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Cover of Return of The Rentals by The Rentals
Cover: Return of The Rentals

Song · The Rentals

“Friends of P” by The Rentals

From the album Return of The Rentals (1995)

“Friends of P” by The Rentals appears on 34 radio countdowns from 17 stations between 1995 and 2023. It was first released in 1995 on the album Return of The Rentals. Its best result is #19 on the WBER Listener Countdown 1995. In the combined RockLists rankings it is the #58 alternative song of 1995, #766 alternative song of all time and #468 of the '90s.

34countdowns
17stations
#19best position
0#1 finishes
0top 10 finishes
1995–2023years charted

Watch

The Rentals - Friends Of P. (Video)

Video from YouTube (Warner Records Vault). Pressing play loads YouTube's player. Watch on YouTube

"Friends of P" was the first single the Rentals ever put out, in 1995, leading the way for their debut album, Return of The Rentals, and it's still the song they're known for. Matt Sharp wrote the words and music, and it was one of the very first songs he came up with, back when the Rentals were barely a band at all.

It's gloriously lo-fi new wave, buzzing synths and a chorus so catchy it's practically illegal. Critics loved that hook and the song's odd, detached feel, like it's being sung from a slightly different room. It peaked at No. 7 on the US Modern Rock Tracks chart and became a hit on MTV.

Then there was the mystery of who "P" was. Sharp finally came clean in 1998: the song is about Paulina Porizkova, wife of Ric Ocasek, the frontman of the Cars, who had produced the debut album by Weezer, Sharp's former band.

Written with AI assistance from RockLists chart data, MusicBrainz and Wikipedia.

RockLists rankings

Alternative & Modern Rock

Indie & Adult Alternative

All Rock Formats

Year-end countdowns

Year#StationCountdownof
1995 75 KROQ Los Angeles, CA KROQ Top 106.7 Songs of 1995 107
1995 49 91X San Diego, CA / Tijuana 91X Top 91 Songs of 1995 91
1995 59 Q101 Chicago, IL Q101 Top 101 Songs of 1995 101
1995 83 WHFS Washington, DC / Baltimore, MD WHFS Top 99.1 Songs of 1995 100
1995 19 WBER Rochester, NY WBER Listener Countdown 1995 50
1995 88 Radio 104.1 Hartford-New Haven, CT WMRQ Top 104 Songs of 1995 104
1995 62 103.1 The Buzz West Palm Beach, FL The Buzz Top 103 Alternative Songs of '95 103
1995 70 Radio & Records United States (national airplay chart) Radio & Records Top 95 Songs of 1995 95
1995 83 WDRE Philadelphia Philadelphia, PA WDRE Top 103.9 Songs of 1995 104
1996 55 WBER Rochester, NY WBER Listener Countdown 1996 100

All-time and decade countdowns

Year#StationCountdownof
1999 311 91X 91X Fat 500 Songs of All-Time (July 1999) 500
1999 1054 107.7 The End The End Top 1077 Songs of All-Time (December 1999) 1077
1999 113 CD101 CD101 Top 2000 Songs of All-Time (December 1999) 2000
2000 114 CD101 CD101 Top 2001 Songs of All-Time (December 2000) 2001
2001 116 CD101 CD101 Top 2002 Songs of All-Time (December 2001) 2002
2002 116 CD101 CD101 Top 2003 Songs of All-Time (December 2002) 2003
2002 1635 Fred (XM 44) Fred XM Top 2002 Songs of All-Time (July 2002) 2002
2003 116 CD101 CD101 Top 2004 Songs of All-Time (December 2003) 2004
2004 116 CD101 CD101 Top 2005 Songs of All-Time (December 2004) 2005
2005 113 CD101 CD101 Top 2006 Songs of All-Time (December 2005) 1994
2005 565 99X 99X Freedom of Choice 1000 (2005) 1000
2007 798 CD101 CD101 Top 2008 Songs of All-Time (December 2007) 2008
2008 792 CD101 CD101 Top 2009 Songs of All-Time (December 2008) 2009
2009 810 CD101 CD101 Top 2010 Songs of All-Time (December 2009) 2010
2010 828 CD101 CD101 Top 2011 Songs of All-Time (December 2010) 2011
2011 855 CD101 CD101 Top 2012 Songs of All-Time (December 2011) 2011
2013 887 CD101 CD101 Top 2013 Songs of All-Time (December 2013) 2012
2014 932 CD101 CD101 Top 2014 Songs of All-Time (2014) 2013
2021 197 90.9 The Bridge 90.9 The Bridge Top 909 Songs of the '90s 908
2021 419 105.9 The X 105.9 The X July 420 (2021) 420
2022 852 The Colorado Sound The Colorado Sound Top 900 Songs of the '90s 900
2022 383 105.9 The X 105.9 The X July 420 (2022) 420
2023 410 The Current The Current's 893 Essential Songs of the '90s 893
2023 387 105.9 The X 105.9 The X July 420 (2023) 420

Also listed as: Friends of P.; Friends Of P; Friends Of P..

Charting alongside it in 1995

Best songs of 1995 →
  1. 1You Oughta KnowAlanis Morissette
  2. 2LumpThe Presidents of the United States of America
  3. 3Lightning CrashesLive
  4. 4Bullet With Butterfly WingsThe Smashing Pumpkins
  5. 5NameGoo Goo Dolls
  6. 6My FriendsRed Hot Chili Peppers

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