We Didn't Start the Fire (Fall Out Boy song)
"We Didn't Start the Fire" is a 2023 single by American rock band Fall Out Boy. It is a cover of Billy Joel's 1989 song "We Didn't Start the Fire", updating the song's references from the years since the original was released.
| "We Didn't Start the Fire" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Single by Fall Out Boy | ||||
| from the album So Much (for) Stardust (Digital Deluxe edition) | ||||
| Released | June 28, 2023 | |||
| Genre | Alternative rock | |||
| Length | 3:35 | |||
| Label | ||||
| Songwriter(s) | ||||
| Producer(s) | Neal Avron | |||
| Fall Out Boy singles chronology | ||||
| ||||
Lyrics
changeThe lyrics to "We Didn't Start the Fire", like Billy Joel's original version released in 1989, is made up of major events in world history through a certain time period. This version covers the events from 1989 to 2023. Fall Out Boy's version includes references to Woodstock '99, the 1992 Los Angeles riots, the Oklahoma City bombing, the September 11 attacks, Brexit;[1] the Boston Marathon bombing, Bush v. Gore, the assassination of Shinzo Abe;[2] the death of Michael Jackson, Donald Trump, Boris Johnson, Michael Keaton's Batman, the Arab Spring, the Fukushima nuclear accident and MySpace.[3]
In the chorus, the original lyric "we tried to fight it" is replaced with "we're trying to fight it", and in the bridge, "will it still burn on and on…" is replaced with "it will still go on and on...".
Unlike the original version, this version did not keep their references in order by year, such as referencing Rodney King and deepfakes together.[4]
The COVID-19 pandemic was not mentioned in the song mainly because no references to the pandemic could be rhymed with Bush v. Gore.[5][6]
Reaction
change"We Didn't Start the Fire" had a negative reaction from critics and fans.[7][5] A critic from Polygon called it as "tasteless" because of the song's rhyming of "George Floyd" with "Metroid".[4]
Reviewers also criticized the song not mentioning some important events or people such as the COVID-19 pandemic, as well as Hillary and Bill Clinton.[8] The staff of Slate brought up the movie Titanic and O. J. Simpson as missing references.[7]
References
change- ↑ Hines, Morgan (June 29, 2023). "Fall Out Boy covers Billy Joel's 'We Didn't Start the Fire' and people have mixed feelings". USA Today. Retrieved June 29, 2023.
- ↑ Times, Alexandra Del Rosario Los Angeles (2023-06-30). "Fall Out Boy updated Billy Joel's 'We Didn't Start the Fire.' Fans say it's 'unhinged'". San Diego Union-Tribune. Retrieved 2024-02-05.
- ↑ DeVille, Chris (June 28, 2023). "Fall Out Boy update "We Didn't Start The Fire" with events from the past 30+ years". Stereogum. Retrieved June 29, 2023.
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 Good, Owen S. (June 28, 2023). "Somehow, Fall Out Boy made an all-time bad song even worse". Polygon. Retrieved June 29, 2023.
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 del Rosario, Alexandra (June 29, 2023). "Fall Out Boy updated Billy Joel's 'We Didn't Start the Fire'. Fans say it's 'unhinged'". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved June 29, 2023.
- ↑ Rettig, James (June 28, 2023). "Pete Wentz explains why Fall Out Boy's updated 'We Didn't Start The Fire' isn't chronological and doesn't mention COVID". Stereogum. Retrieved June 29, 2023.
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 "The 33 things wrong with Fall Out Boy's updated 'We Didn't Start the Fire'". Slate. June 28, 2023. Retrieved June 29, 2023.
- ↑ Parker, Lyndsey (June 28, 2023). "Fall Out Boy references 9/11, Cobain, 'Tom DeLonge and aliens,' Fyre Fest in updated 'We Didn't Start the Fire'". Yahoo! Entertainment. Retrieved June 30, 2023.
