Billie Joe Armstrong & Green Day

What Makes Them so Special?

Are you a fan of Green Day? Well, you’re in good company! 

This band formed in Berkeley (California), sold more than 85 million records all over the world and is considered, together with Offspring, the band who brought back punk rock to the mainstream.

There are many reasons why Green Day are so special, for example:

1) They are one of the few bands who received a Diamond record

Their third album Dookie sold over 10 million copies in the US only and is one of the milestones of contemporary punk rock.

2) They were robbed of a record but created a new one

In 2003 Green Day was about to release a new album called Cigarettes and Valentines, but someone stole the mastery recordings from their studio. Instead of recording it again, they did a completely new album, American Idiot. And we all know how successful it was.

3) One of their albums inspired a Broadway musical

Always speaking about American Idiot: this concept album was adapted to become a successful stage musical that features all the tracks from the album.

Billie Joe Armstrong, the frontman

Naturally, the huge success of Green Day is also due to their frontman Billie Joe Armstrong. In addition to being a good singer, Billie is also a great guitarist, who needs only an acoustic guitar to make an incredible performance. 

Simplicity is what makes his style remarkable. Most of Green Days songs are composed of only a few chords joined with an energetic, aggressive strumming style. This is what led an entire generation of young musicians to dream of being a rockstar.

Also, Billie Joe Armstrong usually doesn’t use any particular sound effect, and that makes his music accessible to those who want to learn guitar. Billie plays both acoustic and electric guitar, and his favorite brands are Gibson and Fender. 

By the way, Gibson released a special limited edition of their J-180 model, which is the same one Billie uses during his live performances. It has the Everly Brothers bridge and a double pickguard on it.

Green Day beautiful songs

Green Day released so many amazing singles that it is hard to choose the greatest ones. Here is a short list of three titles you definitely should know:

1) Basket Case

This is probably the song that led Green Day to be known to the great public. Its melody is unmistakable and makes you want to turn up the music and go wild.

2) Wake Me Up When September Ends

Billie Joe Armstrong wrote this song for his father’s death The video clip is instead aligned with the political issues of the American Idiot album, which the song is taken from. It shows, in fact, a young couple in love divided by the Iraq War. 

This ballad is one of the masterpieces of the band and reached the top ten singles chart in a lot of countries.

3) Good Riddance (Time of Your Life)

Despite being part of Nimrod, a less fortunate album in terms of sales, this a song, with a capital “S”, especially if you’re learning guitar. 

It has a simple melody, easy to play, which immediately builds a magical atmosphere every time you listen to it. This is the perfect song to remember good things.

Do you like Green Day? Contact Guitar Lessons London to learn to play their beautiful songs!