Along with fellow California punk bands Green Day and Rancid, The Offspring have been credited with reviving mainstream interest in punk rock in the United States during the mid-1990s. To date, The Offspring has released eight studio albums, one compilation, four EPs and three DVDs. They have sold over 34 million albums worldwide, making them one of the best-selling punk rock acts of all time. Each album since the release of their 1994 album Smash has sold over a million units.
Since the release of Smash, which is the best-selling independent label album of all time, The Offspring has achieved commercial success over five albums, with singles such as "Come Out and Play", and "Self Esteem". The band’s next three albums, Ixnay on the Hombre, Americana and Conspiracy of One, were also successful, with Ixnay on the Hombre and Conspiracy of One reaching platinum certification, and Americana achieving multi-platinum status. Longtime drummer Ron Welty left The Offspring in early 2003, and was replaced by Atom Willard. Later that year, the band released their next album, Splinter, to moderate sales and fairly warm reviews. In 2005, The Offspring released a greatest hits album and toured in support of the compilation. Their eighth studio album, Rise and Fall, Rage and Grace, was released on June 17, 2008 with the hit singles "You’re Gonna Go Far, Kid" and "Hammerhead."
Days Go By is the band’s ninth studio album and is due to be released on June 26, 2012. The Days Go By Songfacts reports that the title track was released as the first single and was premiered on KROQ on April 27, 2012.
2. Offspring was a short-lived English pop duo of the early 1970s, consisting of Mike Brayn and John Howard, who met at Hurstpierpoint College in Sussex, United Kingdom. They released just one single, 'Windfall' (1972). Their planned studio album was never completed.
Hey Joe
The Offspring Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Say where you goin' with that gun in your hand?
Hey Joe,
Say where you goin' with that gun in your hand?
Said I'm going to shoot my old lady down
Caught her messing around with another man,
Said I'm going to down to shoot my old lady
Hey Joe,
I heard that you shot your old lady down
Hey Joe,
I heard that caught your old lady fucking some other guy,
And you shot her down
Well uh you know I guess that's true and all
I guess you can say I shot her yeah
Well Yes I did, I said I did
I shot her down
Say yes I did
I said I did I shot her down to down to the ground
So Hey Joe,
Where you gonna run to now?
Say where you gonna go to?
Where you gonna run?
Where you gonna hide?
Well I said I'm going way down south,
Way down the Mexico way
No one's gonna put a noose around me
I said I'm goin' way down south,
Way down the Mexico way
Way down where I can be free
The Offspring's song, Hey Joe, is a lyrical retelling of the Jimi Hendrix classic. In The Offspring's version, Joe is a man who catches his wife having an affair and decides to take revenge by shooting both her and her lover. The song follows the conversation between Joe and the singer, as they discuss the crime and what Joe plans to do next.
The lyrics paint a picture of a man who is at the end of his rope, desperate to take action to regain control. He's angry and betrayed, and he feels he has no other choice but to resort to violence. The line "Where you gonna run to now? Say where you gonna go to? Where you gonna run? Where you gonna hide?" suggests that Joe knows he's done something wrong and is trying to escape the consequences of his actions.
The song's lyrics have been analyzed in different ways with some people taking the song literally, while others see it as a metaphor for the feeling of betrayal and anger. The song has a fast-paced rock beat with heavy guitar riffs and pounding drums, which adds to the intensity of the lyrics.
Line by Line Meaning
Hey Joe, say where you goin' with that gun in your hand?
Asking where Joe is going with the gun he's holding
Said I'm going to shoot my old lady down, caught her messing around with another man
Admitting that he's going to shoot his partner for being unfaithful
Hey Joe, I heard that you shot your old lady down
Reacting to the news that Joe has killed his partner
And you shot her down, well uh you know I guess that's true and all
Acknowledging that he did shoot his partner
I guess you can say I shot her yeah, well Yes I did, I said I did
Confirming that he's the one who killed his partner
I shot her down, say yes I did
Repeating that he shot his partner
I said I did, I shot her down to down to the ground
Emphasizing that he killed her
So Hey Joe, where you gonna run to now?
Asking Joe where he plans to go now that he has committed murder
Well I said I'm going way down south, way down the Mexico way
Saying that he plans to flee to Mexico
No one's gonna put a noose around me
Asserting that he won't let the authorities capture him
I said I'm goin' way down south, way down the Mexico way
Repeating that he's going to Mexico
Way down where I can be free
Explaining that he thinks he'll be able to avoid punishment in Mexico
Lyrics © DistroKid
Written by: Billy Roberts
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Yarg888
I think if you listen to the way Jimi did covers and re-made them in his own style, you could guess that Jimi would approve of The Offspring's cover. Also, if you listen to the way Jimi talked about music and about himself in interviews you would know that he would likely not approve of people hating on each other over differences in musical opinion. Despite his flamboyant antics on stage, he was generally pretty soft-spoken, humble, and deep when interviewed.
James Fowler
@Dux Didn't say it was Jimi's. Didn't say Jimi would have to approve either. I said Jimi did covers his own way and would likely approve. There are lots of people who don't approve of covers (or approve of them) when it's not "their" song. YouTube comments are full of them.
Dux
This is not hendrix`s song so he wouldn´t have to approve anything anyway.
Thompter S. Hunson
Hunted by the ghost of Joe may be throughout their miserable lives those who dislike this AMAZINGLY BEAUTIFUL cover.
Jessica Brophy
I love covers where you can tell the band is having a good time with the song.
Surovitis
Why does it have to sound like the original?It's great this way. I LOVE THEM <3
ragen cagen
i love they're old school punk sound they had back in the day
Drew Kane
They got "it" right with this cover. The song translates into their style of 80s cali punk perfectly.
Craigs List
love it. they totally "offspringafied" the song
Javier Zuniga
Jimi Hendrix did for the electric guitar what Bach did for the keyboard. RIP you geniuses. BTW, this isn't half bad, not as good as Jimi obviously