Released 1983 Label Slash Producer(s) Mark Van Hecke | Length 2:27 Writer(s) Gordon Gano | |
Format "Blister in the Sun"
(1983) | ||
"Blister in the Sun" is a song by American alternative rock band Violent Femmes, originally released on their 1983 self-titled debut album.
In 2005, it became the first English-language track to ever be allowed on RTÉ Raidió na Gaeltachta, the Republic of Ireland Irish-language radio station, after having been selected by listeners for the event.
In media
The song was featured in the opening of Episode 17 of the TV series My So-Called Life in 1995.
The song was also featured prominently in the 1997 film Grosse Pointe Blank. John Cusack had initially requested an updated version of the song, which led to the band recording a new, slower arrangement that featured saxophones, strings and other instruments. This version of the song was dubbed "Blister 2000." However, Cusack eventually decided he wanted to include the original version of the song as well. Because the original master tapes of the band's debut album had long been disposed of, they decided to record a new version of the original 1983 arrangement. Curiously, neither of these rerecorded versions appears in the actual film, although a new music video was created for the new recording of the 1983 arrangement. It features Gordon Gano as a deranged assassin trying to kill Socks the cat in puppet form, interspersed with clips from the film.
In August 2007, Gordon Gano was the subject of a lawsuit brought by bassist Brian Ritchie. The lawsuit stems partly from Gano's authorization of the use of "Blister" in a Wendy's commercial. In 2008, the song was featured on a Foster's Lager "Stealing Shadows" advertisement.
In 2016, the song was featured in an episode of the Netflix original series Love.
The very recognizable acoustic guitar line that opens the song is occasionally played as organ music at some baseball stadiums, such as Nationals Park.