A history of the Zippo lighter in music

The sound, look, and feel, of a Zippo lighter has echoed through popular culture almost as long as the brand has been in session, from film, to television, to music. Here we examine how this tool and talisman has inspired musicians over the decades.

G-Eazy in his music video for "Been On'

Way back in 1968, Serge Gainsbourg released his studio album Initials B.B., featuring the charming ditty Ford Mustang. It’s classic Gainsbourg; racy and effortlessly cool, and contains one of the earliest Zippo references in music, with the lyrics "A collection / Of Edgar Poe /A Zippo lighter".

Sting’s 1992 hit It’s Probably Me is one of the best examples of a Zippo lighter cementing its cult status in the music world, with samples of the lighter opening, closing, and igniting forming the beat of the song. Akin to the cash registers in Pink Floyd’s Money, here Zippo sits at the very heart of Sting’s process.

Oakland rapper G-Eazy has a career of worldwide hits in his back pocket, few are bigger than Been On in 2013. The clip features Eazy lighting up a king-sized blunt with his Zippo, filmed in glorious black and white slo-mo.

Via Happy Mag.