If you've been following me for a while, you'll probably know that Green Day is one of my favourite bands. And it's not just me. They have a huge fanbase, all across the globe. Today, I'm going to be ranking their entire discography, and diving deep into each album and song. This is a big one, so sit back, and enjoy the show.
1,000 Hours (1989)
Green Day's first studio release, was a 4 track EP released in 1989, called 1000 Hours. The EP is described purely as old school Punk, although some could say, the theme of the lyrics swing more towards Pop Punk. All of the songs, according to Billie Joe, were written about the same girl, which he had a crush on at the time. The lyrics are cheesy at best. The EP'S stand out point is the overall guitar playing. The production quality is crap, to be brutally honest, but that's expected from a bunch of 16 year olds who have no background or money behind them. Also features as tracks 15-18 of 1,039/Smoothed Out Slappy Hours.
Song rankings -
1st Place: Dry Ice - Banging solo, and very catchy.
2nd Place: The One I Want - Overall melody of the verses is great. Let down by chorus.
3rd Place: Only Of You - Pretty good solo, if not a bit repetitive. Song is not bad.
4th Place: 1000 Hours - Despite being the title track, it's not a good song.
EP Ranking: 3/5
39/Smooth (1990)
Green Day's first full length album was released a year later in 1990. This time, they introduced the world to 10 new songs (If you don't count occasional live performances.) This was also the first album where the band did a little bit of experimentation, with slower songs. The album is described mostly as Punk Rock, with elements of Skate Punk and Pop Punk as well. It's not hard to see that Green Day were still trying to find their sound, and what they wanted to mainly focus on. The song writing is more personal to Billie Joe this time around, with some songs reflecting his personal life, rather than them all just being about girls. Some still are though, naturally. Also features as tracks 1-10 of 1,039/Smoothed Out Slappy Hours.
Song Rankings -
1st Place: Going To Pasalacqua - Most popular on the album, and for good reason.
2nd Place: Road To Acceptance - High vocals take getting used to, but it'll grow on you.
3rd Place: Disappearing Boy - A personal song for Billie Joe. Very catchy too.
4th Place: The Judge's Daughter - Arguably the best solo Billie Joe has ever written.
5th Place: Green Day - Yes, that's the name of the song. It's pretty good too.
6th Place: Don't Leave Me - Pretty solid, very fast paced Punk tune.
7th Place: I Was There - Only song written by John (Drummer). It's alright.
8th Place: At The Library - Not the best but it's not horrible.
9th Place: 16 - Good lyrics, but that's about it.
10th Place: Rest - Too slow, doesn't fit with the rest of the album.
Album Ranking: 4/5
Slappy (1990)
Slappy is Green Day's second EP, also with 4 tracks. The song writing, is much better on this one, and also features their first cover song. Once again, the themes of the lyrics are a mixture between girls, and personal experiences. The album has been described as going back, purely to Punk Rock, there's no real experimentation here, with the exception of the cover. This EP contains my favourite song from the John Kiffmeyer drumming days. Also, there's some great solos. One of the songs, Billie Joe wrote when he was just 14. And it's a banger too. Also features as tracks 11-14 of 1,039/Smoothed Out Slappy Hours.
Song Rankings -
1st Place: Paper Lanterns - Most popular one here, once again for good reason. It's great.
2nd Place: Why Do You Want Him? - Oldest song here, but still holds up. Great solo too.
3rd Place: 409 In Your Coffeemaker - It's pretty good, solo is a little boring.
4th Place: Knowledge - Cover. They took a weird route with this one. It's OK though.
EP Ranking: 3.5/5
Sweet Children (1990)
Sweet Children is Green Day's last studio EP, and a nod to their early days, when they were still called Sweet Children. The EP consists, of once again, 4 songs, and all of them are songs the band used to play in their earliest gigs. There's personally no real standout here, but there is another cover song. It too is described as Punk Rock, with no major difference between songs. Personally this is the most bland Green Day release ever. Still, I do occasionally find myself bopping along to some of the tracks. Last release to feature John Kiffmeyer on drums. Also features as tracks 13-16 of Kerplunk.
Song Rankings -
1st Place: My Generation - Cover. Catchy, and good instrumental section and solo.
2nd Place: Best Thing In Town - Very fast paced, and the bridge of the song is really catchy.
3rd Place: Sweet Children - Not much to shout about, but it's fast, if that's what you like.
4th Place: Strangeland - Too similar to Best Thing In Town. Not that good.
EP Ranking: 1.5/5
Kerplunk (1991)
Green Day's second full length album, came just a year after the first one. Between 1989 and 1991, the band were extremely busy, with concerts, radio performances and of course, recording. Kerplunk was the first release with Tre Cool and drums, and the first to feature someone other than Billie Joe on lead vocals. The general style of the album is described as Punk Rock, Pop Punk and Indie Rock. The band were still in an experimental phase with a couple songs here, but most of them set the ball rolling for what was to come in the future. Personally, this is in my Top 5 Green Day albums.
Song Rankings -
1st Place: Who Wrote Holden Caulfield? - Yes. Just yes. I could listen to this on loop.
2nd Place: One For The Razorbacks - Solos are pretty scarce on this album. Not here.
3rd Place: Welcome To Paradise - Original recording of a hit song, featured on a later album.
4th Place: 2000 Light Years Away - A heart warming song about long distance relationships.
5th Place: Christie Road - A legendary song in the Green Day universe.
6th Place: 80 - Cool bass line, catchy chorus.
7th Place: Android - A song about a homeless man. Quite a banger.
8th Place: One Of My Lies - It's not too bad, but there's nothing really special about it.
9th Place: No One Knows - I feel bad putting it so low, but it's just too slow for me.
10th Place: Private Ale - It's not that bad, but it's not amazing either.
11th Place: Dominated Love Slave - Sang by Tre Cool. It's a stupid but fun country song.
12th Place: Words I Might Have Ate - First acoustic song Green Day released. It's OK.
Album Ranking: 4/5
Dookie (1994)
This is commonly referred to as the best Green Day album ever released. There are several hits and great songs. It was one of the albums responsible for bringing Punk music into the mainstream, and is Green Day's first album on a major record label. It was also the album where Green Day's popularity really grew, enough to let them perform at Woodstock in '94. The album is described as a mixture of Punk Rock, Pop Punk and Skate Punk. The lyrics have a much more personal feel to them, and generally cover all aspects of the struggles of life, from ex girlfriends, murder, divorce and sexual orientation.
Song Rankings -
1st Place: She - A classic and a huge hit. Worthy of the praise.
2nd Place: F.O.D. - I'll probably get hate for this. I don't care. Fight me.
3rd Place: Welcome To Paradise - 3rd Place again, but it's just so good.
4th Place: Chump - Underrated gem, better than the song that follows.
5th Place: Longview - It's extremely crude, but pretty damn good.
6th Place: Basket Case - I apologise it's so low, it's just so overplayed.
7th Place: Emenius Sleepus - Written by Mike Dirnt. It's catchy, but too short.
8th Place: When I Come Around - It's a great song, but has the same problem as BC.
9th Place: Coming Clean - It's too short again, but so much fun.
10th Place: Sassafras Roots - It's pretty decent at best.
11th Place: In The End - A lot of very short songs here.
12th Place: Pulling Teeth - It's nothing to really shout about.
13th Place: Burnout - Sorry, it's just not that good.
14th Place: Having A Blast - Same story here.
15th Place: All By Myself - Sung by Tre Cool. It's beyond crap.
Album Ranking: 4/5
Insomniac (1995)
This is 100% Green Day's heaviest album to date. The lyrics are angry, the songs are angry, and everything about it is just awesome. Some songs let it down, but overall, it's pretty solid. It's described as a blend of Punk Rock, Hardcore Punk and Pop Punk. The album comes shortly after a fall out with the owner of 924 Gilman Street, a music club which Green Day were kicked out of for being "sell outs". One song is about this experience, but you can tell the band were pissed off by how heavy the rest of it is. It was a different sound to Dookie, and as a result wasn't as popular. Still though, it's remained a well loved classic and deserves more respect.
Song Rankings -
1st Place: Westbound Sign - It's perfect. Just perfect. A masterpiece, in every way possible.
2nd Place: Stuart And The Ave. - The bass line slaps. Song's great too.
3rd Place: 86 - A song about being kicked out. What a banger.
4th Place: Panic Song - How does one play bass that fast? It's epic.
5th Place: Stuck With Me - A brilliant song, nothing really wrong with it.
6th Place: No Pride - I used to love this song, but I like others more now. Still good though.
7th Place: Brat - It's grown on me a lot, but I think 7th place is fair enough.
8th Place: Armatage Shanks - It's pretty good at best, but it's far from my favourite.
9th Place: Bab's Uvula Who? - Weird title but the song is OK.
10th Place: Tight Wad Hill - I just don't feel it with this one. It's OK I guess.
11th Place: Jaded - Much better than the song that comes before, but that's not saying much.
12th Place: Geek Stink Breath - Overrated tat. It's mediocre, and that's being kind.
13th Place: Walking Contradiction - It's got a really annoying stupid melody.
14th Place: Brain Stew - I HATE this song. With a pure fed passion.
Album Ranking: 4/5
Nimrod (1997)
Nimrod was Green Day's most experimental album at the time of it's release. It was generally described as Punk Rock, Pop Punk and Alternative Rock, with elements of Folk, Ska, Hardcore and Surf Rock. It was also Green Day's longest album, with 18 songs on the standard album, (more on overseas releases). Lyrically the album is more mature with themes of growing up, fatherhood and personal reflection. There's also a few songs which feel extremely angry, following the fallout with the owner of 924. It's also home to what is arguably one of Green Day's most loved songs.
Song Rankings -
1st Place: Hitchin A Ride - It's a big hit but it's fantastic. Has to be Number 1.
2nd Place: Reject - Underrated Gem. Nowhere near enough love for it.
3rd Place: Nice Guys Finish Last - As far as openers go, it's one of the best ever.
4th Place: Good Riddance - I know it's overplayed but you can't help loving it.
5th Place: Platypus - Yes. Just yes. It's so fast and makes me angry just listening to it.
6th Place: Scattered - As far as songs on this album go, this one is not bad at all.
7th Place: The Grouch - It's got a nice rhythm to it.
8th Place: King For A Day - Green Day's attempt at Ska. It's decent.
9th Place: Worry Rock - It's easy listening for me, and I like the solo.
10th Place: Jinx - No Chorus, which is a little weird. Still good though.
11th Place: Haushinka - A song about a girl. It's not horrible
12th Place: Last Ride In - Instrumental Surf rock ballad. It's nice.
13th Place: Walking Alone - Folk Rock ballad with a nice ring to it.
14th Place: Uptight - Things go downhill from here. It's OK.
15th Place: Redundant - Again, it's OK, slightly above mediocre.
16th Place: All The Time - It's grown on me a bit, but not much.
17th Place: Prosthetic Head - Worst way to end the album. Should have ended on GR.
18th Place: Take Back - What in the hell is this? TAAAAKE BEEERCK!
25th Anniversary Previously Unreleased Bonus Song Rankings -
1st Place: You Irritate Me - The first one we heard, and it's so bloody good.
2nd Place: Black Eyeliner - Early version of Church On Sunday?
3rd Place: Place Inside My Head - Sung by Mike Dirnt. Not too bad.
4th Place: Chain Saw - Ramones Cover. Pretty good.
5th Place: Alison - Elvis Costello Cover. It's OK, I guess.
6th Place: Tre Polka - Glad this didn't make the album. Weird instrumental.
Album Ranking: 3.5/5
Warning (2000)
Warning was Green Day's first album that focused mainly on other genres rather than Punk. It's still present in some songs, but the majority fall more towards the Folk Rock genre, one they fiddled around with in Nimrod. As well as Pop Punk and Folk Punk, other present styles are Power Pop, Pop Rock and Alternative Rock. Billie stated that the musical style of this album was heavily inspired by Bob Dylan. So if you're a fan of Bob, I guess give it a listen. Personally, The album misses the mark, and is one of Green Day's weakest. The effort is good, but the overall result isn't.
Song Rankings -
1st Place: Castaway - One of the heavier songs. And my god it's catchy.
2nd Place: Minority - Another of the heavier ones. That Acoustic intro is so iconic!
3rd Place: Macy's Day Parade - A beautiful song, and a perfect closer.
4th Place: Church On Sunday - I love this song so much. It's almost perfect.
5th Place: Waiting - This one is pretty damn decent too.
6th Place: Jackass - A nice soft Semi Acoustic song. I really dig this one.
7th Place: Blood Sex And Booze - A very weird song, at least lyrically. Not bad though.
8th Place: Deadbeat Holiday - It's not that bad actually. It's grown on me.
9th Place: Hold On - It's above average, which I guess is praise.
10th Place: Fashion Victim - It's nothing special honestly.
11th Place: Misery - I mean, I see what they were going for, but it falls a bit short.
12th Place: Warning - If you like this you're just silly. It's overrated and annoying.
Album Ranking: 3/5
American Idiot (2004)
Where to start with this? It's Green Day's first Rock Opera, which means every song on the album (bar one) follows the same story. In this case, it follows the life of a man nicknamed "The Jesus Of Suburbia." Lyrically, this is Green Day's darkest and most relatable yet. It covers everything from corrupt governments, dodgy relationships, drug abuse, and personal loss. Overall it's an absolute masterpiece. It is by far the most punk album Green Day have ever released, and also showed off Billie Joe's emo side. If you don't like this album, please leave earth immediately. Now, this is going to be tricky.
Song Rankings -
1st Place: Holiday - This song, I swear to god. My childhood in a nutshell.
2nd Place: Whatsername - I'm not crying, you are!
3rd Place: Wake Me Up When September Ends - I knew every lyric at 2 years old!
4th Place: Boulevard Of Broken Dreams - Looking a bit predictable, but you understand.
5th Place: Letterbomb - This song is the 5th best thing that ever happened to me.
6th Place: American Idiot - It's massively overplayed, but still a banger.
7th Place: Jesus Of Suburbia - Bohemian Rhapsody anyone?
8th Place: Homecoming - Slightly less good Bohemian Rhapsody anyone?
9th Place: St Jimmy - Fastest on the album. By a long shot.
10th Place: Give Me Novacaine - Beautiful song, and it slaps so hard.
11th Place: She's A Rebel - It's alright, not the best.
12th Place: Extraordinary Girl - Never been a huge fan of this one.
13th Place: Are We The Waiting - More of a chant than a song.
Deluxe Edition Bonus Track Rankings -
1st Place: Too Much Too Soon - If there was such a thing as music heaven, this would play.
2nd Place: Shoplifter - Not sure about this one. It's not bad, but compared to TMTS....
3rd Place: Governator - Sung by Mike Dirnt. It's OK, not the worst.
Album Ranking: 4.9/5 (Nothing is perfect.)
21st Century Breakdown (2009)
Green Day's second and so far final Rock Opera, this time follows the story of Christian and Gloria, a young couple who are struggling with their relationship in the corrupt modern world. The album has been described as Punk Rock, Pop Punk, Arena Rock, Power Pop and Alternative Rock. The album, is a worthy successor to American Idiot, even though a few didn't agree. Many felt it tried too hard to be like American Idiot, with no real differentiation of it's own. I completely disagree, as this is probably one of my favourite Green Day records.
Song Rankings -
1st Place: Horseshoes and Handgrenades - Oh my god. What a TUNE!
2nd Place: American Eulogy - Masterpiece. Just perfect.
3rd Place: Restless Heart Syndrome - Such a good song. And that beat drop in the solo.
4th Place: The Static Age - Underrated as crap. Deserves way more love.
5th Place: East Jesus Nowhere - The song that made me want to learn guitar.
6th Place: Last Of The American Girls - So many fantastic songs.
7th Place: Viva La Gloria - Starts off so soft, and then just completely slaps.
8th Place: Murder City - This is the hardest ranking I've ever had to do.
9th Place: Little Girl - Viva La Gloria Part 2. Almost as good.
10th Place: Peacemaker - So funky and so much fun to listen to.
11th Place: 21st Century Breakdown - It's a great opener, if you don't count SOTC.
12th Place: 21 Guns - Great song, just so overplayed.
13th Place: See The Light - Slightly worse version of 21CB.
14th Place: Know Your Enemy - It's pretty decent, but we're getting to the weaker end now.
15th Place: Christian's Inferno - Pretty good actually, just very weird.
16th Place: Last Night On Earth - Very slow ballad. A bit too soft for me.
17th Place: Before The Lobotomy - I'll be honest, I don't like this one much.
18th Place: Song Of The Century - Slightly false advertising as it's not really a song.
Album Ranking: 4.5/5
Uno (2012)
When Green Day announced they would be releasing 3 albums in one year, the world went mad. Right up until they heard Uno, the first of the three. Then they just sort of stopped. Uno was the start of a very difficult time for Billie Joe, and the record has a completely different feel to it. Compared to the masterpieces that were AI and 21CB, it seemed like a different band had made it. It has been described as having elements of Power Pop, Pop Punk and Punk Rock. It is definitely the heaviest of the three albums, but it still took everyone by surprise, and took a bit of getting used to.
Song Rankings -
1st Place: Fell For You - So cheesy, but bloody brilliant.
2nd Place: Stay The Night - So underrated to be completely honest.
3rd Place: Let Yourself Go - Fast, manic, pop punk fiesta!
4th Place: Rusty James - This one really surprised me.
5th Place: Kill The DJ - Very un Green Day like, but surprisingly good.
6th Place: Angel Blue - Pretty quick and decently heavy.
7th Place: Carpe Diem - It's not that bad
8th Place: Sweet 16 - This has grown on me a lot. Not that heavy though.
9th Place: Nuclear Family - Another one that took me a while to like.
10th Place: Oh Love - This just doesn't do it for me.
11th Place: Loss Of Control - Had so much potential, and it fell way too flat.
12th Place: Troublemaker - Please Stop.
Album Ranking: 3.5/5
Dos (2012)
Part 2 of the 2012 trilogy, brought us 13 brand new songs to jam along to. Unfortunately, a lot of people disliked this one even more than Uno. It is often described as the worst of the 3. Musically, it was even more experimental than what came prior, and featured plenty of new styles and ideas. It has been described as Garage Rock, Pop Punk and Punk Rock. Personally, I like this album. It's probably my favourite from the trilogy. I like the energy, I like Mike's Bass Lines. I like the guitar solos. To be completely honest, the album only really has one major problem. THAT song. If you know, you know.
Song Rankings -
1st Place: Ashley - It just slaps so hard.
2nd Place: Makeout Party - So catchy, and full of energy.
3rd Place: Lady Cobra - Yes. Just yes. And that double guitar solo is trippy as heck!
4th Place: Stray Heart - The Bass line is just epic.
5th Place: Lazy Bones - A song all about me!
6th Place: Wild One - I genuinely really like this one.
7th Place: Baby Eyes - This has grown on me a lot.
8th Place: Amy - A nice heartfelt tribute song.
9th Place: Stop When The Red Lights Flash - Another one I grew to like later on.
10th Place: F*ck Time: Very crude. Very loud. Pretty good.
11th Place: See You Tonight - Only thing that lets it down, is that it's too short.
12th Place: Wow! That's Loud. - I don't like it much. The guitar solo is by far the best bit.
13th Place: Nightlife - We'll just pretend this one doesn't exist, yeah?
Album Ranking: 4/5
Tre (2012)
Tre is the final of the trilogy, and honestly, it's my least favourite. It feels repetitive, and a lot of the songs are quite tame compared to the other two. It has been described as Pop Punk, Alternative Rock and Power Pop. In all honesty, the main reason I don't like it, is because it felt like the band had ran out of ideas, and a few of the songs feel stale. Don't get me wrong, it's not bad at all, it's just not as good as it could be. It's definitely one that will have to grow on you over time.
Song Rankings -
1st Place: 99 Revolutions - I really dig this one to be honest.
2nd Place: X-Kid - A sad but beautiful song.
3rd Place: Missing You - Very relevant to me at the start of my long distance relationship.
4th Place: Dirty Rotten B*st*rds - Nursery rhyme melody with a metal guitar solo. Hell yes.
5th Place: 8th Avenue Serenade - I don't know why I like this one so much.
6th Place: Walk Away - Another one I really like for some reason.
7th Place: Amanda - I quite like this one too.
8th Place: The Forgotten - Another sad but beautiful ballad.
9th Place: Drama Queen - Why do I even like this one so much?
10th Place: Sex Drugs & Violence - It's decent I guess.
11th Place: Brutal Love - Never been hugely fond of this one.
12th Place: A Little Boy Named Train - I'll pass thanks.
Album Ranking: 3.5/5
Revolution Radio (2016)
Revolution Radio took a major turn from the trilogy, gone were the light hearted love songs, and soft ballads, every single track was a hard hitting emotional masterpiece. I really appreciate what they did with this one. It's Green Day's darkest album to date, even more so than American Idiot. The main difference between the two, is that while American Idiot is mostly abaout personal issues, fixed around the story of Jesus Of Suburbia, Revolution Radio is more focused on general problems faced in today's world, such as terrorism, loss, etc. Musically, the album is mostly pretty heavy, with songs like Bang Bang, and Bouncing Off The Wall, being the heaviest in a long time.
Song Rankings -
1st Place: Bouncing Off The Wall - What an absolute tune.
2nd Place: Bang Bang - Extremely Fast Paced, reminds me of St Jimmy.
3rd Place: Revolution Radio - Title track really does slap.
4th Place: Forever Now - Even Blink 182 fans like this song.
5th Place: Too Dumb To Die - Underrated as heck!
6th Place: Still Breathing - A bit on the softer side, but so emotionally powerful.
7th Place: Ordinary World - Only non electric song. So beautiful.
8th Place: Troubled Times - I used to like this one a lot more, but it's still good.
9th Place: Somewhere Now - It's not too bad as an opener, but the stuff that follows is better.
10th Place: Outlaws - This one has grown on me recently.
11th Place: Say Goodbye - It's OK. Solo slaps though.
12th Place: Youngblood - I'm not a huge fan of this one.
Album Ranking: 4/5
Father Of All (2020)
Father of All was.... weird to say the least. At least at first listen. It was arguably Green Day's biggest departure from their signature sound yet. Gone were the loud guitars and fast melodies (with one or two exceptions), which were replaced by pop melodies and electronic effects. The whole thing sounds synthetic. I admit, it has grown on me a LOT recently, but you still can't deny, it is indeed Green Day's worst. Genres are a mix of Alternative, Pop and Garage rock, as well as the usual punk styles. The songs are good, if you are prepared for the sound difference. Get over that and it's really not that bad.
Song Rankings -
1st Place: Sugar Youth - Heaviest song on the album. Pretty good.
2nd Place: Take The Money And Crawl - Used to be my favourite. Still holds up.
3rd Place: Father Of All - Once you get used to the falsetto vocals, it's pretty good.
4th Place: Stab You In The Heart - Rock N Roll copy of F*ck Time. Literally.
5th Place: Meet Me On The Roof - Catchy, but a little poppy.
6th Place: Graffitia - Used to hate it, but now I don't for some reason.
7th Place: Fire Ready Aim - Short and snappy, a lot like Billie himself really.
8th Place: I Was A Teenage Teenager - Grown on me a little bit, but not much.
9th Place: Junkies On A High - Used to like it, now it's pretty meh to me.
10th Place: Oh Yeah - Oh No. It's terrible.
Album Ranking: 2/5
Overall Album Rankings:
1st Place: American Idiot
2nd Place: 21st Century Breakdown
3rd Place: Kerplunk
4th Place: Dookie
5th Place: Insomniac
6th Place: Revolution Radio
7th Place: Saviors
8th Place: 39/Smooth
9th Place: Dos
10th Place: Nimrod
11th Place: Slappy
12th Place: Uno
13th Place: Tre
14th Place: Warning
15th Place: 1000 Hours
16th Place: Sweet Children
17th Place: Father Of All
Top 10 BEST songs:
1st Place: Holiday
2nd Place: Too Much Too Soon
3rd Place: Westbound Sign
4th Place: Whatsername
5th Place: Who Wrote Holden Caulfield
6th Place: Horseshoes And Handgrenades
7th Place: Wake Me Up When September Ends
8th Place: American Eulogy
9th Place: Boulevard Of Broken Dreams
10th Place: Restless Heart Syndrome
Top 10 WORST songs:
1st Place: Nightlife
2nd Place: Oh Yeah
3rd Place: All By Myself
4th Place: Tre Polka
5th Place: Take Back
6th Place: Troublemaker
7th Place: Loss Of Control
8th Place: Wow That's Loud
9th Place: Warning
10th Place: Brain Stew
Feel free to hurl abuse at me and try to get me cancelled.