Shortly after that, with Kenny's assistance, Joan formed the backing group "The Blackhearts" with three obscure New York area musicians: Gary Ryan on bass, Eric Ambel (replaced shortly thereafter by Rick Byrd) on guitar and Lee Crystal on drums. After almost a year of touring, Joan's first album with The Blackhearts, entitled I Love Rock'N'Roll came out in December of 1981. The album included a version of "Little Drummer Boy" on the pre-Christmas editions. The album's impact on the music scene was immediate with the LP reaching the Top Five, while the single "I Love Rock'n'Roll" hit the very top of the Billboard's Charts on March 20, 1982 and stayed #1 for 7 weeks. Joan Jett had come back from nowhere.
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, the first one being Blood, Sweat & Tears in Romania in 1969. She was among the first English-speaking rock acts to appear in Panama and the Dominican Republic.
Forced label changes in the 80's led to a decline in popularity. Despite the follow-up albums "Album" and "Glorious Results of a Misspent Youth" being praised by her devout fans, neither got the attention or radio play the first two albums received.
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. 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. Later that year, Jett released "Good Music", which featured appearances by The Beach Boys, The Sugarhill Gang and singer Darlene Love. The album only spawned two minor singles which received little airplay. This label decided the band had to either take in outside help or they would lose their contract.
And so they did. Her next release, Up Your Alley, went multi-platinum and was followed by "The Hit List", which was an international hit. Popular songwriter/producer Desmond Child was brought in, resulting in the release of album "Up Your Alley". This album brought the band a resurgence in popularity, with top 10 singles "I Hate Myself for Loving You" and "Little Liar".
This return to the spotlight would be short-lived, however. Follow-up album "The Hit List", an all-cover songs release, spawned only a minor hit with Jett's version of AC/DC's "Dirty Deeds".
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.
1991 and 1994 had two more releases, "Notorious" and "Pure & Simple". But radio had started looking to grunge by this time, and neither album got the attention they deserved.
In the 1990s, Jett and Laguna released "Flashback", a compilation of her career so far on their own Blackheart Records. Her next release, "Notorious" (which featured The Replacements' Paul Westerberg) was the last with Sony/CBS as Jett switched to Warner Brothers.
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).
While a slew of hits packages, some with an occasional new or previously unreleased track were released following this, it would be 10 years before a new studio album would appear.
This would be 2004's "Naked", and thus far has been a Japan-only release. The album sees Jett returning to a more raw and experimental sound, closer to that of her first 4 releases than the polished material that began with "Good Music".
Failing to get "Naked" released in other markets, Jett released on a more international level "Sinner" in June 2006, on Blackheart Records, her own label.. This album featured many remixed tracks from "Naked", and a complete rewrite of "Stuck in the Middle" to new version "Riddles". Lead-off single and video was a cover of "A.C.D.C." by Sweet.
To support the album, the band appeared on the 2006 Warped Tour, and embarked on a Fall 2006 tour with Eagles of Death Metal.
After a long break from recording, Joan Jett and the Blackhearts released a 6-song EP of new material, "Mindsets," in June 2023.
Wynnewood
Bad Reputation
Joan Jett and 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
@AnimeQ66.
Anyone here in 2024?
@jeromeblue3854
Yep.
@fishiefish6179
Yo
@265its3
Hi
@Magnifying_glass
Yoooo
@zedcanthandlethis
Hell yeahhh
@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.
@fortisetlenisstudios3352
"THE CHAIR!!! GIVE HIM THE CHAIR!!!"
@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.