American Idiot
Album by Green Day
Released	September 21 2004
Recorded	?
Genre	Punk Rock
Length	57 minutes 16 seconds
Label	Reprise
Producer	Green Day
Professional reviews
AMG (4.5/5) link http://www.allmusic.com/cg/amg.dll?p=amg&token=ADFEAEE47F19D349AE7120D6963B56C0A 276E029D64CEE831F29461BDFBA3C54952B25C30BE6D1AEFDFB77AB7BAEE02CA45A0B9FCBE457FDD 662392DED93&sql=10:b7rvad4kw8wj~T1
Green Day Chronology
International Superhits! (2001)	Shenanigans (2002)	American Idiot (2004)

American Idiot is Green Day's 7th album, which was released on September 21, 2004 by Warner Bros. Records.

It is intended to be a rock opera, similar to such other albums as Pink Floyd's The Wall. Like The Wall, there is talk of one day adapting it into a full-length motion picture or musical. Much of the album's themes deal with opposition to the George W. Bush administration in particular, and contemporary American society and pop culture in general. "Holiday" lyrics include, "Pulverize the Eiffel Towers/Who criticized your government" which can easily be linked to criticism of France and other nations for opposing the invasion of Iraq. Lyrics on the first track American Idiot "Well, maybe I'm the faggot, America/I'm not a part of a redneck agenda" allude to the band's dislike of the Bush administration's policies. Green Day has said on several occasions that they don't feel like the administration represents them, or the general interests of Americans. Billie Joe Armstrong (vocals/guitar) and the rest of the band agree that writing this album was a classic American thing to do: protest and comment. American Idiot was nominated for seven Grammy Awards.

Ironically, in light of its success, the album was not originally planned to come out. Green Day was working on a followup to Warning:, but its master tapes were stolen.

The album tells the story of Jesus of Suburbia, who lives with his negligent divorcee mother in a suburb called "Jingletown, USA". His younger years were spent on a "steady diet of soda pop and Ritalin", watching television, experimenting with drugs (2 - I. Jesus of Suburbia), and loitering in front of convenience stores.

Disillusioned with life in Jingeltown (2 - II. City of the Damned) and its effect on his psyche (2 - IV. Dearly Beloved), Jesus decides to leave Jingletown for "The City" (2 - V. Tales of Another Broken Home).

Jesus finds himself alone in spite of The City's crowd (4. Boulevard of Broken Dreams), so he eventually decides to radically change his personality. In doing so, he adopts a new moniker, "St. Jimmy", and lifestyle, that of an unpredictable, tough, and rebellious criminal (6. St. Jimmy).

Jesus meets Whatsername, a girl who fasicnates him - she is a real rebel, not someone pretending to be one like he is (8. She's a Rebel), and they begin dating. Posing as Jimmy, he falls thoroughly in love with her, but he is unable to give her what she deserves due to his personal insecurities (9. Extraordinary Girl). In a letter to Jesus/ Jimmy, Whatsername expresses her frustration towards him, and tells him she's leaving both him and The City (10. Letterbomb).

Heartbroken, Jesus goes into a period of depression (11. Wake Me Up When September Ends), and eventually decides to abandon his St. Jimmy identity, which he had been using as a crutch (12 - I. The Death of St. Jimmy).

Jesus gets a desk job "at the facility on East 12th street" that he finds to be oppressively boring (12 - II. East 12th St.), much like his personal life (12 - III. Nobody Likes You). He decides to return to Jingletown to escape this trap (12 - V. Homecoming), and is left with his memories of what could have been had he stayed with Whatsername (13. Whatsername).

Tracks

1. "American Idiot" (2:54)
2. "Jesus Of Suburbia" (9:08 medley)
   • "Jesus Of Suburbia"
   • "City Of The Damned"
   • "I Don't Care"
   • "Dearly Beloved"
   • "Tales Of Another Broken Home"
3. "Holiday" (3:53)
4. "Boulevard Of Broken Dreams" (4:20)
5. "Are We The Waiting" (2:43)
6. "St. Jimmy" (2:56)
7. "Give Me Novacaine" (3:25)
8. "She's A Rebel" (2:01)
9. "Extraordinary Girl" (3:34)
10. "Letterbomb" (4:06)
11. "Wake Me Up When September Ends" (4:45)
12. "Homecoming" (9:19 medley)
    • "The Death Of St. Jimmy "
    • "East 12th St."
    • "Nobody Likes You"
    • "Rock and Roll Girlfriend"
    • "We're Coming Home Again"
    • "Homecoming"
13. "Whatsername" (4:12)

Charts

Album - Billboard (North America)

Year	Chart	Position
2004	The Billboard 200	1
2004	Top Canadian Albums	1
2004	Top Internet Albums	4

Singles - Billboard (North America)

Year	Single	Chart	Position
2004	"American Idiot"	Canadian Singles Chart	1
2004	"American Idiot"	Mainstream Rock Tracks	5
2004	"American Idiot"	Modern Rock Tracks	1
2004	"American Idiot"	The Billboard Hot 100	61
2004	"Boulevard of Broken Dreams"	Adult Top 40	28
2004	"Boulevard of Broken Dreams"	Adult Top 40	8
2004	"Boulevard of Broken Dreams"	Modern Rock Tracks	1
2004	"Boulevard of Broken Dreams"	The Billboard Hot 100	48

Green Day
Billie Joe Armstrong | Mike Dirnt | Tré Cool | Al Sobrante
Studio Albums
1,039/Smoothed Out Slappy Hours | Kerplunk! | Dookie | Insomniac | Nimrod | Warning: | American Idiot
EPs
The Sweet Children | 1,000 Hours | Slappy
Live albums, Compilations, etc.
International Superhits! | International Supervideos! | Shenanigans
Side Projects
The Sweet Children | Pinhead Gunpowder