"Deadbeat Club" is a song written and performed by American
new wave band
the B-52's. The song was released as the fifth and final single from their fifth studio album, ''
Cosmic Thing'' (1989).
"Deadbeat Club" peaked at 30 on the US
''Billboard'' Hot 100, No. 21 on the
New Zealand Singles Chart, No. 35 on the Canadian ''
RPM'' Top Singles chart, and No. 73 on the
Australian Singles Chart
The ARIA Charts are the main Australian record chart, music sales charts, issued weekly by the Australian Recording Industry Association. The charts are a record of the highest selling songs and albums in various genres in Australia. ARIA beca ...
in 1990.
Background
The song is about the band's early days in
Athens
Athens ( ) is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Greece, largest city of Greece. A significant coastal urban area in the Mediterranean, Athens is also the capital of the Attica (region), Attica region and is the southe ...
when they would hang around in cafes drinking coffee. Because they did not work or do anything, their parents nicknamed them "Deadbeats".
Allen's, mentioned in the nostalgic song, was a real-life place in
Athens, Georgia
Athens is a consolidated city-county in the U.S. state of Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia. Downtown Athens lies about northeast of downtown Atlanta. The University of Georgia, the state's flagship public university and an Research I university, ...
.
Normaltown is a neighborhood of Athens.
The music video features
R.E.M. frontman
Michael Stipe.
Tracklisting
;CD and 12"
# "Deadbeat Club" – 4:48
# "
Love Shack" – 5:20
# "B-52's Megamix" – 6:32
Charts
References
The B-52's songs
1989 songs
1990 singles
Song recordings produced by Don Was
Song recordings produced by Nile Rodgers
Songs written by Cindy Wilson
Songs written by Fred Schneider
Songs written by Kate Pierson
Songs written by Keith Strickland
Reprise Records singles
{{1990s-US-single-stub