''Sweet Children'' is the third EP by American

rock Rock most often refers to: * Rock (geology), a naturally occurring solid aggregate of minerals or mineraloids * Rock music, a genre of popular music Rock or Rocks may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * Rock, Caerphilly, a location in Wale ...

band

Green Day Green Day is an American Rock music, rock band formed in Rodeo, California, in 1987 by lead vocalist and guitarist Billie Joe Armstrong and bassist and backing vocalist Mike Dirnt, with drummer Tré Cool joining in 1990. In 1994, their majo ...

. It was released in August 1990 through

Skene! Records Skene! Records was an American DIY punk rock record label founded in Connecticut in 1988 by Jeff Spiegel, then later based in Minneapolis, Minnesota. An early album release was ''Better Yet Connecticut Hardcore'', featuring bands such as Bug Gulp, F ...

. The name of the EP is a reference to a previous name of the band. One of the tracks is a

cover Cover or covers may refer to: Packaging * Another name for a lid * Cover (philately), generic term for envelope or package * Album cover, the front of the packaging * Book cover or magazine cover ** Book design ** Back cover copy, part of c ...

of "

My Generation "My Generation" is a song by the English rock band The Who, written by guitarist and primary songwriter Pete Townshend. One of the band's most recognizable songs, it was placed number 11 by ''Rolling Stone'' on its list of the " 500 Greatest S ...

" by

the Who The Who are an English Rock music, rock band formed in London in 1964. Their classic lineup (1964–1978) consisted of lead vocalist Roger Daltrey, guitarist Pete Townshend, bassist John Entwistle and drummer Keith Moon. Considered one of th ...

. All tracks were later included on the CD and

cassette Cassette may refer to: Technology * Cassette (format) (or ''cassette tape''), a format that contains magnetic tape for audio, video, and data storage and playback * Compact Cassette, a worldwide standard for analog audio recording and playback ...

releases of the band's second studio album, ''Kerplunk''.

History

The EP is a collection of some of the band's earliest songs that they were still playing live at the time. It was recorded in two hours on July 5, 1990, at Six Feet Under in

Minneapolis Minneapolis is a city in Hennepin County, Minnesota, United States, and its county seat. With a population of 429,954 as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the state's List of cities in Minnesota, most populous city. Locat ...

while the band was on a brief break from their summer tour, and released on seven-inch vinyl. The EP was released on Minneapolis-based indie label

. "Best Thing in Town" was one of the first songs the band had written together. These were the last recordings drummer

John Kiffmeyer John Kiffmeyer (born July 11, 1969), also known professionally as Al Sobrante, is an American cinematographer and retired musician and songwriter. He is the former drummer for the punk rock band Green Day, leaving in 1990 and replaced by Tré Cool. ...

would contribute to the band. Shortly after the end of the tour, he left the band to attend college. Also of note, "My Generation" features a line from the film '' Blue Velvet'': "

Heineken Heineken Lager Beer (), or simply Heineken (), is a Dutch pale lager beer with 5% alcohol by volume produced by the Dutch brewing company Heineken N.V. Heineken beer is sold in a green bottle with a red star. History On 15 February 1864, ...

? Fuck that shit!", said by the primary

antagonist An antagonist is a character in a story who is presented as the main enemy or rival of the protagonist and is often depicted as a villain.Frank Booth, although it's not the actual audio sample.

Pressings

There are five different pressings of the EP (some limited quantities included two different variations of red vinyl). The first four have been out of print since its inclusion on the CD and

issues of Green Day's second studio album, ''

Kerplunk KerPlunk is a children's game invented by Eddy Goldfarb with Rene Soriano and first marketed by the Ideal Toy Company in 1967. The game equipment consists of a transparent plastic tube, plastic rods called ''straws'' (normally 26 to 30 in total ...

'', in 1992. Because of this, it has since become a valuable and sought-after item among collectors and Green Day fans alike. The first pressing's cover is a picture of Mike Dirnt's leg during a concert. The second pressing's cover is a black and white picture of a somewhat trashed

Volkswagen Beetle The Volkswagen Beetle, officially the Volkswagen Type 1, is a small family car produced by the German company Volkswagen from 1938 to 2003. One of the most iconic cars in automotive history, the Beetle is noted for its distinctive shape. Its pr ...

with the caption "What Do You Think Mike..." This rare second pressing, limited to 600 copies as opposed to the first run's 1,500, also featured a handwritten insert, reading "Not a lyrics sheet, so don't get your hopes up". The third pressing is the same as the one above in every way except there is no insert, and the cover, instead of being black and white, is tinted red. The fourth pressing is a reissue, possibly from 1991, for it has a lengthy summary on the back which explains that the songs are also on ''Kerplunk''. The cover is mostly blank, featuring only a picture of a group of three children nearby a body of water with their backs to the camera, although at the bottom of the cover it says “(Note: No! This is not a new Green Day 7” but the same old SKENE! one that we keep having to repress and hence keep running out of covers for…the music is exactly the same, just in different packaging to keep the people who have to stuff these things into plastic sleeves from getting bored. So keep in mind, catering to collector-scum by paying big $$$ for something because it looks a wee bit different only makes you look like a sap…)” On March 24, 2009, the EP was back in print as it was included with the vinyl reissue of ''Kerplunk''. It is a reissue of the first pressing. In 1990, on the first day of the EP's release, it sold 493 copies.

Track listing

Personnel

Billie Joe Armstrong Billie Joe Armstrong (born February 17, 1972) is an American musician and actor. He is best known for being the lead vocalist, guitarist, and primary songwriter of the rock band Green Day, which he co-founded with Mike Dirnt in 1987. He is als ...

lead vocals The lead vocalist in popular music is typically the member of a group or band whose voice is the most prominent melody in a performance where multiple voices may be heard. The lead singer sets their voice against the accompaniment parts of the ...

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 ...

Mike Dirnt Michael Ryan Pritchard (born May 4, 1972), better known by his stage name Mike Dirnt, is an American rock musician who is the co-founder, bassist, backing vocalist, and occasional lead vocalist of Green Day. He has also played in several other ...

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 ...

backing vocals A backing vocalist is a singer who provides vocal harmony with the lead vocalist or other backing vocalists. A backing vocalist may also sing alone as a lead-in to the main vocalist's entry or to sing a counter-melody. Backing vocalists are us ...

drums The drum is a member of the percussion instrument, percussion group of musical instruments. In the Hornbostel–Sachs classification system, it is a membranophones, membranophone. Drums consist of at least one Acoustic membrane, membrane, c ...

, backing vocals

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Sweet Children (Ep) Green Day EPs 1990 EPs Reprise Records EPs Skene! Records EPs sv:Green Day#De tidiga åren