B-side "Backstreet Noise" Format 7" single Length 3:33 | Released June 12, 1978 Recorded October 1977 Label Chrysalis | |
"Hot Child in the City" is a song by English-Canadian musician Nick Gilder. It was released in June 1978 as a single from the album City Nights. It went to number one both in Canada (October 14, 1978) and in the United States (October 28, 1978). It was not his first number one single: as the lead singer of Sweeney Todd, he had hit #1 in Canada on June 26, 1976 (in the RPM listing) with the single "Roxy Roller", which remained at the top for three weeks. He won 2 Juno Awards in Canada and a People's Choice Award in the US. According to The Billboard Book of Number 1 Hits it held the record for taking the longest amount of time to reach number one. The song became a platinum record.
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Content
Despite the song's innocent and catchy pop stylings, the tune is based on Gilder's experiences witnessing child prostitution. "I've seen a lot of young girls, 15 and 16, walking down Hollywood Boulevard with their pimps. Their home environment drove them to distraction so they ran away, only to be trapped by something even worse. It hurts to see that so I tried writing from the perspective of a lecher – in the guise of an innocent pop song."
Cover versions
The song was covered by London on their 1990 album Playa Del Rock. Mac McCaughan of Superchunk and singer-songwriter Kelly Hogan performed a version of the song in August 2013 for The A.V. Club's A.V. Undercover: Summer Break series.