Bohemian Like You
Encyclopedia
"Bohemian Like You" is a song by American alternative rock
band The Dandy Warhols
. It was released in 2000 as a single from the band's third studio album Thirteen Tales from Urban Bohemia
. On its original release, it failed to even reach the Top 40 in the UK, peaking at number 42. However, it was re-released in 2001 and after featuring in a popular Vodafone
advertisement it peaked at a much more prominent number 5.
and topless
female nudity (with the woman's vulva
covered by her leg). However, when played on some music channels, these areas are pixelated
.
The video shows the band playing in a karaoke
bar
while many different people mime to the lyrics of the song. This is intercut with a video accompanying the lyrics on the TV screen at the bar. In this video the scenes correspond with the lyrics. In the first verse, a guy approaches a young woman who is fixing a car with her friends. They both flirtaously sing the lyrics to each other as a sign of attraction. The guy is so attracted to the woman that he stares at her lower body and then visualises her naked, with her breast
s exposed but vagina
covered by her leg. Then the video switches to a waiter while he is serving a group of customers at a table. One of the girls in the group is attracted to the waiter (not Courtney) and the two begin to flirt and mime the lyrics to the second verse. She visualises him naked and he makes no attempt to cover himself. It then turns out that the waiter and the mechanic who was fixing the car live in the same "pad
". From the lyrics in the third verse, it is likely that the waiter is the mechanic's ex-boyfriend as the guy she was flirting with earlier is also with her. While the mechanic and her love interest exchange a look, the girl from the restaurant emerges from a curtain wearing a nightdress
. She then takes the waiter's hand and pulls him away. The video ends with the characters from the video miming the lyrics in the karoke bar along with many other people including a man spinning a hula hoop
around his waist.
called the song "the quintessential Dandy Warhols moment to date".
, the 2002 film Igby Goes Down
, the 2003 film "Fool Proof", the 2006 film Flushed Away
and on Radio Sunnydale
, the second soundtrack from the television series Buffy the Vampire Slayer.
The song has also been featured in the movies The Replacements
, Igby Goes Down
, Clockstoppers
, Flushed Away
, Little Nicky
and Man of the Year
as well as the opening to the episode "Longshot" from the television show Numb3rs
. For many years it has been the theme music for the BBC
Radio phone-in show 6-0-6
. It was featured on an episode of Chuck
in January 2010.
The song has also been featured in the PC game "Le Mans 24 hours" by Infogrames in 2002. In 2006, a mash-up
between "Bohemian Like You" and "Horny
" was released as "Horny as a Dandy
". It was also used in the opening credits for the 2006 film, Delirious
. A very obvious variation of it is the opening theme song for the American version of the game show Cash Cab
. The song was featured in season 7
of Dancing with the Stars
for Cody Linley
and Julianne Hough
's tango
performance. The song was featured briefly in the Daria
episode "Fat Like Me".
The song was the subject of a minor controversy in 2011 when British conservative politician Theresa May
played the song as she walked from a conference speech. It was initially speculated that the track was "Rocks
" by Primal Scream
, who posted a statement on their website condemning her "inappropriate" use of their song, calling her a "legalised bully" and "the enemy".After discovering the track was his, Courtney Taylor-Taylor
posted a tirade on the band's official website, writing "Why don't these assholes have right-wing
bands make them some right-wing music for their right-wing jerkoff politics? Oh, because right wing people aren't creative, visionary or any fun to be around."
when it introduced its brand to many of its worldwide operations in 2001–2004.
English League Two
football club Burton Albion
play this song as the team take to the field prior to the start of a home game.
Elsewhere, it featured prominently in a number of advertisements commissioned by Ford motor company in advertisement campaign for its Ford Focus car range. It also enjoyed a short run in America in 2002 in a commercial featuring the Ford Mustang. In Australia, Holden used the song in an advert to promote its Holden Astra range, although the line 'You got a great car. Yeah, what's wrong with it today?' was edited out. The song also featured in a 2004 advertisement for "GM Summerdrive" in the United States. In November 2008, it featured (without words) on advertisements for the Citroen
C4 Picasso. In summer 2010, the track was used in an advertisement for Next.
2001 re-release
2001 re-release
Alternative rock
Alternative rock is a genre of rock music and a term used to describe a diverse musical movement that emerged from the independent music underground of the 1980s and became widely popular by the 1990s...
band The Dandy Warhols
The Dandy Warhols
The Dandy Warhols are an American alternative rock band formed in Portland, Oregon in 1994. The band was founded by singer-guitarist Courtney Taylor-Taylor and guitarist Peter Holmström, with keyboardist Zia McCabe and drummer Eric Hedford later joining. Hedford left in 1998 and was replaced by...
. It was released in 2000 as a single from the band's third studio album Thirteen Tales from Urban Bohemia
Thirteen Tales From Urban Bohemia
Thirteen Tales from Urban Bohemia is the third album by American alternative rock band The Dandy Warhols. It was released on 1 August 2000 on Capital Records...
. On its original release, it failed to even reach the Top 40 in the UK, peaking at number 42. However, it was re-released in 2001 and after featuring in a popular Vodafone
Vodafone
Vodafone Group Plc is a global telecommunications company headquartered in London, United Kingdom. It is the world's largest mobile telecommunications company measured by revenues and the world's second-largest measured by subscribers , with around 341 million proportionate subscribers as of...
advertisement it peaked at a much more prominent number 5.
Music video
The video for the song is highly controversial and is rarely broadcast during the day, since it contains full-frontal male nudityNudity
Nudity is the state of wearing no clothing. The wearing of clothing is exclusively a human characteristic. The amount of clothing worn depends on functional considerations and social considerations...
and topless
Toplessness
Toplessness is the state in which a female's breasts are uncovered, with the areolae and nipples visible, usually in a public space. It can also refer to a female not wearing any clothing above the waist, which is the female equivalent to a male barechestedness.The history and even the present-day...
female nudity (with the woman's vulva
Vulva
The vulva consists of the external genital organs of the female mammal. This article deals with the vulva of the human being, although the structures are similar for other mammals....
covered by her leg). However, when played on some music channels, these areas are pixelated
Pixelization
Pixelization is a video- and image-editing technique in which an image is blurred by displaying part or all of it at a markedly lower resolution. It is primarily used for censorship...
.
The video shows the band playing in a karaoke
Karaoke
is a form of interactive entertainment or video game in which amateur singers sing along with recorded music using a microphone and public address system. The music is typically a well-known pop song minus the lead vocal. Lyrics are usually displayed on a video screen, along with a moving symbol,...
bar
Bar (establishment)
A bar is a business establishment that serves alcoholic drinks — beer, wine, liquor, and cocktails — for consumption on the premises.Bars provide stools or chairs that are placed at tables or counters for their patrons. Some bars have entertainment on a stage, such as a live band, comedians, go-go...
while many different people mime to the lyrics of the song. This is intercut with a video accompanying the lyrics on the TV screen at the bar. In this video the scenes correspond with the lyrics. In the first verse, a guy approaches a young woman who is fixing a car with her friends. They both flirtaously sing the lyrics to each other as a sign of attraction. The guy is so attracted to the woman that he stares at her lower body and then visualises her naked, with her breast
Breast
The breast is the upper ventral region of the torso of a primate, in left and right sides, which in a female contains the mammary gland that secretes milk used to feed infants.Both men and women develop breasts from the same embryological tissues...
s exposed but vagina
Vagina
The vagina is a fibromuscular tubular tract leading from the uterus to the exterior of the body in female placental mammals and marsupials, or to the cloaca in female birds, monotremes, and some reptiles. Female insects and other invertebrates also have a vagina, which is the terminal part of the...
covered by her leg. Then the video switches to a waiter while he is serving a group of customers at a table. One of the girls in the group is attracted to the waiter (not Courtney) and the two begin to flirt and mime the lyrics to the second verse. She visualises him naked and he makes no attempt to cover himself. It then turns out that the waiter and the mechanic who was fixing the car live in the same "pad
Apartment
An apartment or flat is a self-contained housing unit that occupies only part of a building...
". From the lyrics in the third verse, it is likely that the waiter is the mechanic's ex-boyfriend as the guy she was flirting with earlier is also with her. While the mechanic and her love interest exchange a look, the girl from the restaurant emerges from a curtain wearing a nightdress
Nightgown
A nightgown is a loosely hanging item of nightwear. Nowadays the term is almost exclusively applied to women's nightwear. A nightgown is typically made from cotton, silk, satin, or nylon...
. She then takes the waiter's hand and pulls him away. The video ends with the characters from the video miming the lyrics in the karoke bar along with many other people including a man spinning a hula hoop
Hula hoop
A hula hoop is a toy hoop that is twirled around the waist, limbs or neck.Although the exact origins of hula hoops are unknown, children and adults around the world have played with hoops, twirling, rolling and throwing them throughout history...
around his waist.
Reception
Louis Patterson of NMENME
The New Musical Express is a popular music publication in the United Kingdom, published weekly since March 1952. It started as a music newspaper, and gradually moved toward a magazine format during the 1980s, changing from newsprint in 1998. It was the first British paper to include a singles...
called the song "the quintessential Dandy Warhols moment to date".
In popular culture
The song was featured on the soundtracks of the 2001 movie Summer CatchSummer Catch
Summer Catch is a 2001 romantic comedy film starring Freddie Prinze Jr., Jessica Biel, and Matthew Lillard. The story takes place on Cape Cod, but the majority of the film was shot in Southport, North Carolina.-Plot:...
, the 2002 film Igby Goes Down
Igby Goes Down
Igby Goes Down is a 2002 comedy-drama film that follows the life of Igby Slocumb, a rebellious and sardonic New York City teenager who attempts to break free of his familial ties and wealthy, overbearing mother...
, the 2003 film "Fool Proof", the 2006 film Flushed Away
Flushed Away
Flushed Away is a 2006 computer animated British film directed by David Bowers and Sam Fell. It is a partnership between Aardman Animations of Wallace and Gromit fame, and DreamWorks Animation, and is Aardman's first completely computer-animated feature as opposed to the usual stop-motion.The film...
and on Radio Sunnydale
Buffy the Vampire Slayer: Radio Sunnydale - Music from the TV Series
Buffy the Vampire Slayer: Radio Sunnydale – Music from the TV Series is the second Buffy the Vampire Slayer soundtrack album, following on from Buffy the Vampire Slayer: The Album....
, the second soundtrack from the television series Buffy the Vampire Slayer.
The song has also been featured in the movies The Replacements
The Replacements (film)
The Replacements is a 2000 American film directed by Howard Deutch. It stars Keanu Reeves, Gene Hackman, Brooke Langton and Orlando Jones.-Plot:...
, Igby Goes Down
Igby Goes Down
Igby Goes Down is a 2002 comedy-drama film that follows the life of Igby Slocumb, a rebellious and sardonic New York City teenager who attempts to break free of his familial ties and wealthy, overbearing mother...
, Clockstoppers
Clockstoppers
Clockstoppers is a 2002 science fiction film released by Paramount Pictures and Nickelodeon Movies. It was directed by Jonathan Frakes, produced by Gale Anne Hurd and Julia Pistor and written by Rob Hedden, Andy Hedden, J. David Stem and David N...
, Flushed Away
Flushed Away
Flushed Away is a 2006 computer animated British film directed by David Bowers and Sam Fell. It is a partnership between Aardman Animations of Wallace and Gromit fame, and DreamWorks Animation, and is Aardman's first completely computer-animated feature as opposed to the usual stop-motion.The film...
, Little Nicky
Little Nicky
Little Nicky is a 2000 American comedy film directed by Steven Brill. It stars Adam Sandler as Nicky, one of Satan's three sons.-Plot:The story revolves around a struggle to determine which of Satan's three sons will succeed their father as ruler of Hell...
and Man of the Year
Man of the Year (2006 film)
Man of the Year is a 2006 Comedy film directed and written by Barry Levinson and starring Robin Williams in the lead role. In addition to Williams, the film features Christopher Walken, Laura Linney, Lewis Black and Jeff Goldblum....
as well as the opening to the episode "Longshot" from the television show Numb3rs
NUMB3RS
Numb3rs is an American television drama which premiered on CBS on January 23, 2005, and concluded on March 12, 2010. The series was created by Nicolas Falacci and Cheryl Heuton, and follows FBI Special Agent Don Eppes and his mathematical genius brother, Charlie Eppes , who helps Don solve crimes...
. For many years it has been the theme music for the BBC
BBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
Radio phone-in show 6-0-6
6-0-6
6-0-6 is a football phone-in, broadcast on BBC Radio Five Live throughout the football season; when the programme started, it typically went on air at 6:06pm on a matchday . It covers topics relating to the current affairs of football in the United Kingdom. It currently airs on Saturdays and...
. It was featured on an episode of Chuck
Chuck (TV series)
Chuck is an action-comedy/spy-drama television program from the United States created by Josh Schwartz and Chris Fedak. The series is about an "average computer-whiz-next-door" named Chuck, played by Zachary Levi, who receives an encoded e-mail from an old college friend now working for the Central...
in January 2010.
The song has also been featured in the PC game "Le Mans 24 hours" by Infogrames in 2002. In 2006, a mash-up
Mashup (music)
A mashup or bootleg is a song or composition created by blending two or more pre-recorded songs, usually by overlaying the vocal track of one song seamlessly over the instrumental track of another...
between "Bohemian Like You" and "Horny
Horny (song)
"Horny" is a house song by producer Mousse T. and pop duo Hot 'n' Juicy, which reached number two in the UK Singles Chart in June 1998.The single entered the UK chart at number three on 6 June 1998, peaking one place higher the following week and staying on the chart for 17 weeks...
" was released as "Horny as a Dandy
Horny as a Dandy
"Horny as a Dandy" is a mash-up of Mousse T.'s "Horny" and The Dandy Warhols' "Bohemian Like You". It was released as a single in 2006. It features vocals from Hot 'N' Juicy. It peaked at #17 on the UK Singles Chart. Two versions of the song appear on the first CD single: the original mash-up...
". It was also used in the opening credits for the 2006 film, Delirious
Delirious (2006 film)
Delirious is a 2006 film released directed by Tom DiCillo. It stars Steve Buscemi, Michael Pitt and Alison Lohman.It is the story of twenty-year old Toby Grace who progresses from a homeless scavenger in New York City to the assistant of a self-absorbed, obsessive-compulsive, familial-complexed...
. A very obvious variation of it is the opening theme song for the American version of the game show Cash Cab
Cash Cab
Cash Cab is a TV game show devised by Adam Wood that originated in the United Kingdom and has been licensed to television networks in numerous other countries...
. The song was featured in season 7
Dancing with the Stars (U.S. season 7)
The seventh season of Dancing with the Stars premiered on September 22, 2008 as a part of ABC's fall line-up. Instead of 12 couples like previous seasons, this was the first season to showcase a lineup of 13 couples...
of Dancing with the Stars
Dancing with the Stars
Dancing with the Stars is the name of several international television series based on the format of the British TV series Strictly Come Dancing, which is distributed by BBC Worldwide – the commercial arm of the BBC. Currently the format has been licensed to over 35 countries...
for Cody Linley
Cody Linley
Cody Martin Linley is an American actor and singer. He is best known for his recurring role as Jake Ryan in the television series Hannah Montana and for being a contestant on the seventh season of Dancing With The Stars, in which he was partnered with Julianne Hough.-Career:Linley made his acting...
and Julianne Hough
Julianne Hough
Julianne Alexandra Hough is an American professional ballroom dancer, country music singer and actress. She is most widely known for being a two-time champion of ABC's Dancing with the Stars. She earned a Creative Arts Primetime Emmy nomination in 2007 for choreography...
's tango
Tango (ballroom)
Ballroom Tango is a ballroom dance that branched away from its original Argentine roots by allowing European, American, Hollywood, and competitive influences into the style and execution of the dance....
performance. The song was featured briefly in the Daria
Daria
Daria is an American animated television series produced by Paramount Television, and created by Glenn Eichler and Susie Lewis Lynn for MTV. The series focuses on Daria Morgendorffer, a smart, acerbic, and somewhat misanthropic teenage girl who observes the world around her...
episode "Fat Like Me".
The song was the subject of a minor controversy in 2011 when British conservative politician Theresa May
Theresa May
Theresa Mary May is a British Conservative politician who is Home Secretary in the Conservative – Liberal Democrat Coalition government. She was elected to Parliament in 1997 as the Member of Parliament for Maidenhead, and served as the Chairman of the Conservative Party, 2003–04...
played the song as she walked from a conference speech. It was initially speculated that the track was "Rocks
Rocks (song)
"Rocks" is a song by UK group Primal Scream. It is taken from the group's fourth album, Give Out But Don't Give Up. The song was released as a single in 1994 and reached number 7 on the UK Singles Chart, acting as a double A-side with another of the band's songs, "Funky Jam"...
" by Primal Scream
Primal Scream
Primal Scream are a Scottish alternative rock band originally formed in 1982 in Glasgow by Bobby Gillespie and Jim Beattie and now based in London. The current lineup consists of Gillespie, Andrew Innes , Martin Duffy , and Darrin Mooney...
, who posted a statement on their website condemning her "inappropriate" use of their song, calling her a "legalised bully" and "the enemy".After discovering the track was his, Courtney Taylor-Taylor
Courtney Taylor-Taylor
Courtney Taylor-Taylor is an American singer-songwriter from Portland, Oregon. He is the lead singer and guitarist of alternative rock band The Dandy Warhols, a band he co-founded. The vast majority of the band's songs are written by Taylor-Taylor, including hits "We Used to Be Friends" and...
posted a tirade on the band's official website, writing "Why don't these assholes have right-wing
Right-wing politics
In politics, Right, right-wing and rightist generally refer to support for a hierarchical society justified on the basis of an appeal to natural law or tradition. To varying degrees, the Right rejects the egalitarian objectives of left-wing politics, claiming that the imposition of equality is...
bands make them some right-wing music for their right-wing jerkoff politics? Oh, because right wing people aren't creative, visionary or any fun to be around."
Advertising
The song was used extensively by mobile telephone provider VodafoneVodafone
Vodafone Group Plc is a global telecommunications company headquartered in London, United Kingdom. It is the world's largest mobile telecommunications company measured by revenues and the world's second-largest measured by subscribers , with around 341 million proportionate subscribers as of...
when it introduced its brand to many of its worldwide operations in 2001–2004.
English League Two
Football League Two
Football League Two is the third-highest division of The Football League and fourth-highest division overall in the English football league system....
football club Burton Albion
Burton Albion F.C.
Burton Albion Football Club are a professional English football club based in the town of Burton upon Trent, Staffordshire. The club's home ground is the Pirelli Stadium, having moved from Eton Park in 2005...
play this song as the team take to the field prior to the start of a home game.
Elsewhere, it featured prominently in a number of advertisements commissioned by Ford motor company in advertisement campaign for its Ford Focus car range. It also enjoyed a short run in America in 2002 in a commercial featuring the Ford Mustang. In Australia, Holden used the song in an advert to promote its Holden Astra range, although the line 'You got a great car. Yeah, what's wrong with it today?' was edited out. The song also featured in a 2004 advertisement for "GM Summerdrive" in the United States. In November 2008, it featured (without words) on advertisements for the Citroen
Citroën
Citroën is a major French automobile manufacturer, part of the PSA Peugeot Citroën group.Founded in 1919 by French industrialist André-Gustave Citroën , Citroën was the first mass-production car company outside the USA and pioneered the modern concept of creating a sales and services network that...
C4 Picasso. In summer 2010, the track was used in an advertisement for Next.
Track listing
2000 original release2001 re-release
Chart positions
2000 original release| Chart | Peak position |
|---|---|
| U.S. Billboard Hot Modern Rock Tracks | 28 |
| U.K. Singles Chart UK Singles Chart The UK Singles Chart is compiled by The Official Charts Company on behalf of the British record-industry. The full chart contains the top selling 200 singles in the United Kingdom based upon combined record sales and download numbers, though some media outlets only list the Top 40 or the Top 75 ... |
42 |
2001 re-release
| Chart | Peak position |
|---|---|
| UK Singles Chart UK Singles Chart The UK Singles Chart is compiled by The Official Charts Company on behalf of the British record-industry. The full chart contains the top selling 200 singles in the United Kingdom based upon combined record sales and download numbers, though some media outlets only list the Top 40 or the Top 75 ... |
5 |
| Irish Singles Chart Irish Singles Chart The Irish Singles Chart is Ireland's music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by the Irish Recorded Music Association and compiled on behalf of the IRMA by Chart-Track. Chart rankings are based on sales, which are compiled through over-the-counter retail data captured... |
17 |
| Germany Singles Chart Media Control Charts The official music charts in Germany are gathered and published by the company Media Control GfK International on behalf of Bundesverband Musikindustrie... |
42 |
See also
- "Horny as a DandyHorny as a Dandy"Horny as a Dandy" is a mash-up of Mousse T.'s "Horny" and The Dandy Warhols' "Bohemian Like You". It was released as a single in 2006. It features vocals from Hot 'N' Juicy. It peaked at #17 on the UK Singles Chart. Two versions of the song appear on the first CD single: the original mash-up...
" - List of nudity in music videos
- List of music videos with censored explicit content