Godzilla (Blue Öyster Cult song)

"Godzilla"
Japan single picture sleeve
Single by Blue Öyster Cult
from the album Spectres
B-side"Nosferatu"
Released
  • November 1977 (1977-11) (album)
  • February 1978 (single)
Recorded1977
Genre
Length3:41
LabelColumbia
Songwriter(s)Donald Roeser a.k.a. Buck Dharma
Producer(s)
Blue Öyster Cult singles chronology
"Goin' Through the Motions"
(1977) 		"Godzilla"
(1977) 		"We Gotta Get out of This Place"
(1978)

"Godzilla" is a single by U.S. hard rock band Blue Öyster Cult, the first track on the band's fifth studio album Spectres. The lyrics are a tongue-in-cheek tribute to the popular movie monster of the same name. The single release had a picture sleeve featuring a promotional still from the movie Godzilla vs. the Sea Monster.[4] Despite failing to chart, the song received significant airplay on rock radio stations[5] and became a sleeper hit. The song, along with "(Don't Fear) The Reaper" and "Burnin' for You," is one of the band's best-known songs and has become a staple of its live performances. It has been covered by bands such as moe., Racer X, Fu Manchu, The Smashing Pumpkins, Sebastian Bach, Double Experience and Fighting Gravity.[6] It was the walk up song for New York Yankees slugger Hideki Matsui from 2003-2009.

Cash Box called it "a clever rocker tale of Godzilla...with a strong, catchy hook, excellent guitar and special effects."[7]

In 2019, a cover of the song, sung by Serj Tankian, was featured in the credits of Godzilla: King of the Monsters, marking the first usage of the song in a Godzilla film.

Parodies

In response to the song's absence from the 1998 Godzilla soundtrack, Blue Öyster Cult members Eric Bloom and Buck Dharma created their own parody called "NoZilla",[8] released only to radio stations.

Personnel

Certifications

Region Certification Certified units/sales
United States (RIAA)[9] Platinum 1,000,000‡

‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone.

References

  1. ^ Godzilla at AllMusic
  2. ^ Milward, John (December 15, 1977). "Album Reviews: Blue Oyster Cult: Spectres". Rolling Stone. Jann Wenner. Archived from the original on May 18, 2007.
  3. ^ Kelly Boyer Sagert (1 January 2007). The 1970s. Greenwood Publishing Group. p. 181. ISBN 978-0-313-33919-6. Meanwhile, Blue Oyster Cult released two of the decade's hard rock favorites: "Don't Fear the Reaper" and "Godzilla.
  4. ^ Conte, Robert V. (August 2020). "Godzilla in the Good ol' U.S.A.". RetroFan (10). United States: TwoMorrows Publishing: 71.
  5. ^ "Blue Oyster Cult has longevity going for it (with Eric Bloom Interview)". Reno.com. Retrieved April 18, 2018.
  6. ^ "Blue Öyster Cult recorded & performed cover versions: Other Bands Cover BÖC". Blue Öyster Cult.
  7. ^ "CashBox Singles Reviews" (PDF). Cash Box. March 4, 1978. p. 13. Retrieved 2021-12-26.
  8. ^ NoZilla By Blue Öyster Cult Lyrics on YouTube
  9. ^ "American single certifications – Blue Oyster Cult – Godzilla". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved August 7, 2024.