The Go-Go's Playlist 4 Trivia Quiz

Answer:

Song 1) "Automatic"

Jane Wiedlin wrote the song "Automatic" on The Go-Go's album "Beauty and the Beat" in 1981.

Sunset Valley also recorded Jane's "Automatic" on the album "Unsealed: A Tribute to the Go-Go's" by various artists on 8 Jun 1999 as well as Tanya Donelly and the Parkington Sisters on their self-titled album on 12 May 2020. Tanya Donelly also included "Automatic" on a concert playlist at The Hi-Hat at Mill No. 5 in Lowell, Massachusetts on 8 Apr 2022.

Speaking of one-word song-titles, The Go-Go's released two one-word titles on the same single with "Automatic" and "Tonite" on 26 Feb 1982. The Go-Go's album with the most one-word titles is "God Bless The Go-Go's" at three with "Apology," "Insincere" and "Unforgiven" on 15 May 2001.

Song 2) "Capture the Light"

Jane Wiedlin wrote the song "Capture the Light" on The Go-Go's album "Talk Show" in 1984.

According to a review of the album "Talk Show" on The Old Grey Cat blog, "'Capture the Light,' another Wiedlin-penned tune, is my favorite song on the album; it features one of Belinda's best-ever vocals and lyrics that mean more than most. 'Everybody wants...To touch the stars...Take a piece of happiness...Hold on tight...Keep trying hard...To capture the light'" (Gemmill, 2020).

Of The Go-Go's 11 songs on the album "Talk Show" and its three singles, Jane solely wrote two and co-wrote five; therefore, Jane contributed the most by composing 38% of the lyrics on the album. In addition to her two sole-writing credits, Jane teamed with Ron and Russell Mael on "Yes or No" to be the only Go-Go with lyrical credit on three songs.

Song 3) "Fun with Ropes"

Jane Wiedlin wrote the song "Fun with Ropes" on the retrospective album "Return to the Valley of The Go-Go's" in 1994.

According to the Bootleg Confessions blog, the author recalls Belinda lamenting about The Go-Go's debut album during a show in San Francisco, California on 7 Jul 1999, "A few songs later Belinda turned to her [Jane] and said, 'This next one is the oldest song in the set. Jane wrote it when she was about 3. Didn't make it to the first album and we really regret it', and then they performed the hilarious 'Fun With Ropes'" ("The Go-Go's, Berlin, The Lunachicks, Maritime Hall, SF, Wed., July 7, 1999"; n.d.).

Song 4) "I Think I Need Sleep"

Charlotte Caffey and Anna Waronker co-wrote the song "I Think I Need Sleep" on The Go-Go's album "God Bless The Go-Go's" in 2001.

The Go-Go's only released "I Think I Need Sleep" as a bonus track on the European version of "God Bless The Go-Go's" in 2001.

Anna Waronker also co-wrote the song "Club Zero" in 2020 to be the only outside writer with multiple lyrical credits with The Go-Go's.

Song 5) "Kissing Asphalt"

Charlotte Caffey wrote the song "Kissing Asphalt" on the album "God Bless The Go-Go's" in 2001.

Of The Go-Go's 15 songs on the album "God Bless The Go-Go's" and its two singles, Charlotte solely wrote one and co-wrote ten; therefore, Charlotte contributed the most by composing 30% of the lyrics on the album. In addition to Charlotte's one sole-writing credit, Charlotte teamed with Anna Waronker on "I Think I Need Sleep" to be the only Go-Go with lyrical credit on two songs.

Song 6) "Maniac"

The Go-Go's covered Michael Sembello's song "Maniac" at three live shows in 2004.

Dennis Matkosky and Michael Sembello co-wrote "Maniac" and released it as a single backed with "Maniac" (instrumental) in May 1983.

Michael Sembello's "Maniac" ranked on 24 music charts in 13 countries during three years and peaked at number one on three charts: Australia (2), Belgium, Canada (3), Ireland, Netherlands (2), New Zealand, Poland, South Africa, Spain, Switzerland, the United Kingdom, the United States (7) and West Germany (2).

Ninety-eight artists also recorded "Maniac" on a single, album or soundtrack, and 95 artists included "Maniac" on a concert playlist 643 times since Michael Sembello first performed this song during Season 3 Episode 39 of the TV show "Solid Gold" on 18 Jun 1983 in Los Angeles, California.

Michael Sembello's "Maniac" is featured in four movies: "Flashdance" (1983), "American Wedding" (2003), "Big Mommas: Like Father, Like Son" (2011) and "Orphan: First Kill" (2022).

Song 7) "Remember (Walking in the Sand)"

The Go-Go's covered George Morton's song "Remember (Walking in the Sand)" on the album "Return to the Valley of The Go-Go's" in 1994.

The Shangri-Las originally released "Remember (Walking in the Sand)" as a single in August 1964, and it's the third song The Go-Go's cover from the 50s and 60s: "Let's Have a Party" by Elvis Presley from September 1957 and "Cool Jerk" by The Capitols from March 1966.

According to Jane's interview with Vulture about The Go-Go's influences on their early sound, "We were all super-influenced by the '60s, both in our style and our music. We obviously loved the Beatles. And when Kathy and Gina came in they loved the Rolling Stones, and we admired the '60s all-girl singing groups. Even though they weren't musicians, they were still super-cool. I think that definitely all went into our sound" (Ivie, 2011).

Song 8) "Surfing and Spying"

Charlotte Caffey wrote the song "Surfing and Spying" and The Go-Go's released this instrumental on the B-side of the single "Our Lips Are Sealed" on 12 Jun 1981.

According to The Go-Go's interview with NPR Music about the balance of their buoyant melodies, Charlotte recounts, "The reality of that is, I was playing lead guitar, and I was like, 'Oh god, how do I get my guitar to sustain that sound, like Jimi Hendrix?' I kept turning up the reverb on my amp, because it helped, and I ended up with a surf sound, and I thought, 'This is cool!' Of course I was a big fan of surf stuff, and I wrote 'Surfing and Spying,' our only instrumental song. I'm a huge fan of the Beach Boys, and Brian Wilson is a [redacted] genius" (Hughes, 2020).

Four artists also recorded Charlotte's "Surfing and Spying" on a single, album or soundtrack, and two artists included "Surfing and Spying" on a concert playlist three times since The Go-Go's first performed this song on 2 Jan 1980 at Whisky A Go Go in West Hollywood, California.

Song 9) "Unforgiven"

Jane Wiedlin, Charlotte Caffey and Billie Joe Armstrong co-wrote the song "Unforgiven" on The Go-Go's album "God Bless The Go-Go's" in 2001.

The Go-Go's "Unforgiven" ranked on the Billboard Adult Pop Airplay chart for 12 weeks from 14 Apr to 6 Jul 2001 peaking at number 22.

Ann Beretta also recorded "Unforgiven" on the album "Wild, Young, and Free" on 14 Sept 2012, and Caroline & The Yum Yums recorded "Unforgiven" on The Go-Go's tribute album "If You Gotta Go-Go, Go-Go Now" by various artists on 22 Apr 2022.

Song 10) "White Rabbit"

The Go-Go's covered Jefferson Airplane's song "White Rabbit" at The Fillmore in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania on 11 Aug 2016.

Grace Slick wrote "White Rabbit" on Jefferson Airplane's album "Surrealistic Pillow" on 1 Feb 1967.

Jefferson Airplane's "White Rabbit" ranked on nine music charts in five countries during five years and peaked at number one on the Canadian RPM Top Singles chart: Canada (2), Hungary, Netherlands, the United Kingdom and the United States (4).

According to SecondHandSongs, 101 artists also recorded "White Rabbit" on a single, album or soundtrack, and 216 artists included "White Rabbit" on a concert playlist 1,323 times since Jefferson Airplane (aka Jefferson Starship, Hot Tuna, Starship and KBC Band) first performed this song on 27 Oct 1966 at The Matrix in San Francisco, California.

Jefferson Airplane's "White Rabbit" is featured in 13 movies and 30 TV shows.