"Stacy's Mom" | ||||
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Single by Fountains of Wayne | ||||
from the album Welcome Interstate Managers | ||||
B-side | "Trains and Boats and Planes" | |||
Released | May 19, 2003 | |||
Studio |
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Genre | ||||
Length | 3:19 | |||
Label | ||||
Songwriter(s) | ||||
Producer(s) |
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Fountains of Wayne singles chronology | ||||
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Music video | ||||
"Stacy's Mom" on YouTube |
"Stacy's Mom" is a song by American rock band Fountains of Wayne. It is the third track on their third studio album, Welcome Interstate Managers , and was released to radio as the album's first single on May 19, 2003, through S-Curve Records and Virgin Records. "Stacy's Mom" was written by bassist Adam Schlesinger and vocalist Chris Collingwood, both of whom produced the song alongside Mike Denneen. Its subject matter was inspired by a friend of Schlesinger's when he was young who was attracted to Schlesinger's grandmother. It is a power pop song with which the group hoped to emulate the sound of American rock band the Cars.
"Stacy's Mom" reached number 21 on the US Billboard Hot 100, becoming the band's highest-charting hit in the United States. Additionally, the song peaked within the top 10 in Ireland and the top 20 in the United Kingdom, Australia, and Canada. The single was certified gold by the Recording Industry Association of America for sales of over 500,000 copies, and it was nominated for a Grammy Award for Best Pop Performance by a Duo or Group With Vocals. The song was accompanied with a music video in which model Rachel Hunter plays the title role. "Stacy's Mom" was the only mainstream hit by Fountains of Wayne. [1]
Authorship of "Stacy's Mom" is credited to Chris Collingwood and Adam Schlesinger; in practice, the two songwriters wrote independently, and agreed to credit both writers on all Fountains of Wayne songs regardless of the actual author. In interviews, Schlesinger took responsibility for the song. [2]
"Stacy's Mom" is a power pop, [3] [4] pop-punk, [5] [6] and new wave [7] song. Part of the song's inspiration was a friend with whom Schlesinger had grown up who thought Schlesinger's grandmother was attractive. "One of my best friends, when we were maybe 11 or 12, came to me and announced that he thought my grandmother was hot. And I said, 'Hey, you're stepping over the line,' but at that point in life, I wouldn't put it past anyone," he recalled. [8] He hoped to strike a balance "between humor and personality" with the song. [9] In writing the song, he was hoping to take influence from new wave and power pop music: "I was thinking a little bit about 'Mrs. Robinson' and sonically I was thinking about the Cars, a Rick Springfield sort of thing." He acknowledged that stylistically, the song "owes a debt" to the Cars' "Just What I Needed"; its opening guitar riff is similar. [2] Cars frontman Ric Ocasek thought that the intro was a sample from "Just What I Needed" [10] but the band says they performed it in the studio and just "got it right."
"Stacy's Mom" debuted on the Billboard Hot 100 the week of October 11, 2003, at number 59, making this their first song to appear on that chart. [11] It entered the top 40 the week after by moving 21 spots to number 38 and moved seven spots to number 31 on the week of October 25, 2003. [12] It peaked at number 21 the week of November 21, 2003, and stayed there for two weeks. It stayed on the chart for 17 weeks. [13]
It was one of the first songs to reach the No. 1 spot on the "Most Downloaded Songs" list of the iTunes Music Store. It reached No. 11 in the UK Singles Chart. It was nominated for a Grammy Award for Best Vocal Pop Performance at the 2004 awards. The single's sales were last estimated at 888,000, according to Nielsen SoundScan, in 2011. [14]
Richard Harrington of The Washington Post dubbed it "nicely naughty." [15] Ben Greenman, writing for The New Yorker , considered it the "second-catchiest song ever written about a girlfriend's parent," after " Mrs. Robinson ". [16] The song ranks No. 350 on Blender's 500 Greatest Songs Since You Were Born [17] and No. 88 on VH1's 100 Greatest Songs of the '00s. [18]
The music video, directed by Chris Applebaum, [19] features several comedic scenes illustrating the boy's attempts to get closer to Stacy's mother (Rachel Hunter). Its premise is around Stacy (Gianna Distenca), [20] whose best friend and love interest (Shane Haboucha) is attracted to her mother, mentioning times she caught his attention: by the pool, receiving a massage on the lawn and during an imaginary strip tease in the dining room. It features several sexual innuendos such as wet dreams and adolescent gratification. By the end of the video, Stacy walks in on her unnamed friend in the bathroom as he watches Stacy's mother in the backyard pool (a direct reference to Fast Times at Ridgemont High). It closes on the door with an "Ocupado" sign hanging from the doorknob and Stacy laughing, possibly flattered by the event believing the friend in question reciprocated her romantic and sexual interests.
"We looked at a lot of treatments and some directors were trying to be kind of arty and subtle with it, but Chris Applebaum went completely for the jugular," said Schlesinger. [8] Model Rachel Hunter plays the title role, [19] which she accepted because she was a fan of the band and the song. [15] The group had previously hoped to get Paulina Porizkova (Ocasek's then-wife) for the role. [21] The clip was shot in Los Angeles in late May 2003. [8] "It was 7 a.m., and there was Rachel Hunter doing a striptease on the kitchen counter," remembered Schlesinger. [22] The video was first sent to television in July 2003. [19]
Fountains of Wayne had asked Ocasek to be in the video for the song. Schlesinger explains that while Ocasek claimed that he "politely declined", he actually just never responded to the request. [23] There are several references to the Cars in the video: a license plate reads "I ♥ RIC", a reference to Ocasek; one of the boys in the opening scene has dark hair, sunglasses, and clothes such that he looks like an adolescent version of Ocasek; the trademark Elliot Easton "bouncing" (at approximately 1:15 into the video) and hairdo as he plays his guitar for the Cars; and the re-creation of a scene from the movie Fast Times at Ridgemont High , which featured the Cars' "Moving in Stereo". Further links to the Cars and new wave music are given by the magazine Nu Wave that is featured in the video, the Roland Juno-6 keyboard (a synthesizer of the 1980s), and the record sleeve showing 'Stacy's Mom' in a car. [24] The video reached No. 1 on VH1's VSpot Top 20 Countdown .
Australian and European CD single [25] [26]
UK CD1 and 7-inch single [27] [28] [26]
UK CD2 [29]
Weekly charts
| Year-end charts
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Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
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Australia (ARIA) [47] | Gold | 35,000^ |
United Kingdom (BPI) [48] | Platinum | 600,000‡ |
United States (RIAA) [49] | Gold | 500,000^ |
^ Shipments figures based on certification alone. |
Region | Date | Format(s) | Label(s) | Ref(s). |
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United States | May 19, 2003 |
| [50] [51] | |
United Kingdom | October 7, 2003 | Digital download | [52] | |
Australia | October 13, 2003 | CD | [53] | |
United Kingdom | March 8, 2004 |
| [54] |
"Stacy's Mom" | |
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Song by Bowling for Soup | |
from the EP I've Never Done Anything Like This | |
Released | October 10, 2011 |
Genre | Pop punk |
Length | 3:13 |
Label |
|
Songwriter(s) | |
Producer(s) | Jarinus |
In 2011, pop punk band Bowling for Soup released a cover version of "Stacy's Mom" as a B-side to their single "I've Never Done Anything Like This". [55]
The cover version came about because the original Fountains of Wayne song was often misattributed to Bowling for Soup. The song was misidentified as a Bowling for Soup song on YouTube and other video sites. [55] In multiple interviews, Bowling for Soup bandleader Jaret Reddick has said that he regularly encountered fans at their concerts who mistakenly thought "Stacy's Mom" was a Bowling for Soup song. [55] [56] In 2011, they recorded and released a cover version of the song. [57] Reddick said that by finally releasing their own version of the song, "I’ve basically just taken care of a large part of the population that's been wrong for years, and I've made them right." [56] Alluding to the mistaken identity issue, the cover art for the song release reads: "Finally you can say this is your favorite song by BFS and not look like an idiot!" [55]
Bowling for Soup has since made the song part of their live setlist. [58]
The song was included on the setlist for Guitar Hero: Van Halen as a guest act, and was included as DLC for Rock Band 4 . [59] It also appeared in the 4th episode of the television series Psych , "Woman Seeking Dead Husband: Smokers Okay, No Pets". The song was parodied on The Howard Stern Show to mock Wack Pack character Hanzi (Imran Kahn). It has also been performed by Postmodern Jukebox ft. Casey Abrams. It has appeared in Me Him Her and Art School Confidential .
A cover of the song by the Northeastern University pep band has become an unofficial theme song for the Northeastern Huskies men's ice hockey team, and has frequent performances at the annual Beanpot. At each game, the pep band plays the song during a stoppage of play with the fan sections continuing to sing through the chorus without accompaniment once gameplay begins again. [60] [61]
Washington, D.C., indie-pop band Sub-Radio released a parody titled "Stacy's Dad" on TikTok in 2022 that recorded 10.2 million views before the end of that year. [62]
Fountains of Wayne was an American rock band that formed in New York City in 1995. The band included founding members Chris Collingwood, Adam Schlesinger, Jody Porter, and Brian Young. They released six albums from 1996 to 2011 before effectively disbanding in 2013. They are best known for the Grammy-nominated song "Stacy's Mom".
Welcome Interstate Managers is the third studio album by the American rock band Fountains of Wayne. It was released by S-Curve Records on June 10, 2003. The album contains the power pop single "Stacy's Mom," which reached number 21 on the US Billboard Hot 100, becoming the band's highest-charting hit in the United States.
Bowling for Soup is an American rock band formed in Wichita Falls, Texas, in 1994. The band consists of Jaret Reddick, Chris Burney, Gary Wiseman (drums), and Rob Felicetti. The band is best known for its singles "Girl All the Bad Guys Want", "1985", "Almost" and "High School Never Ends". The band is also known for performing the theme song for the Disney Channel TV show Phineas and Ferb.
"1985" is a song that was written and recorded by American pop-punk band SR-71 for their album Here We Go Again. Mitch Allan, SR-71's frontman, gave the song to pop-punk band Bowling for Soup, who recorded a cover version that reached number 23 on the US Billboard Hot 100 and was included on the band's album A Hangover You Don't Deserve.
Adam Lyons Schlesinger was an American musician, songwriter, composer, and record producer. He was a founding member of the bands Fountains of Wayne, Ivy, and Tinted Windows, and was also a member of the band Fever High. He also wrote songs for television and film, for which he won three Emmy Awards, a Grammy Award, and the ASCAP Pop Music Award, and was nominated for Academy, Tony, and Golden Globe Awards. He died at the age of 52.
"Buddy Holly" is a song by the American rock band Weezer. The song was written by Rivers Cuomo and released by DGC as the second single from the band's debut album, Weezer (1994). The lyrics reference the song's namesake, 1950s rock-and-roll singer Buddy Holly, and actress Mary Tyler Moore. Released on September 7, 1994—which would have been Holly's 58th birthday—the song reached number two on the US Billboard Modern Rock Tracks chart and number 18 on the Billboard Hot 100 Airplay chart. Outside the US, the song peaked at number six in Canada, number 12 in the United Kingdom, number 13 in Iceland, and number 14 in Sweden. The song's music video, which features footage from Happy Days and was directed by Spike Jonze, earned considerable exposure when it was included as a bonus media file in Microsoft's initial successful release of the operating system Windows 95.
Brian Young is an American drummer and music producer. He is best known as the drummer of the New York–based, Grammy-nominated power pop band Fountains of Wayne and Seattle-based alternative rock band The Posies. From 2012 to 2021 Young was the drummer for the Scottish alternative rock band The Jesus and Mary Chain.
Jody Porter is an American musician. He was the lead guitarist of Grammy Award-nominated power pop band Fountains of Wayne. The band released four major label albums, including Welcome Interstate Managers on Virgin Records in 2003, an RIAA-certified Gold LP. The album spawned the hugely popular U.S. Top 40 hit and number 1 music video "Stacy's Mom".
"Work It" is a single by American rapper Nelly featuring American singer-songwriter Justin Timberlake. It was released on February 24, 2003, as the fourth single from Nelly's 2002 album, Nellyville. It peaked at number 68 on the Billboard Hot 100, and number seven on the UK Singles Chart.
"Just the Girl" is a song by American rock band the Click Five. It was released on June 13, 2005, as the first single from their debut studio album, Greetings from Imrie House (2005). The band formed in Boston and were managed by talent scout Wayne Sharp, who assisted in signing the band to Lava Records. "Just the Girl" was composed by songwriter Adam Schlesinger, best-known for his work with Fountains of Wayne, as well as his career in film and television.
"Just What I Needed" is a song by American rock band the Cars from their self-titled debut album (1978). The song, which first achieved radio success as a demo, took inspiration from the Ohio Express and the Velvet Underground. The song is sung by bass player Benjamin Orr and was written by Ric Ocasek.
Chris Collingwood is an American singer, songwriter, and artist. He is best known as the former lead vocalist and founding member of the power pop band Fountains of Wayne.
"Flavor of the Weak" is a song by American rock band American Hi-Fi. The song was released as the first single from their self-titled debut album on December 22, 2000. It is the band's highest-charting single, reaching number 41 on the US Billboard Hot 100 and peaking within the top 50 in Italy, New Zealand, and the United Kingdom.
"High School Never Ends" is a song by American pop-punk band Bowling for Soup. The song was the first single from the group's sixth album, The Great Burrito Extortion Case, and was released on September 19, 2006. The song deals with the frustration of graduating from high school and seeing that modern popular culture is very similar to the obnoxiously superficial and materialistic culture in high school.
"Girl All the Bad Guys Want" is a single by American pop-punk band Bowling for Soup, from their 2002 album, Drunk Enough to Dance. The song was written by Butch Walker, who has also written songs for Avril Lavigne and SR-71. Released on July 15, 2002, the song reached number eight on the UK Singles Chart, number 15 in Ireland, and number 64 on the US Billboard Hot 100. It was nominated for a 2003 Grammy Award for "Best Pop Performance by a Group or Duo".
"My Best Friend's Girl" is a song by American rock band the Cars from their 1978 self-titled debut album on Elektra Records, released on June 6 of that year. Written by Ocasek as a song about something that "probably ... happened to a lot of people," the track found radio success as a demo in 1977.
"You Are the Girl" is a 1987 song by the Cars, from their album Door to Door. It was released as a single in August 1987, reaching number 17 on the Billboard Hot 100. It also reached number 2 on the Mainstream Rock Tracks chart, and number 12 on the Adult Contemporary chart. It was the Cars' 13th and final Top 40 hit.
The discography of Fountains of Wayne contains five studio albums, one compilation album, 16 singles, one DVD, six music videos and seven other appearances.
Sky Full of Holes is the fifth and final studio album by the American rock band Fountains of Wayne. It was released on July 20, 2011, in Japan, on August 1, 2011, in Europe, and on August 2, 2011, in North America. It debuted at number 37 on the US Billboard 200, giving Fountains of Wayne their first Top 40 album on that chart, and debuted at number 16 on the UK independent chart.
"I've Never Done Anything Like This" is the third single from Bowling for Soup's eleventh studio album Fishin' for Woos. The song features guest vocals from Kay Hanley of Letters to Cleo. The three-song single was released digitally on October 10, 2011. The single also contains a cover of Fountains of Wayne's "Stacy's Mom" and a re-recording of "The Bitch Song" off Bowling for Soup's 2000 album Let's Do It for Johnny!
The quasi-Oedipal fantasy of every teenage boy in 2003 and beyond, rendered in new-wave Technicolor by the tri-state's finest.
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