Hip to Be Square

"Hip to Be Square" is a song by Huey Lewis and the News, written by Bill Gibson, Sean Hopper, and Huey Lewis, and released in 1986 as the second single from the multi-platinum album Fore!.

"Hip to Be Square"
Single by Huey Lewis and the News
from the album Fore!
B-side"Some of My Lies Are True" (Remix)
ReleasedOctober 6, 1986[1]
Recorded1986
GenreRock
Length4:01
LabelChrysalis Records
Songwriter(s)Bill Gibson, Sean Hopper, Huey Lewis
Producer(s)Huey Lewis and the News
Huey Lewis and the News singles chronology
"Stuck with You"
(1986)		 "Hip to Be Square"
(1986)		 "Jacob's Ladder"
(1987)

The song features Pro Football Hall of Famers and then-San Francisco 49ers Joe Montana and Ronnie Lott singing backup vocals.[2] The single reached number three on the Billboard Hot 100. In concert, Huey Lewis now normally sings the song as "(Too) Hip to Be Square", as performed on their live album, Live at 25.

Composition

According to Lewis, the song was meant to be ironic and was originally written in third person ("He used to be...").[3] "It wasn't intended to be an anthem for square people, and not everyone recognized the irony," said Lewis.[3] He considers the misconstrued message of the song one of his regrets in his career.[3]

Appearances

American Psycho

The song is referred to in the novel American Psycho when the main character, Patrick Bateman, provides a lengthy critique of Huey Lewis and the News' career.

The song was then featured in the film adaptation during a scene in which Bateman (played by Christian Bale) gives an abridged version of his critique from the novel to Paul Allen (Jared Leto) just before killing him with an axe in one of the most iconic scenes of the movie:

"In '87, [sic] Huey released this ... Fore!, their most accomplished album. I think their undisputed masterpiece is 'Hip to Be Square,' a song so catchy, most people probably don't listen to the lyrics. But they should, because it's not just about the pleasures of conformity, and the importance of trends, it's also a personal statement about the band itself."

The song was originally featured on the accompanying soundtrack, but shortly after it was released, the album was pulled from the shelves and the song was removed before being reissued, but a small number had already been sold. Reports erroneously claimed that Lewis had objected to the context in which his song was used in the film and demanded it be removed from the album.[4][5] In reality, the film's production team had paid for the rights to use the song in the film, but overlooked receiving the rights to include it on the soundtrack. When the soundtrack was released with the song on it, Lewis had it withdrawn, as the soundtrack rights had not been secured.[6]

In 2013, Lewis himself guest starred in a parody of the scene with "Weird Al" Yankovic for comedy website Funny or Die.[7][8]

Sesame Street

The popular children's show Sesame Street created an educational parody of the song called "Hip to Be a Square" and used it during a cartoon portion of the program.[9] Lewis said of the parody, "they contacted our publisher about doing it, and we were happy to let ‘em. I think it’s sweet."[10]

Track listing
7-inch single
  1. "Hip to Be Square"
  2. "Some of My Lies Are True" (Remix)
12-inch single
  1. "Hip to Be Square" (Dance remix) – 6:05
  2. "Hip to Be Square" (Dub mix) – 5:11

Charts
Chart (1986–87) Peak
position
Australia (Kent Music Report)[11] 17
Canadian Singles Chart[12] 14
Dutch Singles Chart[13] 28
Finnish Singles Chart[14] 12
Ireland (IRMA)[15] 29
New Zealand (Recorded Music NZ)[16] 9
Spanish Singles Chart 32
UK Singles Chart[17] 41
US Billboard Hot 100[18] 3
US Cashbox Top 100[19] 6
US Billboard Adult Contemporary[20] 20
US Billboard Album Rock Tracks[21] 1
Year-end chart (1987) Position
US Top Pop Singles (Billboard)[22] 49

See also

References
  1. https://www.45cat.com/record/nc241742us
  2. "N.F.L. PLAYOFFS; 49ERS PRACTICE TO A NOISY BEAT". Retrieved 2016-10-14.
  3. http://www.hueylewisandthenews.com/wp/?page_id=1038 Huey Lewis Fan Q&A: January 6, 2013
  4. Dansby, Andrew (2000-04-11). "Huey Lewis Sparks "American Psycho" Soundtrack Recall". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 2007-07-11.
  5. Zacharek, Stephanie (2000-04-14). "American Psycho". salon.com. Archived from the original on 2009-04-28. Retrieved 2007-07-11.
  6. Quelland, Sarah (2000-04-20). "Huey in the News". metroactive.com. Retrieved 2007-07-11.
  7. "American Psycho with Huey Lewis and Weird Al". Retrieved 23 November 2018.
  8. "Huey Lewis discusses killing Weird Al, his 'American Psycho' boycott and new music for 2015". Retrieved 23 November 2018.
  9. Sesame Street: It's Hip to Be a Square. YouTube. 19 March 2010.
  10. http://www.hueylewisandthenews.com/wp/?page_id=1038 Huey Lewis Fan Q&A: November 23, 2015
  11. Kent, David (1993). Australian Chart Book 1970–1992. St Ives, NSW: Australian Chart Book. ISBN 0-646-11917-6.
  12. "Item Display - RPM - Library and Archives Canada". collectionscanada.gc.ca. Archived from the original on 2016-05-13. Retrieved 2011-09-13.
  13. "Zoeken - MEGA TOP 50". 3fm.nl.
  14. Pennanen, Timo (2006). Sisältää hitin - levyt ja esittäjät Suomen musiikkilistoilla vuodesta 1972 (in Finnish) (1st ed.). Helsinki: Kustannusosakeyhtiö Otava. p. 263. ISBN 978-951-1-21053-5.
  15. "The Irish Charts – Search Results – Hip to be Square". Irish Singles Chart.
  16. "Charts.nz – Huey Lewis and the News – Hip to be Square". Top 40 Singles.
  17. officialcharts.com
  18. "Huey Lewis & the News Chart History: Hot 100". Billboard. Retrieved November 8, 2019.
  19. "Cashbox Top 100: December 6, 1986". cashboxmagazine.com. Retrieved 2021-02-05.
  20. "Huey Lewis & the News Chart History: Adult Contemporary". Billboard. Retrieved November 8, 2019.
  21. "Huey Lewis & the News Chart History: Mainstream Rock". Billboard. Retrieved November 8, 2019.
  22. "1987 The Year in Music & Video: Top Pop Singles". Billboard. 99 (52). December 26, 1987.
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