Girl All the Bad Guys Want explained

Girl All the Bad Guys Want
Cover:Girl All The Bad Guys Want.jpg
Caption:Standard artwork
Type:single
Artist:Bowling for Soup
Album:Drunk Enough to Dance
Studio:Tree (Atlanta, Georgia)
Genre:Pop-punk[1]
Length:3:17
Label:
Producer:Butch Walker
Prev Title:Jimmy Neutron Theme
Prev Year:2001
Next Title:Emily
Next Year:2002

"Girl All the Bad Guys Want" is a single by American pop-punk band Bowling for Soup, from their 2002 album, Drunk Enough to Dance. The song was written by Butch Walker (formerly of Marvelous 3), who has also written songs for Avril Lavigne and SR-71. Released on July 15, 2002, the song reached number eight on the UK Singles Chart, number 15 in Ireland, and number 64 on the US Billboard Hot 100. It was nominated for a 2003 Grammy Award for "Best Pop Performance by a Group or Duo".

"Girl All the Bad Guys Want" came after a dry spell for the band and was followed by the popular album A Hangover You Don't Deserve, leading frontman Jaret Reddick to refer to it as "the career-saving song" on MTV.[2]

Music video

The music video was directed by Smith N Borin and featured the band in various spoofs of nu metal bands' videos, such as Staind's "It's Been Awhile" and Limp Bizkit's "Break Stuff", both of which were directed by Limp Bizkit frontman Fred Durst. In one scene, Jaret as Staind frontman Aaron Lewis is seen singing with a constipated look on his face and is revealed to be on an actual toilet. Another band member urinates on a wall. In the final "Break Stuff" scene three guys dressed as Corey Taylor, Joey Jordison and Shawn Crahan from Slipknot gang up on Jaret dressed as Fred, a reference to the feud between Slipknot and Limp Bizkit at the time. Guitarist Chris Burney also dresses in a parody of Wes Borland's unconventional stage attire and makeup.

The video is inter cut between these scenes and scenes of a girl, played by Linda Christopher and possibly the girl Jaret sings about, watching the band on TVs displayed in a store through the front window.

The music video became the last music video to be played on the British music channel Scuzz directly before its closure on November 15, 2018.

Track listings

UK CD1[3]

  1. "Girl All the Bad Guys Want" – 3:17
  2. "Other Girls" – 3:43
  3. "Girl All the Bad Guys Want" (video)

UK CD2[4]

  1. "Girl All the Bad Guys Want" – 3:17
  2. "Greatest Day" – 3:43
  3. "The Bitch Song" (video)

European CD single[5]

  1. "Girl All the Bad Guys Want" – 3:17
  2. "Other Girls" – 3:43

Australian CD single[6]

  1. "Girl All the Bad Guys Want" – 3:17
  2. "Emily" – 3:30
  3. "Running from Your Dad" – 3:37
  4. "Other Girls" – 3:43

Charts

Weekly charts

Chart (2002–2003)Peak
position
Europe (Eurochart Hot 100)[7] 40
US Billboard Hot 100[8] 64
US Adult Top 40 Tracks (Billboard)[9] 39
US Mainstream Top 40 (Billboard)[10] 17
US Modern Rock Tracks (Billboard)[11] 38

Year-end charts

Release history

RegionDateFormat(s)Label(s)
United StatesJuly 15, 2002Alternative radio[14]
United KingdomAugust 5, 2002CD[15]
AustraliaAugust 12, 2002Silvertone[16]
United StatesDecember 9, 2002Hot adult contemporary radio[17]
December 16, 2002Contemporary hit radio[18]

Notes and References

  1. Web site: BOWLING FOR SOUP REINVENT GIRL ALL THE BAD GUYS WANT FOR 2019 WITH REFERENCES TO UFC, NECK TATTS AND TINDER. Kerrang!. Morton. Luke.
  2. Web site: Bowling For Soup - Girl All The Bad Guys Want (Acoustic) . https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211213/x3LLSrhST0s . December 13, 2021 . live . YouTube . April 6, 2007 . February 17, 2012.
  3. Girl All the Bad Guys Want. Bowling for Soup. 2002. UK CD1 liner notes. Music for Nations, Ffroe. CDKUT194.
  4. Girl All the Bad Guys Want. Bowling for Soup. 2002. UK CD2 liner notes. Music for Nations, Ffroe. CDXKUT 194.
  5. Girl All the Bad Guys Want. Bowling for Soup. 2002. European CD single liner notes. Zomba. 9260369.
  6. Girl All the Bad Guys Want. Bowling for Soup. 2002. Australian CD single liner notes. Silvertone. 9260362.
  7. Eurochart Hot 100 Singles. Music & Media. 20. 35. 7. August 25, 2002. August 2, 2020.
  8. Billboard Hot 100. Billboard. April 19, 2003. August 6, 2023.
  9. Adult Pop Airplay. Billboard. March 22, 2003. subscription. August 6, 2023.
  10. Pop Airplay. Billboard. April 19, 2003. subscription. August 6, 2023.
  11. Alternative Airplay. Billboard. November 2, 2002. subscription. August 6, 2023.
  12. Web site: The Official UK Singles Chart 2002. UKChartsPlus. November 25, 2018.
  13. The Year in Charts 2003: Most-Played Mainstream Top 40 Songs. Airplay Monitor. 11. 51. 14. December 19, 2003.
  14. Going for Adds. Radio & Records. 1461. 25. July 12, 2002. May 3, 2021.
  15. In-Store Next Week (from 5/8/2002). Music Week. 28. August 3, 2002. August 28, 2021.
  16. Web site: The ARIA Report: New Releases Singles – Week Commencing 12/08/2002. ARIA. 25. August 12, 2002. dead. https://webarchive.nla.gov.au/awa/20021001140000/http://pandora.nla.gov.au/pan/23790/20021002-0000/Issue650.pdf. October 1, 2002. May 3, 2021.
  17. Going for Adds. Radio & Records. 1482. 18. December 6, 2002. May 3, 2021.
  18. Going for Adds. Radio & Records. 1483. 26. December 13, 2002. May 3, 2021.