Girl All the Bad Guys Want

"Girl All the Bad Guys Want" is a single by American rock 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"
Single by Bowling for Soup
from the album Drunk Enough to Dance
Released	July 15, 2002 (2002-07-15)
Studio	Tree (Atlanta, Georgia)
Genre	Pop-punk^[1]
Length	3:17
Label	Jive Silvertone Music for Nations
Songwriter(s)	Jaret Reddick Butch Walker
Producer(s)	Butch Walker
Bowling for Soup singles chronology
"Jimmy Neutron Theme" (2001) "Girl All the Bad Guys Want" (2002) "Emily" (2002)
Alternative cover

"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.

Charts

Weekly charts Chart (2002–2003) Peak position Europe (Eurochart Hot 100)^[3] 40 Ireland (IRMA)^[4] 15 Netherlands (Single Top 100)^[5] 91 Scotland (OCC)^[6] 6 UK Singles (OCC)^[7] 8 UK Indie (OCC)^[8] 1 UK Rock & Metal (OCC)^[9] 1 US Billboard Hot 100^[10] 64 US Adult Top 40 Tracks (Billboard)^[11] 39 US Mainstream Top 40 (Billboard)^[12] 17 US Modern Rock Tracks (Billboard)^[13] 38

Year-end charts Chart (2002) Position UK Singles (OCC)^[14] 137

Certifications

Region	Certification	Certified units/sales
United Kingdom (BPI)^[15]	Platinum	600,000^‡
United States (RIAA)^[16]	Gold	500,000^‡
^‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone.

Release history

Region	Date	Format(s)	Label(s)	Ref.
United States	July 15, 2002	Alternative radio	Jive Silvertone	^[17]
United Kingdom	August 5, 2002	CD	Music for Nations Ffroe	^[18]
Australia	August 12, 2002		Silvertone	^[19]
United States	December 9, 2002	Hot adult contemporary radio	Jive Silvertone	^[20]
	December 16, 2002	Contemporary hit radio		^[21]

References

1. Morton, Luke. "BOWLING FOR SOUP REINVENT GIRL ALL THE BAD GUYS WANT FOR 2019 WITH REFERENCES TO UFC, NECK TATTS AND TINDER". Kerrang!.
2. "Bowling For Soup - Girl All The Bad Guys Want (Acoustic)". April 6, 2007. Archived from the original on December 13, 2021. Retrieved February 17, 2012 – via YouTube.
3. "Eurochart Hot 100 Singles" (PDF). Music & Media. Vol. 20, no. 35. August 25, 2002. p. 7. Retrieved August 2, 2020.
4. "The Irish Charts – Search Results – Girl All the Bad Guys Want". Irish Singles Chart. Retrieved July 23, 2019.
5. "Bowling for Soup – Girl All the Bad Guys Want" (in Dutch). Single Top 100. Retrieved November 25, 2018.
6. "Official Scottish Singles Sales Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved November 25, 2018.
7. "Official Singles Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved November 25, 2018.
8. "Official Independent Singles Chart Top 50". Official Charts Company. Retrieved November 25, 2018.
9. "Official Rock & Metal Singles Chart Top 40". Official Charts Company. Retrieved November 25, 2018.
10. "Billboard Hot 100". Billboard. April 19, 2003. Retrieved August 6, 2023.
11. "Adult Pop Airplay". Billboard. March 22, 2003. Retrieved August 6, 2023.
12. "Pop Airplay". Billboard. April 19, 2003. Retrieved August 6, 2023.
13. "Alternative Airplay". Billboard. November 2, 2002. Retrieved August 6, 2023.
14. "The Official UK Singles Chart 2002" (PDF). UKChartsPlus. Retrieved November 25, 2018.
15. "British single certifications – Bowling for Soup – Girl All the Bad Guys Want". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved September 24, 2023.
16. "American single certifications – Bowling for Soup – Girl All the Bad Guys Want". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved April 9, 2023.
17. "Going for Adds" (PDF). Radio & Records. No. 1461. July 12, 2002. p. 25. Retrieved May 3, 2021.
18. "New Releases – For Week Starting 5 August 2002: Singles" (PDF). Music Week. August 3, 2002. p. 27. Retrieved August 28, 2021.
19. "The ARIA Report: New Releases Singles – Week Commencing 12/08/2002" (PDF). ARIA. August 12, 2002. p. 25. Archived from the original (PDF) on October 1, 2002. Retrieved May 3, 2021.
20. "Going for Adds" (PDF). Radio & Records. No. 1482. December 6, 2002. p. 18. Retrieved May 3, 2021.
21. "Going for Adds" (PDF). Radio & Records. No. 1483. December 13, 2002. p. 26. Retrieved May 3, 2021.