Dirty White Boy (song)


"Dirty White Boy" is a song recorded by British-American rock band Foreigner, written by Lou Gramm and Mick Jones, and produced by Roy Thomas Baker, Jones, and Ian McDonald. It was the first single taken from the band's third studio album, Head Games. The B-side, "Rev On The Red Line" has also proven to be very popular among fans, but was never released as an A-side. Lou Gramm's trademark scream at the end of the song is missing from this abbreviated version of "Dirty White Boy". Jones has claimed that the song was about Elvis Presley, adding that "he always was that dirty white boy who changed the shape of music completely. It was talking about the kind of heritage that he left, and I think that had an effect on all the musicians that came after, like Mick Jagger - he was also a dirty white boy. Elvis paved the way for all that." However, some listeners misinterpreted the song as a "crypto-racist statement." The song spent nine weeks in the Top 40.

Reception

Billboard Magazine described "Dirty White Boy" as "a driving guitar/bass propelled rocker spearheaded by a forceful lead vocal and tight harmonic support." ''Billboard also claimed that production generated a "gritty rock edge."

Popular culture

The song is featured in the 2013 video game Grand Theft Auto V on the in-game radio station Los Santos Rock Radio.

Track listing

  1. "Dirty White Boy" - 3:13
  2. "Rev on the Red Line" - 3:35

    Chart performance