Jock-O-Rama (Invasion of the Beef Patrol)
Encyclopedia
"Jock-O-Rama" is Track 6 of the 1985 Dead Kennedys
album Frankenchrist
. With lyrics by lead singer Jello Biafra
, it is an indictment of high school
organized sports, focusing specifically on the win-at-all-costs mentality placed upon the players of American football
. It is also an admonishment of what Biafra feels is the forced conformity
which is placed upon all high school adolescents.
After a pep rally
, which Biafra compares to a religious cult, the coach advises his team members to "Get out there/And snap the other guy's knee". The star quarterback ends up breaking his neck, likely paralyzed for life. The mourning for him is short-lived, however, as the other team members and fans, in Biafra's words, "go get wasted" to "party all night and party some more".
Some of the team members get caught drunk driving when their Trans Am
"wrap[s] itself around a telephone pole". The officer, realizing their status, letting them go because "we were that way when we were young".
Dead Kennedys
Dead Kennedys are an American punk rock band formed in San Francisco, California in 1978. The band became part of the American hardcore punk movement of the early 1980s. They gained a large underground fanbase in the international punk music scene....
album Frankenchrist
Frankenchrist
Frankenchrist is the third album released by the American hardcore punk band Dead Kennedys in 1985 on Alternative Tentacles.The album was a subject of controversy because of a poster inserted in the original record sleeve. The poster, H. R. Giger's Landscape #XX, or Penis Landscape, was a painting...
. With lyrics by lead singer Jello Biafra
Jello Biafra
Jello Biafra is an American musician, spoken word artist and leading figure of the Green Party of the United States. Biafra first gained attention as the lead singer and songwriter for San Francisco punk rock band Dead Kennedys...
, it is an indictment of high school
High school
High school is a term used in parts of the English speaking world to describe institutions which provide all or part of secondary education. The term is often incorporated into the name of such institutions....
organized sports, focusing specifically on the win-at-all-costs mentality placed upon the players of American football
American football
American football is a sport played between two teams of eleven with the objective of scoring points by advancing the ball into the opposing team's end zone. Known in the United States simply as football, it may also be referred to informally as gridiron football. The ball can be advanced by...
. It is also an admonishment of what Biafra feels is the forced conformity
Conformity
Conformity is the process by which an individual's attitudes, beliefs, and behaviors are influenced by other people.Conformity may also refer to:*Conformity: A Tale, a novel by Charlotte Elizabeth Tonna...
which is placed upon all high school adolescents.
After a pep rally
Pep rally
Pep rallies are events that occur primarily in the United States and Canada. A pep rally is a gathering of people, typically students of middle school, high school and college age, before a sports event. The purpose of such a gathering is to encourage school spirit and to support members of the...
, which Biafra compares to a religious cult, the coach advises his team members to "Get out there/And snap the other guy's knee". The star quarterback ends up breaking his neck, likely paralyzed for life. The mourning for him is short-lived, however, as the other team members and fans, in Biafra's words, "go get wasted" to "party all night and party some more".
Some of the team members get caught drunk driving when their Trans Am
Trans Am
Trans Am may refer to:* Trans Am , a U.S. post rock band* Trans Am , 1996 debut album* Trans-Am Series, an automobile racing series* Pontiac Trans Am, an automobile* Tranz Am, a 1983 video game...
"wrap[s] itself around a telephone pole". The officer, realizing their status, letting them go because "we were that way when we were young".