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18 and Life
1989 single by Skid Row
1989 single by Skid Row
| Field | Value |
|---|---|
| name | 18 and Life |
| cover | Skid Row 18 and Life.jpg |
| type | single |
| artist | Skid Row |
| album | Skid Row |
| B-side | Midnight/Tornado |
| released | |
| genre | *Glam metal |
| length | 3:51 |
| label | Atlantic |
| writer | Rachel Bolan, Dave Sabo |
| producer | Michael Wagener |
| prev_title | Youth Gone Wild |
| prev_year | 1989 |
| next_title | I Remember You |
| next_year | 1989 |
| misc |
| B-side = Midnight/Tornado "18 and Life" is a song by American heavy metal band Skid Row. It was released in June 1989 as the second single from their self-titled debut album. The power ballad is the band's biggest hit, reaching No. 4 on the US Billboard Hot 100 and No. 11 on the Billboard Album Rock Tracks chart. It was certified gold by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) on September 13, 1989, when it sold 500,000 copies. The song also charted at No. 12 on the UK Singles Chart, No. 6 in Canada, and No. 5 in Ireland.
In April 2015, Skid Row released a new version of the song with then-lead vocalist Tony Harnell.
Theme
The title of the song alludes to its subject, 18-year-old Ricky, receiving a sentence of life imprisonment for the murder of another teen. The song paints Ricky's youth as his undoing. It was believed for a long time that guitarist Dave Sabo got the idea from a newspaper article about an 18-year-old named Ricky who was sentenced to life imprisonment for killing his friend with a gun that, due to alcohol, he most likely guessed was not loaded. However, in an interview with the Professor of Rock, Sabo states that the original inspiration was his brother Rick's life after coming home from Vietnam. The writing process eventually led the song to being about an accidental murder. The music video also alludes to this.
Critical reception
Pan-European magazine Music & Media described single as "a dramatic hard rock ballad complete with raw vocals and spicy guitars" and left a verdict: "Powerful stuff."
Personnel
- Sebastian Bach – vocals
- Dave Sabo – guitars
- Scotti Hill – guitars
- Rachel Bolan – bass
- Rob Affuso – drums
Charts
Weekly charts
| Chart (1989–1990) | Peak | |
|---|---|---|
| position | Europe (Eurochart Hot 100) | |
| 30 |
Year-end charts
| Chart (1989) | Position | Canada Top Singles (*RPM*) | US *Billboard* Hot 100 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 80 | |||
| 61 |
Certifications
Release history
| Region | Date | Format(s) | Label(s) | Ref. | United States | Japan | United Kingdom |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| June 16, 1989 | Atlantic | ||||||
| July 10, 1989 | Mini-CD | ||||||
| January 22, 1990 |
References
References
- McPadden, Mike. (September 25, 2015). "The Hair Metal 100: Ranking the '80s Greatest Glam Bands—The Final 20!".
- Jeffries, Neil. (December 8, 2021). "Skid Row's Atlantic years: from wild youth to burst bubbles".
- Bowar, Chad. (April 15, 2015). "Skid Row Re-Record '18 and Life' With New Songer Tony Harnell".
- (April 14, 2015). "Skid Row's Re-Recording of "18 and Life" is the Dumbest Thing Since Sebastian Bach".
- (April 13, 2015). "Skid Row Records New Version of '18 And Life' With Tony Harnell".
- Wilbur R. Miller, ''The Social History of Crime and Punishment in America: An Encyclopedia'' (2012), p. 1172.
- Reader, Adam. (2022-09-06). "Haunting 80s Murder Song Was Censored by MTV..Still Scaled the Top of the Charts". Professor of Rock.
- (4 November 1989). "Previews: Singles: Skid Row – "18 and Life"". European Music Report BV.
- (February 17, 1990). "Eurochart Hot 100 Singles".
- (December 23, 1999). "Top Singles Singles of '89".
- (December 23, 1989). "1989 The Year in Music: Top Pop Singles".
- "Billboard Top 100 – 1989".
- "エイティーン・アンド・ライフ {{!}} スキッド・ロウ". [[Oricon]].
- (January 20, 1990). "New Singles".
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