I Wish I Was a Punk Rocker (With Flowers in My Hair)

"I Wish I Was a Punk Rocker (With Flowers in My Hair)" is the debut single of Scottish singer-songwriter Sandi Thom, released in October 2005. The song was written by Thom and Tom Gilbert. Following a re-release in 2006, the song topped the singles charts of Australia, Ireland, and the United Kingdom. However, critical reaction to the song was largely negative, especially regarding the lyrics.

Inspiration
Thom has said on her website that she wrote the song after being robbed of her mobile phone and other belongings one evening, leaving her completely lost and without any way of contacting her family, friends, or the bank. She says, "I wondered if that had happened to me back in the days of the hippies what would I have done and would I have freaked out so much?" [sic]

Release
Although only physically released in the United Kingdom on 22 May 2006, download sales the week before are counted for the purpose of charts, and it achieved number fifteen on this basis in the general charts (and number seven in the download-only chart). The physical release had three formats: two CD versions (one featuring the radio mix and "A Light as Bright as Ours", another featuring the radio mix, the album mix, a further remix, "May You Never" and the music video), and also as a 7-inch vinyl record backed with Stranglers cover "No More Heroes".

Critical reception
The song was nominated for Record of the Year but lost to "Patience" by Take That.

Most reviews of the song were negative. For allmusic, Thom Jurek called the song "a hopelessly naïve, cleverly worded musical ditty that is reminiscent of something used to sell European automobiles." Criticising the intense public relations efforts to make the single popular, Charlie Brooker of The Guardian called the song "a boneheaded plea for authenticity, sung in the most Tupperware tones imaginable: a fake paean to a pre-fake era." Brooker also added: "It's not 'art', it's 'content'." Virgin Media was even more harsh, describing the song as "dreary rose-tinted drivel sung by a girl with a voice like wind billowing up an old drainpipe."

Thom was the subject of criticism by many artists within the recording world, most notably from Lily Allen, the Fratellis, and the Automatic. James Frost and Robin Hawkins from the Automatic stated that "If she was a punk rocker with flowers in her hair she'd get the shit kicked out of her by other punk rockers, for having flowers in her hair. [...] I haven't found anyone who's told me they like that song and bought it."

In 2017, NME named the song among the worst of the 2000s: "...had this song not existed within a viral fad, literally nobody would care." NME also responded to the song title: "...Johnny Rotten wouldn’t be seen dead with flowers in his hair."

For Yahoo! Music, Dan Gennoe had a more positive review of the song, calling it "a cunningly perfect piece of pop." Similarly, RTÉ music critic Linda McGee defended Thom against popular backlash: "...truth be known, there aren't many of us who haven't wished that we could be transported to another time or place at some point in our lives." Andy Gill of The Independent said of the song: "It's a catchy enough piece, and original enough to merit its success, but hardly enough to carry an entire album..."

Chart performance
The song was released on 3 October 2005 by Viking Legacy Records, reaching number 55 in the UK Singles Chart. It was re-released in May 2006 on Sony BMG's RCA Records label, selling 39,797 copies in the week ending 3 June 2006, enough to reach number one on the UK Singles Chart, replacing Gnarls Barkley's "Crazy" following a nine-week run. It spent one week at the top spot and went on to be the UK's fifth-best-selling single of the year. The single also spent 10 weeks at number one in Australia, where it finished the year as the country's highest-selling single. It received a double platinum certification from the Australian Recording Industry Association.

Music video
The music video was shot in Bethnal Green in London and is all one shot.

Track listings
UK CD1 (2005)
 * 1) "I Wish I Was a Punk Rocker (With Flowers in My Hair)" – 2:30
 * 2) "Little Remedy"  – 3:01

UK CD2 (2005)
 * 1) "I Wish I Was a Punk Rocker (With Flowers in My Hair)" – 2:30
 * 2) "Something in the Air" – 4:15
 * 3) "No More Heroes" – 2:46
 * 4) "I Wish I Was a Punk Rocker (With Flowers in My Hair)" (video)

UK 7-inch single (2006)
 * A. "I Wish I Was a Punk Rocker (With Flowers in My Hair)" (radio mix) – 2:31
 * B. "No More Heroes" – 2:46

UK CD1 (2006)
 * 1) "I Wish I Was a Punk Rocker (With Flowers in My Hair)" (radio mix) – 2:31
 * 2) "A Light as Bright as Ours" – 3:55

UK CD2 and Australian CD single (2006)
 * 1) "I Wish I Was a Punk Rocker (With Flowers in My Hair)" (radio mix) – 2:33
 * 2) "I Wish I Was a Punk Rocker (With Flowers in My Hair)" (album version) – 2:31
 * 3) "I Wish I Was a Punk Rocker (With Flowers in My Hair)" (Mutiny's Rockers & Lovers mix) – 3:02
 * 4) "May You Never" – 3:45
 * 5) "I Wish I Was a Punk Rocker (With Flowers in My Hair)" (video) – 2:39

European CD single (2006)
 * 1) "I Wish I Was a Punk Rocker (With Flowers in My Hair)" (album version) – 2:31
 * 2) "A Light as Bright as Ours" – 3:55
 * 3) "I Wish I Was a Punk Rocker (With Flowers in My Hair)" (Mutiny's Rockers & Lovers mix) – 3:04