Greased Lightnin'

Album: Grease soundtrack (1978)
Charted: 11 47
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Songfacts®:

  • Jim Jacobs and Warren Casey wrote "Greased Lightnin'" for Kenickie and the T-Birds to sing while they dream of fixing up his rundown car, but Danny (John Travolta) took the lead in the 1978 film at Travolta's request. The single was a much bigger hit in the UK, where it peaked at #11.
  • Jeff Conaway, who played Kenickie in the movie, injured his back during the sequence, leading to an addiction to painkillers that would follow him for the rest of his life.
  • In one shot, Travolta is shown rubbing plastic wrap over his crotch - a sly sexual reference to beat the censors. Back in the '50s, many misinformed teens tried to use Saran Wrap as a contraceptive when they were unable to buy condoms.
  • In high school productions (and in the 2016 Fox live adaptation), the lyrics are modified for young ears:

    "The chicks will scream" (not "cream")
    "She's a real dragon wagon" (not "pussy wagon")

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