Rock This Town

This article is about the song. For other uses, see Rock This Town (disambiguation).

"Rock This Town"
Single by Stray Cats
from the album Stray Cats/Built for Speed
B-side	"You Can't Hurry Love"
Released	January 30, 1981 (UK) [1] August 31, 1982 (US)
Recorded	1981
Genre	Rockabilly [2] rock and roll [2] new wave [3]
Length	2:39 (Single Version) 3:28 (Album Version)
Label	Arista (UK) EMI America (U.S.)
Songwriter	Brian Setzer
Producer	Dave Edmunds
Stray Cats singles chronology
"Runaway Boys" (1980) "Rock This Town" (1981) "Stray Cat Strut" (1981)
Alternative covers
US 7" single cover

"Rock This Town" is the second single by American rockabilly band Stray Cats, released January 30, 1981 by Arista Records in the U.K., where it peaked at No. 9 on the Singles Chart. ^[4] It was taken from the band's 1981 debut album, Stray Cats .

Its first US release, by EMI America, was on the June 1982 album Built for Speed . Released as a single on August 31, 1982, it debuted on the Billboard Hot 100 for the week of September 18, 1982, and peaked at No. 9. ^[5]

"Rock This Town" was listed by the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as one of the "500 Songs that Shaped Rock and Roll". ^[6]

The song has been featured in a variety of media including the video games Guitar Hero II and Elite Beat Agents , as well as the video game based on the 2006 Pixar film Cars .

Charts

Weekly charts

Chart (1981–1982)	Peak position
Australia (Kent Music Report) [7]	38
Belgium (Ultratop 50 Flanders) [8]	3
Canada Top Singles ( RPM ) [9]	6
Ireland (IRMA) [10]	6
Netherlands (Dutch Top 40) [11]	3
Netherlands (Single Top 100) [12]	3
New Zealand (Recorded Music NZ) [13]	18
Norway (VG-lista) [14]	10
UK Singles (OCC) [15]	9
US Billboard Hot 100 [16]	9
US Mainstream Rock ( Billboard ) [17]	4

Year-end charts

Chart (1981)	Position
Belgium (Ultratop Flanders) [18]	35
Canada (Top 100) 1982 [19]	65
Canada (Top 100) 1983 [20]	61
Netherlands (Dutch Top 40) [21]	56
Netherlands (Single Top 100) [22]	41

References

1. "News". Record Mirror : 2. 24 January 1981. Retrieved December 18, 2020– via flickr.com.
2. Mawer, Sharon. Stray Cats - Stray Cats (1981) Review at AllMusic. Retrieved December 30, 2024.
3. Erlewine, Stephen Thomas. Various Artists - Frat Rock: the '80s (1995) Review at AllMusic. Retrieved December 24, 2025.
4. "STRAY CATS". Official Charts Company. Retrieved November 30, 2018.
5. Whitburn, Joel (2004). The Billboard Book of Top 40 Hits, 8th Edition (Billboard Publications)
6. Schatz, Lake (January 4, 2018). "Brian Setzer's Stray Cats to reunite for first show in 10 years". Consequence of Sound. Retrieved November 30, 2018.
7. Kent, David (1993). Australian Chart Book 1970–1992 . Australian Chart Book, St Ives, N.S.W. ISBN   0-646-11917-6.
8. "Stray Cats – Rock This Town" (in Dutch). Ultratop 50.
9. "RPM Top 50 Singles - December 25, 1982" (PDF).
10. "The Irish Charts – Search Results – Rock This Town". Irish Singles Chart. Retrieved March 14, 2019.
11. "Nederlandse Top 40 – week 11, 1981" (in Dutch). Dutch Top 40. Retrieved February 19, 2022.
12. "Stray Cats – Rock This Town" (in Dutch). Single Top 100. Retrieved February 19, 2022.
13. "Stray Cats – Rock This Town". Top 40 Singles. Retrieved February 19, 2022.
14. "Stray Cats – Rock This Town". VG-lista. Retrieved February 19, 2022.
15. "Stray Cats: Artist Chart History". Official Charts Company. Retrieved February 19, 2022.
16. "Stray Cats Chart History (Hot 100)". Billboard. Retrieved February 19, 2022.
17. "Stray Cats Chart History (Mainstream Rock)". Billboard. Retrieved February 19, 2022.
18. "Jaaroverzichten 1981". Ultratop. Retrieved February 19, 2022.
19. "RPM Top 100 Singles of 82 - December 25, 1982" (PDF).
20. "RPM Top 100 Singles of 1983 - December 24, 1983" (PDF).
21. "Top 100-Jaaroverzicht van 1981". Dutch Top 40. Retrieved February 19, 2022.
22. "Jaaroverzichten – Single 1981". dutchcharts.nl. Retrieved February 19, 2022.