She Always Was His Girl, chapter 41
Billie Joe knew he must keep his promise to Katie no matter what happened. She was right. He did know how to handle his problems correctly, and that did not involve alcohol or drugs. Besides doing it for Katie, he was also doing it for his family and for the sake of Green Day. He wasn't ever planning or going to fuck up his life again.
Soon after the whole missing album incident and a therapeutic talk with Katie, Billie Joe began working on a little song, which he called, "American Idiot". He didn't really know where that this litte song would take him and his fellow band mates in the years to come, but he felt driven to write something controversial.
It was so strange that no other punk bands out there were questioning Bush's authority and the war in Iraq. It almost pissed him off in a way. Isn't that what punks are supposed to do; rebel against authority? The only celebrities that had come out and said anything were the Dixie Chicks!
After completing the song, Billie Joe presented it to Mike and Tre to get some feedback on what they thought about the whole idea for a politically driven album.
After playing "American Idiot" for them, and asking them what they thought, surprisingly, he only got positive criticism. And then, an idea struck him. What about making this album into a punk rock opera? As always, so the weeks afterward, Billie Joe was consumed into a writing frenzy. He had so many ideas for the whole thing.
He decided that the main characters would be Jesus of Suburbia, Saint Jimmy, and Whatsername. In essence, Katie was his inspiration for Whatsername. He had never forgotten her name, but in the years that he hadn't seen her, he felt so empty. Sometimes, he didn't know why he felt empty. He began writing a song, which would be simply called, "Whatsername".
Thought I ran onto you down on the street
Then it turned out only to be a dream
I made a point to burn all of the photographs
She went away and took a different path
I can remember the face
But I can't recall the name
Now I wonder how whatsername has been
Seems that she disappeared with out a trace
Did she ever marry old what's his face
I made a point to burn all of the photographs
She went away and then I took a different path
I remember the face
But I can't recall the name
Now I wonder how whatsername has been
Remember, whatever
It seems like forever ago
Remember, whatever
It seems like forever ago
The regrets are useless
In my mind
She's in my head
I must confess
The regrets are useless
She's in my head
From so long ago
And in the darkest night
If my memory serves me right
I'll never turn back time
Forgetting you but not the time
That was exactly how Billie Joe had felt all those years. He had never forgotten Katie, and he had never stopped loving her. His thoughts and never strayed away from the beautiful, brunette girl he had fallen in love with so long ago, and they never would, especially now that he had her back.
Billie Joe, Mike, and Tre put their heads together and came up with a main storyline for this punk rock opera. They came up with the idea that the Jesus of Suburbia would leave his home, and try to find where his heart and mind is. Saint Jimmy is a punk that Jesus of Suburbia meets while on his journey. Billie Joe felt that Saint Jimmy was more of Jesus of Suburbia's split personality, and tries to guide him in one certain direction. Whatsername is another person that Jesus of Suburbia meets. He falls in love with her and wants to be with her, but he can't decide on whether to go with Whatsername or Saint Jimmy. In the end, he finally decides on going back home because after all, isn't home where the heart is?
Before releasing their finished masterpiece American Idiot,[i] Green Day went on two short-and-sweet tours, as they liked to call them. They only lasted about two months, and finally they were ready to release this new album.
This political album.
This controversial album.
This punk rock opera.
Month after month of painstaking work had went into this album, and now they were ready to share it with the world. What would people say? Quite frankly, they didn't care. This was [i]their feelings. They were baring their soul to the world. So what if people didn't like it? This was what they felt, and not any one else.
After the release, the guys of Green Day took a close watch on the Billboard charts to see how people were accepting the album. Not to long after, [i]American Idiot[i] was at the top. In a way, it took them by surprise that it was doing so well. It wasn't your typical Green Day album. It was far from it, actually.
It was like Dookie mania all over again. They were one of the most popular bands out once again. They felt on top of the world, and they really were.
Soon after the whole missing album incident and a therapeutic talk with Katie, Billie Joe began working on a little song, which he called, "American Idiot". He didn't really know where that this litte song would take him and his fellow band mates in the years to come, but he felt driven to write something controversial.
It was so strange that no other punk bands out there were questioning Bush's authority and the war in Iraq. It almost pissed him off in a way. Isn't that what punks are supposed to do; rebel against authority? The only celebrities that had come out and said anything were the Dixie Chicks!
After completing the song, Billie Joe presented it to Mike and Tre to get some feedback on what they thought about the whole idea for a politically driven album.
After playing "American Idiot" for them, and asking them what they thought, surprisingly, he only got positive criticism. And then, an idea struck him. What about making this album into a punk rock opera? As always, so the weeks afterward, Billie Joe was consumed into a writing frenzy. He had so many ideas for the whole thing.
He decided that the main characters would be Jesus of Suburbia, Saint Jimmy, and Whatsername. In essence, Katie was his inspiration for Whatsername. He had never forgotten her name, but in the years that he hadn't seen her, he felt so empty. Sometimes, he didn't know why he felt empty. He began writing a song, which would be simply called, "Whatsername".
Thought I ran onto you down on the street
Then it turned out only to be a dream
I made a point to burn all of the photographs
She went away and took a different path
I can remember the face
But I can't recall the name
Now I wonder how whatsername has been
Seems that she disappeared with out a trace
Did she ever marry old what's his face
I made a point to burn all of the photographs
She went away and then I took a different path
I remember the face
But I can't recall the name
Now I wonder how whatsername has been
Remember, whatever
It seems like forever ago
Remember, whatever
It seems like forever ago
The regrets are useless
In my mind
She's in my head
I must confess
The regrets are useless
She's in my head
From so long ago
And in the darkest night
If my memory serves me right
I'll never turn back time
Forgetting you but not the time
That was exactly how Billie Joe had felt all those years. He had never forgotten Katie, and he had never stopped loving her. His thoughts and never strayed away from the beautiful, brunette girl he had fallen in love with so long ago, and they never would, especially now that he had her back.
Billie Joe, Mike, and Tre put their heads together and came up with a main storyline for this punk rock opera. They came up with the idea that the Jesus of Suburbia would leave his home, and try to find where his heart and mind is. Saint Jimmy is a punk that Jesus of Suburbia meets while on his journey. Billie Joe felt that Saint Jimmy was more of Jesus of Suburbia's split personality, and tries to guide him in one certain direction. Whatsername is another person that Jesus of Suburbia meets. He falls in love with her and wants to be with her, but he can't decide on whether to go with Whatsername or Saint Jimmy. In the end, he finally decides on going back home because after all, isn't home where the heart is?
Before releasing their finished masterpiece American Idiot,[i] Green Day went on two short-and-sweet tours, as they liked to call them. They only lasted about two months, and finally they were ready to release this new album.
This political album.
This controversial album.
This punk rock opera.
Month after month of painstaking work had went into this album, and now they were ready to share it with the world. What would people say? Quite frankly, they didn't care. This was [i]their feelings. They were baring their soul to the world. So what if people didn't like it? This was what they felt, and not any one else.
After the release, the guys of Green Day took a close watch on the Billboard charts to see how people were accepting the album. Not to long after, [i]American Idiot[i] was at the top. In a way, it took them by surprise that it was doing so well. It wasn't your typical Green Day album. It was far from it, actually.
It was like Dookie mania all over again. They were one of the most popular bands out once again. They felt on top of the world, and they really were.
