Green Day

Released: December 10, 2001

Songwriter: Billie Joe Armstrong Mike Dirnt Tré Cool

Producer: Jerry Finn

[Spoken: Billie Joe Armstrong, Interviewer]
Billie Joe, it certainly is exciting to meet you here at the recording studio, right after you've just made your very first record! How does it feel?
Hmmm... Wonderful!

[Verse 1]
She smashed the radio with the board of education
Turned up the static left of the state of the nation

[Pre-Chorus]
Turn on the flame, step on the gas
Burning the flag at half mast
She's the rebel forgotten son
An export of the revolution

[Verse 2]
She is the first voice of the last one's in the line
She'll drag the weights to keep the vendetta alive

[Pre-Chorus]
Bring in the head of the government
The dog ate the document
Someone shot the president
And no one knows where Maria went!

[Chorus]
Maria! Maria!
Maria! Where did ya go?

[Bridge]
Be careful what you're offering
Your breath lacks the conviction
Drawing a line in the dirt
Because the last decision is no! It's no!

[Guitar Solo]

[Verse 3]
She smashed the radio with the board of education
Turned up the static left of the state of the nation

[Pre-Chorus]
Turn on the flame, step on the gas
Burning the flag at half mast
She's the rebel forgotten son
An export of the revolution

[Chorus]
Maria! Maria!
Maria! Where did ya go?
Maria! Maria!
Maria! Where did ya go?

Formed in East Bay, California in 1986 and still going strong today, Green Day is one of the biggest punk rock acts in the world. Along with other punk bands in California such as The Offspring, Sublime, Bad Religion and Rancid, they have been credited with popularizing and reviving mainstream interest in punk rock in the U.S. in the 90s.

First starting in 1986 as Sweet Children, longtime friends Billie Joe Armstrong (guitar and lead vocalist) and Mike Dirnt (bass guitar) teamed up with John Kiffmeyer to produce their debut EP 1,000 Hours. They eventually dropped the name Sweet Children and called themselves Green Day due to the band members' fondness for cannabis (it even inspired a song featured on their first album) and for their second studio album Kerplunk they replaced Kiffmeyer with German-born drummer Tré Cool, who had been drumming since the age of 12 in a punk band, The Lookouts.

It was their 1994 record Dookie that sent the band to stardom and gave them mainstream success. Dookie, alongside their following albums Insomniac (1995) and Nimrod (1997) were certified double platinum. Eventually, the band started to fall in popularity with their 2000 record Warning which only reached gold.

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