Icky Thump (3:46)
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Listening now: tatino_m
“Icky Thump” is a Grammy Award-winning song recorded by the American alternative rock band The White Stripes. Written by Jack White, it is the first single released from Icky Thump.
The name of the track comes from the Northern England exclamation “Ecky Thump,” roughly meaning “what the heck?” The title was then changed to “Icky” so that “teenagers would understand it better back in America,” in the same way Led Zeppelin took out the “a” so Americans wouldn’t call them ‘Lead Zeppelin’ (pronounced ‘leed’)” . The phrase was popularized in an episode of The Goodies.
Though grounded to a greater degree than the Get Behind Me Satan singles in straightforward garage rock, the song differed radically from previous White Stripes singles in its unusual construction: angular tempo-changes, stream-of-consciousness lyrics, and chaotic improvised snake-charming solos, played on a Univox synthesizer.
The song deals with the topic of immigration [7]. The song itself seems to criticize the current immigration policy, something seen also in the video. It is thus the first political White Stripes track since “The Big Three Killed My Baby,” off The White Stripes.
The lyrics talk about someone (perhaps Jack White himself) taking a trip to Mexico in a wagon, easily crossing the border to Mexico, as opposed to the difficulties illegal Mexican immigrants face while crossing northwards. It then mentions a Mexican lady giving him a bed to sleep in, then tying him up and holding him hostage. When finally able to escape, White decides to start doing his own house chores (referring, most likely, to the hiring of illegal immigrants as very low paid house servants).
The name of the track comes from the Northern England exclamation “Ecky Thump,” roughly meaning “what the heck?” The title was then changed to “Icky” so that “teenagers would understand it better back in America,” in the same way Led Zeppelin took out the “a” so Americans wouldn’t call them ‘Lead Zeppelin’ (pronounced ‘leed’)” . The phrase was popularized in an episode of The Goodies.
Though grounded to a greater degree than the Get Behind Me Satan singles in straightforward garage rock, the song differed radically from previous White Stripes singles in its unusual construction: angular tempo-changes, stream-of-consciousness lyrics, and chaotic improvised snake-charming solos, played on a Univox synthesizer.
The song deals with the topic of immigration [7]. The song itself seems to criticize the current immigration policy, something seen also in the video. It is thus the first political White Stripes track since “The Big Three Killed My Baby,” off The White Stripes.
The lyrics talk about someone (perhaps Jack White himself) taking a trip to Mexico in a wagon, easily crossing the border to Mexico, as opposed to the difficulties illegal Mexican immigrants face while crossing northwards. It then mentions a Mexican lady giving him a bed to sleep in, then tying him up and holding him hostage. When finally able to escape, White decides to start doing his own house chores (referring, most likely, to the hiring of illegal immigrants as very low paid house servants).
Video
Added by mojodylan
White Stripes at the O2 festival London. Big screen version of Icky Thump
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Albums featuring this track
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Icky Thump
The White StripesBuy- Download Album
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Grammy Nominees 2008
Various ArtistsBuy- Download Album
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Shouts
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schlonse wrote:
hammergeil!
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richysig7 wrote:
how cool is the White Stripes just BAD ASS from Under Black Pool Lights to this very nice .
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Jelenino wrote:
+++
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j-rm wrote:
well the keyboards, plus the annoying guitar & drum bit which is on a tape loop through the whole song. I'm not the only one here who has thought this > "it is a good song and that guitar riff is great.., but it is a little bit anoying with all those sounds that keep repiting over and over agian... [2]"
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justfetus wrote:
"this song would 100x better if it was more stripped down guitar, drum, vocal composition " holy crap how much more stripped down can you get? Get rid of the keyboards and that's it?
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j-rm wrote:
this song would 100x better if it was more stripped down guitar, drum, vocal composition
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Kadamuckel wrote:
sehr geiles Solo!
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MrMaracuja wrote:
einer meiner lieblingssongs ^_^
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Plattenaufleger wrote:
super geil
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LS3000 wrote:
geil
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Turbodamian wrote:
yeah, rock n roll, baby!!!
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bascuuu wrote:
delightfull!
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Kari_Rainbow wrote:
jedes lied klingt gleich..
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KiingNothing wrote:
stunning song!
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smokinTeebeutel wrote:
genial!
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ACDCfuckinrocks wrote:
I love it. Our immigration system needs to be fixed,now.
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alvareo wrote:
Awesome.
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BuriedMyHero wrote:
Hellyea!!
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JanisKaroline wrote:
echt gute musik,die die beiden da machen!!!!!
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smooveman wrote:
juhu
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Recent Activity
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matt5055 and losbeatos loved The White Stripes – Icky Thump. 2 hours ago
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Cap_Obvious added Icky Thump to the playlist Some fave songs #1. 2 hours ago
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Cap_Obvious, otfrom, anachronism200 and 5 other people loved The White Stripes – Icky Thump. 2 hours ago
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franktidwell added Icky Thump to franktidwell’s library. 6 hours ago
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Stayll, CrazyEarl87, pyreneenhund and 2 other people loved The White Stripes – Icky Thump. 7 hours ago
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mzmzmzmzmzmzmzm added Icky Thump to the playlist My Playlist #267. 14 hours ago
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iHEARTmike added Icky Thump to the playlist You can't always get what you want- but if you try sometimes you just might find you…. 15 hours ago
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iHEARTmike added Icky Thump to iHEARTmike’s library. 15 hours ago
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