Kung Fu
by Ash

Album: 1977 (1995)
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Songfacts®:

  • On December 26, 1994, Ash frontman Tim Wheeler came up with this song while waiting for a plane in Belfast. The song is a chop suey of references to martial arts movie tropes, with Bruce Lee, Mr. Miagi and Jackie Chan all getting mentions.

    "I fell in love with the words 'kung fu,' 'Hong Kong' and 'Fu Manchu,'" Wheeler told NME in 1995. "We wanted to write a really crap Ramones song and it was meant to be the B-side but it turned out too good. A fluke - written in five minutes and recorded in two-and-a-half."
  • The opening fight sounds were taken from the 1980 martial arts spoof Spooky Encounters.
  • The line, "I haven't been the same since my teenage lobotomy," is a reference to the 1977 Ramones song "Teenage Lobotomy."
  • This plays in the opening scene of the 1995 movie Rumble in the Bronx, starring Jackie Chan, who is mentioned in the song.
  • Owen Morris, known for his work with Oasis, produced this track.

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