Hey Nineteen
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"Hey Nineteen" is a song by the band Steely Dan from their album '' Gaucho'' (1980).


Background

According to one reviewer's interpretation, the song "was about a middle-aged man's disappointment with a young lover".Layman, Will
"Jazz Today: The Strange, Mixed Fate of Steely Dan"
(April 10, 2006). Accessed July 31, 2006.
The lyrics are about a man in his early 30s contemplating a romantic encounter with a 19-year-old with whom he has nothing in common. For example, she does not recognize a song by " 'Retha Franklin".
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 ...
song review:
Hey Nineteen
"
The song closes with the ambiguous line, "The Cuervo Gold, the fine Colombian, make tonight a wonderful thing," again emphasizing their age difference — when this song was written tequila was less popular among college-aged drinkers, and Colombian cannabis which in his college days was prized for its aroma and flavor was being replaced by Sinsemilla varieties valued primarily for their potency — and the listener is left to decide whether the narrator is drinking and smoking with her, or if he is in fact alone and thinking of days gone by. The song was released as the first single from the band's 1980 album '' Gaucho''. The single's B-side is a previously unreleased 1974 live version of the song "
Bodhisattva In Buddhism, a bodhisattva is a person who has attained, or is striving towards, '' bodhi'' ('awakening', 'enlightenment') or Buddhahood. Often, the term specifically refers to a person who forgoes or delays personal nirvana or ''bodhi'' in ...
", recorded at Santa Monica Civic Auditorium, with an introduction by one of the band's drivers, Jerome Aniton, who is clearly inebriated.


Charts

"Hey Nineteen" peaked at number 10 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 chart in early 1981,Steely Dan Chart History: Hot 100
'' Billboard''. Retrieved February 11, 2020.
number 11 on the Adult Contemporary chart, and number 68 on the R&B Singles chart.Steely Dan Chart History: Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs
''Billboard''. Retrieved February 12, 2020.
With a chart run of 19 weeks, "Hey Nineteen" is tied with " Peg" and " Rikki Don't Lose That Number" for being their longest-running chart hit.


Personnel

* Donald Fagen – lead vocals, electric piano, synthesizer * Rick Marotta – drums * Walter Becker – bass guitar, guitar * Hugh McCracken – guitar * Victor Feldman, Steve Gadd – percussion * Frank Floyd, Zack Sanders – backing vocals


Chart history


Weekly charts


Year-end charts


References


External links


"Hey Nineteen" lyrics
at Steely Dan archive.com * Rashida Jones talks about this song with NPR in the articl
"How Rashida Jones Found Her Inner Music Nerd"
{{DEFAULTSORT:Hey Nineteen 1980 songs 1980 singles MCA Records singles Song recordings produced by Gary Katz Songs written by Donald Fagen Songs written by Walter Becker Steely Dan songs