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The Boomtown Rats, I Donโ€™t Like Mondays: 1 Hit WONDERful ๐Ÿ‘๐Ÿ‘๐Ÿ‘ No. 5 (2023) [๐Ÿ“ท: Brent Faulkner / The Musical Hype; Mercury; Julia Larsen, Kurchakto, RDNE Stock project, Victor Terrell from Pexels; Andrew Martin from Pixabay]In the 5th edition of 1 Hit WONDERful ๐Ÿ‘๐Ÿ‘๐Ÿ‘, we highlight โ€œI Donโ€™t Like Mondaysย โ€ performed by The Boomtown Rats.

It only takes ONE hit to solidify a musical legacy ๐Ÿ’ฏ! On 1 Hit WONDERful ๐Ÿ‘๐Ÿ‘๐Ÿ‘, we highlight songs that were the SOLE hit by a given musician.ย  To be fair, it is possible that the artists appearing on this list earned a minor hit or two, BUT for the most part, itโ€™s that ONE hit that earned them recognition. So, in the 5th edition of 1 Hit WONDERful ๐Ÿ‘๐Ÿ‘๐Ÿ‘, we dive into ๐ŸŽต โ€œI Donโ€™t Like Mondaysย โ€, ย the one hit wonder by ๐ŸŽ™ The Boomtown Rats.

The Boomtown Rats, The Fine Art of Surfacing [๐Ÿ“ท: Mercury]โ€œTell me why / I donโ€™t like Mondays / I wanna shoot the whole day down.โ€ Mondays tend to be an unpopular day, but in the case of ๐ŸŽต โ€œI Donโ€™t Like Mondaysโ€, the hatred is far more pronounced.ย  Irish rock band ๐ŸŽ™ The Boomtown Rats wrote and recorded a song that references the Grover Cleveland Elementary School shooting. Infamously, 16-year old Brenda Spencer, who truly didnโ€™t like Mondays, killed two adults and injured eight children with a .22 caliber semiautomatic rifle at the elementary across from her house ๐Ÿ˜ข.ย A worldwide hit from their 1979 album, ๐Ÿ’ฟ The Fine Art of Surfacing, the song marks the only charting single by The Boomtown Rats on the Billboard Hot 100. Notably, โ€œI Donโ€™t Like Mondaysโ€ was a top five hit in many countries, including hitting no. 1 in Ireland, Australia, and the UK. In the United States, it settled for no. 73.ย  Again, this was the collectiveโ€™s sole charting hit, hence, one hit wonder status.

โ€œThe silicon chip inside her head / Gets switched to overload / And nobodyโ€™s gonna go to school today / Sheโ€™s gonna make them stay at home.โ€ Those lyrics, from the first verse of โ€œI Donโ€™t Like Mondaysโ€, ย capture an unhinged person, in this case, a delusional mass murderer. In the first verse, ๐ŸŽ™ Bob Geldof captures the shock of Brendaโ€™s father, asserting, โ€œAnd daddy doesnโ€™t understand it / He always said she was good as gold.โ€ This sometimes occurs in cases from mass murderers and serial killers where the parents didnโ€™t see any signs, hence why โ€œAnd mother feels so shocked, fatherโ€™s world is rockedโ€ (verse two). ย The third verse is incredibly disturbing: ย 

โ€œAnd all the playingโ€™s stopped in the playground now

She wants to play with the toys a while

And schoolโ€™s out early and soon weโ€™ll be learning

And the lesson is how to die.โ€

boxingMorbid, morbid, morbid. Beyond the songwriting, ๐ŸŽต โ€œI Donโ€™t Like Mondaysโ€ is incredibly ear catching, thanks to its art pop/New Wave sound.ย  The piano and keyboard work is brilliant by ๐ŸŽ™ Johnny Fingers.ย  Furthermore, the backing vocals only accentuate Geldofโ€™s fabulous lead.ย  Also, shout out the marvelous strings/string arrangement. Fun fact: ๐ŸŽ™ Tori Amos covered โ€œI Donโ€™t Like Mondaysโ€ on her 2001 album, ๐Ÿ’ฟ Strange Little Girls.ย  The one is 1 Hit WONDERful ๐Ÿ‘๐Ÿ‘๐Ÿ‘, indeed! ย 

Appears in ๐Ÿ”ป:


๐ŸŽ™ The Boomtown Rats โ€ข ๐Ÿ’ฟ The Fine Art of Surfacing โ€ข ๐Ÿท Mercury โ€ข ๐Ÿ—“ โ€ฏ1979

The Boomtown Rats, I Donโ€™t Like Mondays: 1 Hit WONDERful ๐Ÿ‘๐Ÿ‘๐Ÿ‘ No. 5 (2023) [๐Ÿ“ท: Brent Faulkner / The Musical Hype; Mercury; Julia Larsen, Kurchakto, RDNE Stock project, Victor Terrell from Pexels; Andrew Martin from Pixabay]

 


the musical hype

the musical hype (Brent Faulkner) has earned Bachelor's and Master's degrees in music (music education, music theory/composition respectively). A multi-instrumentalist, he plays piano, trombone, and organ among numerous other instruments. He's a certified music educator, composer, and freelance music blogger. Faulkner cites music and writing as two of the most important parts of his life. Notably, he's blessed with a great ear, possessing perfect pitch.

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