Jenny Was a Friend of Mine
Encyclopedia
"Jenny Was a Friend of Mine" is a song by the Las Vegas Indie rock
band The Killers. It is featured as the first track on The Killers' first album, Hot Fuss
. It was written by Brandon Flowers
and Mark Stoermer
.
Despite not being a single, "Jenny Was A Friend of Mine" is one of The Killers' most popular and critically acclaimed songs. It is particularly praised for its powerful and melodic bassline.
It is a part of The Killers' alleged "Murder Trilogy," three songs detailing the murder of a girl named Jenny, the other two being "Midnight Show," and "Leave the Bourbon on the Shelf." In an interview with The Guardian
, Flowers revealed that it was Morrissey
's song "Sister I'm A Poet
" that inspired him to write songs about murder.
The lyrics of the song also bring a reminder of the 1986 murder of Jennifer Levin. During interviews following his release, Robert Chambers (the "Preppy Killer") claimed he had no motive for the murder, and that he and the victim were "friends".
highlighted "Jenny Was a Friend of Mine" as sounding like "classic Duran Duran
, all snaking bass lines and Flowers' elegantly wasted vocals — part ironic detachment, part fake-British-accent, part throat-shredding wail." Adrian Begrand, writing for PopMatters
, called the song a "spot-on, wonderfully shameless Cure
imitation", and praised Flowers for his "charmingly overwrought depiction of a lover’s spat “on a promenade in the rain.”" In her "Ask Hadley" column in The Guardian, Hadley Freeman
noted the similarity of the song's storyline to that of Richard Marx
's 1991 hit single "Hazard
", and accused The Killers of "blatantly rip[ping] off" the latter. NME
said the song was like "Duran Duran with better basslines and dirtier hair". The Times
wildly praised the song saying "Jenny was a Friend of Mine rejoices in a helicopter sound effect last heard when Oasis were going through their pompous phase, a bassline that New Order’s Peter Hook would be proud of and a stupidly catchy melody that would fit primetime Duran Duran."
The song was on a CD included with the June 16 2004 issue of NME. The CD, called Songs To Save Your Life, was compiled by Morrissey
, "from his own record collection". "Jenny Was a Friend of Mine" is track #2 on the CD. It is also used as bumper music
in The Damon Bruce Show and on CBS Sports's coverage of the PGA Tour
.
"Jenny Was a Friend of Mine" is featured in the book XFM's 1000 Greatest Songs Ever.
Both Brandon Flowers and Mark Stoermer have highlighted it as one of their favourite songs from Hot Fuss.
During the Day & Age tour a bass solo was added to the beginning of the song.
Indie rock
Indie rock is a genre of alternative rock that originated in the United Kingdom and the United States in the 1980s. Indie rock is extremely diverse, with sub-genres that include lo-fi, post-rock, math rock, indie pop, dream pop, noise rock, space rock, sadcore, riot grrrl and emo, among others...
band The Killers. It is featured as the first track on The Killers' first album, Hot Fuss
Hot Fuss
Hot Fuss is the debut studio album by Las Vegas based American rock band The Killers, released on June 7, 2004 in the United Kingdom and on June 15, 2004 in the United States.-Background:...
. It was written by Brandon Flowers
Brandon Flowers
Brandon Richard Flowers is an American musician, best known as the frontman of the Las Vegas-based rock band The Killers. He has also released a solo album titled Flamingo.-Early life:...
and Mark Stoermer
Mark Stoermer
Mark Stoermer is an American musician, best known for being the bassist for alternative rock band The Killers, in 2011 he released his debut solo album Another Life.-Personal life:...
.
Despite not being a single, "Jenny Was A Friend of Mine" is one of The Killers' most popular and critically acclaimed songs. It is particularly praised for its powerful and melodic bassline.
Writing and composition
The song is told by the point of view of a man who has been taken in for questioning about a girl's (Jenny) murder. After explaining the incident from his perspective, the man (voiced by Flowers), claims that he is innocent by saying that "there ain't no motive for this crime, Jenny was a friend of mine." The song has no resolution of the crime and it is never clarified if the man was guilty.It is a part of The Killers' alleged "Murder Trilogy," three songs detailing the murder of a girl named Jenny, the other two being "Midnight Show," and "Leave the Bourbon on the Shelf." In an interview with The Guardian
The Guardian
The Guardian, formerly known as The Manchester Guardian , is a British national daily newspaper in the Berliner format...
, Flowers revealed that it was Morrissey
Morrissey
Steven Patrick Morrissey , known as Morrissey, is an English singer and lyricist. He rose to prominence in the 1980s as the lyricist and vocalist of the alternative rock band The Smiths. The band was highly successful in the United Kingdom but broke up in 1987, and Morrissey began a solo career,...
's song "Sister I'm A Poet
Sister I'm A Poet
"Sister I'm a Poet" is a song by Morrissey. It was featured as a B-side to the single "Everyday Is Like Sunday" as well as on the VHS Hulmerist, live album Beethoven Was Deaf and compilation album World of Morrissey...
" that inspired him to write songs about murder.
The lyrics of the song also bring a reminder of the 1986 murder of Jennifer Levin. During interviews following his release, Robert Chambers (the "Preppy Killer") claimed he had no motive for the murder, and that he and the victim were "friends".
Release and reception
In reviewing Hot Fuss, Jenny Eliscu of Rolling StoneRolling Stone
Rolling Stone is a US-based magazine devoted to music, liberal politics, and popular culture that is published every two weeks. Rolling Stone was founded in San Francisco in 1967 by Jann Wenner and music critic Ralph J...
highlighted "Jenny Was a Friend of Mine" as sounding like "classic Duran Duran
Duran Duran
Duran Duran are an English band, formed in Birmingham in 1978. They were one of the most successful bands of the 1980s and a leading band in the MTV-driven "Second British Invasion" of the United States...
, all snaking bass lines and Flowers' elegantly wasted vocals — part ironic detachment, part fake-British-accent, part throat-shredding wail." Adrian Begrand, writing for PopMatters
PopMatters
PopMatters is an international webzine of cultural criticism that covers many aspects of popular culture. PopMatters publishes reviews, interviews, and detailed essays on most cultural products and expressions in areas such as music, television, films, books, video games, comics, sports, theater,...
, called the song a "spot-on, wonderfully shameless Cure
The Cure
The Cure are an English rock band formed in Crawley, West Sussex in 1976. The band has experienced several line-up changes, with frontman, vocalist, guitarist and principal songwriter Robert Smith being the only constant member...
imitation", and praised Flowers for his "charmingly overwrought depiction of a lover’s spat “on a promenade in the rain.”" In her "Ask Hadley" column in The Guardian, Hadley Freeman
Hadley Freeman
Hadley Freeman is an American journalist formerly based in London, but now living in New York.She was born in New York to Jewish parents, and attended St Anne's College, Oxford University where she read English Literature and edited Cherwell....
noted the similarity of the song's storyline to that of Richard Marx
Richard Marx
Richard Noel Marx is an American adult contemporary and pop/rock singer, songwriter, musician, and record producer. He had a string of hit singles in the late 1980s and 1990s, including "Endless Summer Nights", "Right Here Waiting", "Now and Forever", and "Hazard"...
's 1991 hit single "Hazard
Hazard (song)
"Hazard" is a 1991 song performed by adult contemporary artist Richard Marx. It has since become one of the most popular songs by Richard Marx, peaking at #9 on the Billboard Hot 100. In addition, the song spent one week atop the Billboard adult contemporary chart...
", and accused The Killers of "blatantly rip[ping] off" the latter. NME
NME
The New Musical Express is a popular music publication in the United Kingdom, published weekly since March 1952. It started as a music newspaper, and gradually moved toward a magazine format during the 1980s, changing from newsprint in 1998. It was the first British paper to include a singles...
said the song was like "Duran Duran with better basslines and dirtier hair". The Times
The Times
The Times is a British daily national newspaper, first published in London in 1785 under the title The Daily Universal Register . The Times and its sister paper The Sunday Times are published by Times Newspapers Limited, a subsidiary since 1981 of News International...
wildly praised the song saying "Jenny was a Friend of Mine rejoices in a helicopter sound effect last heard when Oasis were going through their pompous phase, a bassline that New Order’s Peter Hook would be proud of and a stupidly catchy melody that would fit primetime Duran Duran."
The song was on a CD included with the June 16 2004 issue of NME. The CD, called Songs To Save Your Life, was compiled by Morrissey
Morrissey
Steven Patrick Morrissey , known as Morrissey, is an English singer and lyricist. He rose to prominence in the 1980s as the lyricist and vocalist of the alternative rock band The Smiths. The band was highly successful in the United Kingdom but broke up in 1987, and Morrissey began a solo career,...
, "from his own record collection". "Jenny Was a Friend of Mine" is track #2 on the CD. It is also used as bumper music
Bumper music
Bumper music, or a bump, is a term used in the radio broadcasting industry to refer to short clips of signature or theme music used to buffer transitions between programming elements. Bumper music is commonly employed when a syndicated program takes a break for local station identification or...
in The Damon Bruce Show and on CBS Sports's coverage of the PGA Tour
PGA Tour
The PGA Tour is the organizer of the main men's professional golf tours in the United States and North America...
.
"Jenny Was a Friend of Mine" is featured in the book XFM's 1000 Greatest Songs Ever.
Both Brandon Flowers and Mark Stoermer have highlighted it as one of their favourite songs from Hot Fuss.
Live performances
Often when the song is performed live, the line "she couldn't scream while I held her close", is often replaced by "she couldn't scream while I held her throat", or "she kicked and screamed while I held her throat", giving a more sinister feel to the song. This was more common during Day & Age World Tour performances of the song.During the Day & Age tour a bass solo was added to the beginning of the song.