"Disappointed" is a 1989 song by

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 ...

group

Public Image Ltd Public Image Ltd (abbreviated and stylized as PiL) are an English post-punk band formed by lead vocalist John Lydon (previously, as Johnny Rotten, lead vocalist of the Sex Pistols), guitarist Keith Levene (a founding member of the Clash), bassi ...

. It was the first single from '' 9'', their seventh studio album. Lyrically, the song was inspired by

John Lydon John Joseph Lydon ( ; born 31 January 1956), also known by his former stage name Johnny Rotten, is a British-born singer, songwriter, author, and television personality. He was the lead vocalist of the punk rock band the Sex Pistols, which was ...

's experiences with friends within the band throughout its history, who he commented often let him down. Musically, guitarist

John McGeoch John Alexander McGeoch (25 August 1955 – 4 March 2004) was a Scottish musician and songwriter. He is best known as the guitarist of the rock bands Magazine (1977–1980) and Siouxsie and the Banshees (1980–1982). He has been described as o ...

used an alternate tuning courtesy of

Who The World Health Organization (WHO) is a specialized agency of the United Nations which coordinates responses to international public health issues and emergencies. It is headquartered in Geneva, Switzerland, and has 6 regional offices and 15 ...

guitarist

Pete Townshend Peter Dennis Blandford Townshend (; born 19 May 1945) is an English musician. He is the co-founder, guitarist, keyboardist, second lead vocalist, principal songwriter and leader of the Who, one of the most influential rock bands of the 1960s an ...

to begin composing the song. "Disappointed" was a commercial hit for the band, becoming its most successful UK single in three years and becoming an

alternative rock Alternative rock (also known as alternative music, alt-rock or simply alternative) is a category of rock music that evolved from the independent music underground of the 1970s. Alternative rock acts achieved mainstream success in the 1990s w ...

radio hit in the US. It has since seen positive critical reception and Lydon has named the song as one of his personal favorites.

Background

"Disappointed" was written by the then-current members of

(

, Allan Dias,

Bruce Smith Bruce Bernard Smith (born June 18, 1963) is an American former professional football player who was a defensive end for 19 seasons in the National Football League (NFL), primarily with the Buffalo Bills. He played college football for the Vir ...

), former member

Lu Edmonds Robert David "Lu" Edmonds (born 9 September 1957) is an English rock and folk musician. He is currently, as of 2018, a vocalist and saz and cümbüş player in the Mekons and the guitarist for Public Image Ltd. Edmonds reportedly plays elect ...

, and producer

Stephen Hague Stephen Hague (born 1960) is an American record producer most active with various British acts since the 1980s. Early life Hague was born in Portland, Maine, in 1960. Early career Hague started his musical career in the mid-1970s as a session ...

. Lyrically the song was inspired by Lydon's experience with band turmoil caused by his friends: Disappointed' is what it says, it's just about the many and varied ways people let you down." He specifically cited former bandmates

Keith Levene Julian Keith Levene (18 July 1957 – 11 November 2022) was an English musician who was a founding member of both the Clash and Public Image Ltd (PiL). While Levene was in PiL, their 1978 debut album '' Public Image: First Issue'' reached No. 2 ...

and

Jah Wobble John Joseph Wardle (born 11 August 1958), known by the stage name Jah Wobble, is an English bass guitarist and singer. He became known to a wider audience as the original bass player in Public Image Ltd (PiL) in the late 1970s and early 1980s; ...

, of whom he said, "All they've done is turn around and criticize and moan like selfish, whiny spoiled brats and that's an awful thing to see friends behave that way." He later reflected, In another interview, Lydon explained, "Friends will let you down, but that doesn't mean you shouldn't have friends. You should enjoy it for the very fact that they are human beings and fallible, that that very fallibility is what you should enjoy about human contact. Otherwise, really what you're asking for is sycophantic robots that merely compliment your ego. And there's no enjoyment in that."

Dave Kendall Dave Kendall is a British-born journalist, editor, producer and VJ. He was first known to the public as the creator and host of MTV's '' 120 Minutes'', an alternative music program that played Sunday nights at midnight from 1986 through the 1 ...

: "John Lydon Interview" (''

120 Minutes ''120 Minutes'' is a television program in the United States dedicated to the Alternative rock, alternative music genre, that originally aired on MTV from 1986 to 2000, and then aired on MTV's associate channel MTV2 from 2001 to 2003. After it ...

'', MTV, early October 1989) Lydon has since called "Disappointed" one of his favorite songs that he has written, commenting, "If I could ever call a song a friend, 'Disappointed' is one of them." Musically,

credited for inspiration an alternate tuning that

guitarist

had chosen. He recalled, "I was doing some work at

Eel Pie Studios Eel Pie Recording Studios, formerly Oceanic, was a recording studio located in The Boathouse, Twickenham on the banks of the River Thames The River Thames ( ), known alternatively in parts as the The Isis, River Isis, is a river that f ...

five or six years ago and Townshend had left some guitar cases lying around the place. I opened one up and there was an acoustic guitar with a receipt dated 1969 ..The tuning on the guitar was D-A-D-A-D-E, bottom to top. That's what I used on 'Disappointed'."Rick Batey: "Compilation – John McGeoch" (''

Guitarist A guitarist (or a guitar player) is a person who plays the guitar. Guitarists may play a variety of guitar family instruments such as classical guitars, acoustic guitars, electric guitars, and bass guitars. Some guitarists accompany themselve ...

'', April 1991)

Release

"Disappointed" was released as the first single from the band's seventh album '' 9'' in April 1989. In the UK, the single was the band's biggest hit since 1986's "

Rise Rise or RISE may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Fictional entities * '' Rise: The Vieneo Province'', an internet-based virtual world * Rise FM, a fictional radio station in the video game ''Grand Theft Auto 3'' * Rise Kujikawa, a vide ...

," reaching number 38 on the charts. In the US, the song became the band's most successful track to date, having received frequent play on

modern rock Modern rock is an umbrella term used to describe rock music that is found on college and commercial rock radio stations. Some radio stations use this term to distinguish themselves from classic rock, which is based in 1960s–1980s rock music. ...

radio stations and its video having been played on

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 ...

. The song topped ''Billboard'''s

Modern Rock Tracks Alternative Airplay (formerly known as Modern Rock Tracks between 1988 and 2009, and Alternative Songs between 2009 and 2020) is a music chart published in the American magazine ''Billboard'' since September 10, 1988. It ranks the 40 most-playe ...

chart, while also reaching number 26 on the

Dance Club Songs The Dance Club Songs (also known as National Disco Action, Hot Dance/Disco Club Play, and Hot Dance Club Play) was a chart published weekly between 1976 and 2020 by ''Billboard'' magazine. It used club disc jockeys set lists to determine the mos ...

chart. It also reached number 94 on the Australian charts. The song has also appeared on compilation albums such as '' The Greatest Hits, So Far'' and '' Plastic Box''.

Critical reception

Since its release, "Disappointed" has seen a positive critical reception. Andy Kellman of

AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All-Music Guide and AMG) is an American online database, online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on Musical artist, musicians and Mus ...

considered the song a highlight of ''9'' and called it "catchy." ''Trouser Press'' was similarly positive in spite of its mixed view of ''9'', concluding, "There's no questioning ydon'ssincerity in the venomous 'Disappointed.

References

{{Authority control 1989 singles Public Image Ltd songs Songs written by John Lydon 1989 songs Virgin Records singles Song recordings produced by Stephen Hague