"Wednesday Week" is the seventh single released by

the Undertones The Undertones are a rock band formed in Derry, Northern Ireland in 1974. From 1975 to 1983, the Undertones consisted of Feargal Sharkey (vocals), John O'Neill (rhythm guitar, vocals), Damian O'Neill (lead guitar, vocals), Michael Bradle ...

. The song was written in December 1979 by the band's

rhythm guitar In music performances, rhythm guitar is a guitar technique and role that performs a combination of two functions: to provide all or part of the rhythmic pulse (music), pulse in conjunction with other instruments from the rhythm section (e.g., d ...

ist and principal songwriter, John O' Neill, during a Christmas break the band had taken while recording their second album, '' Hypnotised''. The song was notably more mellow than each of the six singles the band had released previously, drawing influences from mid-sixties acts such as the

Kinks The Kinks were an English rock band formed in London in 1963 by brothers Ray and Dave Davies, and Pete Quaife. They are regarded as one of the most influential rock bands of the 1960s. The band emerged during the height of British rhythm ...

and

the Beatles The Beatles were an English Rock music, rock band formed in Liverpool in 1960. The core lineup of the band comprised John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr. They are widely regarded as the Cultural impact of the Beatle ...

as opposed to punk rock acts such as the

Ramones The Ramones were an American punk rock band formed in the New York City neighborhood Forest Hills, Queens in 1974. Known for helping establish the punk movement in the United States and elsewhere, the Ramones are often recognized as one of th ...

. The single was released on 5 July 1980 and peaked at #11 on the UK Singles Chart three weeks later, making the song the band's second highest charting single. Wednesday Week was the Undertones' final single to be released on the

Sire Sire is an archaic respectful form of address to reigning kings in Europe. In French and other languages it is less archaic and relatively more current. In Belgium, the king is addressed as "Sire..." in both Dutch and French. The words "sire" an ...

label before the band left the label in December 1980. The Undertones subsequently signed a contract with

EMI EMI Group Limited (formerly EMI Group plc until 2007; originally an initialism for Electric and Musical Industries, also referred to as EMI Records or simply EMI) was a British transnational conglomerate founded in March 1931 in London. At t ...

in March 1981.''The Encyclopedia of Popular Music'' p. 1997

Track listing

References

External links

* The Undertone
official website
{{Authority control 1979 songs 1980 singles 1980 songs Sire Records singles Songs written by John O'Neill (guitarist) The Undertones songs