"Girl U Want" is a 1980 single

Single (music)

In music, a single or record single is a type of release, typically a recording of fewer tracks than an LP or a CD. This can be released for sale to the public in a variety of different formats. In most cases, the single is a song that is released separately from an album, but it can still appear...

 by the American New Wave

New Wave music

New Wave is a subgenre of :rock music that emerged in the mid to late 1970s alongside punk rock. The term at first generally was synonymous with punk rock before being considered a genre in its own right that incorporated aspects of electronic and experimental music, mod subculture, disco and 1960s...

 band Devo

Devo

Devo is an American band formed in 1973 consisting of members from Kent and Akron, Ohio. The classic line-up of the band includes two sets of brothers, the Mothersbaughs and the Casales . The band had a #14 Billboard chart hit in 1980 with the single "Whip It", and has maintained a cult...

. It was the first single released from the album Freedom of Choice

Freedom of Choice

Freedom of Choice is the third album by New Wave musicians Devo, released on May 16, 1980. It saw the band moving in more of an overt synthpop direction, even though guitars still played a prominent role....

. In 1995, Devo rerecorded the song for the soundtrack to Tank Girl

Tank Girl (film)

Tank Girl is a 1995 science fiction action film loosely based on the Tank Girl comic book created by Alan Martin and Jamie Hewlett. It was directed by Rachel Talalay and stars Lori Petty as Rebecca Buck, aka the eponymous Tank Girl, who had originally appeared in the UK comic magazine...

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Song Information

"Girl U Want" was inspired by the song "My Sharona

My Sharona

"My Sharona" is the debut single by The Knack, released in 1979 from their album Get the Knack. It reached #1 on the Billboard Hot 100 singles chart where it remained for six weeks and was #1 on Billboards Top Pop Singles of 1979 year-end chart. It was certified gold by the Recording Industry...

" by The Knack

The Knack

The Knack was an American New Wave rock quartet based in Los Angeles that rose to fame with their first single, "My Sharona", an international number one hit in 1979.-Founding :...

. The lyrics, in typical Devo style, describe a relationship marked by unrequited love/lust for a woman. "Girl U Want" was first performed in December 1979 in a similar arrangement to the album version.

Music video

In the music video, Devo performs for a group of young women in the style of a performance from The Ed Sullivan Show

The Ed Sullivan Show

The Ed Sullivan Show is an American TV variety show that originally ran on CBS from Sunday June 20, 1948 to Sunday June 6, 1971, and was hosted by New York entertainment columnist Ed Sullivan....

, with two robotic backup dancers, one male and one female. Further implying the televised nature of the performance, the color in the video is deliberately altered to make the red of the band's Energy Dome

Energy dome

Energy dome refers to the red terraced headgear first worn by Devo during their Freedom of Choice years. Other incorrect names include "power dome" and "flowerpot" . Energy Domes have been a regular part of Devo's stage costumes since 1980, worn in their 1982, 1988, and 1990 tours, as well as most...

 headgear look almost purple. The band wears the silver naugahyde suits from the cover of Freedom of Choice, and mime the song with Moog Liberation

Moog Liberation

The Moog Liberation was the first commercially produced keytar synthesizer released in 1980 by Moog Music. The instrument is comparable to the Moog Concertmate MG-1 and the Moog Rogue but it is most closely related to the Moog Prodigy; however, as a keytar the Liberation was designed to be played...

 synthesizers.

During the video, the camera focuses on the girls in the audience exaggeratedly enjoying the performance, including one girl who is visually implied to "wet" herself, which transitions to a scene of General Boy

General Boy

General Boy is a character created around 1975 by New Wave band Devo. He is usually seen portrayed by the father of both Devo's lead singer Mark Mothersbaugh and lead guitarist Bob Mothersbaugh, Robert Mothersbaugh, Sr....

 controlling the backup dancers. At one point, Mark Mothersbaugh

Mark Mothersbaugh

Mark Allen Mothersbaugh is an American musician, composer, singer and painter. He is the co-founder of the new wave band Devo and has been its lead singer since 1972. His other musical projects include work for television series, films, and video games....

 pulls aside the curtain behind the band to show an overweight man on a vibrating exercise machine, attempting to drink a milkshake to the ecstatic reaction of the audience. As the video ends, girls in the audience are shown holding signs with icons, including an electrical outlet.

Alternate Versions and Covers

In 1981, Devo recorded an instrumental E-Z Listening version of the song for a fan club distributed cassette tape. This version was popular enough to be performed live, with vocals, on the 1982 tour. In 1995, a reunited Devo recorded a version for the film Tank Girl, in the style of a 1992 cover by Soundgarden. Another re-recording of "Girl U Want" was used for the game Rock Band

Rock Band

Rock Band is a music video game developed by Harmonix Music Systems, published by MTV Games and Electronic Arts. It is the first title in the Rock Band series. The PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 versions were released in the United States on November 20, 2007, while the PlayStation 2 version was...

. In 2006, Devo re-recorded the song once again for the Devo 2.0

Devo 2.0

Devo 2.0 was a quintet, created for Walt Disney Records , of child actors who sing, dance, and mime playing instruments along to songs re-recorded by some of the original members of Devo...

 project. Two versions were released: "Boy U Want" with almost completely new lyrics, and a version with slightly modified lyrics as "Girl U Want".

"Girl U Want" was notably covered by Robert Palmer, Soundgarden

Soundgarden

Soundgarden is an American rock band formed in Seattle, Washington in 1984 by singer Chris Cornell, lead guitarist Kim Thayil, and bassist Hiro Yamamoto...

, Zombie Ghost Train

Zombie Ghost Train

Zombie Ghost Train was an Australian psychobilly and gothabilly band located in Sydney, NSW, Australia. The band formed with Stu Arkoff , Azzy T , and Captain Reckless . In 2007, Azzy T left to pursue other musical ventures and was replaced by JM...

, and the Freelance Whales

Freelance Whales

Freelance Whales is an American indie rock band from Queens, New York, formed in 2008. Consisting of frontman Judah Dadone , and bandmates Doris Cellar , Chuck Criss , Jacob Hyman...

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