Hey Nineteen
Encyclopedia
"Hey Nineteen" is a song by American
jazz rock
band Steely Dan
, written by members Walter Becker
and Donald Fagen
, and released on their 1980 album Gaucho
.
/ She don't remember the Queen of Soul / It's hard times befallen the sole survivors / She thinks I'm crazy but I'm just growing old")." Other reviews felt that the song struck a nerve with the aging baby boomer
generation transition from the freewheeling 1960s and 1970s to the conservative 1980s.
In a story related to Australian journalist Josh Robertson in 2010 by Berklee College of Music professor Stephen Webber, Webber's friend (and Gaucho mix engineer) Elliott Scheiner had complained during the making of the album of his date with a much younger woman who did not know who the singer Aretha Franklin
was.
chart (higher than any other Gaucho track), and #68 on the Black Singles chart.
/She don't remember/Queen of Soul" was replaced with "Hey Nineteen/That's Otis Redding
/She don't remember/King of Soul." While singing the song in the Two Against Nature tour of 2000, Fagen often left the name attribution blank for the singing-along audiences to fill in, and when most of them sang "Aretha Franklin," he corrected them by saying, "No, that's Otis Redding." In the 2007 Heavy Rollers tour, Fagen has reverted to the Aretha Franklin reference, presumably for comic effect, since the veteran fans have by now been trained to shout, "Otis Redding."
The song was also featured on the show Entourage
(Season 3, Episode 16, "Gotcha!").
According to the John Belushi biography, Wired, Belushi called this one of his favorite songs. He was so inspired that he wrote a script based on the story in the song.
After a humorous letter on the Steely Dan website accused the Owen Wilson
movie You, Me and Dupree
of being stolen from the song Cousin Dupree
, Owen Wilson defended himself in similarly deadpan comic fashion, stating "I have never heard the song 'Cousin Dupree' and I don't even know who this gentleman, Mr. Steely Dan, is. I hope this helps to clear things up and I can get back to concentrating on my new movie, 'HEY 19
.'"
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
jazz rock
Jazz fusion
Jazz fusion is a musical fusion genre that developed from mixing funk and R&B rhythms and the amplification and electronic effects of rock, complex time signatures derived from non-Western music and extended, typically instrumental compositions with a jazz approach to lengthy group improvisations,...
band Steely Dan
Steely Dan
Steely Dan is an American rock band; its core members are Donald Fagen and Walter Becker. The band's popularity peaked in the late 1970s, with the release of seven albums blending elements of jazz, rock, funk, R&B, and pop...
, written by members Walter Becker
Walter Becker
Walter Carl Becker is an American musician, songwriter and record producer. He is best known as the co-founder, guitarist, bassist and a co-writer of Steely Dan.-Career:...
and Donald Fagen
Donald Fagen
Donald Jay Fagen is an American musician and songwriter, best known as the co-founder, lead singer, and the principal songwriter of the rock band Steely Dan ....
, and released on their 1980 album Gaucho
Gaucho (album)
Gaucho is the seventh studio album by the American Jazz rock band Steely Dan, released in 1980. The sessions for Gaucho represented the peak of Steely Dan's recording studio perfectionism and obsessive recording techniques...
.
Story
According to one reviewer's interpretation, the song "was about a middle-aged man's disappointment with a young lover ("Hey Nineteen, that's 'Retha FranklinAretha Franklin
Aretha Louise Franklin is an American singer, songwriter, and pianist. Although known for her soul recordings and referred to as The Queen of Soul, Franklin is also adept at jazz, blues, R&B, gospel music, and rock. Rolling Stone magazine ranked her atop its list of The Greatest Singers of All...
/ She don't remember the Queen of Soul / It's hard times befallen the sole survivors / She thinks I'm crazy but I'm just growing old")." Other reviews felt that the song struck a nerve with the aging baby boomer
Baby boomer
A baby boomer is a person who was born during the demographic Post-World War II baby boom and who grew up during the period between 1946 and 1964. The term "baby boomer" is sometimes used in a cultural context. Therefore, it is impossible to achieve broad consensus of a precise definition, even...
generation transition from the freewheeling 1960s and 1970s to the conservative 1980s.
In a story related to Australian journalist Josh Robertson in 2010 by Berklee College of Music professor Stephen Webber, Webber's friend (and Gaucho mix engineer) Elliott Scheiner had complained during the making of the album of his date with a much younger woman who did not know who the singer Aretha Franklin
Aretha Franklin
Aretha Louise Franklin is an American singer, songwriter, and pianist. Although known for her soul recordings and referred to as The Queen of Soul, Franklin is also adept at jazz, blues, R&B, gospel music, and rock. Rolling Stone magazine ranked her atop its list of The Greatest Singers of All...
was.
Charts
"Hey Nineteen" peaked at #10 on the Billboard Hot 100Billboard Hot 100
The Billboard Hot 100 is the United States music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine. Chart rankings are based on radio play and sales; the tracking-week for sales begins on Monday and ends on Sunday, while the radio play tracking-week runs from Wednesday...
chart (higher than any other Gaucho track), and #68 on the Black Singles chart.
Alternate versions
Beginning with their 1993-1994 performances, as documented in the Alive in America release, the phrase "Hey Nineteen/That's Aretha FranklinAretha Franklin
Aretha Louise Franklin is an American singer, songwriter, and pianist. Although known for her soul recordings and referred to as The Queen of Soul, Franklin is also adept at jazz, blues, R&B, gospel music, and rock. Rolling Stone magazine ranked her atop its list of The Greatest Singers of All...
/She don't remember/Queen of Soul" was replaced with "Hey Nineteen/That's Otis Redding
Otis Redding
Otis Ray Redding, Jr. was an American soul singer-songwriter, record producer, arranger and talent scout. He is considered one of the major figures in soul and R&B...
/She don't remember/King of Soul." While singing the song in the Two Against Nature tour of 2000, Fagen often left the name attribution blank for the singing-along audiences to fill in, and when most of them sang "Aretha Franklin," he corrected them by saying, "No, that's Otis Redding." In the 2007 Heavy Rollers tour, Fagen has reverted to the Aretha Franklin reference, presumably for comic effect, since the veteran fans have by now been trained to shout, "Otis Redding."
In popular culture
The 16th episode of the sitcom Wings fifth season (88th episode in the series) was named "Hey, Nineteen" after the song, and aired February 10, 1994.The song was also featured on the show Entourage
Entourage (TV series)
Entourage is an American comedy-drama television series that premiered on HBO on July 18, 2004 and concluded on September 11, 2011, after eight seasons...
(Season 3, Episode 16, "Gotcha!").
According to the John Belushi biography, Wired, Belushi called this one of his favorite songs. He was so inspired that he wrote a script based on the story in the song.
After a humorous letter on the Steely Dan website accused the Owen Wilson
Owen Wilson
Owen Cunningham Wilson is an American actor and writer, known for his roles in the films The Haunting, The Royal Tenenbaums, Zoolander, Meet the Parents, Wedding Crashers, You, Me and Dupree, Bottle Rocket, the Cars series, The Darjeeling Limited, Marley & Me, Midnight in Paris, Shanghai Noon,...
movie You, Me and Dupree
You, Me and Dupree
You, Me and Dupree is a 2006 romantic comedy film directed by Anthony Russo and Joe Russo, written by Mike LeSieur, and produced by Mary Parent, Scott Stuber, and Owen Wilson....
of being stolen from the song Cousin Dupree
Cousin Dupree
"Cousin Dupree" is the first single from Steely Dan's 2000 album Two Against Nature. The song describes the desire a young man has for his attractive cousin...
, Owen Wilson defended himself in similarly deadpan comic fashion, stating "I have never heard the song 'Cousin Dupree' and I don't even know who this gentleman, Mr. Steely Dan, is. I hope this helps to clear things up and I can get back to concentrating on my new movie, 'HEY 19
Hey Nineteen
"Hey Nineteen" is a song by American jazz rock band Steely Dan, written by members Walter Becker and Donald Fagen, and released on their 1980 album Gaucho.-Story:...
.'"
External links
- "Hey Nineteen" lyrics at SteelyDan.com