5 Colours in Her Hair

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"5 Colours in Her Hair"
Single by McFly
from the album Room on the 3rd Floor
B-side"Lola"
Released29 March 2004 (2004-03-29)
Length2:58
Label
Songwriter(s)
Producer(s)Craig Hardy
McFly singles chronology
"5 Colours in Her Hair"
(2004) 		"Obviously"
(2004)

"5 Colours in Her Hair" is the debut single by English pop rock band McFly. It was also the band's first UK number one. It stayed at the top for two weeks. The song was written by Tom Fletcher, James Bourne, Danny Jones and Ben Sargeant. The track is especially well known for its "Doo, doo, doo, doo, doo, doo!" lyrics, played at the beginning and at the ending of the song. The CD and 7-inch formats features a duet with Busted singing a cover of the Kinks song "Lola".

Overall, it spent twelve weeks in the UK Singles Chart. It also reached number seven in Ireland. The song was inspired by Susan Lee, a character played by actress Emily Corrie in the TV series As If, who wore coloured dreadlocks.[1][2] The music itself is indebted to 1960s surf and beat music. The song was also nominated for The Record of the Year in 2004, but finished in second place just one point behind the winner, "Thunderbirds / 3AM" by Busted.

Music video[edit]

McFly shot the video for their debut single "5 Colours in Her Hair" just after Christmas 2003. Simon Amstell recorded an interview and footage behind the scenes for Channel 4 music show, Popworld. The video begins by introducing the band members in a comical style, by getting Danny and Dougie's names wrong. It also features the band messing around at various different scenes, but telling the overall main story about a girl with 5 colours in her hair, who was miserable and living in a black and white world. She then follows them into the TV where she joins the band in a club setting where the band are playing to a crowd. They also shoot various well known scenes as a tribute to their main influences including the Beatles and the Beach Boys. The video was shot in front of a green screen. It stars Molly Portsmouth as the 'Girl with 5 Colours in Her Hair'.

US version[edit]

A rerecorded pop punk version of the song appeared on the Just My Luck album, McFly's debut album in the US. It also features minor lyrical alterations. The song was included on the "Please, Please" single release in the UK, as well as on the All the Greatest Hits deluxe fan edition.[3] It would go on to be the default way they would perform the song live.

Track listings[edit]

UK CD1 (MCSTD 40357)[4]
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."5 Colours in Her Hair"
2:58
2."Lola" (featuring Busted)Ray Davies4:14
UK CD2 (MCSXD 40357)[5]
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."5 Colours in Her Hair"
  • Fletcher
  • Bourne
  • Jones
  • Sargeant
2:58
2."Saturday Nite"
2:47
3."The Guy Who Turned Her Down"
  • Fletcher
  • Bourne
3:58
4."5 Colours in Her Hair" (video)
  • Fletcher
  • Bourne
  • Jones
  • Sargeant
 
UK 7-inch picture disc (MCS40357)[6]
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."5 Colours in Her Hair"
  • Fletcher
  • Bourne
  • Jones
  • Sargeant
2:58
2."Lola" (featuring Busted)
  • Davies
4:14
Japanese CD single (UICI-5015)[7]
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."5 Colours in Her Hair"
  • Fletcher
  • Bourne
  • Jones
  • Sargeant
2:58
2."Lola" (featuring Busted)Davies4:14
3."The Guy Who Turned Her Down"
  • Fletcher
  • Bourne
3:58

Charts[edit]

Certifications[edit]

Region Certification Certified units/sales
United Kingdom (BPI)[14] Silver 249,000[13]

Release history[edit]

Region Date Format(s) Label(s) Ref.
United Kingdom 29 March 2004
  • 7-inch vinyl
  • CD
[15]
Japan 7 July 2004 CD [16]

References[edit]

  1. ^ "TV teen drama actress joins Navy". BBC News. 8 October 2009. Retrieved 8 October 2009.
  2. ^ "CBBC Newsround: HOTSEAT. In the hotseat: McFly". BBC. 3 April 2004. Retrieved 8 October 2009.
  3. ^ "McBusted Hyde Park". Mcflyofficial.com. Archived from the original on 7 April 2013. Retrieved 2 April 2014.
  4. ^ 5 Colours in Her Hair (UK CD1 liner notes). McFly. Island Records, Universal Records. 2004. MCSTD 40357, 986 626-9.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  5. ^ 5 Colours in Her Hair (UK CD2 liner notes). McFly. Island Records, Universal Records. 2004. MCSXD 40357, 986 627-0.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  6. ^ 5 Colours in Her Hair (UK 7-inch picture disc sleeve). McFly. Island Records, Universal Records. 2004. MCS40357, 986 627-1.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  7. ^ 5 Colours in Her Hair (Japanese CD single liner notes). McFly. Island Records, Universal Records. 2004. UICI-5015.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  8. ^ "Hits of the World – Eurocharts" (PDF). Billboard. Vol. 116, no. 16. 17 April 2004. p. 57. Retrieved 20 March 2020.
  9. ^ "The Irish Charts – Search Results – 5 Colours in Her Hair". Irish Singles Chart.
  10. ^ "Official Scottish Singles Sales Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company.
  11. ^ "Official Singles Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company.
  12. ^ "The Official UK Singles Chart 2004" (PDF). UKChartsPlus. Retrieved 7 July 2018.
  13. ^ Copsey, Rob (7 April 2017). "McFly's debut single hit Number 1 13 years ago this week". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 8 April 2017.
  14. ^ "British single certifications – McFly – 5 Colours in Her Hair". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved 7 July 2018.
  15. ^ "New Releases: Singles". Music Week. 27 March 2004. p. 39.
  16. ^ "2004/7月新譜リリース表" [July 2004 New Release List] (in Japanese). Universal Music Japan. Archived from the original on 6 December 2004. Retrieved 28 August 2023.
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