Naïve (song)


"Naïve" is a song by British indie rock band the Kooks. It was released on 27 March 2006 as the fourth single from their debut studio album, Inside In/Inside Out. "Naïve" charted at number five on the UK Singles Chart, becoming the UK's 19th-best-selling single of 2006 and earning a sextuple platinum certification from the British Phonographic Industry in 2025. The song also reached number 15 in Flanders and New Zealand as well as number 22 on the US Billboard Modern Rock Tracks chart.
It placed at number 87 in Triple J's Hottest 100 of the Past 20 Years, being one of a few songs to debut in the countdown without having made a yearly list beforehand.

Background

Lead singer Luke Pritchard wrote "Naive" when he was a teenager. As he told The Guardian: " when I was 15 or 16 – before we had the band – but I didn't like it. I was quite a paranoid, unconfident kid and I had a relationship with someone who was getting into a world that I didn't understand. The song is about the fear of someone doing something bad to you. The lyrics are real in some ways, but I was too young to have actually experienced that situation, so it was more me projecting my teenage fears. I've found myself in that situation since – it's become something of a self-fulfilling prophecy."
Guitarist Hugh Harris revealed that the song was recorded in various different formats before the final mix. "There are versions of Naive in the vaults of Virgin Records that would make us die of embarrassment if we heard them now," he said. "We just couldn't get the guitars to syncopate with the dancier rhythm. We tried it as ska. We even tried it as reggae. Eventually, I found a two-note guitar part and we simplified the drums, then just went over and over it again. It was exhausting. I don't think the song really suited our band at the time, but it was huge."

Music video

The official music video features Pritchard singing the song whilst walking around in the Nambucca nightclub on London's Holloway Road, reminiscing on memories of him and his girlfriend. Pritchard told The Guardian that the director funnelled his own experiences into the video, making it about infidelity.

Track listings

UK 7-inch single
UK limited-edition Minimax CD single
  1. "Naïve"
  2. "Hiding Low"
European CD single
  1. "Naïve"
  2. "I Love That Girl"
  3. "Naïve"
  4. "You Don't Love Me"
Australian CD single
  1. "Naïve"
  2. "Tea and Biscuits"
  3. "I Love That Girl"
Seeb remix
  1. "Naïve" – 3:08

Charts

Year-end charts

Chart Position
UK Singles 94

Chart Position
UK Singles 71

Covers

In popular culture

"Naïve" was featured on the soundtrack for the film 17 Again and the One Tree Hill episode "Resolve", as well as on the show's third soundtrack, The Road Mix and the 2009 video game Lego Rock Band.
Actress Jodie Comer stated in a 2018 interview that "Naïve" was her favourite song as a teenager, and that she considered having the song's title tattooed across the back of her neck before realising it was a bad idea.