Hella Good

Infobox Single
Name = Hella Good


Artist = No Doubt
from Album = Rock Steady
Released = April 2002 (North America)
Format = CD
Recorded =
Genre = Electronic rock
Length = 4:02
Label = Interscope
Writer = Gwen Stefani, Tony Kanal, Chad Hugo, Pharrell Williams
Producer = The Neptunes, Nellee Hooper, No Doubt
Certification = Gold (ARIA)
Last single = "Hey Baby" (2001)
This single = "Hella Good" (2002)
Next single = "Underneath It All" (2002)Extra album cover
Upper caption = Alternate cover
Type = single


Lower caption = Australian single

"Hella Good" is an electronic rock song written by Gwen Stefani, Tony Kanal, and The Neptunes for No Doubt's fifth studio album "Rock Steady" (2001). The song draws influence from electro, rock, and funk music. It received positive reviews from music critics, who made comparisons to the work of a diverse range of artists such as Afrika Bambaataa and Madonna.

"Hella Good" was released as the album's second single in April 2002 (see 2002 in music). It was moderately successful, and Roger Sanchez's remix of the song topped the "Billboard" Hot Dance Music/Club Play. At the 45th Grammy Awards, "Hella Good" was nominated for Best Dance Recording, and Sanchez's remix won for Best Remixed Recording, Non-Classical. A black-and-white music video was produced, featuring the band squatting in an abandoned ship.

Background and writing

No Doubt decided to work with hip hop production duo The Neptunes as a sort of "cultural collision". [Grant, Kieran. [http://jam.canoe.ca/Music/Artists/N/No_Doubt/2002/04/11/748246.html "No doubts at all"] . Jam!. Retrieved September 6, 2007.] Lead singer Gwen Stefani wanted to write a high-spirited and celebratory song about the positive things in her life, so they wrote an optimistic club song. The word "" is a slang term used mostly in the San Francisco Bay Area and other parts of California to mean very. Having toured in the Bay Area, Stefani borrowed the term to describe her mood."Hella Good". "Making the Video". MTV. March 30, 2002.] Stefani wanted to use the word "dance" in a chorus, so she decided to end each line of "Hella Good"'s chorus with the phrase "keep on dancing". [Montoya, Paris and Lanham, Tom. "Hella Good". "The Singles 1992-2003". November 25, 2003. Interscope Records.] The song's funk sound is based on songs such as Queen's 1980 single "Another One Bites the Dust" and The Commodores' 1977 single "Brick House". [Orshoski, Wes. [http://www.billboard.com/bbcom/search/google/article_display.jsp?vnu_content_id=1115909 "No Doubt Feels 'Rock Steady'"] . "Billboard". November 21, 2001. July 12, 2007.]

"Hella Good" is a rock song composed in the key of G minor. It is written in common time and moves at a moderately fast 120 beats per minute.Sheet music for "Hella Good". Hal Leonard Corporation. 2001.] The song's beat drew several comparisons to that of Michael Jackson's 1983 single "Billie Jean". [

• Richardson, Sean. [http://www.thebostonphoenix.com/boston/music/other_stories/documents/02056694.htm "Still kicking"] . "The Boston Phoenix". December 2001. Retrieved September 30, 2007.
• Bastow, Clem. [http://www.stylusmagazine.com/articles/staff_top_10/top-ten-drum-beats-you-are-powerless-to-resist.htm "Top Ten Drum Beats You Are Powerless To Resist"] . "Stylus Magazine". September 9, 2005. Retrieved September 30, 2007.

] Hiatt, Brian. [http://www.ew.com/ew/article/0,,20047186_20047196_640712,00.html "Reasonable Doubt"] . "Entertainment Weekly". Retrieved September 30, 2007.] Its hook comes from a simple progression of power chords alternating between G and A flat. "Hella Good" follows a verse-chorus form with a chorus following each of the two verses. Following the bridge, the chorus is repeated and the song closes with an outro.

Critical reception

"Hella Good" generally received positive reviews from music critics. About.com ranked the song number one in a list of the top five singles from Stefani's career, with the band as well as solo, reasoning by saying that the song's "bumping contemporary beat pushes along 80's style keyboards making it nearly impossible to keep from moving your body." [Lamb, Bill. [http://top40.about.com/od/gwenstefani/tp/gwennobest.htm "Top 5 Gwen Stefani / No Doubt Singles"] . About.com. Retrieved September 13, 2007.] "Blender" described it as a "blazing start" to "Rock Steady" and compared it to the work of pop group Was (Not Was), rapper and producer Timbaland, ska punk band Fishbone, and electro DJ Afrika Bambaataa. [Howe, Rupert. [http://www.blender.com/guide/reviews.aspx?id=1117 "No Doubt : "Rock Steady" Review"] . "Blender". Retrieved September 5, 2007.] The "NME" also compared the song to Bambaataa's music as well as that of Britney Spears and Duran Duran. [Needham, Alex. [http://www.nme.com/reviews/5966.htm "No Doubt : Rock Steady"] . "NME". Retrieved September 5, 2007.] PlayLouder called the track outstanding and compared Nellee Hooper's production to the electroclash style of Chicago house DJ Felix da Housecat. [Perry, Dan. [http://old.playlouder.com/review/+449nodoubt/ "No Doubt: Rock Steady (2002) review"] . PlayLouder. January 16, 2002. Retrieved September 6, 2007.] "Entertainment Weekly" characterized the song as a sequel to Madonna's 1985 synthpop single "Into the Groove". [Browne, David. [http://www.ew.com/ew/article/0,,187515~4~0~rocksteady,00.html "Rock Steady (Music - No Doubt) | Music Review"] . "Entertainment Weekly". December 10, 2007. Retrieved September 5, 2007.] The publication listed "Hella Good" seventh on its list of the top singles of 2002. [Browne, David. "The best and worst". "Entertainment Weekly", issue 687/688, page 126. December 20–27, 2002.] It went on to include the song in its list of the top five No Doubt songs, in which it described the song as "a dance-pop delight irresistible enough to make you forget that "hella" is one of history's most irritating slang terms." "Stylus Magazine" was pleased with the use of overdubbing in the song's "anthemic rock chorus", but referred to its lyrics as stupid. [Delaney, Colleen. [http://www.stylusmagazine.com/reviews/no-doubt/rock-steady.htm "No Doubt - Rock Steady - Review"] . "Stylus Magazine". September 1, 2003. Retrieved September 5, 2007.] "Billboard" referred to the group as the B-52's of the 2000s and praised "Hella Good"'s combination of a strong bassline; "fairly aggressive electric guitar accents"; Kraftwerk-style electronics; and Stefani's "loose, playful" vocals. [Taylor, Chuck. "No Doubt: Hella Good". "Billboard", volume 114, issue 17, page 33. April 27, 2002.] The song was listed at number twenty-six on the 2002 Pazz & Jop list, a survey of several hundred music critics conducted by Robert Christgau. [ [http://robertchristgau.com/xg/pnj/pjres02.php "Pazz & Jop 2002: Critics' List"] . "The Village Voice". February 18, 2003. Retrieved October 7, 2007.]

Chart performance

In the United States, "Hella Good" reached number thirteen on the "Billboard" Hot 100. The song was more successful in mainstream markets, reaching number three on the Top 40 Mainstream and number nine on the Top 40 Tracks and in clubs, topping the Hot Dance Music/Club Play chart. It had success on adult contemporary stations, peaking at number nine on the Adult Top 40 and later appearing at number three on the Top 40 Adult Recurrents. It had some crossover success in urban contemporary markets and reached number twenty-nine on the Rhythmic Top 40 chart. [http://www.allmusic.com/cg/amg.dll?p=amg&sql=10:dcdsyl23xpzb~T31 "Rock Steady"] . Allmusic. Retrieved January 8, 2007.] Interscope Records approached house DJ Roger Sanchez to produce a remix of the song, [Thomas, Misty. [http://www.jivemagazine.com/article.php?pid=659 "A Quick Little Chat with Roger Sanchez"] . "JIVE". October 3, 2003. Retrieved September 30, 2007.] which went on to top the Hot Dance Music/Club Play chart. The song was less successful on the Canadian Singles Chart, where it peaked at number twenty-six for three non-consecutive weeks.

For the 2003 Grammy Awards, the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences introduced new categories for Best Dance Recording and Best Remixed Recording, Non-Classical. "Hella Good" was nominated for Best Dance Recording at but lost to Dirty Vegas' "Days Go By", and Sanchez's remix won for Best Remixed Recording, Non-Classical. [ [http://www.rockonthenet.com/archive/2003/grammys.htm "45th Annual Grammy Awards - 2003"] . Rock on the Net. Retrieved July 21, 2007.] No Doubt performed a medley of "Underneath It All" and "Hella Good" at the show. [D'angelo, Joe. [http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1470107/20030224/story.jhtml "Norah Jones Sweeps Grammys, Boss Wins Three, Avril Shut Out"] . MTV News. February 24, 2003. Retrieved September 30, 2007.]

On the UK Singles Chart, "Hella Good" debuted at number twelve but was unable to reach a higher position. [http://top40-charts.com/songs/full.php?sid=3792&sort=chartid "No Doubt Hella Good"] . Top40-Charts.com. Retrieved August 15, 2007.] The song peaked at number eight on the ARIA Singles Chart in June 2002 and remained on the chart for three months. [http://australian-charts.com/showitem.asp?interpret=No+Doubt&titel=Hella+Good "No Doubt - Hella Good"] . Australian-Charts.com. Retrieved August 15, 2007.] It was listed at number sixty-four on the 2002 end of year chart, [ [http://aria.com.au/pages/aria-charts-end-of-year-charts-top-100-singles-2002.htm "End of Year Charts - Top 100 Singles 2002"] . Australian Recording Industry Association. Retrieved April 14, 2007.] and it was certified gold by the Australian Recording Industry Association. [ [http://www.aria.com.au/pages/aria-charts-accreditations-singles-2002.htm "ARIA Charts - Accreditations - 2002 Singles"] . Australian Recording Industry Association. Retrieved April 14, 2007.] "Hella Good" was successful in South America and reached the top five in Argentina and Chile. In New Zealand, It peaked at #17 and spent 15 weeks in the chart. [ [http://charts.org.nz/showitem.asp?key=5204&cat=s "No Doubt - Hella Good"] .]

The song was featured in the opening sequence of the 2005 film "The Longest Yard". "Hella Good" was also used in 2003 for the second season "Alias" episode "The Getaway" and in 2007 for the pilot episode of "The Black Donnellys". [ [http://www.tunefind.com/artist/No+Doubt "No Doubt Songs from TV and Movies"] . TuneFind. Retrieved August 26, 2008.]

Music video

The song's music video was directed by Mark Romanek. Not following any plot, the video depicts the band as a group of punk rockers squatting in an abandoned ship. During the course of the video, the band members perform the song, using bodyboards to float electronic equipment, and they and their friends explore and dance throughout the ship. There are also sequences of people riding on personal water crafts, Stefani performing on a coiled rope, people playing "Jet Set Radio Future", and Stefani broadcasting on a pirate radio station.

Romanek came up with the video's concept it and e-mailed it to the band. He based it off of a black-and-white Italian "Vogue" fashion shoot from the mid 1990s which featured models on waverunners. The video was then filmed over three days in March 2002 in Long Beach, California. The scenes inside the ship were filmed from man-made sets at South Bay Studios.

The music video was moderately successful. Following a premiere on an episode of MTV's "Making the Video", it reached number four on the network's video countdown "Total Request Live". [ [http://www.atrl.net/trlarchive/?s=recap&y=2002&m=04 "The TRL Archive - Recap - April 2002"] . ATRL. Retrieved September 5, 2007.] The video debuted on MuchMusic's "Countdown" in April 2002 and peaked at number six, spending over four months on the program. [ [http://www.muchmusic.com/tv/countdown/ "MuchMusic Countdown"] . MuchMusic. Retrieved September 5, 2007.] .

Track listing

# "Hella Good" (album version) – 4:02
# "Hey Baby" - "Stank Remix" featuring Outkast and Killer Mike (dirty version) – 4:06
# "Hey Baby" - "Kelly G's Bumpin' Baby Club Mix" – 8:14
# "Hella Good" video – 4:02

Charts

References

External links

* [http://www.nodoubt.com/ No Doubt's official site]
*