Learning English, Lesson One | ||||
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Compilation album by | ||||
Released | 11 November 1991 18 October 1994 (USA import version) 2007 (jubilee edition) [1] | |||
Recorded | 1991 | |||
Genre | Punk rock, protopunk | |||
Length | 49:10 77:18 (re-release) | |||
Label | ToT Virgin Records | |||
Producer | Jon Caffery & Die Toten Hosen | |||
Die Toten Hosen chronology | ||||
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Alternative cover | ||||
![]() USA import cover |
Review scores | |
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Source | Rating |
AllMusic | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
Robert Christgau | ![]() |
Learning English, Lesson One or Learning English, Lesson 1 (other punctuation variations possible) is a cover album by the German punk band Die Toten Hosen. [4] [5] The album includes covers of mostly British bands, which were big influences on the band.
It is the first all-English album for Die Toten Hosen; the first English language studio album was released three years later. It made the band better known outside of German-speaking countries.[ citation needed ]
The album features many guest stars, including Johnny Thunders, who died after recording "Born to Lose" for Learning English. [6] According to band members, he already wasn't looking very good when he came to record his part.[ citation needed ]
The album has a central parody theme of an independent language-learning tape, where "Janet and John" are the teachers. Janet and John are heard in short humorous introductions.
Trouser Press wrote that "the excellently performed and impressively reverent Learning English is less a tribute than a precise re-creation." [7] People called the album "more than just a quirky collector’s item ... [it] is the perfect way to look back—or discover—where [punk] all began." [8] Washington City Paper deemed it "a sappy, charming album of class-of-'77 covers." [9]
Year | Country | Position |
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1992 | Germany | 30 |
1991 | Switzerland | 23 |
1991 | Austria | 38 |
Chart (2021) | Peak position |
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German Albums (Offizielle Top 100) [10] | 3 |
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