THIRD EYE BLIND SEMI-CHARMED LIFE (THE DARK STORY)
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The dark story behind the Third Eye Blind song Semi-Charmed Life
0:00- Early Band history
4:21 - Semi-Charmed Life Writing/Success
9:30 - Who Wrote Semi-Charmed Life?
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Third Eye Blind would be formed in 1993 in San Francisco by frontman Stephan Jenkins. His parents would divorce when he was 7 and as a kid he struggled with dyslexia. In the sixth grade, his teacher told him he would never graduate high school and instead, would likely end up in juvie. He would graduate high school and ended up becoming a straight A student at UC Berkley getting an english literature degree in 1987. Jenkins would start playing in bands in high school first starting out as a drummer.
By 1990 he was living in lower haight in san francisco and had rented out his room so he could live in a closet. Jenkins would survive on a steady diet of ramen and coffee that was financed by money he had stolen from his roomates. He’d of course also write music during this time as well. He would refer to this period in his life as “my 1967, my summer of love.”Prior to third eye blind, Jenkins was part of a rap duo group called Puck and Natty who believe it or not in 1992 got a song called just wanna be your friend on the soundtrack of beverly hills 90210.
Jenkins would receive a payment of about $7,800 for the song appearing on the show. He’d later admit he had never seen the show and used the money to buy groceries..Puck and Natty’s demo tape soon found it’s way to several industry heavyweights including irving azoff and At one point capitol records nearly signed the rapping group. But when questions over who should produce the group got raised in a meeting, Jenkins walked, wanting to take on production duties himself.
It was in 1990 he met another resident who lived on lower Haight area, Eric Godtland. Gotland was working as a management consultant by day and a pretty unsuccessful club DJ by night. He would take jenkins under his wing.
Jenkins would tell Gotland a vision he had of starting a new rock band. He already had a name -- Third Eye Blind. And he already had a handful of songs including the track semi charmed life. Some of the music for the song came from his partner in puck and natty who Jenkins ultimately paid $10K to so he could have 100% ownership over the song. I’m sure that guy is kicking himself for doing such a deal.
Also around this time, Jenkins befriended a waitress who worked down the street who was also writing songs and they would play each other their compositions. He would play her semicharmed life and she would play him a song called what’s going on. That waitress was Linda Perry of the group 4 non blondes. What’s going on would later be renamed what’s up? And she would go on to have an enormous amount of success.
Semi Charmed Life eventually made its way to Randy jackson of american idol fame who liked it, and he took it to don ienner of Sony music who didn’t. He thought jenkins was rambling on the song, and thought, it was too different. Initially Third Eye Blind started out as a songwriting exercise with producers and engineers Jenkins knew, but ultimately he wanted to establish a band.
Jenkins goal from the start was to break free of the constraints of indie rock according to the la times. Jenkins would tell the paper “I didn’t feel like i fit into that whole post grunge-noise pop scene that movement to democratize the form by playing badly.” Third Eye blind’s early inspirations included groups like the beatles and college rockers camper van beethoven in addition to the hip hop group The Sugar Hill Gang,
Jenkins woulplayed with a lot of guitarists before finding Kevin Cadogan who he’d do some two man acoustic shows with around the bay area. They’d eventually add bassist Arion Salazar from East Bay group Fungo Mungo and the band went through nearly half a dozen drummers before finding Brad Hargreaves. Salazar would credit Cadogan as being the missing piece for third eye blind. He’d recall to billboard hearing semi charmed life for the first time revealing He had it with a stripped-down drum machine and electronic bass on the first non-band demo. It was kind of one-dimensional, acoustic guitar troubadour-y first position thing with basic guitar
Пікірлер: 276
Is everyone else’s downtown in their city full of people using this drug?
@jedahn
4 ай бұрын
Yeah, meth is everywhere and pretty much everyone is on it.
@RockNRollTrueStories2
4 ай бұрын
@@jedahnyeah it’s terrifying
@msjsq1966
4 ай бұрын
I was addicted to it many moons ago. Don't miss it.
@gregoryporch8395
4 ай бұрын
They're all over Denver and Boulder
@redghettosun9785
4 ай бұрын
Breaking Bad was very popular for a reason.
"Doing Crystal Meth will lift you up until you break" Yes, it's about drugs.
@aubreyaubrey5193
4 ай бұрын
Like duh, right?
@mitchyyy18
4 ай бұрын
No way?! 😂
@lushkitty734
4 ай бұрын
OMG! Are you serious?!
@angelaa7388
3 ай бұрын
Lmao. "I took the hit that I was given and I bumped again."
@ChairmanPaulieD
3 ай бұрын
@@angelaa7388 Jenkins bumped again again even after firing Cadogan he bumped again LOL 😆😅😂🤣
That third eye blind album is the most 90s album ever and i love it for it.
@KrisBryant99
4 ай бұрын
The 2nd is to but often gets overlooked.
@ChairmanPaulieD
3 ай бұрын
@@KrisBryant99 I loved the “Blue” album 🤘🏽 songs I loved the MOST off that album were (10 Days Late, 1000 July’s, Anything and An Ode To Maybe) but the debut album I can just listen to that album from Track 1 “Losing A Whole Year” to Track 14 “God Of Wine” 🤘🏽🤘🏽
@brandonproctor3639
3 ай бұрын
Absolutely! Awesome album
I've hung out with tweekers, no amount of catchy tune can really make it a positive experience
@rnrtruestories
4 ай бұрын
Yes where I live downtown is full of tweakers. They’ve taken over public transit sadly
@AmericanPatriot4-19-95
4 ай бұрын
Well said. Bad element with meth ....the people are a sketchy as crackheads 😮
@BathBombTheRussians
4 ай бұрын
I know an attorney that “casually” does meth around one weekend a month and is super functional outside of that weekend a month. Everyone else that I have known that got close to the drug lost decades of their lives to it.
@kenterminateddq5311
4 ай бұрын
James, Flagpole Sitta (I'm not sick but I'm not well) is a good example.
@screamdreamer9085
4 ай бұрын
But were you using it with them? Two very different experiences. One doesn’t last long. The other last too long and ends very badly, but extremely fun in the beginning
Seen them about 2 years ago with my daughter and they put on an amazing show still. We had the best night. One of the best bands I have ever seen!
I remember this song being everywhere in the fall of 1997 and, yeah, it being about drugs initially went completely over everyone’s head. I was in 6th grade at the time and recall seeing a group of my full of 6th graders dancing to it at a Halloween party in another classroom. 11 and 12-year-olds dance to a drug song, good heavens!
@ChairmanPaulieD
3 ай бұрын
Sheesh 😆😅 a song about drugs & sex went right over their heads godd**n
@701delbronx8
27 күн бұрын
How do you dance to this song
@ChairmanPaulieD
26 күн бұрын
@@701delbronx8 Hehe YEAH IKR 😆😅😂🤣
I was a young adult when this came out....I knew what it was about...so upbeat...I still love it!!
Glad you mentioned the Primus connection. Linda Perry and the rest of 4 Non Blondes were big Primus fans and stated once that they started the band just to play with Primus. Also, Fungo Mungo was friends with Primus and played together a lot.
These guys were massive in the late nineties.
@BradyIsAfagInHeat
4 ай бұрын
Must have blocked that part of the 90s out from.my.memory. Just this one song was enough for me to not want to listen which sucks cause they seem like solid people and probably have some cool tunes but that foggy single that was out, wasn't for me man.
I love all your videos but this is exceptionally done. What a deep dive I loved every minute
@rnrtruestories
4 ай бұрын
Thank you! I really appreciate it!
I've made many friends over the years just from the shared love of Third Eye Blind.
One of my favorite songs ever and the fact that those sick lyrics never even cross people’s minds is just perfect
Really loved this album back in the day. Especially “God of Wine”.
I remember hearing this song in 1998 when I was in middle school kids my age, listening to this song back then good God
I remember most people not really paying attention to the lyrics. Even when people caught the drug references, I think most people didn't think much about it. Our local pop station played the version with some words censored out of it, but the alternative station played it uncensored.
How's it gonna be is one of my favorite songs ever
@rnrtruestories
4 ай бұрын
It’s a great song
that song was huuuge!!! here in australia and still gets a lot of air time very catchy song
Tell us about the face down on the mattress lyric….😮
Stephen Jenkins seems like a major meanie, but wow was he a looker back in the day. 🔥🔥
Fantastic album thru and thru. Where's Kmart now? Haha. Great episode! Ty.
I don't care what anyone says, it's a great fuckin song and always will be, they got several good tunes.
@sn1ffy85
4 ай бұрын
Whole debut is fucking great. Took me ages to bother.
@WhatIsMatter101
4 ай бұрын
When I play Semi-Charmed Life, the playlist has to start with Losing A Whole Year and end with God of Wine. The debut CD was so good.
@AndI0td763
4 ай бұрын
Yeah the debut is just a great album all around. I remember the second album not being as good, too overproduced in my opinion, though still has some good songs, but I don’t think anything they’ve done since stands up to the first album.
From stealing from his roomates to stealing from his bandmates. Semi charmed life sounds about right.
@geneeverett7855
3 ай бұрын
He didn’t steal shit. Bro u just believe anything u hear eh?
@jb-yi4di
3 ай бұрын
@@geneeverett7855 But in his own words he "lived on Ramen noodles and coffee, financed by stealing from my roommates". Edit. At least according to this clip
I still rock out to Semi-Charmed Life even though I know the song is not exactly a lyrical brightspot... it's just the fuckin vibes of the music and reminds me of simpler times
As some have mentioned down here in the comments, Jenkins’ ego was the downfall of this band. Had he been smarter to notice that once Kevin was gone they would never again recapture their unique melodic identity, and reconcile with him, 3EB would’ve remained relevant to this day. In my humble opinion a band’s identity is composed of 3 core pillars: Lyrics + Melody + Attitude Removing any of them will lead the band to either slowly or quickly collapse.
@spindillio
4 ай бұрын
You're missing out if you haven't dug into their last several albums.
@guiramos3733
4 ай бұрын
@@spindillio I never said their work post Kevin is not good, it just lost the melodic identity that was key to their huge success early on. Even Salazar admitted this as mentioned in the video. Kevin brought a kind of magic that defined 3EB.
@spindillio
4 ай бұрын
@@guiramos3733I really liked what Kevin brought to the band. No question. He had a special brand. But I do truly love what the band has done since then as well.
@geneeverett7855
3 ай бұрын
They’ve put out a lot of material post the first run of 3 scums 97-03 .. ur missing out
@guiramos3733
3 ай бұрын
@@geneeverett7855 Im not, I enjoy and have enjoyed some of their post Kevin work. Now, if you think that is the same, you are out of your mind and that is the intent of my comment.
This song is a lesson in how to make a dark song sound catchy and happy. I still enjoy it even after knowing what the lyrics are about. That debut album with all its hit singles is about as good an example as any of late-'90s nostalgia music.
Kevin got screwed by Steven's greed. No two ways around it
@Woozy.0
4 ай бұрын
200% Kevin Cadogan is a phenomenal guitarist, of the Steve Vai bloodline. He even uses the Cream Dreamer pedal!
@geneeverett7855
3 ай бұрын
Didn’t realize u knew them bro
TEB's first album remains one of my favourites of all time. Motorcyle Driveby and God Of Wine are probably my two favourite tracks in the album. Saw them live several times over the years as well.
Fantastic video my friend
@rnrtruestories
3 ай бұрын
Thank you very much!
Best drug song QOTSA - Feel Good Hit of the Summer
I wish I uploaded as fast as this channel haha 😂 Interesting title! Excited to watch though 😁
I never gave this band a chance when they were at their peak on the charts. Then, in the early 2000s, my friend told me they were so much better than their songs on the radio would lead you to believe. I borrowed his CD and was happy I gave them a chance. The last 3 songs, The Background, Motorcycle Drive By and especially God of Wine are absolute masterpieces.
Semi charmed life was a good song despite its topic But so many songs on the 1st album. One of my favorites is God of Wine also really like background. Wasn't a big fan of jumper but it wasn't a bad song
@rnrtruestories
4 ай бұрын
Agreed wasn’t a huge jumper fan
We have seen it time and time again with bands like Live and Third Eye Blind, but a band is a group of people working together to create a song. The credits cannot go to a single band member. That will tear a band apart, particularly if they are extremely successful. When band members are putting in equal amounts of work, but one member is making significantly more money than the others, the band will not survive. Having worked in the music business myself, I can tell you from experience that this type of setup will never work. A band must be an equal partnership.
Once I really listened to the lyrics yeah...I was blown away. Great song, anyway
Great video.
@rnrtruestories
4 ай бұрын
Thanks
I loved it and still do
the Linda Perry part blows my mind she is one of my favourite singers.
Another great Video. Could you please do a Video on KERBDOG. Please...
@ruination775
4 ай бұрын
Absolutely love tour Videos.
Love their first album!
Dirty work rules!!! Rip norm
@rnrtruestories
4 ай бұрын
Agreed
I think you summed it up perfectly.
@rnrtruestories
3 ай бұрын
Thanks
I was in kindergarten when this song came out. It was the first ever rock related song I ever liked in my life. Probably set the tone of the music I would love from that point on
"Dirty Work" is one of my favorite movies as well
@thedonofthsht76-58
4 ай бұрын
Norm and artie. Can't beat that
@geneeverett7855
3 ай бұрын
Classic
I was just happy to see Eric Valentine pop up in this video - that dude is a legend!
This is one of my go-to karaoke songs!
I loved that album I borrowed it from a girl at my job at the time and didn't give it back to her LOL the 90s was the best for music...
@rnrtruestories
4 ай бұрын
Love their first record
Love that album. Narcolepsy is a jam
That album was in everyone's home that I knew. Third Eye Bkind eas huge in the kate 90's
Bizarrely met them when they supported The Seahorses on their UK tour. They did their set, I went to get a drink with my mate and ended up in a completely empty bar, walked up, ordered drinks and 3EB appeared next to us, had a brief chat, they seemed nice enough and pretty happy with how the gig had gone. Pretty sure this was a few months before Semi Charmed Life took off which must have changed everything.
Great song
Take care ❤️
Herman Anthony “Zen” Chunn wrote “Doot Doot Doot”; he and Steve were a duo Puck and Natty, or Puck and Zen. Right before signing w Sylvia Rhône and Electra, Steve paid Zen $10k for the song. When it went #1, they renegotiated.
Great album start to finish
Jenkins is known as an industry weasel. It’s no secret. Self-serving, self-centered.
This was a killer album, yet I think they shined so bright at first glimpse, they did nothing but slowly fade after. Sad to find out he took all the credit, when it sounds like he had a lot of help!
Their debut album is a classic pop rock record. Great 90s album
Is it just me or did a longer version if this song once exist? I was so sure of that for many years, but being unable to find it I'm starting to wonder if my mind is tricking me.
@OkinInc
3 ай бұрын
Yes. It has an extra verse/bridge from the radio edit.
@bushleague3472
3 ай бұрын
@@OkinInc Thanks, found it. Loses alot of context IMO. Radio edit is just another 90's song about drugs. Original is the storyline from trying meth and thinking its great, getting worse, then waking up to the fact that you and your new friends are hopelessly lost.
Semi Charmed Life is the OG Pumped Up Kicks. I love Dirty Work, great movie
True Fact. At 7 years old my Dad bought the CD and I heard this song for the first time and moments later, the second time I heard I said "Those little red panties they pass the test Side up around the belly Face down on the mattress. One. My dad looked at me and said "how the fuck do you know the words already? You're crazy". Ever since that day. This band has been my #1. Even though Jenkins is an ASS. He still made music that will forever be woven into my soul. All my bad thought go away when I think about that moment and this song. So thank you for this content and would love more :)
@spindillio
4 ай бұрын
Love that story bro!!!!
Good story
Can you do a deep dive into Fu Manchu?
Love a story for the band muse!!
@rnrtruestories
4 ай бұрын
Yes, have you seen the story I previously did on them?
@heartbeatbillionaire
4 ай бұрын
@@rnrtruestories oh no, I'll need to check it out. Thanks!
Hell yeah Fungo Mungo my brothers 🍻
Have you ever done a story on the song “losing a whole year” rumors are it’s about Charlize Theron
It’s so catchy and up beat, most people probably don’t even hear the lyrics. But, once you know them.. you can’t forget 😂
I like that drug companies use this song as a jingle to their newest whatever drug. It reminds me of a commercial I saw advertising diapers and using ZZ Top's I Thank You in it.
This album was huge in the late 90s, every song on it was excellent. With that being said, I saw 3eb in Bethlehem PA at the Steel Stacks almost 10 years ago. Great concert, but one thing stood out to me. I remember everytime Stephan Jenkins switched guitars, he’d have the roadie place the strap directly around his head and neck as opposed to Jenkins grabbing the guitar directly from the roadie and putting the strap around his own head and neck. Just seemed like a douche move IMO.
YESS Dirty Work! One of the greatest films of all time! I literally used to write the script by memory in high school to pretend I was taking notes. "Hand over the milk money Weaver." "I'm afraid I can't do that Derek. I'm just not sure you'll spend it on milk.".....my favorite line into the tape recorder. "Note to self, remember no matter how bad life gets there is always beer." RIP Norm
@WhatShouldMyArtistNameBe
4 ай бұрын
and RIP Bob Saget
@rnrtruestories
3 ай бұрын
So good!
I don't care what anyone says. It's a great album. They had a couple greats. I saw them in the 90s
@rnrtruestories
4 ай бұрын
Agreed love that first record
@WhatIsMatter101
4 ай бұрын
Back in the 90s there was always this crap being thrown around about sophomore jinx on a band's second effort. Good thing Blue delivered. Not as big as the debut, but there was definitely progression and evolution.
Semi-Charmed DID NOT appear in American Pie, but the 3eb song "New Girl" was released on that soundtrack and NOWHERE else. The song did appear in an Alicia Silverstone movie about her being some rich girl that tried to kidnap herself then ended up ACTUALLY getting kidnapped.
I remember seeing a trailer for The Tigger movie that used this song. You'd think Mouse Inc would have more care with picking songs to use to advertise Winnie the Pooh.
0:35 I thought that was sean william scott for a sec.
seems to me Jenkins wanted the whole pie smh
Well, the video is a nice representation of the song and its backstory. I do have to respectfully disagree with you about one thing though: IMO the happiest song about drugs was The Shamen song "Ebeneezer Goode." (Which would make for an interesting story as well.)
Their song "Slow Motion" is WAY darker than this...😳
"It's Not Living (If It's Not With You)" by The 1975 is such an amazing and happy sounding song about heroin.
Used to play unedited at the rite aid i worked at 😂 talking about smoking that pookie. Hehe
The guy goes from stealing from his roommates to stealing from his bandmates. Not that complicated. Hell of a song though.
Pretty sure this is the first cd i bought with my own money 😅
Yes it is and I've never done drugs plus I'm melinated I love this song I'm a Cali chic so Identify !! And I was born in Ohio so I love Mayilyn Manson too he's from Ohio.
4:16 subtle voiceover patch there lol
What do you think Master if Puppet is about ? Shit was bad in the Bay Area in the 80s and 90s
@myoptik3x103
4 ай бұрын
“Chop your breakfast on a mirror!”
So sad such talent had so many problems!
That part about bumped again and i bumped again.. damn.. grateful for being free from meth
This is hands down one of the best late 90’s songs ever. It’s so unique in its rhythm and melody. Very unconventional yet still a pop hit. Kinda like how One Weak is by Barenaked Ladies. Anyways, late 90’s early 00’s had the best pop rock hits. No era did it better and more consistent.
If drugs are so dark imagine how evil the users are
@darksu6947
4 ай бұрын
I've done mountains of drugs. I am not evil but perhaps you are.
what about one on "Not a second time" which is pretty much the best Beatles song - but they thought it was basically a filler song.
I miss that era of unpretentious pop rock music. It showed that regular people had as much depth as pseudo poetic artistes putting on a persona like the last several eras of rock music that came before.
He wrote the songs, he owns writing and should. A lot of the lawsuits were trash.
Third Eye Blind is one of my gfs favorite band. We went to see them last summer and it was really good!
I used to despise this song just because of how inescapable it was when it first came out. It was played on every radio station. I was in grade school then, so never knew why radio stations would censor the words crystal meth until years later.
Its about looking for Fulfillment in life - not necessarily about drugs
Couple this song with Talks to Angels by the Black Crows and both songs describe California’s High Desert in the 1990s. I was in my 30s when both songs came out and watched crystal meth come into the High Desert and bring it to its knees. Football players that I had gone to high school with in the late 1970s were wandering around town looking for things to steal so they could buy an eight ball. Former cheerleaders were toothless skanks that were turning tricks for their fix. It was some crazy times. It was hard for me to imagine that people were getting hooked on a simple drug that was made in dirty bathrooms with chemicals that would kill most people. I hate to laugh but these same losers kind of looked down on me for becoming an auto mechanic after high school while they all went to college on scholarships. After getting good jobs and buying homes, they all ended up getting hooked on meth. I never touched the sh*t and became the only one that still had a job, a wife, and a home. Crazy times
I never cared for semi-charmed. I still rock Jumper and how’s it gonna be though.
Sid, Semi-Charmed Life was in a lot of movie soundtracks from 97-01; ditto for being a DJ request during middle school and high school dances in that time.
No thoughts on the band, but that song makes me want to hurt myself or anyone near me when it's playing.
@jaywalshmusicandsong1736
3 ай бұрын
It's so grating.
Sounds like Jenkins is a snake with that many lawsuits
I worked with someone in the 2000s after 3EB fame died down. He was saying how much he hated his high school reunion because he went to school with a guy that started a band. And every time they had a reunion it was all about “Is Stephen’s band going to play???” I asked him what the name of the band was and he said “Third Eye Blind. Have you heard of them??” 😂 and then he said “Oh you have! Yeah, well Stephen was a bit of a jerk when we were in school…and then he went on and started a band and now he’s a famous jerk…not a fan.”
It's about meth. And then i bumped again and bumped again.
I always thought the song was sort of annoying, and the lyrics were somewhat indecipherable. So it always struck me as odd that they incited any controversy. Cool to know they lifted from Lou though.