"Smash It Up" is a song by English

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 the Damned, released as a single on 12 October 1979 by Chiswick Records. It is considered the band's unofficial anthem. The single was the second release from the band's third studio album '' Machine Gun Etiquette'' (1979), where it was listed as "Smash It Up (Part II)". The

B-side The A-side and B-side are the two sides of phonograph record, vinyl records and Compact cassette, cassettes, and the terms have often been printed on the labels of two-sided music recordings. The A-side of a Single (music), single usually ...

of the single was "Burglar".

Production

"Smash It Up" was produced by the band and Roger Armstrong. It is structured in two-part form: a melodic instrumental introduction (written in homage to

Marc Bolan Marc Bolan ( ; born Mark Feld; 30 September 1947 – 16 September 1977) was an English guitarist, singer-songwriter and poet. He was a pioneer of the glam rock movement in the early 1970s with his band T. Rex (band), T. Rex. Bolan strongly i ...

after his tragic death) segueing into an energetic

pop-punk Pop-punk (also punk-pop, alternatively spelled without the hyphen) is a rock music fusion genre that combines elements of punk rock with power pop or pop music, pop. It is defined by its fast-paced, energetic tempos, and emphasis on classic pop s ...

song. The song's lyrics criticize those who indulge in

hippie A hippie, also spelled hippy, especially in British English, is someone associated with the counterculture of the 1960s, counterculture of the mid-1960s to early 1970s, originally a youth movement that began in the United States and spread to dif ...

culture (referring to "blow wave hairstyles" and "

Glastonbury Glastonbury ( , ) is a town and civil parish in Somerset, England, situated at a dry point on the low-lying Somerset Levels, south of Bristol. The town had a population of 8,932 in the 2011 census. Glastonbury is less than across the River ...

hippies") instead of advocating for political revolution.

Release

Chiswick reissued the single on their budget

Big Beat Big beat is an electronic music genre that usually uses heavy breakbeats and synthesizer-generated loops and patterns – common to acid house/techno. The term has been used by the British music industry to describe music by artists such as the ...

imprint in February 1982. The single was also issued in Australia, Germany, the Netherlands and Spain. "Smash It Up" was boycotted by

BBC Radio 1 BBC Radio 1 is a British national radio station owned and operated by the BBC. It specialises in modern popular music and Contemporary hit radio, current chart hits throughout the day. The station provides alternative genres at night, including ...

because of its perceived anarchic lyrics, stalling at No. 35 in the UK Singles Chart. In November 2004, Ace Records reissued the single on CD, with alternate versions of the song (including the previously unreleased third and fourth parts of "Smash It Up") and a video, directed by Martin Baker, added.

Promotion

The Damned performed "Smash It Up" (as well as " I Just Can't Be Happy Today") on the

BBC2 BBC Two is a British free-to-air public broadcast television channel owned and operated by the BBC. It is the corporation's second flagship channel, and it covers a wide range of subject matter, incorporating genres such as comedy, drama and ...

television show ''

The Old Grey Whistle Test ''The Old Grey Whistle Test'' (sometimes abbreviated to ''Whistle Test'' or ''OGWT'') is a British television music series broadcast by the BBC. It was devised by producer Rowan Ayers, commissioned by David Attenborough, and aired on BBC2 from ...

'' in 1979.

Track listing

All songs written by Scabies, Sensible, Vanian, Ward. ;1979 vinyl release #"Smash It Up" – 2:52 #"Burglar" – 3:33 ;2004 CD release #"Smash It Up" – 2:52 #"Burglar" – 3:33 #"Smash It Up Parts 1–4" – 8:43

Production credits

Producers *Roger Armstrong * The Damned Musicians * Dave Vanian −

vocals Singing is the art of creating music with the voice. It is the oldest form of musical expression, and the human voice can be considered the first musical instrument. The definition of singing varies across sources. Some sources define sing ...

* Captain Sensible −

guitar The guitar is a stringed musical instrument that is usually fretted (with Fretless guitar, some exceptions) and typically has six or Twelve-string guitar, twelve strings. It is usually held flat against the player's body and played by strumming ...

, keyboards * Rat Scabies −

drum The drum is a member of the percussion group of musical instruments. In the Hornbostel–Sachs classification system, it is a membranophone. Drums consist of at least one membrane, called a drumhead or drum skin, that is stretched over a ...

s, vocals on "Burglar" * Algy Ward −

bass Bass or Basses may refer to: Fish * Bass (fish), various saltwater and freshwater species Wood * Bass or basswood, the wood of the tilia americana tree Music * Bass (sound), describing low-frequency sound or one of several instruments in th ...

Cover versions

The song was covered by

Die Toten Hosen Die Toten Hosen are a German punk rock band from Düsseldorf. The name is taken from the German slang idiom ''tote Hose'' (literally "dead trousers"), which means "nothing happening"; "boring". The band has had an important success through th ...

for the 1991

cover album An album is a collection of audio recordings (e.g., music) issued on a medium such as compact disc (CD), Phonograph record, vinyl (record), audio tape (like 8-track cartridge, 8-track or Cassette tape, cassette), or digital distribution, dig ...

'' Learning English, Lesson One''. In 1995,

The Offspring The Offspring is an American Rock music, rock band formed in Garden Grove, California, in 1984. Originally formed under the name Manic Subsidal, the band currently consists of lead vocalist and guitarist Dexter Holland, Bryan "Dexter" Holland, ...

covered the song for the soundtrack to the film '' Batman Forever''. Although the song appeared in the film for only a few seconds, the full version was included on the soundtrack. It peaked at No. 16 on the U.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 and No. 47 on the Hot 100 Airplay chart. Its chart success came about since it was the band's first new single after the breakthrough of their '' Smash'' album, albeit before their follow-up album '' Ixnay on the Hombre''. It was later released on The Offspring's '' Club Me'' EP and also on the " All I Want" CD single.

References

External links

* {{Authority control 1979 singles 1982 singles 1995 singles 2004 singles Batman (1989 film series) music The Damned (band) songs The Offspring songs Songs written by Captain Sensible Songs written by David Vanian Songs written by Rat Scabies Songs written by Algy Ward 1979 songs Chiswick Records singles