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Disposable Teens

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"Disposable Teens"
Single by Marilyn Manson
from the album Holy Wood (In the Shadow of the Valley of Death)
B-side"Working Class Hero"
ReleasedNovember 7, 2000
Recorded2000
Genre
Length3:01
Label
Songwriter(s)
Producer(s)
Marilyn Manson singles chronology
"Rock Is Dead"
(1999) 		"Disposable Teens"
(2000) 		"The Fight Song"
(2001)
Audio sample
"Disposable Teens"

"Disposable Teens" is a song by American rock band Marilyn Manson. It was released on November 7, 2000 as the lead single from their fourth full-length studio album, Holy Wood (In the Shadow of the Valley of Death) (2000).

It was released in two standalone physical formats. The first, titled "Disposable Teens Pt. 1," was released on November 6, 2000 in the UK.[4] It features Manson's cover of John Lennon's "Working Class Hero".[5] The second, titled "Disposable Teens Pt. 2," followed on November 14, 2000 and features a cover of The Doors' "Five to One".[6] "Disposable Teens Pt. 2" was also released as a 12" picture disc vinyl LP.

It is considered a teenage anthem of sorts, echoing what Manson see as teenagers who act violently in retaliation against parental and social authority. The chorus borrows lyrically from the Beatles' song, "Revolution." The song also paraphrases George Orwell's book 1984, the original line being "You're only a rebel from the waist down'. Here, it has been given new meaning as a pop culture reference to Elvis Presley's infamous swiveling hips, satirizing the assertion that they, and by extension rock 'n' roll, had caused the "decline of Western Civilization" and given rise to 'disposable teens'.

The song is featured in Book of Shadows: Blair Witch 2 during the opening credits. Professional wrestler Christopher Daniels has used the song as his theme in Ring of Honor and several independent promotions, as well as an instrumental remix for Total Nonstop Action Wrestling made by TNA's official music composer Dale Oliver. The song is also featured as downloadable content for Rock Band as part of the "Mayhem Tour Pack"[7] and as a playable track for Guitar Hero Live.

Single

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"Disposable Teens" was composed by John 5 and Twiggy Ramirez.[8] The lyrics were written by the band's frontman Marilyn Manson.[8] During pre-release interviews, Manson described it as a "signature Marilyn Manson song."[9] Its bouncing guitar riff and teutonic staccato has roots in Gary Glitter's song "Rock and Roll, Pt. 2" and KISS's song "I" from their Music from "The Elder" album.[10] Its lyrical themes tackled the disenfranchisement of contemporary youth, "particularly those that have been [brought up] to feel like accidents", with the revolutionary idealism of their parent's generation.[9][11] The influence of the Beatles was critical in this song.[11][12][13] The chorus echoed the Liverpool quartet's own disillusionment with the 1960s counterculture movement in the opening lines of their White Album song "Revolution 1".[11][13] Here the sentiment was re-appropriated as a rallying cry for "disposable teens" against the shortcomings of "this so-called generation of revolutionaries", whom the song indicted: "You said you wanted evolution, the ape was a great big hit. You say ya want a revolution, man, and I say that you're full of shit."[11][13]

Music video

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The music video was directed by Samuel Bayer and premiered on MTV's Total Request Live on October 25, 2000.[4][14] Manson asked Los Angeles radio station KROQ-FM to help spread the word that the band was looking for 200 to 250 fans to dress in black and participate in the shoot.[14] The clip was filmed in Los Angeles.[14]

The video starts out with Manson rising slowly from what appears to be a lake. The video cuts between Manson in several different environments and outfits including a Pope outfit which the Vatican reluctantly approved with a 1.4 million dollar price, as the food in a Last Supper reenactment and Manson himself performing to a crowd surrounded by fascist looking police with crucifix shaped batons. As the video climaxes the crowd is seen overthrowing the guards.

Two versions of the video were released: one with the content mentioned above and another composed of the stage performance footage from the original.

Cover songs

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As early as the band's August 30, 2000, appearance at the Kerrang! Awards, Marilyn Manson expressed interest in covering Lennon's "Working Class Hero" due to its correlation with Holy Wood (In the Shadow of the Valley of Death)'s thematic preoccupations. The cover was recorded in the interim leading up to the November 7, 2000, launch of the single.[10][12][15] In describing Lennon's idealism and influence on him Manson said that, "some of Lennon's Communist sentiments in his music later in his life were very dangerous. I think he died because of it. I don't think his death was any sort of accident. Aside from that, I think he's one of my favorite songwriters of all time."[10] Band members Manson, Ramirez, and John 5 later performed the song as part of a special invitation-only acoustic set at the Saci nightclub in New York City to celebrate the album's November 14, 2000, release.[15][16]

Track listing

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Disposable Teens, Pt. 1[17]
No.TitleMusicLength
1."Disposable Teens"5, Manson, Ramirez3:04
2."Working Class Hero"John Lennon3:42
3."Diamonds & Pollen"Gacy, Manson, Ramirez3:55
Disposable Teens, Pt. 2[18]
No.TitleMusicLength
1."Disposable Teens"5, Manson, Ramirez3:04
5."Five to One"Densmore, Krieger, Manzarek, Morrison4:22
6."Astonishing Panorama of the Endtimes"53:59

Charts

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Accolades

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In 2002, Kerrang! ranked "Disposable Teens" 73rd in their 100 Greatest Singles of All Time.[29]

References

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  1. ^ "Disposable Teens". NME. 12 September 2005. Retrieved 13 March 2016.
  2. ^ "Bad boy Manson delivers the goods". the Guardian. 24 January 2001. Retrieved 13 March 2016.
  3. ^ Trendell, Andrew (November 20, 2015). "'With blues, punk, hip-hop, metal, religion sex, he chews up all culture spits it back out'". Gigwise. Retrieved April 15, 2019.
  4. ^ a b "Teenage Sensation!". NME. 2000-10-24. Retrieved 2011-03-30.
  5. ^ "Disposable Teens 1 [Single, Import]". Retrieved 2011-04-01.
  6. ^ "Disposable Teens #2 [Single, Import]". Retrieved 2011-04-01.
  7. ^ "Exclusive Green Day Three Pack & Mayhem Festival Eight Pack Come To Rock Band". Rockband.com. July 2, 2009. Archived from the original on July 5, 2009. Retrieved June 23, 2010.
  8. ^ a b Erlewine, Stephen Thomas. "Holy Wood (In the Shadow of the Valley of Death) [Enhanced] review". allmusic. All Media Guide (Rovi). Retrieved 2010-11-16.
  9. ^ a b Myers, Ben (2000-12-09). "Holy Wood". Kerrang! (831). Bauer Media Group.
  10. ^ a b c "Marilyn Manson's Big Day Out". VH1. MTV Networks (Viacom). 2000-08-30. Archived from the original on 2012-02-10. Retrieved 2011-04-05.
  11. ^ a b c d Gargano, Paul (November 2000). "Holy Wars: The Ground Campaign Begins". Metal Edge. Zenbu Media.
  12. ^ a b Saidman, Sorelle (2000-09-18). "Marilyn Manson Unveils Tour Plans, First Single For Holy Wood". VH1. MTV Networks (Viacom). Retrieved 2010-11-16.[dead link‍]
  13. ^ a b c VanHorn, Teri (1999-12-16). "Marilyn Manson: Upcoming Album 'Unlike' Predecessors". VH1. Archived from the original on 2011-08-21. Retrieved 2011-04-05.
  14. ^ a b c "Marilyn Manson Announces First Leg Of World Tour". VH1. 2000-09-22. Archived from the original on 2011-08-21. Retrieved 2011-04-03.
  15. ^ a b Mancini, Robert (2000-11-15). "Marilyn Manson Marks Holy Wood Release With Acoustic Set". MTV News. MTV Networks (Viacom). Archived from the original on November 7, 2012. Retrieved 2011-04-01.
  16. ^ "'...Wood' You Believe It?". NME. 2000-11-10. Archived from the original on 2012-10-21. Retrieved 2011-04-01.
  17. ^ "Disposable Teens, Pt. 1 overview". allmusic. All Media Guide (Rovi). Retrieved 2011-07-01.
  18. ^ "Disposable Teens, Pt. 2 overview". allmusic. All Media Guide (Rovi). Retrieved 2011-07-01.
  19. ^ "Marilyn Manson - Disposable Teens (Song)". Australian-charts.com. Retrieved June 23, 2010.
  20. ^ "Marilyn Manson – Disposable Teens" (in French). Les classement single.
  21. ^ "Marilyn Manson – Disposable Teens" (in German). GfK Entertainment charts. Retrieved March 23, 2021.
  22. ^ "Marilyn Manson – Disposable Teens". Top Digital Download.
  23. ^ "Marilyn Manson – Disposable Teens" (in Dutch). Single Top 100.
  24. ^ "Music & Media: Eurochart Hot 100" (PDF). Music & Media. Retrieved May 1, 2018.[permanent dead link‍]
  25. ^ "Marilyn Manson – Disposable Teens" Canciones Top 50.
  26. ^ "Marilyn Manson – Disposable Teens". Singles Top 100.
  27. ^ "Marilyn Manson – Disposable Teens". Swiss Singles Chart.
  28. ^ a b "Marilyn Manson Billboard Singles". Allmusic. Retrieved June 23, 2010.
  29. ^ "Kerrang! 100 Greatest Singles of All Time". Kerrang!. Archived from the original on 2011-07-06. Retrieved 2011-03-06.
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