Welcome to Paradise

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
(Redirected from Welcome To Paradise)
Jump to navigation Jump to search
This article is about the Green Day song. For other uses, see Welcome to Paradise (disambiguation).

"Welcome to Paradise"
Song by Green Day
from the album Kerplunk
ReleasedDecember 17, 1991 (1991-12-17)[1]
Genre
Length
  • 3:30
LabelLookout[4]
ComposerGreen Day
LyricistBillie Joe Armstrong
Producers
"Welcome to Paradise"
Single by Green Day
from the album Dookie
ReleasedOctober 17, 1994
Genre
Length3:44
LabelReprise
ComposerGreen Day
LyricistBillie Joe Armstrong
Producers
Green Day singles chronology
"Basket Case"
(1994) 		"Welcome to Paradise"
(1994) 		"When I Come Around"
(1995)
Music video
"Welcome to Paradise" on YouTube

"Welcome to Paradise" is a song by the American rock band Green Day. It first appeared as the third track on the band's second studio album, Kerplunk (1991). It was re-recorded and rereleased as the fifth track on the band's third studio album, Dookie (1994), and released as the album's third single. Its physical release was exclusive to the United Kingdom on October 17, 1994, though the song still saw radio airplay in the United States. The song peaked at number 56 on the US Billboard Hot 100 Airplay chart. The Dookie version is more popular[citation needed] and was later included on the band's 2001 compilation album, International Superhits!.

Song meaning and composition

[edit | edit source]

The lyrics were written by Billie Joe Armstrong and the music by Armstrong with Mike Dirnt and Tré Cool. It is based on the band members' experiences of moving out of their parents' houses and into an abandoned house in Oakland, California, where they, along with a number of others, lived without paying rent. The house was quite broken-down but to them it became home, and this feeling is described in the song.

Billie Joe Armstrong said this of the song, "It's about West Oakland, living in a warehouse with a lot of people, a bunch of artists and musicians, punks and whatever just lived all up and down, bums and junkies and thugs and gang members and stuff that just lived in that area. It's no place you want to walk around at night, but it's a neat warehouse where you can play basketball and stuff."[7]

The song is played with the guitar tuned a half-step down, as are many of their Dookie songs.

The song is sung as Armstrong is talking or sending a message to his mother, after moving out of her house. In the first verse, he is talking to his mother after three weeks of leaving, telling her that he is scared about being on his own. The second part describes him writing to her six months later, now happy to live on his own.

Critical reception

[edit | edit source]

Martin Aston from Music Week noted that "America's latest success story have yet to explode in the UK but that could change." He complimented the song as "a good example of the band's riotous, punk-pop japery, with the added bonus of the band's first UK tour to move things along."[8]

Music video

[edit | edit source]

A video was released for the song that shows the band playing the song live at Slim's in San Francisco, California, with the studio version dubbed over the performance. It is one of two videos not to be included on the band's first DVD, International Supervideos! (the other being "Macy's Day Parade").

According to Matt Bettinelli-Olpin, who can be seen getting kicked in the face in the video by a stage diver, the papers burned on stage in the video were local newspaper articles about Green Day.[9]

Track listing

[edit | edit source]
  1. "Welcome to Paradise" – 3:45
  2. "Chump" (live) – 2:44
  3. "Emenius Sleepus" – 1:44
  • Track 2 was recorded on March 11, 1994, at Jannus Landing, St. Petersburg, Florida.

Personnel

[edit | edit source]
  1. Billie Joe Armstrong - Lead vocals, guitar
  2. Mike Dirnt - Bass, backing vocals
  3. Tré Cool - Drums

Charts

[edit | edit source]
Chart performance for "Welcome to Paradise"
Chart (1994) Peak
position
Australia (ARIA)[10] 44
Finland Airplay (Suomen virallinen lista)[11] 37
New Zealand (Recorded Music NZ)[12] 21
Scotland Singles (OCC)[13] 19
UK Singles (OCC)[14] 20
UK Rock & Metal (OCC)[15] 17
US Radio Songs (Billboard)[16] 56
US Alternative Airplay (Billboard)[17] 7

Certifications

[edit | edit source]
Certifications and sales for "Welcome to Paradise"
Region Certification Certified units/sales
Canada (Music Canada)[18] Platinum 80,000‡
New Zealand (RMNZ)[19] Gold 15,000‡
United Kingdom (BPI)[20] Silver 200,000‡

‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone.

Release history

[edit | edit source]
Release dates and formats for "Welcome to Paradise"
Region Date Format(s) Label(s) Ref.
United Kingdom October 17, 1994
  • 12-inch vinyl
  • CD
  • cassette
 Reprise [21]
Australia April 10, 1995
  • CD
  • cassette
 [22]

References

[edit | edit source]
  1. ^ Lua error in Module:Citation/CS1/Configuration at line 2172: attempt to index field '?' (a nil value).
  2. ^ Lua error in Module:Citation/CS1/Configuration at line 2172: attempt to index field '?' (a nil value).
    - Lua error in Module:Citation/CS1/Configuration at line 2172: attempt to index field '?' (a nil value).
  3. ^ Lua error in Module:Citation/CS1/Configuration at line 2172: attempt to index field '?' (a nil value).
    - Lua error in Module:Citation/CS1/Configuration at line 2172: attempt to index field '?' (a nil value).
  4. ^ Lua error in Module:Citation/CS1/Configuration at line 2172: attempt to index field '?' (a nil value).
  5. ^ Lua error in Module:Citation/CS1/Configuration at line 2172: attempt to index field '?' (a nil value).
    - Lua error in Module:Citation/CS1/Configuration at line 2172: attempt to index field '?' (a nil value).
  6. ^ Lua error in Module:Citation/CS1/Configuration at line 2172: attempt to index field '?' (a nil value).
    - Lua error in Module:Citation/CS1/Configuration at line 2172: attempt to index field '?' (a nil value).
  7. ^ Lua error in Module:Citation/CS1/Configuration at line 2172: attempt to index field '?' (a nil value).
  8. ^ Lua error in Module:Citation/CS1/Configuration at line 2172: attempt to index field '?' (a nil value).
  9. ^ Lua error in Module:Citation/CS1/Configuration at line 2172: attempt to index field '?' (a nil value).
  10. ^ "Green Day – Welcome to Paradise". ARIA Top 50 Singles. Retrieved November 13, 2016.
  11. ^ Lua error in Module:Citation/CS1/Configuration at line 2172: attempt to index field '?' (a nil value).
  12. ^ "Green Day – Welcome to Paradise". Top 40 Singles. Retrieved November 13, 2016.
  13. ^ "Official Scottish Singles Sales Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved July 19, 2025.
  14. ^ "Official Singles Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved July 19, 2025.
  15. ^ "Official Rock & Metal Singles Chart Top 40". Official Charts Company. Retrieved July 19, 2025.
  16. ^ "Green Day Chart History (Radio Songs)". Billboard. Retrieved November 13, 2016.
  17. ^ "Green Day Chart History (Alternative Airplay)". Billboard. Retrieved November 13, 2016.
  18. ^ Lua error in Module:Citation/CS1/Configuration at line 2172: attempt to index field '?' (a nil value).
  19. ^ Lua error in Module:Citation/CS1/Configuration at line 2172: attempt to index field '?' (a nil value). Type Welcome to Paradise in the "Search:" field and press Enter.
  20. ^ Lua error in Module:Citation/CS1/Configuration at line 2172: attempt to index field '?' (a nil value).
  21. ^ Lua error in Module:Citation/CS1/Configuration at line 2172: attempt to index field '?' (a nil value).
  22. ^ Lua error in Module:Citation/CS1/Configuration at line 2172: attempt to index field '?' (a nil value).
[edit | edit source]

Lua error in Module:Authority_control at line 153: attempt to index field 'wikibase' (a nil value).

Retrieved from "http://70.231.62.181/index.php?title=Welcome_to_Paradise&oldid=5242957"