Background
After independently recording the album with producer Kenny Laguna, Jett took the record to a number of major record labels, all of which were uninterested in releasing the project. Rather than continue to hunt for a willing label, Laguna and Jett decided to fund the pressing of the album themselves. The original, self-released, version of the album was simply titled Joan Jett and was sold directly to concert-goers and record stores out of Laguna's trunk.
The album sold relatively well, prompting its re-release a year later as Bad Reputation on Boardwalk Records, with identical tracklisting. Jett said that the new title referred to the bad reputation that she had as a former member of the Runaways.
Recorded before Jett formed The Blackhearts, it includes performances by a large number of well known musicians, including The Sex Pistols' Paul Cook and Steve Jones, Blondie's Clem Burke and Frank Infante, The Ramones' Dee Dee Ramone and Marky Ramone and The Tyla Gang's Sean Tyla, Micky Groome and Paul Simmons.
When the album's European rights were secured through Ariola Records, "Hanky Panky" replaced "Wooly Bully" as the final song on Side 2. When the record was issued through Boardwalk in the US under the title "Bad Reputation", the label stuck with "Wooly Bully" as the final track, making the "Hanky Panky" import version a real collector's item. However, the song was included as a bonus track on the 1999 CD re-issue.
Rolling Stone magazine named the album No. 36 on their '50 Coolest Albums of all Time' List in 2005. The original Australian release featured a completely different cover and "Hanky Panky" replaced "Shout". "Do You Wanna Touch Me" was also a huge hit in Australia when it was released hot on the heels of "I Love Rock 'n' Roll" and "Crimson and Clover" from Jett's 1982 album. In 1999, the album was again re-issued, this time on CD with several bonus tracks and a remastered version of the original album.
The title track "Bad Reputation" was covered by Canadian singer-songwriter Avril Lavigne and appears as a video montage on her The Best Damn Tour – Live in Toronto DVD, and was later recorded and included as a bonus track on the deluxe edition of her 2011 album Goodbye Lullaby. Jett's original version of "Bad Reputation" was used in the 2001 film Shrek but curiously a version by the band Halfcocked appeared on the soundtrack release instead of Jett's.
Read more about this topic: Bad Reputation (Joan Jett Album)
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