Why Joan Jett was confused by Britney Spears’ cover of ‘I Love Rock ‘n’ Roll’
In the late 1990s, Britney Spears established herself as one of the world’s biggest pop stars, releasing two of the best-selling albums of all time, beginning with her debut …Baby One More Time in 1999 and follow-up Oops!… I Did It Again. As the best-selling teenage artist in the world, Spears, often referred to as the Princess of Pop, became known for hits such as ‘Toxic’, ‘Gimme More’ and ‘Baby One More Time’.
However, over the years, Spears has gifted fans with an array of unexpected covers, including Sonny and Cher’s ‘The Beat Goes On’, which appeared on her debut album, and even The Rolling Stones’ ‘(I Can’t Get No) Satisfaction’ on her sophomore effort. For some classic rock fans, Spears’ ‘pop-ification’ of The Rolling Stones was blasphemous.
Yet, Spears faced even more backlash from certain diehard rock fans when she decided to cover ‘I Love Rock’ n’ Roll’, made famous by Joan Jett and the Blackhearts. The Arrows originally recorded the song in 1975, but it wasn’t until Jett and her band covered the track in 1981 that it became an international hit. According to Arrows bassist and writer of the track Alan Merrill, ‘I Love Rock’ n’ Roll’ was written as a “knee-jerk response to The Rolling Stones’ ‘It’s Only Rock’ n Roll (But I Like It)'”.
Spears chose to cover the rock anthem in 2002, with her rendition featured in the movie Crossroads. Her character Lucy performs the track during a karaoke session, and Spears admitted that she picked it because it is one of her own go-to karaoke picks. According to the star, “They asked me to sing karaoke in the movie Crossroads, and I’ve actually sung ‘I Love Rock’ n’ Roll’ in a lot of clubs that I’ve been to.”
In an interview with the Chicago Sun-Times, Spears made a supposed blunder whilst discussing the song, which was met with even more eye-rolls by stuck-up classic rock fans. She attributed the song to Pat Benatar, saying, “I just love the song. I love Pat Benatar, and I just think she’s amazing. It’s like she’s a rock ‘n’ roll chick and she’s just having a good time, and it’s a very empowering song.” However, the magazine failed to declare that Spears was being sarcastic due to her annoyance at constantly being asked about Jett.
So, what did Jett think of the cover? The rockstar was rather dismissive of Spears’ rendition, telling NME that she had never actually listened to the track. “I’ve never even heard Britney’s version. I mean, I’ve obviously heard about it, but I never understood that whole idea.” She explained, “I mean, people usually cover a song that says something about them, but I doubt she loves rock ‘n’ roll. Maybe she likes songs.”
Listen to Spears’ pop version of ‘I Love Rock ‘n’ Roll’ below: