"Bastards of Young" is a song written by Paul Westerberg and recorded by his band The Replacements for their fourth studio album Tim (1985).
Inspired by Westerberg's sister Mary and the band's feelings of alienation, the song has been described as an "anthem" and features a Who-inspired guitar intro.
The song was infamously performed on Saturday Night Live, where Westerberg's use of profanity in an off-mike comment earned the ire of producer Lorne Michaels.
[2] "Bastards of Young" was written by Replacements frontman Paul Westerberg, who labored over the song's lyrics over multiple drafts.
The song's topic of alienation was inspired in part by Westerberg's sister Mary, who left their hometown of Minneapolis to search for acting roles in New York City.
The minimalist guitar opening of "Bastards of Young," like the intros of many Replacements songs from the period, was based on early Who records that Westerberg admired.
AllMusic's Jason Ankeny wrote of the song, "With 'Bastards of Young,' the Replacements' Paul Westerberg finally delivered the rock & roll anthem he'd always threatened -- a rallying cry for a generation of misfits and ne'er-do-wells raised on false hopes and dim aspirations.
"[9] Ultimate Classic Rock and PopMatters both ranked it as their fourth best song, with the latter writing, "this could retroactively be described as one of the first real Generation X anthems.