| "Are You Old Enough?" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Single by Dragon | ||||
| from the album O Zambezi | ||||
| Released | August 1978 | |||
| Genre | Rock | |||
| Length | 4:08 | |||
| Label | Portrait Records | |||
| Songwriter(s) | Paul Hewson | |||
| Producer(s) | Peter Dawkins | |||
| Dragon singles chronology | ||||
| ||||
"Are You Old Enough?" is a song by New Zealand rock band Dragon, released in August 1978 while the band were still based in Australia. [1] It was released as the first single from the group's fifth studio album O Zambezi (1978). The song peaked at number one on the Australian Kent Music Report, becoming the group's first number-one single.
Reception
Reviewed at the time of release, South Australian music magazine Roadrunner said the song was, "Their best yet. This band continues to make superb sounding singles (this will be No 1 for sure) and continue to be the most sexist band in the country. This one, about fucking young women and going to gaol for it is their most offensive yet." [2]
David Nichols described the song as, "essentially a paean to underage sex, perhaps even pedophilia. A glowing, irresistible pop tune, sung delectably by Marc Hunter with uncredited backing vocal from Renée Geyer, it is a virtually flawless pop record, its subversive nature being an essential element of this status." [3]
"When we'd go on the road Paul Hewson would bring a small bag with a few clothes and a chess set. He wrote most of "Are you old enough" on a nylon string guitar out on the water in a dinghy off Magnetic Island with a couple of girls who he wasn't too sure about". (As told to Paul Schluter by Todd Hunter, 2005, Cranbrook)
Track listing
- Are You Old Enough? (Paul Hewson) - 4:08
- Company (Jenny Brown, Todd Hunter) - 3:54
Charts
Weekly charts
| Chart (1978/79) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Australian Kent Music Report [4] | 1 |
| New Zealand ( Recorded Music NZ) [5] | 6 |
Year-end charts
| Chart (1978) | Position |
|---|---|
| Australian Kent Music Report [6] [7] | 14 |
Personnel
- Bass guitar, vocals – Todd Hunter
- Drums – Kerry Jacobson
- Keyboards, vocals – Paul Hewson
- Lead guitar, vocals – Robert Taylor
- Lead vocals – Marc Hunter
- Violin [Vitar] – Richard Lee
References
- ^ "Dragon | NZ Music Hall of Fame". Retrieved 2022-02-12.
- ^ Mark Burford (September 1978). "Singles". Roadrunner. p. 18.
- ^ David Nichols (2016). Dig: Australian Rock and Pop Music, 1960-85. Verse Chorus Press. p. 364. ISBN 9781891241611.
- ^ Kent, David (1993). Australian Chart Book 1970–1992. St Ives: Australian Chart Book. p. 94. ISBN 0-646-11917-6.
- ^ " Dragon – Are You Old Enough?". Top 40 Singles. Retrieved 23 June 2017.
- ^ Kent, David (1993). Australian Chart Book 1970–1992. St Ives: Australian Chart Book. p. 430. ISBN 0-646-11917-6.
- ^ "Kent Music Report No 236 – 1 January 1979 > National Top 100 Singles for 1978". Kent Music Report. Retrieved 8 January 2022 – via Imgur.com.
