Album · Violent Femmes
Why Do Birds Sing? by Violent Femmes
Why Do Birds Sing? is an album by Violent Femmes, released in 1991. 2 songs from it have charted on rock radio countdowns, with 54 countdown appearances in total. The biggest is “American Music”, on 45 lists with a best position of #14.
Why Do Birds Sing?, the fifth Violent Femmes album, landed on Reprise on April 30, 1991, and it's the last one to feature original drummer Victor DeLorenzo, who walked away a couple of years later to chase an acting career. Alongside him, Gordon Gano and Brian Ritchie were still at the heart of the band. Behind the board sat Michael Beinhorn, then best known for his work on the Red Hot Chili Peppers' Mother's Milk and The Uplift Mofo Party Plan, and he gives the band's rattletrap folk-punk a little more muscle without sanding off its nervy edges.
The calling card is "American Music", a lopsided singalong that shambles and swings like a garage party in the small hours. It climbed to number 2 on the Modern Rock chart and became a fixture of the Femmes' live shows. "Do You Really Want to Hurt Me?" is here too, delivered with the band's trademark deadpan wobble.
It's a scrappy, restless record from a band that still sounded like they were having more fun than anyone else in the room.
Written with AI assistance from RockLists chart data, MusicBrainz and Wikipedia.
Songs from Why Do Birds Sing? on radio countdowns
| # | Song | Strength | Lists | Best | #1s | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | American Music | 45 | #14 | – | 1991–2025 | |
| 2 | Do you Really want to Hurt me? | 9 | #1008 | – | 2002–2014 |
Only songs that appear on at least one countdown are listed. Release data from MusicBrainz.