Tag Archives: they might be giants

#734: They Might Be Giants – Letterbox

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One of my favourites from They Might Be Giants’ album Flood from 1990, ‘Letterbox’ sees John Flansburgh and John Linnell sing in unison with a rapid pace amidst a backdrop of a warm synth bass and quick acoustic guitar strums in a waltz time. It’s one of the shorter songs on the record, coming in at a minute and 25 seconds, but still filled with the many things that make a Giants song great. It’s all about those melodies, man.

It’s been about nine years that I’ve had Flood in my iTunes library now, and the songs I enjoy most from it I could serenade you with as easily as I could recite the alphabet. Though this one starts with a little difficulty. Flansburgh and Linnell are able to cram a large number of syllables into a matter of seconds with each line during the verses, delivered to you like a musical tongue twister. The two known to be quite reluctant/secretive when it comes truly revealing what some particular songs of theirs are about. Not a lot is known about this one. I definitely couldn’t tell you. But it sounds fantastic to the ear.

Not only do the two Johns sing in unison; they also switch things up by providing harmonies to one another. Linnell sings a falsetto harmony in the left channel during the second verse and then sings the bridge by himself, before Flansburgh comes in with an emphatic higher harmony during the final verse at which things come to a thudding stop. I sometimes wish this song was longer; it really doesn’t need to be. It does its job.

#707: They Might Be Giants – Lady Is a Tramp

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When I found out that They Might Be Giants’ ‘Lady Is a Tramp’ – found on their B-Side compilation Miscellaneous T – was a cover of a classic musical number, I went to listen to an earlier take of the track from long ago. It’s been performed by some true greats. Frank Sinatra, Ella Fitzgerald, Bing Crosby, you name it. Once I did that, it really left me wondering how They Might Be Giants’ version resembled the song in any way.

The Johns’ cover is an instrumental of blaring synthesized trumpets and a bass guitar that gets louder and louder in the mix at various points. It’s only a minute and 20 seconds long. Someone, I assume it’s John Flansburgh, yells “Yeah!” twice and there’s a sample of Carla saying the word ‘tramp’ from her and Otis Redding’s song of the same name. After a few listens I realised that the trumpets loosely follow the original song’s melody in a very jumped up and hyper fashion. Lady Gaga and Tony Bennett coincidentally released their cover of the song the same year I heard TMBGs’ for the first time; the melodic similarity was right there. I think They Might Be Giants’ wild take just makes me appreciate their cover a lot more. It’s a very different way of taking on a Broadway musical number.

#701: They Might Be Giants – Kiss Me, Son of God

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When listening to They Might Be Giants’ second album Lincoln you wouldn’t think that, after starting with ‘Ana Ng’, the record would then go on to close with ‘Kiss Me, Son of God’. Musically uplifting, it’s led by a soundscape of rising violins, saxophones and a cello that provide the backdrop to Linnell’s lyrics which detail a dictator who has lost the respect of his closest friends and associates.

In typical TMBG fashion the song juxtaposes happy music and darker lyrical subject matter to create this undertone of tension and uneasiness. The listener however isn’t able to tell unless they really search out those lyrics just because of how upbeat and strident the melodies are. I’m thinking that, as the track is from the point of view of this awful, awful person, the music is meant to reflect the fact that the narrator truly doesn;t care about the hurt he’s causing these people and is in fact very happy about his situation.

Very descriptive in its language and vivid in its imagery, the lyrical highlight arguably occurs in the bridge:

I look like Jesus, so they say
But Mr. Jesus is very far away
Now you’re the only one here who can tell me if it’s true
That you love me and I love me

You see, ’cause as a listener you’re expecting Linnell to sing ‘I love you‘ in that final line but he turns it around and sings ‘me’ instead. You have to hear it to appreciate it.

Linnell and Flansburgh had originally recorded the track during the sessions for the group’s first album. It was released a B-Side on the ‘(She Was a) Hotel Detective’ single, and is very different from how it appears on Lincoln. With no backing music by The Ordinaires, it’s just the two Johns singing in harmony with an accordion at hand. Here is that version:

#678: They Might Be Giants – Judy Is Your Viet Nam

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They Might Be Giants’ 2011 album Join Us turns 10 next year and, to me, it was the group’s best record they released in the last decade. I like a lot more songs on there than on say, Nanobots or Glean. It was released during a time when I was quite happy with the way things were going in life. As much as things can go when you’re 16. Either way I can’t believe that time has gone by so quickly. It’s still one of my favourite albums by They, and this song is a great offering from it.

‘Judy Is Your Viet Nam’ is the 11th track on Join Us. Sung by John Flansburgh, ‘Judy’ originated as something of a Christmas song. Lyrics from that initial idea can be heard in the background during the “Who knew she could be so reckless?” verse. Somewhere along the line the song’s intentions changed, transforming into a rowdy rocker led by a Keith Moon-esque drum performance by Marty Beller.

It tells the story of ‘Judy’ who was something of a free spirit in the 90s before time eventually caught up with her and life changes had to be made as a result. It’s a weird one to describe because the narrative is in the second-person, so Flansburgh sings as if you knew Judy yourself. We probably do know a few Judy’s as depicted here, honestly.

I think this song’s great. Really enjoy it. Enough to satisfy in the 80 seconds it lasts for.

#652: They Might Be Giants – It’s Not My Birthday

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‘It’s Not My Birthday’ is a well-loved song among the most dedicated of TMBG fans. Originally released as a B-Side on the ‘They’ll Need a Crane’ single in 1989 – it was given wider circulation in 1991, placed as the seventh track on the band’s compilation Miscellaneous T.

I heard it for the first time….. think in early 2011 when I was studying for my GCSEs. I had been a major follower of They for years up until then, but it was around that time that I actually got to listening to their albums in full. Those were good times…. But anyway – got around to listening to Miscellaneous T and although these were all B-Sides they nevertheless had the same authentic quality of any track that made it onto their ‘official’ albums. Some would say this track in particular should have been on Lincoln. That’s just the way things go sometimes, I guess.

It’s less than two minutes in duration but is packed with so much that you at least feel satisfied when it’s over. There’s a briskness to it, led by a bouncy rhythm and general upbeat vibe in the music. However, it’s another one of the group’s that has an looming hint of sadness to it. Mainly in the lyrics. I’ve always had that feeling towards it though I’ve never known why. They’re quite hard to fully interpret. But I think it’s about a person who is just going through life without any real purpose and is just waiting for an end with each day. Though that’s just me.