Song · Oingo Boingo
“On the Outside” by Oingo Boingo
From the album Only a Lad (1981)
“On the Outside” by Oingo Boingo appears on 3 radio countdowns from 2 stations between 1981 and 2003. It was first released in 1981 on the album Only a Lad. Its best result is #6 on the KROQ Top 106.7 Songs of 1981. In the combined RockLists rankings it is the #6 alternative song of 1981, #3,756 alternative song of all time and #496 of the '80s.
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"On the Outside" comes from Only a Lad, Oingo Boingo's 1981 album, and it's the band in full jittery flight. Danny Elfman wrote the words and yelps them over his and Steve Bartek's wiry guitars, while a horn section of Sam "Sluggo" Phipps on tenor sax, Leon Schneiderman on baritone, Dale Turner on trumpet and Richard Gibbs on trombone jabs and blares like a brass band that's had far too much coffee. Gibbs doubles on keyboards, Kerry Hatch plays bass and chips in vocals, and Johnny "Vatos" Hernandez drives the whole contraption at a nervous clip. Peter Solley produced it with the band.
Written with AI assistance from RockLists chart data, MusicBrainz.
RockLists rankings
Alternative & Modern Rock
All Rock Formats
Year-end countdowns
| Year | # | Station | Countdown | of |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1981 | 6 | KROQ Los Angeles, CA | KROQ Top 106.7 Songs of 1981 | 106 |
All-time and decade countdowns
| Year | # | Station | Countdown | of |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1989 | 248 | KROQ | KROQ Flashback 500 (Memorial Day 1989) | 495 |
| 2003 | 458 | Fred (XM 44) | Fred XM Top 2044 Songs of All-Time (July 2003) | 2044 |
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