"Oh Yeah" is a single released in 1985 by the Swiss band Yello and featured on their album Stella. The song features a mix of electronic music and manipulated vocals. The song gained popularity after being featured in the films Ferris Bueller's Day Off and The Secret of My Success, among other films. It is a popular staple in pop culture. Its 1987 rereleased version features the extra lyrics: "such a good time / a really good time".
Production
Describing the composition of "Oh Yeah," Blank said, "First I did the music and then I invited Dieter to sing along, and he came up with some lines which I thought, 'no Dieter, it's too complicated, we don't need that many lyrics'. I had the idea of just this guy, a fat little monster sits there very relaxed and says, "Oh yeah, oh yeah". So I told him, 'Why don't you try just to sing on and on 'oh yeah'?... Dieter was very angry when I told him this and he said, 'are you crazy, all the time "Oh yeah"? Are you crazy?! I can't do this, no no, come on, come on.' And then he said, 'some lyrics, like "the moon... beautiful", is this too much?!' and I said, 'no, it's OK', and then he did this 'oh yeah' and at the end he thought, 'yeah it's nice', he loved it himself also. And also I wanted to install lots of human noises, all kind of phonetic rhythms with my mouth; you hear lots of noises in the background which are done with my mouth."
Charts
In 1987, the single reached #51 on the US BillboardHot 100, and #36 on the US dance chart. It also peaked at #47 in Germany in November 1987 and then #9 in Australia in October 1988. The song has been aggressively shopped around, the group going so far as to produce a special "All Time Classics" CD for advertising, television and movies. The song has been wildly successful, and was the basis for Dieter Meier's investment fortune, which as of 2017 was valued at an estimated $175 million.
Remix
A remix of the song, entitled, "Oh Yeah Oh Six" went to No. 1 on the US dance charts in 2006.
After its use in the 1986 filmFerris Bueller's Day Off an "incredibly infectious song" from which it became virtually known as 'the Ferris Bueller song' the song was used in various other film soundtracks through the end of the decade and developed a reputation as a 1980s Hollywood cliche. It was prominently used in the 1987 film The Secret of My Success. It was also part of the soundtrack in She's Out of Control and Opportunity Knocks. The song was used in a series of Twix commercials from 1988 to 1990. Film critic Jonathan Bernstein observed that despite never reaching hit status, the song "has become synonymous with avarice and lust. Every time a movie, TV show or commercial wants to underline the jaw-dropping impact of a hot babe or sleek auto, that synth-drum starts popping and that deep voice rumbles, 'Oh yeah…". A 2014 article on The Dissolve website, suggests the song is used to metaphorically represent lust and cocaine. The song became a conceit on The Simpsons, being used when Duffman appears; an idiomatic staple in video games; and a repeated choice in television advertisements. Matthew Broderick reprised his Bueller role in a Honda commercial aired during the Super Bowl in which "Oh Yeah" was featured. A teaser for the ad had appeared two weeks prior to the Super Bowl, which had created rumors of a possible film sequel. It was produced by Santa Monica-based RPA and directed by Todd Phillips. AdWeek's Tim Nudd called the ad "a great homage to the original 1986 film, with Broderick this time calling in sick to a film shoot and enjoying another day of slacking." On the other hand, Jalopniks Matt Hardigree called the spot "sacrilegious". The song appears in the video gameGran Turismo 4, both as one of the songs of the racing BGM and the music played when the player fails a License Test. The song features prominently in an episode of the comedy series It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia, "Sweet Dee Has a Heart Attack". Characters refer to it as "that song from the 80s, 'Day Bow Bow and reference its use in The Secret of My Success. The song was used during a sketch on the TV show Saturday Night Live, with celebrity guest Margot Robbie. The song was used in a Domino's Pizza commercial in 2017. The commercial is a reference to Ferris Bueller's Day Off; it is an example of a repurposed pop song. The song was used in the 2017 films ' and ''.
