Longview (song)

"Longview" is the debut single by American rock band Green Day. It is the fourth track on the band's third studio album, Dookie (1994), and was released on February 1, 1994, the same day as the album. The song was the band's first single to top the Billboard Modern Rock Tracks chart in the U.S. The music video for this song received heavy airplay on MTV and is largely credited for breaking Green Day into mainstream popularity. The video was directed by the Bay Area music video director Mark Kohr who collaborated with the band on many music videos.

"Longview"
Artwork for commercial overseas releases
Single by Green Day
from the album Dookie
Released	February 1, 1994 (1994-02-01)
Studio	Fantasy (Berkeley, California)
Genre	Punk rock^[1]^[2]^[3] pop punk^[4]^[5] alternative rock^[6]
Length	3:59
Label	Reprise WEA International
Songwriter(s)	Billie Joe Armstrong Mike Dirnt Tré Cool
Producer(s)	Rob Cavallo Green Day
Green Day singles chronology
"Longview" (1994) "Welcome to Paradise" (1994)
Audio sample
file help
Music video
"Longview" on YouTube

In 1995, Green Day received four Grammy Award nominations, including Best Hard Rock Performance for "Longview".^[7] The song was ranked at number three on the list of the "Best Singles of 1994" by Rolling Stone.^[8]

Concept

The song describes intense boredom and frustration with an inability to self-actualize. Lyrically, the song is about a day spent sitting around the house, doing absolutely nothing of importance and masturbating until the days are no longer fun. Bassist Mike Dirnt has stated that the famous bass line intro to this song was written one night while he was high on LSD.^[9]

The song is named after the city of Longview, Washington.^[10]

Reception

PopMatters listed "Longview" as the seventh best Green Day song, citing "This song didn’t become an instant classic of its genre merely because Armstrong said the word "masturbation" on the radio—it's all in the delivery."^[11] Entertainment Weekly placed it among their favorite Green Day songs.^[12]

Music video

"Longview" has a music video, which is the first one created by Green Day. The music video was directed by Mark Kohr, the cinematography was by Adam Beckman, and the editing was by Bob Sarles. The music video received frequent airplay on MTV upon release.

The music video takes place in a dimly-lit basement of a broken-down house in Oakland, California, where the band used to live. The band members say that the look was intentionally grungy. In the video, Billie sits on a couch and watches television. At the end of the music video, he goes insane and tears up the couch, with feathers flying everywhere.

The music video was nominated for three MTV Video Music Awards in 1994: Best Group Video, Best Alternative Video, and Best New Artist. The video is also included on the DVD International Supervideos!.

Track listings

First pressing

1. "Longview" – 3:59
2. "Going to Pasalacqua" (live) – 4:12
3. "F.O.D." (live) – 2:44
4. "Christie Road" (live) – 3:49

1995 re-issue

1. "Longview" – 3:59
2. "Welcome to Paradise" (live) — 4:05
3. "One of My Lies" (live) — 2:25

Card sleeve

1. "Longview" – 3:59
2. "On the Wagon" – 2:48
3. "F.O.D." (live) – 2:44

• All live tracks were recorded on March 11, 1994, at Jannus Landing, St. Petersburg, Florida.

7-inch vinyl box set

1. "Longview" — 3:59
2. "Welcome to Paradise" — 3:45
3. "Coming Clean" — 1:35
4. "Chump" (live from Stockholm, Sweden; Same version on Live Tracks) — 02:39

Personnel

• Lead vocals and guitar: Billie Joe Armstrong
• Backing vocals and bass: Mike Dirnt
• Drums: Tré Cool
• Songwriting: Billie Joe Armstrong, Mike Dirnt, Tré Cool
• Production: Rob Cavallo, Green Day

Charts

Chart (1994–1995)	Peak position
Australia (ARIA)^[13]	33
Scotland (OCC)^[14]	32
UK Singles (OCC)^[15]	30
UK Rock & Metal (OCC)^[16]	3
US Radio Songs (Billboard)^[17]	36
US Alternative Airplay (Billboard)^[18]	1
US Mainstream Rock (Billboard)^[19]	13
US Cash Box Top 100^[20]	87

Release history

Region	Date	Format(s)	Label(s)	Ref.
United States	February 1, 1994	Radio	Reprise	^[21]
United Kingdom	June 6, 1994	7-inch vinyl CD cassette		^[22]

References

1. Gold, Jonathan (November 1994). "The Year Punk Broke". Spin.
2. Pearn, Frank (March 18, 1994). "PUNK BAND GREEN DAY TAKING A 'BOOKISH' TURN". The Morning Call. Retrieved May 27, 2020.
3. "50 Best Punk Songs Of All Time". Consequence of Sound. August 17, 2021. Retrieved March 9, 2022.
4. Chesler, Josh (August 31, 2015). "10 Best Pop-Punk Songs of All Time". Phoenix New Times. Retrieved June 12, 2016.
5. Piers, Ryan (September 23, 2020). "These are the 25 most influential songs of pop punk". Alternative Press. Retrieved February 19, 2022.
6. "100 Best Alternative Rock Songs of 1994". Spin. Retrieved September 18, 2020.
7. "37th Grammy Awards – 1995". Rock On The Net. Retrieved October 15, 2009.
8. . Rocklistmusic.co.uk. Archived from the original on July 23, 2010. Retrieved August 11, 2011.
9. Coryat, Karl (November 1994). "Green Day's Mike Dirnt". Bass Player magazine. p. 9.
10. Paulu, Tom (June 15, 2011). "Longview's Green Day connection". The Daily News. Longview, Washington. Retrieved March 4, 2012.
11. AJ Ramirez (September 19, 2012). "Nice Guys Finish Last: The Top 15 Green Day Songs". PopMatters. Retrieved May 25, 2013.
12. Hiatt, Brian. "Our favorite Green Day songs -- and yours?". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved February 19, 2022.
13. "Green Day – Longview". ARIA Top 50 Singles.
14. "Official Scottish Singles Sales Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved October 22, 2018.
15. "Official Singles Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved October 22, 2018.
16. "Official Rock & Metal Singles Chart Top 40". Official Charts Company. Retrieved October 22, 2018.
17. "Green Day Chart History (Radio Songs)". Billboard.
18. "Green Day Chart History (Alternative Airplay)". Billboard.
19. "Green Day Chart History (Mainstream Rock)". Billboard.
20. "U.S. Cash Box Charts" (PDF). popmusichistory. Retrieved January 28, 2023.
21. Borzillo, Carrie (April 9, 1994). "As Reprise Set Rises, It's Easy Being Green Day". Billboard. Vol. 106, no. 15. p. 72. The single and videoclip were serviced Feb. 1, simultaneous with the album's street date.
22. "Single Releases". Music Week. June 4, 1994. p. 21.