Review:

on 2011-08-02 CharlesMartel Said:

Jilted John was the stage name of one Graham Fellows. He made this single which became a massive hit and then left his musical career behind him to become an actor. After this, he later went on to feature in the soap Coronation Street briefly. The guy was a novelty who tried to make himself into a permanent feature - and failed. When this single came out it was an instant hit at school, the sad tale of the geeky John whose shallow girlfriend dumped him for the more pneumatic but rather dim Gordon. Sung in a deliberately nerdy voice, John comes across as a pathetic character who nonetheless gains our sympathy. On the other hand, Gordon comes across as a real bastard and Julie is, as John says, a two-timing slag who is sure to get her comeuppance sometime.

It is hardly any wonder that this song became a sort of theme song to social misfits everywhere. And with only two chords, it became an instant success with every wannabe no-hope punk band. Not only did you not need to be able to play guitar but you didn't even need to be able to sing either. Mind you, you would have needed a competent bassist. And everyone who has heard this will recall, at some point in their lives, chanting the refrain

"Gordon is a moron".

I pitied guys who were called Gordon at the time - this song made their lives hell. It was a staple at football grounds directed at any player, coach or official who happened to share the unfortunate moniker. But hell, isn't this what any good pop song was?
Rating: 8/10