"Greased Lightnin'"is a song from the 1971 musicalGreasewhich was also adapted into the 1978 filmGrease.A soundtrack recording from thefilm version,withJohn Travoltaon lead vocals, peaked at No. 47 on theBillboardHot 100in 1978.
| "Greased Lightnin'" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 US single picture sleeve | ||||
| SinglebyJohn Travolta | ||||
| from the albumGrease: The Original Soundtrack from the Motion Picture | ||||
| B-side |
| |||
| Released | September 1978 | |||
| Recorded | 1977 | |||
| Genre | Rock and roll | |||
| Length | 3:13 | |||
| Label | RSO | |||
| Songwriter(s) | ||||
| Producer(s) | ||||
| John Travoltasingles chronology | ||||
| ||||
Synopsis
editKenickie, a member of the greaser gang at the center of the musical, has purchased a used car with the savings from his summer job, giving it the nickname "Greased Lightnin'".While the other greasers are skeptical of the car because it is in such poor shape, he is able to win them over with a rousingrock and rollnumber describing the modifications needed to transform it into ahot rodcapable of arousing the ladies. The lyrics portray Kenickie (in the film, Danny) as more of a dreamer or evenposeurthan a real gearhead because some of the features he describes are mutually exclusive with others: a car with an "automatic...Hydramatic"transmission therefore could not have" a four speed on the floor "i.e.manual transmission,and "four-barrel quads" arecarburetorsinconsistent with true "Fuel injectioncut off ".[1](In the film, despite the contradictions in the lyrics, the greasers along with a shop teacher succeed in rebuilding the car into racing condition.) Both the musical and the film imply that at least some of the parts Kenickie uses are stolen.
In the original recording, as was in the case with the stage musical on which it was based, severalunairable profanitiesof a sexual nature are peppered throughout the lyrics, which deterred a number of stations from playing the song and possibly prevented it from reaching the top 40 in the United States. It was one of the few songs from the original Chicago-centric version ofGreaseto transition, uncut, from Chicago to Broadway and to film. Jim Jacobs later released a revised set of lyrics suitable for school performances that remove the sexual references (this "clean" version was also used inFox's live television production ofGrease), and most televised edits of the film cut the offending lyrics.
In the original musical, the song is Kenickie's featured number, with the other greasers serving as his backup singers. The film expands upon the car's purpose. Whereas the stage musical gives no particular reason for Kenickie's desire to build the car (which does not play a major factor in the play beyond that point), the film explains that the greasers' rivals, named the Scorpions in the film, had challenged them to a quarter-miledrag race,requiring them to have a competitive car for the duel. With Danny at the helm (and a reprise of "Greased Lightnin'"playing in the background), Greased Lightnin' wins the race. The film is also notable for having Danny (played by John Travolta, who had already had top-40 hits beforeGrease) sing lead on the song, while Kenickie (Jeff Conaway) contributed with a few call-and-response lines.
In keeping with the musical's tendency to use styles of music popular in the late 1950s, the song "Greased Lightnin'"is in a slightly modifiedtwelve-bar bluesform, and is inspired by the 1959 single "White Lightning"byThe Big Bopper.
Record Worldsaid that "the beat is 50s perfect."[2]
Charts
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Weekly chartsedit
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Year-end chartsedit
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Critical reception
editSTL Today described the song as "a number saluting ahot rodand all the joy it promises ".[14]
Other recordings
editIn the film version ofGrease,the song was recorded byJohn Travolta.An earlier version was recorded in 1972 byThe Wild Angels.The song was covered byLance Ellingtonin the animated filmPlanet 51.Irish pop bandWestlifehad a recorded cover of the song in 2003. The song was parodied by David Flora and Dave Stecco of the Blurry Photos podcast as the opening of theirThunderbirdsepisode, which they admitted was unlicensed.[15]
References
edit- ^"Greased Lightning".May 31, 2008.RetrievedApril 12,2019.
- ^"Hits of the Week"(PDF).Record World.September 23, 1978. p. 1.RetrievedFebruary 13,2023.
- ^Kent, David(1993).Australian Chart Book 1970–1992(illustrated ed.). St Ives, N.S.W.: Australian Chart Book. p. 313.ISBN0-646-11917-6.
- ^"John Travolta – Greased Lightnin' "(in Dutch).Ultratop 50.Retrieved October 30, 2021.
- ^"The Irish Charts – Search Results – Greased Lightnin' ".Irish Singles Chart.Retrieved July 11, 2017.
- ^"Nederlandse Top 40 – week 44, 1978"(in Dutch).Dutch Top 40.Retrieved October 30, 2021.
- ^"John Travolta – Greased Lightnin' "(in Dutch).Single Top 100.Retrieved October 30, 2021.
- ^"John Travolta – Greased Lightnin' ".Top 40 Singles.Retrieved October 30, 2021.
- ^"John Travolta: Artist Chart History".Official Charts Company.Retrieved October 30, 2021.
- ^"John Travolta Chart History (Hot 100)".Billboard.Retrieved October 30, 2021.
- ^"Jaaroverzichten 1978".Ultratop.RetrievedOctober 30,2021.
- ^"Top 100-Jaaroverzicht van 1978".Dutch Top 40.RetrievedOctober 30,2021.
- ^"Jaaroverzichten – Single 1978".dutchcharts.nl.RetrievedOctober 30,2021.
- ^Newmark, Judith (August 1, 2014)."'Grease' gets the splashy Muny treatment | Theater reviews ".Stltoday.RetrievedOctober 13,2016.
- ^David Flora; Dave Stecco (February 7, 2014)."EPISODE 68: THUNDERBIRDS".BlurryPhotos.org.RetrievedMarch 10,2021.