In 1979 , Having already recorded solo tracks backed and produced by ex- Sex Pistols Steve Jones and Paul Cook, she placed an ad in the L.A. Weekly "looking for three good men." John Doe of X sat in on bass for auditions held at S.I.R. studios in Los Angeles. He mentioned a local bass player, Gary Ryan, that had recently been crashing on his couch. Ryan was part of the L.A. punk scene and had played bass with local artists Top Jimmy and Rik L. Rik. He had been a huge fan of the Runaways and Jett for years. Jett recognized him at the audition and he was in. Gary recommended guitarist Eric Ambel, who was also at the time part of Rik L. Rik. The final addition to the original Blackhearts was drummer Danny Furious aka Danny O'Brien, formerly of the infamous San Francisco band The Avengers. This line-up played several gigs at the Golden Bear and Whisky a Go Go in Hollywood before embarking on their first European tour which consisted of an extensive tour of the Netherlands, and a few key shows in England including the Marquee in London.
Upon returning to the States, Jett, Ryan, and Ambel moved to Long Beach, N.Y. O'Brien stayed behind in England to pursue other interests. Auditions were set up and Lee Crystal, formerly of The Boyfriends and Sylvain Sylvain, became the new drummer. Joan Jett and the Blackhearts then toured throughout the States and built quite a following in New York. Jett and Laguna soon used their personal savings to press up copies of the Joan Jett album in 1980 and set up their own system of independent distribution, sometimes selling the albums out of the trunk of Laguna's Cadillac at the end of each concert. Laguna was unable to keep up with demand for her album. Eventually, old friend and founder of [abel]Casablanca Records, Neil Bogart, made a joint venture with Laguna and signed Jett to his new label, Boardwalk Records and re-released the "Joan Jett" album as Bad Reputation in 1981. After a year of touring and recording, The Blackhearts recorded a new album entitled I Love Rock N' Roll for the label. During the recording process, Ambel was replaced by local guitarist Ricky Byrd. Eric went on to a successful career as a founding member of the Del-Lords, and later worked as a producer of a wide variety of bands. He currently plays with his band, The Yayhoos, and was a member of The Dukes, Steve Earle's band from 2000 to 2005.
With Byrd on guitar, Joan Jett and the Blackhearts recorded their hit album. The new single was a re-recording of the title track, "I Love Rock N' Roll", which in the first half of 1982 was number one on the Billboard charts for seven weeks in a row. It is now Billboard’s #28 song of all time.
A string of Top 40 hits followed, as well as sellout tours with The Police, Queen, and Aerosmith, among others. Jett was the second American act of any kind to perform behind the Iron Curtain, after Blood, Sweat & Tears appeared in Romania in 1969. She was among the first English-speaking rock acts to appear in Panama and the Dominican Republic.
After receiving her own MTV New Year's Eve special, Jett beat out a number of contenders to appear in the movie Light of Day with Michael J. Fox. Bruce Springsteen wrote "the title song" especially for her, and her performance was critically acclaimed. It was about this time that Ryan and Crystal left the Blackhearts. They were soon replaced by the powerful rhythm section of Thommy Price and Kasim Sulton from Utopia. Later that year, Jett released Good Music, which featured appearances by The Beach Boys, The Sugarhill Gang and singer Darlene Love.
Joan Jett and the Blackhearts became the first rock band to perform a series of shows at the Lunt-Fontanne Theatre on Broadway, breaking the record at the time for the fastest ticket sell-out ever. Her next release, Up Your Alley, went multi-platinum and was followed by The Hit List, which was an album consisting of cover songs. During this time, Jett also co-wrote the song "House of Fire", which appeared on Alice Cooper's hit 1989 album Trash.
Her 1991 release, Notorious (which featured The Replacements' Paul Westerberg) was the last with Sony/CBS as Jett switched to Warner Brothers. A CD single of Cole Porter's "Let's Do It" featuring Jett and Westerberg was also released during this time and appeared in the song credits for the movie Tank Girl. In 1993, Jett and Laguna released Flashback, a compilation of various songs on their own Blackheart Records.
Jett produced several bands prior to releasing her debut and her label Blackheart Records released recordings from varied artists such as thrash rock band Metal Church and rapper Big Daddy Kane.
The press has touted Jett as the "Godmother of Punk" and the "Original Riot Grrrl". In 1994, the Blackhearts released the well received Pure and Simple, which featured tracks written with Kat Bjelland (Babes in Toyland), Donita Sparks (L7) and Kathleen Hanna (Bikini Kill).
In 1999 she put out the sexually charged Fetish and followed that up with politically outspoken Sinner in 2006.
She continues to tour each year, performing USO shows in places as far off as Afghanistan, and has a regular sattellite radio show. The current touring band includes longstanding drummer Thommy Price and manager Kenny Laguna on keys along with Dougie Needles on lead guitar and Enzo Penizzotto on bass. .
Bad Reputation
Joan Jett & The Blackhearts Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
You're living in the past it's a new generation
A girl can do what she wants to do and that's
What I'm gonna do
An' I don't give a damn 'bout my bad reputation
Oh no, not me
An' I don't give a damn 'bout my reputation
An' I'm only doin' good
While I'm havin' fun
An' I don't have to please no one
An' I don't give a damn
'Bout my bad reputation
Oh no, not me
Oh no, not me
I don't give a damn
'Bout my reputation
I've never been afraid of any deviation
An' I don't really care
If ya think I'm strange
I ain't gonna change
An' I'm never gonna care
'Bout my bad reputation
Oh no, not me
Oh no, not me
Pedal boys!
An' I don't give a damn
'Bout my reputation
The world's in trouble
There's no communication
An' everyone can say what they want to say
It never gets better anyway
So why should I care
'Bout a bad reputation anyway
Oh no, not me
Oh no, not me
I don't give a damn 'bout my bad reputation
You're living in the past it's a new generation
An' I only feel good when I got no pain
An' that's how I'm gonna stay
An' I don't give a damn
'Bout my bad reputation
Oh no, not me
Oh no, not
Not me, not me, not me!
The lyrics to Joan Jett's "Bad Reputation" are all about rejecting the societal norms that come with being a woman in the music industry, or in any male-dominated field. Jett challenges the notion that women should be docile, obedient, and constantly striving to improve their station in life in the hopes of being accepted by men. Instead, she asserts that she has no interest in playing by those rules and will do as she pleases without concern for her reputation.
Furthermore, Jett sees herself as part of a new generation of women who have the ability to step outside of the confines of traditional gender roles and expectations. By unapologetically embracing her "bad reputation," Jett is making a statement about being true to oneself, no matter what others may say or think. She refuses to conform and, instead, rocks out to who she truly is.
In short, "Bad Reputation" is a bold and feminist anthem that encourages women everywhere to live authentically and to challenge the societal norms that try to limit their potential.
Line by Line Meaning
I don't give a damn 'bout my reputation
I don't care about what people think of me
You're living in the past it's a new generation
Your outdated ideas don't apply to modern times
A girl can do what she wants to do and that's What I'm gonna do
I believe in freedom and will do what I want
An' I don't give a damn 'bout my bad reputation
Once again, I don't care how people view me
Never said I wanted to improve my station
My goal isn't to advance socially or improve my status
An' I'm only doin' good While I'm havin' fun
The only measure of success that matters is if I'm enjoying myself
An' I don't have to please no one
I'm not beholden to anyone's expectations
I've never been afraid of any deviation
I'm not scared to be different from the norm
An' I don't really care If ya think I'm strange
Your opinion of me being weird doesn't affect me
I ain't gonna change
I have no intention or desire to change myself
The world's in trouble There's no communication
The world is facing problems due to a lack of effective communication
An' everyone can say what they want to say It never gets better anyway
People can speak their minds but it doesn't necessarily lead to solutions
So why should I care 'Bout a bad reputation anyway
Given the state of the world, why should I care about a negative image of myself?
An' I only feel good when I got no pain
I only feel happy when I'm not in physical or emotional pain
An' that's how I'm gonna stay
I plan to continue living my life this way
Not me, not me, not me!
In case it wasn't clear before, I really don't care what you think of me
Lyrics © O/B/O APRA AMCOS
Written by: Joan Jett, Kenneth Laguna, Martin Kupersmith, Ritchie Cordell
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@ArnetPhotography
She was and still is doing things nobody else is doing, or dares to do. What a trailblazer.
@seandavila835
I just saw her in concert last night. She puts on a great show.
@32voodoo
She played for the US troops stationed overseas. They knew all the words. She hated war and loved to play for the people in the military. She did not care about her bad reputation.
@LevGrandSorcerer
Hey, Would you mind giving me a Hand? 🤚 The US army needs more Logistical support, Understand Me? Understand Me??? 🤨
@athiestjesus8133
Hate the game, not the player
@philanthonytx
This song will always be badass.
@ObeyyShadesz
Omg ur fuckin sexy
@superotterify
Carlos just made this gay af
@reignnyjoseph7355
HELL YEAH!!!
@Satanick666Mage
Still hits hard in 2023. 🤘😝