysema. Canadian singer-songwriter

Ford Pier Ford Pier (born 1970) is a Canadian singer-songwriter. He was born in Boston, Massachusetts. His father is a professor of music. In addition to his solo albums, he has been a member of Jr. Gone Wild, Showbusiness Giants, Rheostatics and D.O ...

claimed the songwriting approach for "Great Western" from his debut studio album ''Meconium'' was inspired by "Corona." He stated, "I had a desire to try to write a song in that style favoured by your

journeyman A journeyman is a worker, skilled in a given building trade or craft, who has successfully completed an official apprenticeship qualification. Journeymen are considered competent and authorized to work in that field as a fully qualified employee ...

singer-songwriters of pseudo-literary inclination where an ancillary detail or object within the narrative is selected to be the symbolic fulcrum of the whole thing. ... 'Corona' by the Minutemen would have been a touchstone in this approach."

Cover versions

Arizona

indie rock Indie rock is a Music subgenre, subgenre of rock music that originated in the United Kingdom, United States and New Zealand in the early to mid-1980s. Although the term was originally used to describe rock music released through independent reco ...

band Calexico performed a cover of "Corona" during a concert at the 2013

Newport Folk Festival The Newport Folk Festival is an annual American folk-oriented music festival in Newport, Rhode Island, which began in 1959 as a counterpart to the Newport Jazz Festival. The festival was founded by music promoter and Jazz Festival founder Geor ...

in Newport, Rhode Island; their cover version was included on the playlist "COVID Quarantine Dance Party" by musician Lo Bradley. "Corona" was among many popular songs found in most

quarantine A quarantine is a restriction on the movement of people, animals, and goods which is intended to prevent the spread of disease or pests. It is often used in connection to disease and illness, preventing the movement of those who may have bee ...

-themed playlists.

References

{{authority control Minutemen (band) songs 1984 songs Comedy television theme songs Songs about beer Jackass (franchise)