With coronavirus understandably dominating the news, The Knack’s 1979 earworm hit “My Sharona” has seen its popularity spike. (50% more digital sales and 28% more US streams, according to Billboard.) Some folks have been uploading spoofs playing off the “sharona”/”corona” rhyme, but the King of Parody, “Weird Al”, has poopooed the idea of updating “My Bologna”. Thankfully, The Knack themselves have finally stepped forward with the “My Sharona” coronavirus parody video we’ve all longed for.
Founding guitarist Berton Averre had been hounded by calls for The Knack’s version of “My Corona”, “because apparently there aren’t enough of them.” However, the band’s singer, Doug Fieger, passed away in 2010, and Averre couldn’t figure out how to do such a thing without him. According to the video, it was his dachshunds, Freddy and Winnie, that helped him figure out a workaround.
“Why not, instead of another instruction video on how to wash my hands, I give them an instruction video on how to play the guitar solo on ‘My Sharona’,” said Averre. While the video isn’t as much instructional as it is a demonstration, he was able to recruit Knack bassist Prescott Niles to join in at the end to scream, “Bye, corona!” All the while, a ticker scrolls at the bottom of the video with the standard advice on how to protect yourself from COVID-19.
Of course, Averre wipes down his guitar neck between blazing the solo and telling the virus to “get the hell outta here!” Watch the video below.
The Knack had previously released a statement about the rise in “My Sharona” coronavirus parodies. “We love that our music can provide relief from the stress of how drastically and suddenly our daily lives have changed,” they wrote. “We have not shared them because we want to avoid appearing not to take this crisis seriously or, worse, using it as a way to promote ourselves. In the meantime, please know that we are listening.”
Find their full statement — and more coronavirus-related remarks — ahead.
So we were faced with the daunting task of wading into the untrackable deeps of Corona/Sharona world. I think I struck upon a decent solution, and it goes without saying the dachshund duo of Winnie and Freddie steal the show. https://t.co/pIhbP04aZ1
— Berton Averre (@Averre13) March 25, 2020
A couple days ago, I tweeted the smart-ass suggestion that The Knack should post a pandemic version of "My Sharona" without realizing that their lead singer Doug Fieger passed away.
But instead of making me feel like a schmuck, guitarist @Averre13 went and did this… https://t.co/dL098YV71v
— Bill Weir (@BillWeirCNN) March 25, 2020
You asked for it, you got it (sorta). Bye, Corona! – YouTube https://t.co/hmKn8moOEh
— The KnacK (@Knackrophilia) March 25, 2020
Believe us, not the way we want to earn them. #ByeCorona https://t.co/tCbXWn8RzB
— The KnacK (@Knackrophilia) March 24, 2020
“My Sharona” Rockers The Knack Share “Bye, Corona!” Parody Video: Watch
Ben Kaye
