Burning The Ground Exclusive 1984
“I Wanna Rock” is a song written and composed by Dee Snider and performed by his band Twisted Sister. It was released as the second single from their 1984 album Stay Hungry. The record reached No. 68 on the Billboard Hot 100 singles chart.
MUSIC VIDEO
Like the earlier “We’re Not Gonna Take It”, the video features actor Mark Metcalf, best known as the abusive ROTC leader Douglas C. Neidermeyer from the movie National Lampoon’s Animal House.
In the video, he plays a teacher with a similar personality to Neidermeyer, who harasses a student for drawing the Twisted Sister logo on one of his textbooks. He chastises the student by shouting, “What kind of a man desecrates a defenseless textbook?! I’ve got a good mind to slap your fat face!”, which echoes a line from Animal House (“What kind of man hits a defenseless animal [a misbehaving horse]? I’ve got a good mind to smash your fat face in!”).
Metcalf’s character reprises his question from the “We’re Not Gonna Take It” video, “What do you want to do with your life?!” This provides a lead-in for the track, as the student answers with the first line of the song, “I wanna rock!”, after which he and four of his classmates are instantly transformed into Twisted Sister’s five members.
The abusive teacher’s repeated attempts to stop his rock-loving students not only fail; they also backfire on him. He crawls into the school principal’s office, only to be confronted by the principal, played by Stephen Furst, who played Kent “Flounder” Dorfman in Animal House, opposite Metcalf. Furst’s character, who suddenly approves Twisted Sister and its music, reprises one of his lines from the movie, “Oh boy, is this great!”, before he sprays water from a seltzer bottle at the teacher, who collapses in defeat.
“We’re Not Gonna Take It” was the lead single taken from the LP Stay Hungry by American Rock band Twisted Sister the single was released in May 1984.
The single reached No. 21 on the Billboard Hot 100 singles chart, making it Twisted Sister’s only Top 40 single. It is the band’s highest-selling single in the United States, having been certified Gold on June 3, 2009, for sales of over 500,000 units. The song was ranked No. 47 on 100 Greatest 80’s Songs and No. 21 on VH1’s 100 Greatest One Hit Wonders of the 80s.
In 1985, it received criticism when the Parents Music Resource Center included the song on its “Filthy Fifteen” list for alleged violent lyrical content, allegations that were repudiated by lead singer Dee Snider.
MUSIC VIDEO:
The music video was directed by Marty Callner with an emphasis on slapstick comedy. The video begins with a disobedient son, played by Callner’s son, Dax, playing Twisted Sister songs in his bedroom while the rest of the family is eating dinner. The father, “Douglas C.”, played by Mark Metcalf as a character similar to his Douglas C. Niedermeyer from the 1978 film Animal House, goes to the boy’s room and scolds him for being interested only in his guitar and Twisted Sister.
At the end of the speech, he screams “What do you want to do with your life?”, to which the son replies “I Wanna Rock!”. He strums his guitar and the sound blasts the father out of a nearby window. The boy transforms into Dee Snider, and the music begins. Snider sings to the other children, who turn into the rest of the band, and they wreak havoc on the family.
The father gets the worst of the band’s mischief, as he repeatedly tries and fails to get back at the band members, getting knocked out of more windows and even a wall. Still, even after a series of the father’s failed retaliations, his wife happens by to awkwardly recover him, such as throwing a bucket of water onto him, dropping a first aid kit onto him, and even spraying his face with a hose.
This U.S. 12″ promo includes the introductions from the music videos for both tracks.
SIDE A:
I Wanna Rock (Video Intro Edit) 4:31
Arranged By – Tom Werman, Twisted Sister
Producer – Tom Werman
SIDE B:
We’re Not Gonna Take It (Video Intro Edit) 6:31
Mixed By – Geoff Workman
Producer – Tom Werman
Recorded By – Geoff Workman
VINYL GRADE:
Vinyl: Near Mint
Sleeve: Near Mint
U.S. CHART HISTORY:
| Year | Single | Chart | Position |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1984 | We’re Not Gonna Take It | U.S. Billboard Hot 100 | #21 |
| 1984 | We’re Not Gonna Take It | U.S. Billboard Mainstream Rock Tracks | #7 |
| 1984 | I wanna Rock | U.S. Billboard Hot 100 | #68 |
| 1984 | I wanna Rock | U.S. Billboard Mainstream Rock Tracks | #35 |
RELEASE INFORMATION:
Label: Atlantic – PR 666
Format: Vinyl, 12″, 33 ⅓ RPM, Single, Promo
Country: US
Released: 1984
Genre: Rock
Style: Heavy Metal, Hard Rock, Glam
NOTES:
Promotional Copy Not For Sale
Side A: Featuring the Introduction from “We’re Not Gonna Take It” Video Vocal/Edited Version
Side B: Featuring the Introduction from “I Wanna Rock” Video Vocal/LP Version
Includes 8.5″ x 11″ radio programmer insert printed on glossy paper.
Buy the 12″ at DISCOGS
VINYL TRANSFER & AUDIO RESTORATION:
-DjPaulT
burningtheground.net
THE GEAR:
Turntable: Technics SL-1200MK7
Cartridge/Stylus: Ortofon 2M Black PnP MkII
Turntable Isolation Platform: ISO-Tone™ Turntable Isolation Platform
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Phono Pre-amp: Pro-Jec Tube Box DS2
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DAC: Alpha Design Labs GT40a USB DAC
Record Cleaning: VPI HW 16.5 Record Cleaning Machine
Artwork Scans: Epson Workforce WF-7610 Professional Printer/Scanner
SOFTWARE:
Recording/Editing: Adobe Audition 3.0 (Recording)
Down Sampling/Dither: iZotope RX Advanced 2
Artwork Editor: Adobe Photoshop CS5
Click Removal: Manual
FLAC/MP3 Conversion: dBpoweramp
M3U Playlist: Playlist Creator
RESTORATION NOTES:
All vinyl rips are recorded @ 32bit/float
FLAC (Level Eight)
Artwork scanned at 600dpi
**24bit FLAC Only Available For Seven Days!
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WOW! What a great find! Thank you for this amazing piece of nostalgia!
Thank you for another highly impressive and rare 12″!
Dee Snider vs. PMRC clip: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1OceijOEVqU I’d forgotten how these two songs (mainly “WNGTI”) and Dee Snider of Twisted Sister took on Congress and the PMRC over music censorship. His 40 year marriage trumped the Gores, and he proved he was a better parent. He schooled Al & Tipper Gore, surprising the crowd with his articulate counterpoints to the Gore’s ridiculous assumptions. Where John Denver and Frank Zappa showed up to the hearings rather clean cut and conservative to intelligently explain their views, Snider took the other road and appeared in total rock ‘n’ roll attire, while proving the video… Read more »
Some of the intro dialogue also appears in their video for “Oh Come All Ye Faithful”.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YV-SpT69IZ8
Tuck in that shirt.
Wipe that smile off your face.
What kind of a man are you!
I’m not really into metal, but I love the video. The lady’s performance is hilarious! 😀
I just watched that track from their surprisingly great Twisted Christmas CD. I just discovered their amazing video for “Be Chrool To Your Scuel” which co-stars legendary Alice Cooper with a star-studded cast featuring the late Bobcat Goldwait as a wacky teacher, a very young pre-90210 Luke Perry who is an extra as a classroom student, and many other familiar faces you might know: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q6dG9zYJwuw I think I’ve played the 6 minute video five times already, looking to see who else I might recognize in the classroom, or as a ghoul. It’s a great track for Paul’s next Halloween mix… Read more »
I remember this video because Neidermeyer made a guest appearance defending a helpless textbook!
Thank you so much for this one, PaulT.
Downloaded this because the Maestro told me to download it. 🙂 Thanks Paul.
You’re welcome, Richard 🙂
The Maestro made you do it? Classic! 😉
Wow I’m just joining this party now… Hello ROCK!! I don’t think I was even aware of this promo… So thrilled to have it! I own the Leader Of The Pack 45 rpm which claims to have “Featuring The Introduction From ‘I Wanna Rock’ Video” on the B-side, but it’s nowhere to be found. This promo is the real deal. Thank you Paul!!
You’re welcome, Retro Hound 🙂 I Wanna Rock!
oh, its Promo Time 🙂 Promo Time means for me, its Time to work on a new Cover. Paul had made a nice small simple for that. But I think mine its better.
You are very talented. Paul didn’t make a “cover”, that’s the way the hype sticker and label came that says Atlantic/ATCO AOR 12″. I really like your cover for my 12″ promo.
Amazing site! Thank you! I used to hate this type of music in the 80s but now I absolutely love it!
You’re welcome, Tony 🙂
Thank You Paul for this, always liked this track 😘
You’re welcome, Martika 🙂
Esta canción y el video siempre me recuerdan a mi querido padre, cuando yo tenía 18 años de edad y el me sermoneaba que iba a ser yo en el futuro. Y yo solo queria rockear!!! jajaja Thanks for this great music in FLAC. Saludos desde Chile.
De nada. Creo que eso es lo que todo padre le dice a su hijo. ¡Todo lo que queremos hacer es ROCK! 🙂
Has hecho un excelente trabajo todos estos años, muchas gracias por compartir amigo xo
De nada, amigo 🙂
Thanks for posting this rarity Paul!
KIQQ/L.A. played the “WNGTI” side with the famous Niedermeyer intro because that version was in power rotation on MTV seemingly forever. Went #1 for us.
I remember these videos were in heavy rotation on MTV. I hated metal in those days because that was what the bullies in my school were into. lol Now I love it 🙂
This is absolutely amazing, not least because both intros were extensively used by Ultimix and other remix services! Another fantastic share! Amazing that you even find these obscure vinyls! THANK YOU!!!
You’re welcome, Martika! 🙂
My sister was a bartender in the early 80s at a place called The Hole in the Wall in Paramus NJ. TS had not broken out yet, but could easily sell out a bar at this point. They had a contentious relationship with the owner, and would proceed to punch holes in the walls in the dressing room, or back room, before they came out and played (after all, it was called, “The Hole In The Wall” they reasoned with my sister). But the owner, despite the damage, booked them all the time because he made a ton of money… Read more »
Ha ha! Great story! Mötley Crüe did the same damage in bars when they’d come to Dallas in 1994-1995
not surprising!
Very cool story, Raymond I appreciate you sharing it 🙂
Raymond, not sure if you remember Jackyl. They had a song called “The Lumberjack” with the chainsaw replacing the guitar solo. Well, they played at our club and decided to carve into the suspended ceiling with the chainsaw during that song… and inadvertently cut a cable and thus the power to the entire club!
I do! that is hilarious, the 90s were intriguing! haha. That was a great song, thanks for reminding me, here is the video – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A52p9jc-gOo
I mean you have to give it up for creativity! That chainsaw solo as as good as most guitar solos.
This is quite the tantalizing surprise, Paul. I love these “intro” and video sorts of things. Very cool!! Great that you’re keeping with the rock n’ roll genre also! Thank you!!
Jeff
All my friend’s kids could act out the Niedermeyer intro word-for-word for “WNGTI”. It “went viral” from MTV before we had unsocial media. The “KWR” side didn’t have the same video / radio airplay, though it was cool to hear occasionally.
You’re welcome, Jeff I love these kinds of records too 🙂