All about the song I Love Rock 'n' Roll ...
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In March 2020 Alan Merrill, the author of the legendary rock 'n' roll anthem, left us... The American performer and songwriter passed away at the age of 69, just over a month after his last birthday... At different times Alan participated in several rock bands, and managed to work with famous maestros! However, in the history of world music his name is closely connected with the song "I Love Rock 'n' Roll"....
"...This song is very close to everyone who is really in love with rock 'n' roll... You know: for each of us there is one really special, infinitely favourite song, which causes an irresistible desire to cheer up! So I Love Rock 'n' Roll is something unique! And you either go with this track - listening to it over and over again with rapture, or it will haunt you for the rest of your life! I choose the former..." - Joan Jett.
Let's honour the talented musician with an article about his most famous masterpiece....
The story behind the song I Love Rock 'n' Roll!
Merrill wrote this dynamic anthem as a member of The Arrows. "What inspired the musician to write it?" - Alan answered this and many other questions in his interview:
"...This song is a kind of answer to It's Only Rock and Roll by the Rolling Stones! I crossed paths with Jagger a few times, and I knew that he socialises with the so-called "cream of society". In that song Mick was like apologising to the aristocracy for liking rock... So I decided to make a statement from my side: "OK, I love rock'n'roll! What are you going to do about it?""
Merrill also stated that he foresaw the success of his creation from the beginning:
"...I already had the chorus written and I saw it as a future hit! I was sure that I Love Rock and Roll was going to be a success... So I thought, 'Alan - get your act together and write something truly extraordinary...'." And I did! It's magical when the fans pick up your song on the fly and start singing it with you in unison..."
"...I created a mini-hit within the hit itself...I saw the chorus as a kind of 'Twilight Zone' that doesn't seem to exist, but it's what sets the mood for the whole song...I'm sure not all listeners saw that...Most people just like the music itself, because it's so damn sticky..."
I Love Rock and Roll was released in 1975, on the back of the Broken Down Heart album (so ordered by the producer The Arrows, who at that time was just into love ballads and bluesy compositions...).
Joan Jett's version
When young Jett heard "I Love Rock 'n' Roll" on the radio, she fell in love with the track! But... her colleagues in The Runaways rejected the song, so she didn't record her own version until 1979 (with Paul Cook and Steve Jones)
The singer later recounted:
"...I enjoyed working with the guys from Sex Pistols! They had a lot of bad things to say about them all the time, but they turned out to be great musicians! I didn't worry one bit about recording the original version of this song with them, even though everyone kept saying that they were a real rock band with the worst reputation in the world!".
Two years later, the singer re-recorded "I Love Rock 'n' Roll" with her new band The Blackhearts. As a result, the track topped many prestigious charts!
In fact, it was Joan Jett who brought the rock 'n' roll hit the popularity it deserved. In 2015, the singer was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, and it would seem that the legendary composition was perfect for this event. But... for unknown reasons, Jett refused to perform it.
