The first single released by the Knack, “My Sharona” topped the US pop chart in 1979 and was declared song of the year. Overseas it reached the top 20 in several countries including a #6 peak in the UK.

The song was inspired by a 17-year-old girl named Sharona Alperin that frontman Doug Fieger met at a clothing store and with whom he became infatuated. She eventually became his lover and then girlfriend, but the two never married.

“My Sharona” is famous for its simple, catchy bass riff and raunchy lyrics, as well as the famous stutter introducing the song’s subject.

The band’s debut album Get the Knack pre-sold over a million copies before it came out due to the success of “My Sharona”. The album had two additional songs also inspired by Sharona, including the racier “That’s What Little Girls Do”.

Later “My Sharona” was labeled as “The song that killed Disco”. Many believe that the song’s huge success doomed the band, who could never repeat its appeal, influence and popularity.

“My Sharona” was thrust back into the spotlight in 2005 when the New York Times revealed that former President George W Bush had the song on his iPod.

The cover art of the single features Sharona Alperin posing in a revealing tank top and tight jeans holding a copy of the Knack’s debut studio album Get the Knack.