Henry Wasoski

Professor Colvin

English Composition 2

February 2, 2020

Two Versions of the Same Song Essay

“I love rock and roll,” a simple statement made by two bands, but in different ways. The

Arrows came out with this quote back in 1975, portraying a story of fans of the genre, those fans

being the band itself. Joan Jett and Blackhearts then joined in and used the same message, but on

a grander scale. The Arrows and Joan Jett portray the same idea through the song “I Love Rock

and Roll, but Joan Jett’s version appeals to a much younger crowd with more of a partying theme

compared to its predecessor. 

The song, “I Love Rock and Roll” made by The Arrows in 1975 was a portrayal of a

band who loves the genre of rock. Their video consisted of the band on a well-lit stage,

performing to no one in person, singing about a story of a guy taking his chances on a girl he’s

interested in with the help of the jukebox and rock ‘n roll. The same song was used once again

but this time by a different band, Joan Jett and the Blackhearts. Their video of the song consisted

of the band taking over a small-town bar, and with the help of the song, the band attracts many

people. The story of the song is the same, except the gender roles are switched, a girl (Joan Jett)

is trying to get a guy. Each song/video shows a love for rock, but in different ways.

In the Arrow’s version of the song, there is a much more relaxed mood. The video does

show an upbeat vibe but also feels collective and controlled, like its focused on telling a story

through the lyrics, rather than through the video. The Arrow’s video shows no audience for them
to play to, and rarely anybody else besides the band members themselves. Joan Jett’s version

does the opposite of this. They show crowds of young audience members rocking out to the

sound of the music. The portrayal of this, makes the video seem as if it is trying to appeal to a

younger crowd. The original version, with its focus on the lyrics, make the song and video, feel

more catered to anyone who enjoys listening to the genre of rock. The newer version, with the

help of the video and visual story it tells, adheres to younger members of society. The music

video takes place in a bar filled only with young adults, partaking in activities that young adults

are known for doing. By displaying these images in one video but not the other, shows that the

specific audience for each video differs. The older song wasn’t made just for one age group, but

for all age groups, and the newer version was made for everyone, but mainly for a younger

crowd.

The video from each band also gives off different themes and moods. The Arrow’s video

displays a relaxed mood, due to there not being much intensity shown in their video. Their video

not having an audience or much going at all besides the band playing, causes the mood to be this

way. This relaxed feeling also helps in making the theme more story driven. By showing the

band performing their song in a collective manner, they aren’t pressing any other ideas than to

just listen to the song and the story it tells. Joan Jett’s version and video of the song doesn’t give

off this same mood or theme. The mood in Joan Jett’s video immediately starts off stronger by

showing a jukebox in a bar playing one of the bands previous songs that is very upbeat and not

relaxed at all. Not too long after this, Joan Jett’s version of the song begins to play and the bar

starts to fill with people who rock out to the tune that her and her band have created. The

audience is jumping up and down and dancing to the music. All this movement and excitement

portrayed in the video gives off a partying theme and a wilder mood. These different emotions
caused by the video makes the feeling that viewers get to be drastically different from its

predecessor. These differences in the videos greatly changes the vibe that each band gives off

when viewing their works.

Both songs accomplish their themes, moods, and target audience through the pathos

rhetorical appeal. Each song and video bring out different emotions with the beat in the song and

the visuals in each video. The pathos appeal is also used to show the overarching message of

each video which is that you shouldn’t be afraid to put yourself out there and reveal your

interests, whether that be in people or in music. Pathos helps display this claim by showing us

positive outcomes when you aren’t afraid to put yourself out there.

“I love rock and roll” is a basic phrase that can be used to state a feeling someone has. It

can be used by multiple bands to portray the same message to different groups of people in

different ways. Each band does a unique job at showing what they want and appealing to who

they want. Although the songs don’t differ greatly, they do differ enough to make them different

experiences.

Works Cited

Jett, Joan, director. I Love Rock N' Roll-1982. Youtube, 1982.

Merrill, Alan, director. Arrows, I Love Rock N Roll, Alan Merrill. Youtube, 1975.