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Private IdahoThe B-52's

Released: October 1, 1980

Songwriter: Ricky Wilson (B-52's) Kate Pierson Cindy Wilson Keith Strickland Fred Schneider

Producer: The B-52's Rhett Davies

Hoo Hoo Hoo Hoo Hoo Hoo Hoo Hoo Hoo

[Verse 1: Fred Schneider, Kate Pierson]
You're livin' in your own Private Idaho
Livin' in your own Private Idaho
Underground like a wild potato
Don't go on the patio
Beware of the pool
Blue bottomless pool
It leads you straight right through the gate
That opens on the pool

[Chorus: Kate Pierson, Kate Pierson & Cindy Wilson, Fred Schneider]
You're livin' in your own Private Idaho
You're livin' in your own Private Idaho
Keep off the path, beware of the gate
(Your own Private Idaho)
Watch out for signs that say "hidden driveways"
(Your own Private Idaho)
(Whoa, oh, whoa-oh...)
Don't let the chlorine in your eyes
Blind you to the awful surprise
(Yeah!)
That's awaitin' for you at
The bottom of the bottomless blue, blue
Blue pool

'[Verse 2: Fred Schneider, Kate Pierson]
You're livin' in your own Private Idaho
Idaho
You're outta control, the rivers that roll
You fell into the water and down to Idaho
Get outta the state
Get outta the state you're in
You better beware

[Chorus: Kate Pierson, Kate Pierson & Cindy Wilson, Fred Schneider]
You're livin' in your own Private Idaho
You're livin' in your own Private Idaho
Keep off the patio
(Your own Private Idaho)
Keep off the path
(Your own Private Idaho)
(Whoa, oh, whoa-oh...)
The lawn may be green but you better not be seen
Walkin' through a gate that leads you down
(Yeah!)
Down to a pool fraught with danger
It's a pool full of strangers

[Verse 3: Kate Pierson, Fred Schneider]
Hey! You're livin' in your own Private Idaho
Where do I go from here to a better state than this?
Well, don't be blind to the big surprise
Swimmin' round and round like the deadly hand
Of a radium clock at the bottom of the pool

[Bridge: Cindy Wilson, Kate Pierson, Kate Pierson & Cindy Wilson]
I-I-I-daho
I-I-I-daho
Woah oh oh woah oh oh woah oh oh
Ah-ah-ah-ah
Ah-ah-ah-ah

[Outro: Fred Schneider, All]
Get outta the state
Get outta the state
You're livin' in your own Private Idaho
Livin' in your own Private...Idaho

The B-52's

The B-52’s, (now stylized as The B-52s) are an internationally successful New Wave band also known for their campy fashion. The group’s original line-up consisted of Fred Schneider, Kate Pierson, Keith Strickland, Cindy Wilson and Ricky Wilson. Originally, all members of the band played multiple instruments. However, after Ricky Wilson’s tragic AIDS-related death in 1985, instead of hiring a full-time replacement, Strickland transitioned to primarily playing guitar, and the band has used various other musicians for recording and touring purposes.

Their self-titled first album The B-52’s was released to critical acclaim in 1979, spawning the Canadian chart-topping hit “Rock Lobster”, which was also successful in Australia, New Zealand, the US and the UK. Rolling Stone magazine later placed the album at #152 on its list of the 500 greatest albums of all time.

Their second album, Wild Planet, released in 1980, spawned another minor US hit with “Private Idaho”. Whammy! followed in 1983, giving the band a third minor US hit with “Legal Tender”. Their fourth album, Bouncing Off the Satellites, was recorded and mixed but not yet released when Ricky Wilson died in October 1985. It was nearly a year before the album was released, in September 1986. It is the band’s only album that does not feature a picture of its members on the cover.

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