Basket Case

"Basket Case"
Single by Green Day
from the album Dookie
Released	November 29, 1994
Format	CD, vinyl
Recorded	1993
Genre	Punk rock
Length	3:01
Label	Reprise
Writer(s)	Billie Joe Armstrong / Green Day
Producer	Rob Cavallo, Green Day
Green Day singles chronology
"Welcome to Paradise" (1994) "Basket Case" (1994) "When I Come Around" (1995)
Music sample Green Day - "Basket Case"

"Basket Case" is a song by American punk rock band Green Day. It was released as the third single from their third album, Dookie. The song spent five weeks at the top of the Modern Rock Tracks chart.

Rolling Stone readers ranked it No. 5 on the list of Best Singles of 1994.^[1]

While the song was very popular in the United States, even managing to hit number 26 on the Billboard Hot 100 Airplay, the lack of a commercial single prevented the song from charting on the Billboard Hot 100.

Lyrics

The song was written by frontman Billie Joe Armstrong about his struggle with anxiety; before he was diagnosed with a panic disorder, he thought he was going crazy.^[2] Billie Joe once commented that "The only way I knew how to deal with it was to write a song about it."^[3]

Composition

The song is based on a very common I-V-vi-iii chord progression (one of the most common chord structures in music, sometimes referred to as the Pachelbel's Canon progression^[4]). The introductory verse features only Armstrong and his guitar. During the middle of the first chorus the rest of the band joins in, with Tré Cool adding fast tom fills and explosive transitions and Mike Dirnt adding a bass line that is reminiscent of the vocal melody.

Release and reception

"Basket Case" was released after successful singles, "Longview" and "Welcome to Paradise." "Basket Case" later became an even bigger hit, spending five weeks at the top of the Modern Rock Tracks chart; five times longer than "Longview". In 1995, Green Day was nominated for a Grammy Award for Best Rock Vocal Performance by a Duo or Group for "Basket Case". In 2006, on Mike Davies and Zane Lowe's Lock Up Special on BBC Radio 1, the listeners voted "Basket Case" the Greatest Punk Song of All Time.^[5] The song can also be found on their 2001 greatest hits compilation International Superhits! The music video can be found on their International Supervideos! DVD. A live version is also found on Bullet in a Bible, a live album of Green Day performing at the Milton Keynes National Bowl in 2005. Another live version can be found on Green Day's live album Last Night on Earth: Live in Tokyo. In 2009, it was named the 33rd best hard rock song of all time by VH1.^[6]

Music video

This was the second music video by Green Day, and it was directed by Mark Kohr. The video was shot in an actual mental institution called Agnews Developmental Center in Santa Clara County, California, at the request of the band members. The mental institution had been abandoned, but most of the structure remained in a broken-down state. The band members found old patient files, deep scratches in the walls and dental molds scattered around.^[7] The video frequently references the film One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest. The music video was actually shot in black and white and the color was added in later, contributing to the surreal effect of the video. Several extras in the video are wearing the same mask as the torturer in Terry Gilliam's Brazil.^[8]

The video was nominated for nine MTV Video Music Awards in 1995: Video of the Year, Best Group Video, Best Hard Rock Video, Best Alternative Video, Breakthrough Video, Best Direction, Best Editing, Best Cinematography, and Viewer's Choice Award.^[9] However, it failed to win any awards.

Track listing

Initial pressing

1. "Basket Case" – 3:01
2. "On the Wagon" (non-LP track)  – 2:48
3. "Tired of Waiting for You" (non-LP track) – 2:30
4. "409 in Your Coffeemaker" (unmixed non-LP track) – 2:49

Alternate pressing/Limited Edition Pressing

1. "Basket Case" – 3:01
2. "Longview" (live) – 3:30
3. "Burnout" (live) – 2:11
4. "2,000 Light Years Away" (live) – 2:49

• (Live tracks recorded March 11, 1994 at Jannus Landing, St. Petersburg, Florida)

These tracks are also available on the live album Live Tracks (EP)

Japanese Version

1. "Basket Case"
2. "She"
3. "Emenius Sleepus"

7" Vinyl Singles Box Set

1. "Basket Case"
2. "When I Come Around"
3. "Having a Blast"
4. "When I Come Around" (Live from Stockholm, Sweden)

Chart positions

References

External links

• Song review^{[dead link]} at Allmusic