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{{about|the 1984 vocal song|the 1962 non-vocal tune|Corona (Takemitsu)}}
{{Infobox song
{{Infobox song
| name = Corona
| name = Corona
Line 7: Line 8:
| album = [[Double Nickels on the Dime]]
| album = [[Double Nickels on the Dime]]
| released = July 3, 1984
| released = July 3, 1984
| format = {{hlist|[[LP record|LP]]|[[Cassette tape|cassette]]|[[Compact disc|CD]]|[[music download|digital download]]}}
| recorded = November 1983/April 1984
| recorded = November 1983/April 1984
| studio =
| studio =
⚫
| genre = {{hlist|[[Hardcore punk]]|[[Psychobilly]]|[[Norteño (music)|norteño]]}}
| venue =
⚫
| genre = {{hlist|[[Punk rock]]|[[Norteño (music)|norteño]]}}
| length = 2:25
| length = 2:25
| label = [[SST Records|SST]]
| label = [[SST Records|SST]]
| writer = [[D. Boon]]
| writer = [[D. Boon]]
| producer = [[Ethan James (producer)|Ethan James]]
| producer = [[Ethan James (producer)|Ethan James]]
| misc =
{{Audio sample
| type = song
| file = Corona.ogg
}}
}}
}}


"'''Corona'''" is a song by American [[punk rock]] band [[Minutemen (band)|Minutemen]]. It was included as the seventh song on the second side of their third studio album ''[[Double Nickels on the Dime]]'' (1984). The song was composed by lead singer and guitarist [[D. Boon]] and produced by [[Ethan James (producer)|Ethan James]]. Its [[Minimal music|minimalist]] composition harbors elements of [[Norteño (music)|neo-norteño]] and [[polka]]. The song derives its title from [[Corona (beer)|Corona Extra]], a brand of Mexican [[beer]]. Lyrically, "Corona" is a Latino-inspired [[protest song]] that contains politically charged lines. It subsequently became famous as the [[theme music|theme song]] for the [[MTV]] reality television series ''[[Jackass (franchise)|Jackass]]''.
"'''Corona'''" is a [[protest song]] by American [[punk rock]] band [[Minutemen (band)|Minutemen]]. It was included as the seventh song on the second side of their third studio album ''[[Double Nickels on the Dime]]'' (1984). The song was composed by lead singer and guitarist [[D. Boon]] and produced by [[Ethan James (producer)|Ethan James]]. Its [[Minimal music|minimalist]] composition harbors elements of [[Norteño (music)|neo-norteño]] and [[polka]]. The song derives its title from [[Corona (beer)|a brand of Mexican beer of the same name]]. Lyrically, "Corona" is a Latino-inspired protest song with politically-charged lines. The song later became famous as the main theme song for the [[MTV]] reality stunt show ''[[Jackass (franchise)|Jackass]]''.


==Background==
==Background==
Named after a bottle of Mexican beer, "Corona" is a [[protest song]].<ref name="Corona Lexicon">{{cite web|author=|title=Das Wort, das seine Unschuld verlor|url=https://www.sueddeutsche.de/kultur/corona-andere-bedeutung-1.4853423|work=[[Süddeutsche Zeitung]]|publisher=Südwestdeutsche Medien Holding|date=2020-03-24|accessdate=}}</ref><ref name="Hughes">{{cite web|author=Hughes, Rob|title=SST Records: a guide to the best albums|url=https://www.loudersound.com/features/buyer-s-guide-sst-records|work=[[Loudersound]]|publisher=[[Future plc|Future Publishing Limited Quay House]]|date=2019-08-14|accessdate=}}</ref>
Named after the [[Corona (beer)|brand of Mexican beer]], "Corona" is a [[protest song]].<ref name="Hughes">{{cite web|author=Hughes, Rob|title=SST Records: a guide to the best albums|url=https://www.loudersound.com/features/buyer-s-guide-sst-records|work=[[Loudersound]]|publisher=[[Future plc|Future Publishing Limited Quay House]]|date=2019-08-14}}</ref>


The song was inspired by a day trip the band members (Boon, bassist [[Mike Watt]], and drummer [[George Hurley]]) had taken to [[Mexico]] on the [[Fourth of July]], 1982.  (The same trip also inspired the Mike Watt composition "I Felt Like A Gringo" on ''[[Buzz or Howl Under the Influence of Heat]].'')  Moved by some of the more downtrodden elements of the area that he had seen, Boon set about writing a song in sympathy with the people of Mexico.  
The song was inspired by a day trip the band members (Boon, bassist [[Mike Watt]], and drummer [[George Hurley]]) had taken to [[Mexico]] on the [[Fourth of July]], 1982. (The same trip also inspired Watt's composition "I Felt Like a Gringo" on ''[[Buzz or Howl Under the Influence of Heat]]''.) Moved by his witnessing of some of the more downtrodden elements of the area, Boon set about writing a song in sympathy with the Mexican people.<ref name="Corona Lexicon">{{cite web |date=2020-03-24 |title=Das Wort, das seine Unschuld verlor |url=https://www.sueddeutsche.de/kultur/corona-andere-bedeutung-1.4853423 |work=[[Süddeutsche Zeitung]] |publisher=Südwestdeutsche Medien Holding}}</ref>


==Recording==
==Recording==
Towards the end of their career, Minutemen started to musically branch out with their songs.<ref name="Prato">{{cite web |url=https://www.allmusic.com/album/introducing-the-minutemen-mw0000600140|title=Introducing the Minutemen|website=[[AllMusic]] |last=Prato|first=Greg |accessdate=}}</ref> In contrast to atypical [[hardcore punk]] tempos, the band experiments with [[Norteño (music)|Nortena]] sounds built on [[polka]] rhythms for "Corona."<ref name="allmusic">{{cite web |url=http://www.allmusic.com/album/double-nickels-on-the-dime-mw0000193728 |title=Double Nickels on the Dime – Minutemen |website=[[AllMusic]] |last=Deming |first=Mark |accessdate={{date|2005-07-25|mdy}}}}</ref> Drawing from [[post-punk]] alongside more eclectic musical influences, their music is an interaction between Hurley's virtuosic drumming, Boon's [[Treble (sound)|trebly]] electric guitar, and Watt's busy bass guitar playing. Regarding their songwriting, Watt claimed, "We don't write songs, we write rivers."<ref name="Azerrad"/>
Towards the end of their career, Minutemen started to branch out musically with their songs.<ref name="Prato">{{cite web |url=https://www.allmusic.com/album/introducing-the-minutemen-mw0000600140|title=Introducing the Minutemen|website=[[AllMusic]] |last=Prato|first=Greg }}</ref> In contrast to atypical [[hardcore punk]] tempos, the band experiments with [[Norteño (music)|neo-norteña]] sounds built on [[polka]] rhythms for "Corona."<ref name="allmusic">{{cite web |url=http://www.allmusic.com/album/double-nickels-on-the-dime-mw0000193728 |title=Double Nickels on the Dime – Minutemen |website=[[AllMusic]] |last=Deming |first=Mark |access-date=July 25, 2005}}</ref> Drawing from [[post-punk]] alongside more eclectic musical influences, their music is an interaction between Hurley's virtuosic drumming, Boon's [[Treble (sound)|trebly]] electric guitar, and Watt's busy [[bassline]]. Regarding their songwriting, Watt claimed, "We don't write songs, we write rivers."<ref name="Azerrad"/>


==Composition==
==Composition==
"Corona" is an uptempo [[hardcore punk]] and [[Norteño (music)|neo-Nortena]] song that runs for a duration of two minutes and twenty-five seconds.<ref name="Gutierrez"/><ref name="allmusic"/> It features driving guitar riffs, burly yet funky [[bassline]] and frantic drumbeats.<ref name="Gutierrez"/><ref name="Azerrad"/> The song opens with an [[Introduction (music)|introduction]], where a twanging guitar riff is played.<ref name="McCarter">{{cite web |author=McCarter, Reid|title=Rocket-shooting drone, controlled by weaponized wet blanket, shuts down street party|url=https://news.avclub.com/rocket-shooting-drone-controlled-by-weaponized-wet-bla-1836419356|work=[[The A.V. Club]]|publisher=[[The Onion|Onion]]|date=2019-07-17 |accessdate=}}</ref><ref name="Distefano"/><ref name="SPIN Staff">{{cite web |author=SPIN Staff|title=All 152 Foo Fighters Songs, Ranked |url=https://www.spin.com/2014/11/best-foo-fighters-songs-ranked/ |work=[[Spin (magazine)|Spin]] |date=2014-11-10|accessdate=2017-11-30}}</ref> Its [[Minimalist (music)|minimalist]] arrangement contains no choruses, and is instead composed of fifty-three words structured into three [[stanza]]s.<ref name="Azerrad"/><ref name="Corona Lexicon"/>
"Corona" is an uptempo hardcore punk and neo-norteña song that runs for a duration of two minutes and twenty-five seconds.<ref name="allmusic"/> The song is in the key of G major and is built mainly around the chords of G, B minor, and D, with an A minor chord appearing during the final line of each stanza. It features driving guitar riffs, a burly yet funky bassline, and frantic drumbeats.<ref name="Gutierrez"/> The song opens with an [[Introduction (music)|introduction]], where a twanging guitar riff is played.<ref name="McCarter">{{cite web |author=McCarter, Reid|title=Rocket-shooting drone, controlled by weaponized wet blanket, shuts down street party|url=https://www.avclub.com/rocket-shooting-drone-controlled-by-weaponized-wet-bla-1836419356|work=[[The A.V. Club]]|publisher=[[The Onion|Onion]]|date=2019-07-17 }}</ref><ref name="Distefano"/><ref name="SPIN Staff">{{cite web |author=SPIN Staff|title=All 152 Foo Fighters Songs, Ranked |url=https://www.spin.com/2014/11/best-foo-fighters-songs-ranked/ |work=[[Spin (magazine)|Spin]] |date=2014-11-10|access-date=2017-11-30}}</ref> Its [[Minimalist (music)|minimalist]] arrangement contains no choruses, and is instead composed of fifty-three words structured into three [[stanza]]s.<ref name="Azerrad"/>


Lyrically, "Corona" is a Latino [[protest song]] which contains political lines.<ref name="Hughes"/><ref name="Gutierrez"/> It is an elegiac complaint regarding the injustice and destructive greed of the United States.<ref name="Corona Lexicon"/> Lead singer-guitarist D Boon closes by singing about a bottle of [[Corona (beer)|Mexican beer]].<ref name="Hughes"/><ref name="Corona Lexicon"/> The bottle is intended for a poor woman on a beach in Mexico due to a five cent deposit.<ref name="Corona Lexicon"/>
Lyrically, "Corona" is a Latino [[protest song]]<ref name="Gutierrez"/> and an elegiac complaint regarding the injustice and destructive greed of the United States. Lead singer-guitarist D Boon closes by singing about a bottle of [[Corona (beer)|Corona beer]].<ref name="Hughes"/> The bottle is intended for a poor woman on a beach in Mexico, due to its five-cent deposit.<ref name="Corona Lexicon"/>


==Critical reception==
==Critical reception==
In his review of their album, Juan Gutierrez from ''[[LA Weekly]]'' wrote, "Minutemen's song 'Corona' finally broke big due to ''[[Jackass (franchise)|Jackass]]'', but it was D. Boon's political lyrics, driving guitar riffs, and George Hurley's frantic drumming that make ''Double Nickels on the Dime'' [[Hardcore punk|hardcore]] perfection.<ref name="Gutierrez">{{cite web|author=Gutierrez, Juan|title=Top 20 Hardcore Albums in History: Complete List|url=https://www.laweekly.com/top-20-hardcore-albums-in-history-complete-list/|work=[[LA Weekly]]|publisher=Brian Calle|date=2013-08-29|accessdate=}}</ref> ''[[Billboard (magazine)|Billboard]]'''s Michael Azerrad's described the song as an "ocean of scrabbling [[avant-funk]], Norteño [[Two-step (dance move)|two-step]]."<ref name="Azerrad">{{cite web | author=Azerrad, Michael| title=Former Minutemen Bassist Mike Watt on Why Their Pivotal Album ‘Double Nickels’ Mocked Sammy Hagar| url=https://www.billboard.com/articles/news/6296972/minutemen-bassist-mike-watt-on-double-nickels-album-mocking-sammy-hagar| work=[[Billboard (magazine)|Billboard]]| publisher=[[Nielsen Business Media|Nielson Business Media, Inc]]| date=2014-10-29| accessdate=}}</ref>
In his review of their album, Juan Gutierrez from ''[[LA Weekly]]'' wrote, "Minutemen's song 'Corona' finally broke big due to ''[[Jackass (franchise)|Jackass]]'', but it was D. Boon's political lyrics, driving guitar riffs, and George Hurley's frantic drumming that make ''Double Nickels on the Dime'' hardcore perfection.<ref name="Gutierrez">{{cite web|author=Gutierrez, Juan|title=Top 20 Hardcore Albums in History: Complete List|url=https://www.laweekly.com/top-20-hardcore-albums-in-history-complete-list/|work=[[LA Weekly]]|publisher=Brian Calle|date=2013-08-29}}</ref> ''[[Billboard (magazine)|Billboard]]'''s Michael Azerrad's described the song as an "ocean of scrabbling [[avant-funk]], Norteño [[Two-step (dance move)|two-step]]."<ref name="Azerrad">{{cite magazine | author=Azerrad, Michael| title=Former Minutemen Bassist Mike Watt on Why Their Pivotal Album 'Double Nickels' Mocked Sammy Hagar| url=https://www.billboard.com/articles/news/6296972/minutemen-bassist-mike-watt-on-double-nickels-album-mocking-sammy-hagar| magazine=[[Billboard (magazine)|Billboard]]| publisher=[[Nielsen Business Media|Nielson Business Media, Inc]]| date=2014-10-29}}</ref>


==Commercial performance==
==Commercial performance==
In March 2020, "Corona" was among countless previously released songs with titles and lyrical themes about the [[Global catastrophic risk|world ending]] or [[Survivalism|human survival]] which prompted a rise in sales and [[streaming]].<ref name="Zellner"/> This increase occurred as populations adjusted to life in [[Quarantine#Self quarantine|self-quarantine]] during the worldwide [[COVID-19 pandemic|coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic]].<ref name="Zellner"/> The gains "Corona" experienced included a 70% rise in digital song sales and a 26% increase in total on-demand U.S. streams to 63,000.<ref name="Zellner">{{cite web | author=Zellner, Xander| title='It's the End of the World as We Know It,' 'I Will Survive' & More Songs Surge in the Time of Coronavirus| url=https://www.billboard.com/articles/business/chart-beat/9336341/songs-surge-coronaviras| work=[[Billboard (magazine)|Billboard]]| publisher=[[Eldridge Industries|Billboard-Hollywood Media Group]]| date=2020-03-17| accessdate=2020-03-17}}</ref> The following week, "Corona" rose 95% up in U.S. streams to 122,000 for the tracking week ending March 19.<ref name="Zellner2">{{cite web | author=Zellner, Xander| title=R.E.M.'s 'It's the End of the World,' Fifth Harmony's 'Work From Home' & More Keep Surging Amid Coronavirus| url=https://www.billboard.com/articles/business/chart-beat/9341868/rem-its-the-end-of-the-world-as-we-know-it-fifth-harmony-work-from-home-sales-surge| work=[[Billboard (magazine)|Billboard]]| publisher=[[Eldridge Industries|Billboard-Hollywood Media Group]]| date=2020-03-24| accessdate=2020-03-25}}</ref> Additionally, the song also re-entered LyricFind's U.S. ranking at number 9 for the tracking week running March 9–15.<ref name="Zellner"/> The chart ranks fastest momentum-gaining tracks in lyric-search queries and usages in the United States and globally as provided by LyricFind.<ref name="Zellner"/> 
In March 2020, "Corona" was among countless previously released songs with titles and lyrical themes about the [[Global catastrophic risk|world ending]] or [[Survivalism|human survival]], prompting an increase in sales and [[streaming]]. This increase occurred as populations adjusted to life in [[Quarantine#Self-quarantine|self-quarantine]] during the worldwide [[COVID-19 pandemic|coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic]]. The gains "Corona" experienced included a 70% rise in digital song sales and a 26% increase in total on-demand U.S. streams to 63,000. The following week, "Corona" rose 95% in U.S. streams to 122,000 for the tracking week ending March 19.<ref name="Zellner2">{{cite magazine | author=Zellner, Xander| title=R.E.M.'s 'It's the End of the World,' Fifth Harmony's 'Work From Home' & More Keep Surging Amid Coronavirus| url=https://www.billboard.com/articles/business/chart-beat/9341868/rem-its-the-end-of-the-world-as-we-know-it-fifth-harmony-work-from-home-sales-surge| magazine=[[Billboard (magazine)|Billboard]]| publisher=[[Eldridge Industries|Billboard-Hollywood Media Group]]| date=2020-03-24| access-date=2020-03-25}}</ref>


==Legacy==
==Legacy==
In the 2000s, "Corona" became world-famous as the [[theme song]] of the [[MTV]] reality television series ''[[Jackass (franchise)|Jackass]]''.<ref name="Corona Lexicon"/> The song was immortalized on the stunt show, which used its trademark opening guitar riff.<ref name="Distefano">{{cite web|author=Distefano, Alex|title=The 10 Best South Bay Punk Bands of All Time|url=https://www.laweekly.com/the-10-best-south-bay-punk-bands-of-all-time/|work=[[LA Weekly]]|publisher=Brian Calle|date=2016-07-28|accessdate=}}</ref> In the series, adolescent California skateboarders subject themselves to life-threatening tests of courage and self-harm.<ref name="Corona Lexicon"/>
In the 2000s, "Corona" became world-famous as the [[theme song]] of the [[MTV]] reality television series ''[[Jackass (franchise)|Jackass]]''. The song was immortalized on the stunt show, which used its trademark opening guitar riff.<ref name="Distefano">{{cite web|author=Distefano, Alex|title=The 10 Best South Bay Punk Bands of All Time|url=https://www.laweekly.com/the-10-best-south-bay-punk-bands-of-all-time/|work=[[LA Weekly]]|publisher=Brian Calle|date=2016-07-28}}</ref> In the series, stuntmen subject themselves to life-threatening tests of courage and self-harm.<ref name="Corona Lexicon"/> Watt said the royalty money that the band received from the song's use in ''Jackass'' was used to aid Boon's father, who was ill with emphysema.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Edwards |first1=Briony |title=How Minutemen accidentally wrote the Jackass theme tune |url=https://www.loudersound.com/features/minutemen-corona-jackass-mike-watt-d-boon-mtv-interview |website=loudersound |access-date=6 February 2022 |language=en |date=28 January 2022}}</ref>


Canadian singer-songwriter [[Ford Pier]] claimed the songwriting approach for "Great Western" from his debut studio album ''Meconium'' was inspired by "Corona."<ref name="MacInnis"/> He stated, "I had a desire to try to write a song in that style favoured by your [[journeyman]] singer-songwriters of pseudo-literary inclination where an ancillary detail or object within the narrative is selected to be the symbolic fulcrum of the whole thing. ... 'Corona' by the Minutemen would have been a touchstone in this approach."<ref name="MacInnis">{{cite web|author=MacInnis, Allan|title=Ford Pier: Of the Show Business Giants, D.O.A., Bob Mould, and the stools of baby mammals|url=https://www.straight.com/music/984376/ford-pier-show-business-giants-doa-bob-mould-and-stools-baby-mammals|work=[[The Georgia Straight]]|publisher=Brian Kalis|date=2017-10-20 |accessdate=}}</ref>
Canadian singer-songwriter [[Ford Pier]] claimed the songwriting approach for "Great Western" from his debut studio album ''Meconium'' was inspired by "Corona." He stated, "I had a desire to try to write a song in that style favoured by your [[journeyman]] singer-songwriters of pseudo-literary inclination where an ancillary detail or object within the narrative is selected to be the symbolic fulcrum of the whole thing. ... 'Corona' by the Minutemen would have been a touchstone in this approach."<ref name="MacInnis">{{cite web|author=MacInnis, Allan|title=Ford Pier: Of the Show Business Giants, D.O.A., Bob Mould, and the stools of baby mammals|url=https://www.straight.com/music/984376/ford-pier-show-business-giants-doa-bob-mould-and-stools-baby-mammals|work=[[The Georgia Straight]]|publisher=Brian Kalis|date=2017-10-20 }}</ref>


==Cover versions==
==Cover versions==
Arizona [[indie rock]] band [[Calexico (band)|Calexico]] performed a cover of "Corona" during a concert at [[Newport Folk Festival]] in Newport, Rhode Island.<ref name="For The Register">{{cite web|author=For The Register|title=Way Over Yonder Recovers After Shaky Start|url=https://www.ocregister.com/2013/10/07/way-over-yonder-recovers-after-shaky-start/|work=[[Orange County Register]]|publisher=Ron Hasse|date=2013-10-07|accessdate=}}</ref> Their cover version was included on the playlist ''COVID Quarantine Dance Party'' by Lo Bradley. "Corona" was among many popular songs found in most [[quarantine]]-themed playlists.<ref name="Staff Reporter">{{cite web|author=Staff Reporter|title=Quarantine-Themed Spotify Playlists to Listen to|url=https://www.musictimes.com/articles/81127/20200320/quarantine-themed-spotify-playlists-listen.htm|work=[[Music Times]]|date=2020-03-20|accessdate=}}</ref>
Arizona [[indie rock]] band [[Calexico (band)|Calexico]] performed a cover of "Corona" during a concert at the 2013 [[Newport Folk Festival]] in Newport, Rhode Island;<ref name="For The Register">{{cite web|author=For The Register|title=Way Over Yonder Recovers After Shaky Start|url=https://www.ocregister.com/2013/10/07/way-over-yonder-recovers-after-shaky-start/|work=[[Orange County Register]]|publisher=Ron Hasse|date=2013-10-07}}</ref> their cover version was included on the playlist "COVID Quarantine Dance Party" by musician Lo Bradley. "Corona" was among many popular songs found in most [[quarantine]]-themed playlists.<ref name="Staff Reporter">{{cite web|author=Staff Reporter|title=Quarantine-Themed Spotify Playlists to Listen to|url=https://www.musictimes.com/articles/81127/20200320/quarantine-themed-spotify-playlists-listen.htm|work=[[Music Times]]|date=2020-03-20}}</ref>

*An early version of the song, as performed by the band on a live video shot by ''[[Flipside (fanzine)|Flipside]]'' magazine in 1983, for some reason has the deposit on the bottle being ten cents, not five.
*A solo version of the song by D. Boon can be heard on the CD ''[[D. Boon and Friends]]'', released in 2003.
*The [[indie rock]] band [[Calexico (band)|Calexico]] covered "Corona," with [[mariachi]] horns, on their 2004 EP ''[[Convict Pool]]''.
*The song has also been covered by the [[Yonder Mountain String Band]] and is featured on their live album ''[[Mountain Tracks: Volume 4]]''.


==References==
==References==
{{Reflist|30}}
{{Reflist}}


{{Minutemen}}
{{Minutemen}}
{{Jackass}}
{{Jackass}}

{{authority control}}


[[Category:Minutemen (band) songs]]
[[Category:Minutemen (band) songs]]
[[Category:1984 songs]]
[[Category:1984 songs]]
[[Category:Television theme songs]]
[[Category:Comedy television theme songs]]
[[Category:Songs written for films]]
[[Category:Songs about beer]]
[[Category:Songs about alcohol]]
[[Category:Jackass (franchise)]]

Latest revision as of 03:58, 19 November 2024

This article is about the 1984 vocal song. For the 1962 non-vocal tune, see Corona (Takemitsu).
"Corona"
Song by Minutemen
from the album Double Nickels on the Dime
ReleasedJuly 3, 1984
RecordedNovember 1983/April 1984
Genre
Length2:25
LabelSST
Songwriter(s)D. Boon
Producer(s)Ethan James

"Corona" is a protest song by American punk rock band Minutemen. It was included as the seventh song on the second side of their third studio album Double Nickels on the Dime (1984). The song was composed by lead singer and guitarist D. Boon and produced by Ethan James. Its minimalist composition harbors elements of neo-norteño and polka. The song derives its title from a brand of Mexican beer of the same name. Lyrically, "Corona" is a Latino-inspired protest song with politically-charged lines. The song later became famous as the main theme song for the MTV reality stunt show Jackass.

Background

[edit]

Named after the brand of Mexican beer, "Corona" is a protest song.[1]

The song was inspired by a day trip the band members (Boon, bassist Mike Watt, and drummer George Hurley) had taken to Mexico on the Fourth of July, 1982. (The same trip also inspired Watt's composition "I Felt Like a Gringo" on Buzz or Howl Under the Influence of Heat.) Moved by his witnessing of some of the more downtrodden elements of the area, Boon set about writing a song in sympathy with the Mexican people.[2]

Recording

[edit]

Towards the end of their career, Minutemen started to branch out musically with their songs.[3] In contrast to atypical hardcore punk tempos, the band experiments with neo-norteña sounds built on polka rhythms for "Corona."[4] Drawing from post-punk alongside more eclectic musical influences, their music is an interaction between Hurley's virtuosic drumming, Boon's trebly electric guitar, and Watt's busy bassline. Regarding their songwriting, Watt claimed, "We don't write songs, we write rivers."[5]

Composition

[edit]

"Corona" is an uptempo hardcore punk and neo-norteña song that runs for a duration of two minutes and twenty-five seconds.[4] The song is in the key of G major and is built mainly around the chords of G, B minor, and D, with an A minor chord appearing during the final line of each stanza. It features driving guitar riffs, a burly yet funky bassline, and frantic drumbeats.[6] The song opens with an introduction, where a twanging guitar riff is played.[7][8][9] Its minimalist arrangement contains no choruses, and is instead composed of fifty-three words structured into three stanzas.[5]

Lyrically, "Corona" is a Latino protest song[6] and an elegiac complaint regarding the injustice and destructive greed of the United States. Lead singer-guitarist D Boon closes by singing about a bottle of Corona beer.[1] The bottle is intended for a poor woman on a beach in Mexico, due to its five-cent deposit.[2]

Critical reception

[edit]

In his review of their album, Juan Gutierrez from LA Weekly wrote, "Minutemen's song 'Corona' finally broke big due to Jackass, but it was D. Boon's political lyrics, driving guitar riffs, and George Hurley's frantic drumming that make Double Nickels on the Dime hardcore perfection.[6] Billboard's Michael Azerrad's described the song as an "ocean of scrabbling avant-funk, Norteño two-step."[5]

Commercial performance

[edit]

In March 2020, "Corona" was among countless previously released songs with titles and lyrical themes about the world ending or human survival, prompting an increase in sales and streaming. This increase occurred as populations adjusted to life in self-quarantine during the worldwide coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. The gains "Corona" experienced included a 70% rise in digital song sales and a 26% increase in total on-demand U.S. streams to 63,000. The following week, "Corona" rose 95% in U.S. streams to 122,000 for the tracking week ending March 19.[10]

Legacy

[edit]

In the 2000s, "Corona" became world-famous as the theme song of the MTV reality television series Jackass. The song was immortalized on the stunt show, which used its trademark opening guitar riff.[8] In the series, stuntmen subject themselves to life-threatening tests of courage and self-harm.[2] Watt said the royalty money that the band received from the song's use in Jackass was used to aid Boon's father, who was ill with emphysema.[11]

Canadian singer-songwriter Ford Pier claimed the songwriting approach for "Great Western" from his debut studio album Meconium was inspired by "Corona." He stated, "I had a desire to try to write a song in that style favoured by your journeyman singer-songwriters of pseudo-literary inclination where an ancillary detail or object within the narrative is selected to be the symbolic fulcrum of the whole thing. ... 'Corona' by the Minutemen would have been a touchstone in this approach."[12]

Cover versions

[edit]

Arizona indie rock band Calexico performed a cover of "Corona" during a concert at the 2013 Newport Folk Festival in Newport, Rhode Island;[13] their cover version was included on the playlist "COVID Quarantine Dance Party" by musician Lo Bradley. "Corona" was among many popular songs found in most quarantine-themed playlists.[14]

References

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  1. ^ a b Hughes, Rob (2019-08-14). "SST Records: a guide to the best albums". Loudersound. Future Publishing Limited Quay House.
  2. ^ a b c "Das Wort, das seine Unschuld verlor". Süddeutsche Zeitung. Südwestdeutsche Medien Holding. 2020-03-24.
  3. ^ Prato, Greg. "Introducing the Minutemen". AllMusic.
  4. ^ a b Deming, Mark. "Double Nickels on the Dime – Minutemen". AllMusic. Retrieved July 25, 2005.
  5. ^ a b c Azerrad, Michael (2014-10-29). "Former Minutemen Bassist Mike Watt on Why Their Pivotal Album 'Double Nickels' Mocked Sammy Hagar". Billboard. Nielson Business Media, Inc.
  6. ^ a b c Gutierrez, Juan (2013-08-29). "Top 20 Hardcore Albums in History: Complete List". LA Weekly. Brian Calle.
  7. ^ McCarter, Reid (2019-07-17). "Rocket-shooting drone, controlled by weaponized wet blanket, shuts down street party". The A.V. Club. Onion.
  8. ^ a b Distefano, Alex (2016-07-28). "The 10 Best South Bay Punk Bands of All Time". LA Weekly. Brian Calle.
  9. ^ SPIN Staff (2014-11-10). "All 152 Foo Fighters Songs, Ranked". Spin. Retrieved 2017-11-30.
  10. ^ Zellner, Xander (2020-03-24). "R.E.M.'s 'It's the End of the World,' Fifth Harmony's 'Work From Home' & More Keep Surging Amid Coronavirus". Billboard. Billboard-Hollywood Media Group. Retrieved 2020-03-25.
  11. ^ Edwards, Briony (28 January 2022). "How Minutemen accidentally wrote the Jackass theme tune". loudersound. Retrieved 6 February 2022.
  12. ^ MacInnis, Allan (2017-10-20). "Ford Pier: Of the Show Business Giants, D.O.A., Bob Mould, and the stools of baby mammals". The Georgia Straight. Brian Kalis.
  13. ^ For The Register (2013-10-07). "Way Over Yonder Recovers After Shaky Start". Orange County Register. Ron Hasse.
  14. ^ Staff Reporter (2020-03-20). "Quarantine-Themed Spotify Playlists to Listen to". Music Times.
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