Private Idaho

For the movie, see My Own Private Idaho.

"Private Idaho" is a single released by the B-52's from their second studio album Wild Planet (1980).

"Private Idaho"
Single by the B-52's
from the album Wild Planet
B-side	"Party Out of Bounds"
Released	October 1980
Studio	Compass Point (Nassau)
Genre	Dance-rock[1][2] new wave[3][4]
Length	3:35
Label	Warner Bros.
Songwriter(s)	Fred Schneider Keith Strickland Ricky Wilson Cindy Wilson Kate Pierson
Producer(s)	Rhett Davies the B-52's Chris Blackwell
The B-52's singles chronology
"Dance This Mess Around" (1979) "Private Idaho" (1980) "Party Out of Bounds" (1980)

Composition

The B-52's are from Athens, Georgia, and never played a concert in Idaho until September 13, 2011, when they played at Eagle River Pavilion in Eagle, Idaho. In preparation of the event, the Idaho Statesman interviewed Fred Schneider about the song's meaning. "Idaho is pretty mysterious to all of us," he said. "I know it's a beautiful state, but then I know there's also a lot of crazy right-wingers and all that stuff. ...The song's about all different things. It's not like a parody of Idaho or anything."^[5]

Reception

Cash Box called it "a contagious rock dancer" with a "rumbling big beat and surf guitar, with alien vocals."^[1] Record World called it a "catchy dance-rocker."^[2]

Chart history

The single was their second Billboard Hot 100 chart entry, at #74.^[6] The single also peaked at #5 on the US Hot Dance Club Play, along with previous single "Give Me Back My Man" and "Party out of Bounds", both from Wild Planet.^[4] "Private Idaho" reached number 11 in Australia. It was the 83rd-biggest Australian hit of 1980.^[7]

Weekly charts

Chart (1980)	Peak position
Australia (Kent Music Report)[8]	11
U.S. Billboard Hot 100	74
U.S. Cash Box Top 100	78
US Record World Singles Chart[9]	79
U.S. Billboard Hot Dance Club Play	5

Year-end charts

Chart (1980)	Position
Australia (Kent Music Report)[10]	83

Popular culture

• Gus Van Sant heard the song while visiting Idaho in the early 1980s, and later used the song title for his 1991 movie, My Own Private Idaho.^[11]

References

1. "CashBox Singles Reviews" (PDF). Cash Box. August 9, 1980. p. 11. Retrieved 2022-01-01.
2. "Hits of the World" (PDF). Record World. August 30, 1980. p. 1. Retrieved 2023-02-20.
3. Molanphy, Chris (June 29, 2018). "The Deadbeat Club Edition, Part 1". Hit Parade | Music History and Music Trivia (Podcast). Slate. Retrieved July 30, 2023.
4. Jennifer Dempsey Music USA: The Rough Guide 1999 p134 "As a harbinger of the whole punk/new wave aesthetic, the B-52's turned this to their advantage by stressing cheesy ... even as tunes like "Private Idaho" helped make new wave safe for mainstream listeners who wanted to put on dark glasses "
5. "Private Idaho by the B-52's". Songfacts. Retrieved May 19, 2019.
6. Whitburn, Joel (2013). Joel Whitburn's Top Pop Singles, 14th Edition: 1955-2012. Record Research. p. 79.
7. "Forum – ARIA Charts: Special Occasion Charts – 1980". Australian-charts.com. Hung Medien. Retrieved 1 May 2017.
8. Kent, David (1993). Australian Chart Book 1970–1992. St Ives, NSW: Australian Chart Book. ISBN 0-646-11917-6.
9. "Record World Singles Chart: October 25, 1980" (PDF). Archived (PDF) from the original on May 17, 2023. Retrieved August 26, 2023.
10. "National Top 100 Singles for 1980". Kent Music Report. January 5, 1981. Retrieved January 17, 2022 – via Imgur.
11. Greenberg, Harvey (Fall 1992). "My Own Private Idaho". Film Quarterly.

External links

• Private Idaho at Discogs (list of releases)