"Mony Mony" is a 1968 single by American

pop rock Pop rock (also typeset as pop/rock) is a fusion genre with an emphasis on professional songwriting and recording craft, and less emphasis on attitude than rock music. Originating in the late 1950s as an alternative to normal rock and roll, earl ...

band

Tommy James and the Shondells Tommy James and the Shondells are an American pop rock/psychedelic rock band, formed in Niles, Michigan, in 1964. They had two No. 1 singles in the U.S. – " Hanky Panky" (July 1966, their only RIAA Certified Gold record) and "Crimson and Clov ...

, which reached No. 1 in the

UK Singles Chart The UK Singles Chart (currently titled Official Singles Chart, with the upper section more commonly known as the Official UK Top 40) is compiled by the Official Charts Company (OCC), on behalf of the British record industry, listing the top-s ...

and No. 3 in the U.S. Written by

Bobby Bloom Robert Bloom (January 15, 1946 – February 28, 1974) was an American singer-songwriter. He is known best for being a one-hit wonder with the 1970 song, "Montego Bay", which was co-written with and produced by Jeff Barry. Biography Bloom was bo ...

Ritchie Cordell Ritchie Cordell (born Richard Joel Rosenblatt; March 10, 1943 – April 13, 2004) was an American songwriter, singer and record producer. He wrote and produced several hits for Tommy James and The Shondells, including "I Think We're Alone No ...

Bo Gentry Robert Allan Ackoff (May 30, 1942 – June 30, 1983), known professionally as Bo Gentry, was an American pop singer, songwriter and record producer, most noted for his work with Tommy James and the Shondells in the 1960s. Biography Gentry wa ...

and

Tommy James Tommy James (born Thomas Gregory Jackson; April 29, 1947), also known as Tommy Tadger, is an American musician, singer, songwriter, and record producer, widely known as frontman of the 1960s rock band Tommy James and the Shondells, who were know ...

, the song has appeared in various film and television works such as the

Oliver Stone William Oliver Stone (born September 15, 1946) is an American film director, producer, and screenwriter. Stone won an Academy Award for Best Adapted Screenplay as writer of '' Midnight Express'' (1978), and wrote the gangster film remake '' Sc ...

drama '' Heaven & Earth''. It was also covered by English singer-songwriter

Billy Idol William Michael Albert Broad (born 30 November 1955), known professionally as Billy Idol, is a British-American singer, songwriter, and musician. He first achieved fame in the 1970s emerging from the London punk rock scene as the lead singer o ...

in 1981. Idol's version, which took in more of a rock sound, became an international top 40 hit and additionally revived public interest in the original

garage rock Garage rock (sometimes called garage punk or 60s punk) is a raw and energetic style of rock and roll that flourished in the mid-1960s, most notably in the United States and Canada, and has experienced a series of subsequent revivals. The sty ...

single. In 1986 it was covered by

Amazulu Zulu people (; zu, amaZulu) are a Nguni ethnic group native to Southern Africa. The Zulu people are the largest ethnic group and nation in South Africa, with an estimated 10–12 million people, living mainly in the province of KwaZulu-Nata ...

, who gave it a

ska Ska (; ) is a music genre that originated in Jamaica in the late 1950s and was the precursor to rocksteady and reggae. It combined elements of Caribbean mento and calypso with American jazz and rhythm and blues. Ska is characterized by a walki ...

rendition.

Tommy James and the Shondells version

Background and release

"Mony Mony" was credited to

and

. The song's title was inspired by Tommy James' view of the "M.O.N.Y." sign atop the

Mutual of New York Building 1740 Broadway (formerly the MONY Building or Mutual of New York Building) is a 26-story building on the east side of Broadway, between 55th and 56th Streets, in the Midtown Manhattan neighborhood of New York City. The building is owned by EQ O ...

on the New York City skyline from his

Manhattan Manhattan (), known regionally as the City, is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the five boroughs of New York City. The borough is also coextensive with New York County, one of the original counties of the U.S. state ...

apartment. As James said in a 1995 interview in ''Hitch'' magazine: "Mony Mony" was the only song by the group to reach the top 20 in the United Kingdom; it reached No. 1 in the UK, No. 3 in the U.S. and Canada, and became a Top 10 hit across western Europe. A music video was made featuring the band performing the song amidst psychedelic backgrounds. A decade and a half later, it would receive renewed play on

MTV MTV (Originally an initialism of Music Television) is an American cable channel that launched on August 1, 1981. Based in New York City, it serves as the flagship property of the MTV Entertainment Group, part of Paramount Media Networks, a di ...

Track listings and format

* Vinyl # "Mony Mony" – 2:45 # "One Two Three and I Fell" – 2:32

Chart performance

Billy Idol version

Background and release

British rock British rock describes a wide variety of forms of music made in the United Kingdom. Since around 1964, with the "British Invasion" of the United States spearheaded by the Beatles, British rock music has had a considerable impact on the develop ...

artist

released a

cover version In popular music, a cover version, cover song, remake, revival, or simply cover, is a new performance or recording by a musician other than the original performer or composer of the song. Originally, it referred to a version of a song release ...

in 1981 (on the '' Don't Stop'' EP). Along with the track "Baby Talk", Idol's version of "Mony Mony" went to No. 7 on the Billboard dance chart. In his 2015 memoir, ''Dancing With Myself'', he recalls his affection for the song originally stemmed from a sexual encounter he had as a youth where it played in the background. Before proposing the cover to executives at

Chrysalis Records Chrysalis Records () is a British record label that was founded in 1968. The name is both a reference to the pupal stage of a butterfly and a combination of its founders' names, Chris Wright and Terry Ellis. It started as the Ellis-Wright Ag ...

, he originally suggested recording a cover of "Shout" before admitting his intentions for "Mony Mony". A live recording of the song became a hit for Idol in 1987 as well, while promoting his then-forthcoming compilation work ''

Vital Idol ''Vital Idol'' is a remix album by English rock singer Billy Idol, released in June 1985 by Chrysalis Records. It contains remixed songs from his first two albums and the '' Don't Stop'' EP. The album was reissued in the United States with on ...

''. The live version was released as a single and went to No. 1 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100, coincidentally displacing Tiffany's cover of another Tommy James song, "

I Think We're Alone Now "I Think We're Alone Now" is a song written and composed by Ritchie Cordell that was first recorded by Tommy James and the Shondells. It was a major hit for group, reaching number 4 on the US Hot 100 in April 1967. It finished at No. 12 on '' B ...

", from the top spot. It also finished directly behind the Tiffany song at No. 19 in the 1987 year-end ''Billboard'' chart. Idol's version gave rise to an interesting custom. When the song was performed live in concert or played at a club or dance, people would shout a certain formulaic (and usually

obscene An obscenity is any utterance or act that strongly offends the prevalent morality of the time. It is derived from the Latin ''obscēnus'', ''obscaenus'', "boding ill; disgusting; indecent", of uncertain etymology. Such loaded language can be use ...

) variation of a particular phrase in the two measures following each line, for example, "Hey, say what… get laid get fucked!" Or "Hey, motherfucker… get laid get fucked!" This led to the song being banned at high-school dances across North America, although the custom continues at Idol concerts & sporting events today. It became so widespread that Idol would eventually commit the lyrics to record in the "Idol/Stevens Mix" of the song on the 2018 remix album ''Vital Idol: Revitalized.'' Idol revived interest in the original

song. The full studio version can be found on Idol's ''

Greatest Hits A greatest hits album or best-of album is a type of compilation album that collects popular and commercially successful songs by a particular artist or band. While greatest hits albums are typically supported by the artist, they can also be crea ...

compilation album A compilation album comprises Album#Tracks, tracks, which may be previously released or unreleased, usually from several separate recordings by either one or several Performing arts#Performers, performers. If by one artist, then generally the tr ...

, a 2001

Capitol Records Capitol Records, LLC (known legally as Capitol Records, Inc. until 2007) is an American record label distributed by Universal Music Group through its Capitol Music Group imprint. It was founded as the first West Coast-based record label of note ...

release. That album has received positive critical reviews, with Idol's cover of the James tune specifically praised.

Uses in popular culture

The song was sampled by Australian

Seven Network The Seven Network (commonly known as Channel Seven or simply Seven) is a major Australian commercial free-to-air Television broadcasting in Australia, television network. It is owned by Seven West Media, Seven West Media Limited, and is one of ...

to promote its 1992 (jobs) "Yeah!" campaign. This sample was also used by the Seven-affiliated regional TV network

Prime Television Prime7, formerly Prime Television and other names, was an Australian television network. Prime Television launched on 17 March 1962 as '' CBN-8'' in Orange, and later expanded to cover regional New South Wales, Victoria and the Australian Cap ...

(now Prime7).

"Weird Al" Yankovic Alfred Matthew "Weird Al" Yankovic ( ; born October 23, 1959) is an American singer, musician, songwriter, record producer, actor and author. He is best known for creating comedy songs that make light of pop culture and often parody specifi ...

wrote a parody of this song from his album '' Even Worse'', entitled "Alimony" (based on the live Idol version, complete with a live audience). It is about a recently divorced man complaining about his ex-wife taking everything he owns away from him in alimony payments. A cover version of the song appeared in

Malcolm in the Middle ''Malcolm in the Middle'' is an American family television sitcom created by Linwood Boomer for Fox. The series premiered on January 9, 2000, and ended on May 14, 2006, after seven seasons and 151 episodes. The series follows a dysfunctional ...

Season 7 Episode 2 ''Health Insurance'' (2005) when Craig (

David Anthony Higgins David Anthony Higgins (born December 9, 1961) is an American actor. He is known for his television roles as Craig Feldspar on ''Malcolm in the Middle'', Joe on ''Ellen'', and Reginald Bitters on ''Big Time Rush''. He also had a recurring role as H ...

) threw a breakroom party for Lois (

Jane Kaczmarek Jane Frances Kaczmarek (; born December 21, 1955) is an American actress. She is best known for her role as Malcolm's mother Lois on the Fox television sitcom ''Malcolm in the Middle'' (2000–2006), which earned her three Golden Globe nomination ...

) celebrating her 10th anniversary at Lucky Aide; the show's fictional grocery store. Despite obvious changes to the lyrics, the cover otherwise followed the same melody as Idol's version with "Mony Mony" most notably replaced with "Lois Lois".

Track listings and formats

*(1981) US 7" vinyl #"Mony Mony" (Single Edit) 3:23 #"Baby Talk" 3:10 *(1981) UK 7" vinyl (33⅓ rpm) & 12" vinyl (45rpm) #"Mony Mony" #"Baby Talk" #"Untouchables" #"Dancing With Myself" *(1987) UK 7" vinyl #"Mony Mony (Live)" #"Shakin' All Over (Live)" *(1987) US 12" vinyl #"Mony Mony (Hung Like a Pony Remix)" 6:59 #"Mony Mony (Steel-Toe Cat Dub)" 6:50 #"Mony Mony (Live) 4:00" #"Mony Mony (Incorrectly listed as Single Edit)" 5:01 *(1987) UK 12" vinyl #"Mony Mony (Hung Like a Pony Remix♰)" #"Shakin' All Over (Live)" #"Mony Mony (Live)" ♰Mixed by –

Tom Lord-Alge Tom Lord-Alge (born January 17, 1963) is an American music engineer and mixer. He began his career at The Hit Factory in New York. Subsequently, he was the resident mixer at what used to be known as "South Beach Studios", located on the ground f ...

Chart performance

Original version Live version

Certifications

References

{{authority control 1968 singles Tommy James and the Shondells songs The Beach Boys songs UK Singles Chart number-one singles 1981 singles 1987 singles Billy Idol songs Billboard Hot 100 number-one singles Cashbox number-one singles Songs written by Tommy James RPM Top Singles number-one singles Songs written by Ritchie Cordell Songs written by Bobby Bloom Roulette Records singles 1968 songs Chrysalis Records singles Songs written by Bo Gentry