I WILL by The Beatles is a classic shorty@ 1:45; love me some LETTERBOX from Flood; also, gottta give props to THROUGH WITH BUZZ by Steely Dan. An orchestrally compact pretzel of a jam.
It’s beyond me why TMBG isn’t more popular or famous than they are. I saw them recently, and they performed one of their songs completely backwards, including the lyrics. After intermission, the venue played the video backwards, and it was almost perfect. The humor, the brilliant lyrics, and their catchy melodies are simply amazing.
I feeling like it's probably because while they now fit into the musical landscape - they kinda invented the whole musical genre. In 1990, there wasn't much else sounding like them on the radio. Drum machines weren't like, accepted by the mainsteam quite yet. Bands like Magnetic Fields wouldn't break for another decade nearly. At the time bands like my bloody valentine were considered noisy and different. I dunno that's just my two cents. Also, I feel like their live shows now are more traditional then they probably always appeared live. Originally. I remember thinking it so cool and quirky to see a band live with two guys, a spinning wheel on stage and one plays accordion... But that's just the whole thing. Live, it was two guys from Brooklyn, one who played accordion. Musical tastes weren't as varied and accepting back then And genres were more restrictive and peoples tastes were dictated more by their preferred genre... Which were way more defining. Just my two cents.
I get it. They’re absolutely my favorite band, hands down, no exception. But they’re also incredibly niche. Their style appeals to a very specific mentality that I don’t think the wider music audience has.
TMBG saved my life honestly. I discovered them through Homestar Runner and when I actually got into their music it was at the most critical time in my life. I had no joys or hobbies, but suddenly they hit my ears and everything felt right again. I'm still collecting their CDs and vinyls and listening to them daily.
It's great to get Flood stories, but your viewers should know that these guys haven't stopped putting out great music. Their body of work is as big as anyone's...and it's all awesome.
They did the theme song for Disney's new 'Mickey mouse clubhouse' in the 2000's. I remember watching it with my toddler and seeing them in the credits and thinking how perfect it was that they were tapped to do that. We got ears it's time for cheers!
Man. I saw them in a tiny club as a duo when they released Anna Ng as a single. Just the 2 of them with a sampler. So many songs....a unique, smart, once in a generation band. "I don't want the world, I just want your half"
I'll be damned. Just yesterday, I was thinking to myself, "I bet Professor of Rock never does anything with my favorite band," and not 24 hours later, this drops. I've interviewed both Johns a number of times, and seen them live at least a dozen times, so I'm really excited to see this. Great interview!
an interesting one would be around Boss of Me, a hit for them and for big TV series in early 2000s. It'd be interesting to hear more how they got involved in that.
My wife and I loved TMBG and we listened to Flood so many times when we started dating. When we were married in 1994, one of her bridesmaids - a friend to this day - bought us two front tickets to their show as our wedding present. Still a memorable gift.
Not long after I moved to Edmonton to go to university, I heard "Istanbul, not Constantinople" randomly on the radio. It really caught me; it was so different to anything else on the radio. I learned that it was by TMBG, on the Flood album. I went out as soon as I could to find the album, and I listened to that cassette almost incessantly. "Birdhouse in Your Soul" was the cherry on top of one of the best albums I've ever had.
I've been a fan of Weird Al since I was a kid - maybe 8 - and the first time I heard They Might Be Giants, I was hooked. It was my freshman year of college in 1993. Flood was a few years old, but HUGE among my friends. Here was a band that was singing fun, not-too-serious songs about math and physics, and stylistically they were all over the place: Just like me! I've had the privilege of meeting many famous musicians in my life but I've been starstruck only a few times, and these guys (along with Jon "Bermuda" Schwartz, and The Presidents of the United States of America - moreso than an actual President of the United States) got me absolutely gobsmacked. As always, thank you so much for the great content, Adam. I'm a huge fan and look forward to each day's adventure.
TMBG are living legends. And their catalogue has evolved with them, and their fan base has only gotten bigger and more diverse. I got hooked when I was in middle school and heard Experimental Film on Homestar Runner and at 31, they’re still one of my absolute favourite bands of all time.
TMBG had a whole collection of micro-songs on the Apollo 18 album. I remember most of them and quote them all the time, but mainly “What’s that blue thing….doing here?” and “Aren’t you the guy (who hit me in the eye?)”
I had a stereo with a five disc changer that would random through all five discs, it was awesome fun getting one track of the Finger Tips wedged between hard rock songs like Van Halen’s Mean Streets and Quiet Riot’s Metal Health. Thanks for this great interview with TMBG.
Fingertips was put out the way it was so that when your disc was on random it would throw one of those songs and randomly between the other songs. On later CDs they condensed it to one song instead of the breakdown and kind of ruined the effect
Yeah, I remember putting the album into my CD player for the first time and it showed 28 tracks. I love the compilation; but I still wish they had expanded some of those compelling little nuggets into full songs.
No truer words….“Always here to celebrate the greatest artists and the greatest songs of all time”. Thanks for the daily content which “Always brings a smile”! Thanks Prof!
They Might Be Giants' debut album is absolutely amazing. Something like 18 songs on it, 15 of which are brilliant. "Absolutely Bill's Mood" is such a great track.
Enjoyed 1972 hits on my drive to lunch today Nice To Be With You - Gallery Playground In My Mind - Clinton Holmes Go All The Way - Raspberries Listen To The Music - Doobie Brothers Everything I Own - Bread Ah the nostalgia of simpler more innocent times ! Thanks Adam for your RUclips channel! Got me music nostalgic !
How can anyone NOT like They Might Be Giants? Their music always struck me as pure FUN! At least most of it, anyway. I don’t think I could name a single one of their songs that I didn’t like within the first ten seconds! Try that sometime with any other recording artists. It’s incredibly hard to do - it makes me think of the old saying, “If it was easy, everyone would do it!” Notice just about NOBODY has ever been able to do that except THESE GUYS! TMBG seem to have cracked the secret code somehow, and to me, everything they’ve recorded has been appealing on multiple levels. Thanks, Adam, for this video! You always do a good job, and this one was great fun!!
My husband and I were very early adopters of the Kia Soul. We found an absolutely beautiful tin birdhouse ornament to put in it so we could have a little birdhouse in our Soul. :)
When I was in college, this album was HUGE with my group of friends. I had to dive into their back catalogue after hearing it, and I wasn't disappointed! If I made a TMBG "Best Of" album, it would include the first five albums in their entirety. I hope you do more on this band, and you highlight their Dial-A-Song service. You'd call a number, and you'd get a song! They even incorporated the number in the lyrics of a Dial-A-Song number "Swing is a Word". I love that you talked about "Minimum Wage". I had a friend who made that his answering machine message (remember those?). Come to think of it, it would make a great ringtone!
Create world peace by listening to They Might Be Giants! Love it, you maybe right! You can't listen to them without coming away with a great feeling that puts you in a good mood. A true indie band made some fantastic music with a very original style. Great interview and episode professor
This album was my life in 1990. Everyone in my peer group thought I was the biggest dork on earth. I was, but this album is awesome! I was totally right to be obsessed with it.
Saw them in concert 12/31/22 - still going strong. The actually played one of their songs backwards, end to beginning. They recorded it, and then played it beginning to end so we could see how accurate it was, and it was really close.
Great interview. Looks like Flans is pretty well recovered from his accident, good to see. I discovered TMBG with Don’t Let’s Start, thanks to a freshman year roommate, and I couldn’t stand them at first. They slowly grew on me though, and a few years later, when Flood came out, I was hooked the moment I heard Particle Man, Whistling in the Dark, We Want a Rock… so many great cuts on that album, I could never pick a favorite. Fully half the concerts I’ve been to in my life have been They.
Just to tell the tale, I discovered them in 1986 when I saw the "Don't Let's Start" video on "120 Minutes" and went out and bought the cassette the next day, and I've never looked back. Saw them live for the first time in 1990, back when it was still just the two Johns and backing tapes. I still vividly recall that show and many others. Just the best.
My best girlfriend found TMBG when we were in 9th and 10th grade (she was a grade behind me). She was SO into their songs. I will tell the world that their song Constantinople gets STUCK IN MY HEAD every time I hear it!! And when I first started watching Big Bang Theory, their theme song, I kept saying Bare Naked Ladies was reminding me of They Might Be Giants! I love a song that makes you stop and LAUGH at the “hidden” lyrics…
One of my all time favorite group‼️ As a 73 year old musician in the field since 1964 or so, that’s something. Love the variety of odd subjects they write about & the inimitable approach they have to their production….. truly won of a kind👌
These guys are awesome! I’ve first heard of them when “Weird Al” took over MTV and played Don’t Let Start. I was hooked in an instant! Great interview, they are very grounded and cool.
Arguably one of the best lyrics in music is in that album. From “Road Movie to Berlin”: “We were once so close to heaven, Peter came out and gave us medals declaring us the nicest of the damned.”
For a Senior high school spring trip in April of 1990, my best friend and I drove cross country from Detroit to Salt Lake City (1600+ miles each way). We listened to the Flood on cassette on repeat. To this day I still have every song lyric memorized and learned the harmony part to counter my friend singing the melody. For my birthday, my son (who is a huge TMBG fan) bought tickets to go see the 30th anniversary of the Flood tour in 2020. That show was postponed 3 times due to Covid. They finally got back on tour but I was unable to make the show we had tickets for tonight. So watching this video makes me feel just a little bit better.
This just popped up on my feed and holy woah- how have I never found this channel??? TMBG is a group I truly don't think I appreciated until adulthood to the fullest- between their brilliant mastering and the cleverness in their lyrics, truly one of the greatest musical groups of my generation (or possibly any... it's arguable)
High on my list of all time favorite bands. Saw them live every chance I could back in the day. Even had my hassled John's t shirt signed by them. So happy to see them being recognized. You truly do rock. Thank you.
I saw them at Irving Plaza NYC on Halloween around 1993? They asked people who played string instruments to come early. They put them up in the balcony and taught them the part to a special song… Turned into “Horse With No Name! Fun show! ❤
I absolutely used to put many short songs like Minimum Wage or "Bonus Cup" songs from The Descendents on mix tapes. I was obsessed with completely filling the cassettes. So much fun and challenging.
You talk about your childhood music all the time,... I'm a snidge older than you and... John & John were my QUINTESSENTIAL teenage crushes. My best friend and I would listen to their first two albums ad nauseam between 1986-1989... we'd call Dial-A-Song and leave giggling messages... and I have never fangirl'ed SO hard as I did at the end of 1989 when we saw them play at Bowdoin College in Maine, right before FLOOD came out. I sometimes think John & John were the reason why I moved to New York City and spent 16 year in Brooklyn after graduating from college in 1994. Loved this interview when it originally came out... you are such a gift, Adam. ❤
Man, Flood is one of my favorite car-trip albums. Almost every song is great, and you can't help wanting to sing along. "Women and Men", "Lucky Ball & Chain", and "Letterbox" are a few of my favorite lesser known songs off of the album.
Thank you for shining some light on one of my favorite bands. TMBG were always a band that I kept to myself, thinking no one else would get it. Glad to hear I'm not alone.
Those Tiny Toon videos were my first introduction to them. I remembered watching them when I was young (preteen maybe 8 or 9) and loving them. Again, being a DJ you get to reintroduce songs to people. I played Birdhouse in Your Soul one night and the whole bar started singing. Thank for all the memories! They are good ones!
Man flood is such an amazing album! Every song is great. My favorite songs are we want a rock, dead, your racist friend, birdhouse (of course), particle man; Whistling in the dark. Istanbul, so many.
I absolutely love They Might Be Giants! I used to babysit one of my nieces and she loved the song Particle Man and her dad used to play it for her a bunch growing up. Strangely enough, my favorite album of theirs is Factory Showroom. I think it's their most consistent album. And there's no more informative song than Why Does the Sun Shine? :)
Because the sun is a mass of incandescent gas, a gigantic nuclear furnace / where hydrogen is built into helium at a temperature of millions of degrees.
Great call by the Professor on using “Minimum Wage” to fill out those few extra seconds of the mix tape! I had a few go-to’s for that, including this one. Also, need to put out some love for “Women and Men”! Great track.
TMBG are one of my Favourite groups. Huge fan since the "Lincoln' album. I saw them in San Diego twice in the 80's and 90''s. First time time was the 'Lincoln' tour. Small college indoor stage. Maybe only 600 seats. It was only the two of them. They had a special box that helped out with the drums and other back ground instruments because they only had the accordion and guitar. People would shout out requests and they would look down at their special box and say.. "Ummm... Three more songs". They had to follow a specific order. They laughed and we all laughed as the count down to the requested song finally came up. Then loud cheers erupted when we finally got to the requested song.
@@xxlilly_playsxxkiz9980 It was! I was not allowed to see concerts in High School. So when I graduated and moved to San Diego I was seeing 4 or 5 bands a month. TMBG are one of the best live experiences I experienced.
I think I had heard Istanbul at some point before they were on Tiny Toons, but I don't have any clear memories of TMBG before that episode. I love that in the episode even the characters seem to be confused by the songs' presence (Buster saying "Who are these guys?").
TMBG is one of my all time favorite bands. I saw them at a lot of early college shows when they first hit the scene. I knew they'd be extra special so I bought two copies of each album and never opened the second disc. I still have them in pristine condition.
I have a great story that involves TMBG. My brother was in charge of my High Schools lunch hour music on the quad, this was back around 1991. I loved TMBG and I persuaded him to play "Spider" in the middle of the lunch hour when the quad was at its fullest. This is by far the most jarring and wonderfully bizarre song from their Apollo 18 album, that song resets your mind. I can still remember when that song hit, every student on the quad stopped in unison, complete shock showing across their faces. When "Spider, he is our hero" sounded across the quad, It was wonderfully glorious, I was so happy my brother did it.
I'm a bird lover. First attracted by the song title, "Birdhouse in Your Soul", listened, loved the duo! Loved Istanbul, because I grew up listening to my father's music --- including "Puttin' on the RItz" (Irving Berlin, 1929). Great what they did with this tune! The 80's and 90's were great times for a little creative branching out in popular music! Awesome interview.
"I came back as a bag of groceries accidentally taken off the shelf before the date stamped on myself"-from the song Dead.Probably the best lyric ever written.
Love TMBG! Thanks for this video. The very first CD I ever bought was their first album. Back in the day when Cd's started, to get people to buy into this new format they would stick extra songs on the Cd's. I loved everything I heard from this band. Which may have just been Don't Let's Start, I'm sure 120 minutes deserves credit here. I had to have as much TMBD as I could get. I didn't even own a CD player but my friend did. I couldn't listen to this at home but I had to have those extra songs. I even used to call their dial a song back then. Why they aren't one of the most beloved bands of all time, I don't understand. Violent Femmes deserves that rank too BTW.
Living in the Boston area for almost 30 years, these guys were one of our absolute favorite acts. Big shows and small, they delivered! One of my best old buds went to the same high school (a few years after them), and never failed to remind us of that fact;) We probably saw them live more than anyone else, except another great group that was more regularly doing clubs in our heyday; Bim Skala Bim.
I love TMBG! My children LOVE TMBG! they've been putting out great music for generations. I see "NO" in the background there. Flood is an iconic record. No is an iconic record. Great episode Adam.
the story about istambul was so interesting. i had no idea it was a cover. ive been a fan of their work for many years. i love their sense of humor and how clever their lyrics are and admire them musically. the song fits right in with their work. i love how the song has strains of middle eastern music in it, the clever rhymes. i was shocked it was a cover.
Love this band! My older cousin introduced me to them by making me a tape that had their first album on one side and Lincoln on the other. So when Flood came out it was one of the early tapes that I bought with my own money. I introduced TMBG to many of my friends. And now its so fun to hear them being introduced to my kids through things like Micky Mouse Clubhouse.
The first time I had heard about them was in a magazine called Sassy. The article was called "Stuck in traffic with TMBG". Then, of course, Tiny Toons Adventures....I was hooked. They did a concert for DirectTV in the early 2000s. I still have it on VHS.
I have a skewed sense of the popularity the band enjoyed. My former coworker is John's cousin (no, the other John), so Friday after work in Allston (right next door to the "Send it to Zoom!" Post Office) was usually "Hey, where are they playing tonight? Let's go!" And that lasted for a year and a half--until Lincoln came out. And the rest was history. I loved this band because they weren't afraid to know things and share that knowledge in their lyrics. The first time I sat down and listened to Ana Ng with the lyrics in my hand, i felt like Keanu Reeves--"Whoaaa..." When I saw the teaser for this podcast, I knew immediately it had to be them. Thanks so much for sharing them with us again.
I love hearing how these songs were made and what was going on with the bands members at the time. It's like AMC when Nick Clooney would enlighten us about the actors and the background of what was going on at that time in their lives. This is one of my favorite RUclips channels, and I would have watched this on television if it was on back in the days of American Bandstand. I mean what incredible explanations and interviews. Wonderful tidbits of mental health, surgeries, divorces and breakups. Professor of Rock has it all.
SF’s Radio Live105 (KITS) held a free concert of Flood in Union Square (think Coppola’s ‘74 “Conversation”) in fall ‘90. Will always treasure that experience. [left: “ERRRRRRR!!!; right “BANG!” Echoing b/w bldgs]😂
FLOOD was a requirement for all theatre nerds in the 90s...I used to teach theatre Tech to youth and I told them they needed to buy the CD...It was great for testing sound systems as well...
I love TMBG still to this day. I saw the "Don't Let's Start" video on MTV when their first album was new and immediately fell in love with their music. Flood of course was in constant play when it came out and I probably wore out my cassette in the first month. I still consider it one of the best albums of the 1990s. And I still listen this band on a regular basis. Hope they get very old before they die.
Another great episode! Flood was my intro to TMBG, but I made my way backwards. The first album is still one of my all-time favorites, a true art rock masterpiece. And Lincoln is one of those great records that sounds all sunny but has such a dark edge…think tracks like Lie Still Little Bottle or They’ll Need A Crane. Of course, all their stuff is great. John Henry is a masterpiece, and would love for you to do an episode on their cover of Cub’s New York City.
Flood hooked me when I first heard it in 1990, Apollo 18 is my favorite album of theirs, but they literally have no bad albums. Such a breadth of work, TMBW lists 1866 songs, of which 1005 are individually ranked. They must have a couple hundred songs that are truly S-tier great. There really is no other band like them.
I love this album so much. My 7th grade science teacher got me into the band by playing us Why Does the Sun Shine in science class. I'm a little surprised you didn't ask about the song We Want a Rock. I've always been curious what that song was inspired by.
As a kid I had insomnia. When I was 12 I found Dr. Demento on the westward one radio network while scanning the radio in bed. I would listen to it every night it was on. I remember distinctly when “Don’t Let’s Start” came on. I was never going to be the same again. It matched the emotions I felt when I had first heard DEVO at age 5. This was how I identified. These were my people.
My thoughts: Great interview. Excellent video. I knew Bridhouse.....liked it; That song was a staple of early 90s indie. Never really got into this band but I can definitely see why they would have a lot of loyal fans. It's difficult to explain, but looking back on the 90s, I can see a lot "pop culture" during the 90's that copied their geek-style.
Poll: What is your pick for the best "SHORT" song of all time?
ZZ Top - Tush (2:15)
Judas Priest - Breaking The Law (2:35)
White Riot The Clash 1:58
The House is Rockin Stevie Ray Vaughan 2:24
I WILL by The Beatles is a classic shorty@ 1:45; love me some LETTERBOX from Flood; also, gottta give props to THROUGH WITH BUZZ by Steely Dan. An orchestrally compact pretzel of a jam.
FINGERTIPS!!!
Paul Revere and the Raiders--Kicks @ 2:16.
It’s beyond me why TMBG isn’t more popular or famous than they are. I saw them recently, and they performed one of their songs completely backwards, including the lyrics. After intermission, the venue played the video backwards, and it was almost perfect. The humor, the brilliant lyrics, and their catchy melodies are simply amazing.
Sapphire bullets! That part of the show absolutely melted my mind.
I feeling like it's probably because while they now fit into the musical landscape - they kinda invented the whole musical genre. In 1990, there wasn't much else sounding like them on the radio. Drum machines weren't like, accepted by the mainsteam quite yet.
Bands like
Magnetic Fields wouldn't break for another decade nearly.
At the time bands like my bloody valentine were considered noisy and different.
I dunno that's just my two cents.
Also, I feel like their live shows now are more traditional then they probably always appeared live. Originally.
I remember thinking it so cool and quirky to see a band live with two guys, a spinning wheel on stage and one plays accordion... But that's just the whole thing.
Live, it was two guys from Brooklyn, one who played accordion.
Musical tastes weren't as varied and accepting back then
And genres were more restrictive and peoples tastes were dictated more by their preferred genre... Which were way more defining.
Just my two cents.
I get it. They’re absolutely my favorite band, hands down, no exception. But they’re also incredibly niche. Their style appeals to a very specific mentality that I don’t think the wider music audience has.
@@joebove4 don't talk to be about niche. My favorite band is the 🎃🔨
@@jaysharpESQ they were pretty darn mainstream in their day, man.
TMBG saved my life honestly. I discovered them through Homestar Runner and when I actually got into their music it was at the most critical time in my life. I had no joys or hobbies, but suddenly they hit my ears and everything felt right again. I'm still collecting their CDs and vinyls and listening to them daily.
I had much the same experience.
I'd had a tiny tunes introduction but I was too young to realize what I was vibing to.
It's great to get Flood stories, but your viewers should know that these guys haven't stopped putting out great music. Their body of work is as big as anyone's...and it's all awesome.
THIS. TMBG have yet to release a disappointing album, and they still put on a phenomenal show. Seeing them four times next year.
I know, right? I love them!
brilliant band, they are still going strong, for sure!
They did the theme song for Disney's new 'Mickey mouse clubhouse' in the 2000's. I remember watching it with my toddler and seeing them in the credits and thinking how perfect it was that they were tapped to do that.
We got ears it's time for cheers!
After Apollo 18 they brought in a band and the sound changed. It wasn't until Mink Car was released that I got that classic vibe again.
My last name is as you can see Mann. I had sons in 2018 and 2019. My wife refused my idea to name them Triangle Mann and Particle Mann
Was she holding out for Universe Mann?
When did you get divorced?
Man. I saw them in a tiny club as a duo when they released Anna Ng as a single. Just the 2 of them with a sampler. So many songs....a unique, smart, once in a generation band. "I don't want the world, I just want your half"
I'll be damned. Just yesterday, I was thinking to myself, "I bet Professor of Rock never does anything with my favorite band," and not 24 hours later, this drops. I've interviewed both Johns a number of times, and seen them live at least a dozen times, so I'm really excited to see this. Great interview!
If he does an episode on Istanbul I’d be shocked.
an interesting one would be around Boss of Me, a hit for them and for big TV series in early 2000s. It'd be interesting to hear more how they got involved in that.
Still my favourite band. Much like Sparks, they have always had their artistic vision and have never compromised it, across genres and media formats.
My wife and I loved TMBG and we listened to Flood so many times when we started dating. When we were married in 1994, one of her bridesmaids - a friend to this day - bought us two front tickets to their show as our wedding present. Still a memorable gift.
Thank you for highlighting one of my favorite bands of all time!
Birdhouse is perfection. First 2 albums (pre-Flood) are true masterpieces
Agreed!
Lincoln is a staple when I paint
Ah, the antediluvian albums!
@@ZandoFox Haha now that is some nerdy humor for a nerdy band! I approve 🤓🤓🤓
Those first 3 were their beat imo
Not long after I moved to Edmonton to go to university, I heard "Istanbul, not Constantinople" randomly on the radio. It really caught me; it was so different to anything else on the radio. I learned that it was by TMBG, on the Flood album. I went out as soon as I could to find the album, and I listened to that cassette almost incessantly. "Birdhouse in Your Soul" was the cherry on top of one of the best albums I've ever had.
Thanks for sharing!
Had the same experience the first time I heard it. I was like, “Why would someone make a song about Turkey?” Mom said, “Just for silliness.”
I've been a fan of Weird Al since I was a kid - maybe 8 - and the first time I heard They Might Be Giants, I was hooked. It was my freshman year of college in 1993. Flood was a few years old, but HUGE among my friends. Here was a band that was singing fun, not-too-serious songs about math and physics, and stylistically they were all over the place: Just like me!
I've had the privilege of meeting many famous musicians in my life but I've been starstruck only a few times, and these guys (along with Jon "Bermuda" Schwartz, and The Presidents of the United States of America - moreso than an actual President of the United States) got me absolutely gobsmacked.
As always, thank you so much for the great content, Adam. I'm a huge fan and look forward to each day's adventure.
Weird Al is very nice. I’m re-uploading my interview with him in a few weeks when his biopic is released.
TMBG are living legends. And their catalogue has evolved with them, and their fan base has only gotten bigger and more diverse. I got hooked when I was in middle school and heard Experimental Film on Homestar Runner and at 31, they’re still one of my absolute favourite bands of all time.
They’re the best!
Birdhouse was the first dance at our wedding. For my wife & I, it's Our Song.
TMBG had a whole collection of micro-songs on the Apollo 18 album. I remember most of them and quote them all the time, but mainly “What’s that blue thing….doing here?” and “Aren’t you the guy (who hit me in the eye?)”
Always made me chuckle and brightened my day.
"Fingertips"
I had a stereo with a five disc changer that would random through all five discs, it was awesome fun getting one track of the Finger Tips wedged between hard rock songs like Van Halen’s Mean Streets and Quiet Riot’s Metal Health. Thanks for this great interview with TMBG.
Fingertips was put out the way it was so that when your disc was on random it would throw one of those songs and randomly between the other songs. On later CDs they condensed it to one song instead of the breakdown and kind of ruined the effect
Yeah, I remember putting the album into my CD player for the first time and it showed 28 tracks. I love the compilation; but I still wish they had expanded some of those compelling little nuggets into full songs.
No truer words….“Always here to celebrate the greatest artists and the greatest songs of all time”.
Thanks for the daily content which “Always brings a smile”!
Thanks Prof!
Thanks for watching and supporting the channel Paul!
They Might Be Giants' debut album is absolutely amazing. Something like 18 songs on it, 15 of which are brilliant. "Absolutely Bill's Mood" is such a great track.
I agree. They could pack in a lot of songs.
Not a bad song on that album.
Everything Right is Wrong Again & Hide Away Folk Family are two of my favorites from that album
She's an angel or no one's gonna change my clothes are my faves from that one.
Enjoyed 1972 hits on my drive to lunch today
Nice To Be With You - Gallery
Playground In My Mind - Clinton Holmes
Go All The Way - Raspberries
Listen To The Music - Doobie Brothers
Everything I Own - Bread
Ah the nostalgia of simpler more innocent times !
Thanks Adam for your RUclips channel! Got me music nostalgic !
How can anyone NOT like They Might Be Giants? Their music always struck me as pure FUN! At least most of it, anyway. I don’t think I could name a single one of their songs that I didn’t like within the first ten seconds! Try that sometime with any other recording artists. It’s incredibly hard to do - it makes me think of the old saying, “If it was easy, everyone would do it!” Notice just about NOBODY has ever been able to do that except THESE GUYS! TMBG seem to have cracked the secret code somehow, and to me, everything they’ve recorded has been appealing on multiple levels. Thanks, Adam, for this video! You always do a good job, and this one was great fun!!
Thanks ED!
They don’t have a bad song on them. Their music always makes me laugh.
My husband and I were very early adopters of the Kia Soul. We found an absolutely beautiful tin birdhouse ornament to put in it so we could have a little birdhouse in our Soul. :)
When I was a younger girl I had one teacher who was a birdwatcher, and she had a true birdhouse in her soul.
Particle man on Tiny Toons was more addictive than anything else when it came out. Everyone at school couldn't shut up about it lol
Ha ha. So very true!
Particle Man is awesome. 😎
@@xxlilly_playsxxkiz9980 But Triangle Man is the Workingman's Hero.
If you were under 12 in 1990, Tiny Toons was how you learned about They Might Be Giants.
When I was in college, this album was HUGE with my group of friends. I had to dive into their back catalogue after hearing it, and I wasn't disappointed! If I made a TMBG "Best Of" album, it would include the first five albums in their entirety. I hope you do more on this band, and you highlight their Dial-A-Song service. You'd call a number, and you'd get a song! They even incorporated the number in the lyrics of a Dial-A-Song number "Swing is a Word".
I love that you talked about "Minimum Wage". I had a friend who made that his answering machine message (remember those?). Come to think of it, it would make a great ringtone!
Similar here... I was in college when Flood was released and our group loved it.
I’ve heard a lot about Dial-A-Song! Great album right there!
Fingertips
The better ringtone is Someone keeps moving my chair.
"Mr horrible Mr horrible telephone call for Mr horrible"
Create world peace by listening to They Might Be Giants! Love it, you maybe right! You can't listen to them without coming away with a great feeling that puts you in a good mood. A true indie band made some fantastic music with a very original style. Great interview and episode professor
Thanks My Name!
We all need a little silly in our lives, and it doesn’t get any better than TMBG and Weird Al. This song is a vibe, for sure!
This album was my life in 1990. Everyone in my peer group thought I was the biggest dork on earth. I was, but this album is awesome! I was totally right to be obsessed with it.
I agree! It was a Geek Rock Masterpiece
I’m such a nerd too because I love this stuff!
Saw them in concert 12/31/22 - still going strong. The actually played one of their songs backwards, end to beginning. They recorded it, and then played it beginning to end so we could see how accurate it was, and it was really close.
Saw these guys live in Portland, ME earlier this month. One of my favorite shows ever to attend! So much fun.
Great interview. Looks like Flans is pretty well recovered from his accident, good to see. I discovered TMBG with Don’t Let’s Start, thanks to a freshman year roommate, and I couldn’t stand them at first. They slowly grew on me though, and a few years later, when Flood came out, I was hooked the moment I heard Particle Man, Whistling in the Dark, We Want a Rock… so many great cuts on that album, I could never pick a favorite. Fully half the concerts I’ve been to in my life have been They.
this was recorded awhile back. he is recovering well, tho. They're playing live right now
I've heard They Might Be Giants numerous times on The Dr.Demento Show-These guys are fantastic.
Just to tell the tale, I discovered them in 1986 when I saw the "Don't Let's Start" video on "120 Minutes" and went out and bought the cassette the next day, and I've never looked back. Saw them live for the first time in 1990, back when it was still just the two Johns and backing tapes. I still vividly recall that show and many others. Just the best.
My best girlfriend found TMBG when we were in 9th and 10th grade (she was a grade behind me). She was SO into their songs. I will tell the world that their song Constantinople gets STUCK IN MY HEAD every time I hear it!! And when I first started watching Big Bang Theory, their theme song, I kept saying Bare Naked Ladies was reminding me of They Might Be Giants! I love a song that makes you stop and LAUGH at the “hidden” lyrics…
Constantinople is a bonafide earworm!!!
One of my all time favorite group‼️ As a 73 year old musician in the field since 1964 or so, that’s something. Love the variety of odd subjects they write about & the inimitable approach they have to their production….. truly won of a kind👌
These guys are awesome! I’ve first heard of them when “Weird Al” took over MTV and played Don’t Let Start. I was hooked in an instant!
Great interview, they are very grounded and cool.
And they were both on Demento, right?
Arguably one of the best lyrics in music is in that album. From “Road Movie to Berlin”:
“We were once so close to heaven, Peter came out and gave us medals declaring us the nicest of the damned.”
For a Senior high school spring trip in April of 1990, my best friend and I drove cross country from Detroit to Salt Lake City (1600+ miles each way). We listened to the Flood on cassette on repeat. To this day I still have every song lyric memorized and learned the harmony part to counter my friend singing the melody. For my birthday, my son (who is a huge TMBG fan) bought tickets to go see the 30th anniversary of the Flood tour in 2020. That show was postponed 3 times due to Covid. They finally got back on tour but I was unable to make the show we had tickets for tonight. So watching this video makes me feel just a little bit better.
Still one of my favorite songs all-time. I LOVE these guys. 👍
As an autistic nerd, I think they’re awesome!
This just popped up on my feed and holy woah- how have I never found this channel???
TMBG is a group I truly don't think I appreciated until adulthood to the fullest- between their brilliant mastering and the cleverness in their lyrics, truly one of the greatest musical groups of my generation (or possibly any... it's arguable)
High on my list of all time favorite bands. Saw them live every chance I could back in the day. Even had my hassled John's t shirt signed by them. So happy to see them being recognized. You truly do rock. Thank you.
I saw them at Irving Plaza NYC on Halloween around 1993? They asked people who played string instruments to come early. They put them up in the balcony and taught them the part to a special song… Turned into “Horse With No Name! Fun show! ❤
I absolutely used to put many short songs like Minimum Wage or "Bonus Cup" songs from The Descendents on mix tapes. I was obsessed with completely filling the cassettes. So much fun and challenging.
I loved them since "Don't Let's Start"! What a fun band!
Got to see TMBG in Chattanooga several years ago. Great concert!
You talk about your childhood music all the time,... I'm a snidge older than you and... John & John were my QUINTESSENTIAL teenage crushes. My best friend and I would listen to their first two albums ad nauseam between 1986-1989... we'd call Dial-A-Song and leave giggling messages... and I have never fangirl'ed SO hard as I did at the end of 1989 when we saw them play at Bowdoin College in Maine, right before FLOOD came out. I sometimes think John & John were the reason why I moved to New York City and spent 16 year in Brooklyn after graduating from college in 1994. Loved this interview when it originally came out... you are such a gift, Adam. ❤
Man, Flood is one of my favorite car-trip albums. Almost every song is great, and you can't help wanting to sing along. "Women and Men", "Lucky Ball & Chain", and "Letterbox" are a few of my favorite lesser known songs off of the album.
Hot Cha, where are you? Everybody's eyes are closed. I can't see why I need you so / Hot Cha, where are you?
Thank you for shining some light on one of my favorite bands. TMBG were always a band that I kept to myself, thinking no one else would get it. Glad to hear I'm not alone.
I don’t know how I missed this video for the past 10 months, one of my favorite bands and one of my favorite channels
Saw them in Carbondale IL in 1990 then went bowling with John Flansburgh after the show.
My favorite group of all time. My favorite album is Mink Car.
Those Tiny Toon videos were my first introduction to them. I remembered watching them when I was young (preteen maybe 8 or 9) and loving them. Again, being a DJ you get to reintroduce songs to people. I played Birdhouse in Your Soul one night and the whole bar started singing. Thank for all the memories! They are good ones!
Man flood is such an amazing album! Every song is great. My favorite songs are we want a rock, dead, your racist friend, birdhouse (of course), particle man; Whistling in the dark. Istanbul, so many.
I absolutely love They Might Be Giants! I used to babysit one of my nieces and she loved the song Particle Man and her dad used to play it for her a bunch growing up. Strangely enough, my favorite album of theirs is Factory Showroom. I think it's their most consistent album. And there's no more informative song than Why Does the Sun Shine? :)
Particle Man is such a fun song!
Because the sun is a mass of incandescent gas, a gigantic nuclear furnace / where hydrogen is built into helium at a temperature of millions of degrees.
Great call by the Professor on using “Minimum Wage” to fill out those few extra seconds of the mix tape! I had a few go-to’s for that, including this one. Also, need to put out some love for “Women and Men”! Great track.
TMBG are one of my Favourite groups. Huge fan since the "Lincoln' album. I saw them in San Diego twice in the 80's and 90''s. First time time was the 'Lincoln' tour. Small college indoor stage. Maybe only 600 seats. It was only the two of them. They had a special box that helped out with the drums and other back ground instruments because they only had the accordion and guitar. People would shout out requests and they would look down at their special box and say.. "Ummm... Three more songs". They had to follow a specific order. They laughed and we all laughed as the count down to the requested song finally came up. Then loud cheers erupted when we finally got to the requested song.
TINY TOONS!!!!
Very cool story. Thanks for sharing!
What a great experience!
@@xxlilly_playsxxkiz9980 It was! I was not allowed to see concerts in High School. So when I graduated and moved to San Diego I was seeing 4 or 5 bands a month. TMBG are one of the best live experiences I experienced.
@@Fakeaorta Well, that’s kinda messed up. Back then, teenagers were most rock bands’ biggest fans!
I think I had heard Istanbul at some point before they were on Tiny Toons, but I don't have any clear memories of TMBG before that episode. I love that in the episode even the characters seem to be confused by the songs' presence (Buster saying "Who are these guys?").
TMBG is one of my all time favorite bands. I saw them at a lot of early college shows when they first hit the scene. I knew they'd be extra special so I bought two copies of each album and never opened the second disc. I still have them in pristine condition.
They’re just that awesome, huh?
Exactly how it happened for me hearing this song on my local alternative radio station. I was hooked and have been ever since! Long live TMBG!! ❤️
Long live TMBG!
TMBG rocks!
I remember first hearing TMBG in college. Ana Ng is still my favorite of their songs. Takes me back to apartment and frat parties from back then.
I was born in 84, I really love the 70s, 80s, and I’m really happy your covering more 90s videos lately! Definitely enjoy this channel. Thanks!
Love these guys. All their albums are just fun, “Particle Man” and “Your Racist Friend” are brilliant songs too.
For sure. Great stuff.
This whole album is awesome.
I remember Particle Man from Tiny Toons
yes would have loved to hear how Particle Man came about
I would like to know how many people actually finished the contract with Columbia. I didn't and that was 35 years ago at least.
That would be good information to have.
I don't know what you're talking about...🤐😇
I was always scared I would be thw one to get in trouble...
Oohh snap... And BNG records
My parents finished it! 🤣 This was before CDs, though. 😂
I have a great story that involves TMBG. My brother was in charge of my High Schools lunch hour music on the quad, this was back around 1991. I loved TMBG and I persuaded him to play "Spider" in the middle of the lunch hour when the quad was at its fullest. This is by far the most jarring and wonderfully bizarre song from their Apollo 18 album, that song resets your mind. I can still remember when that song hit, every student on the quad stopped in unison, complete shock showing across their faces. When "Spider, he is our hero" sounded across the quad, It was wonderfully glorious, I was so happy my brother did it.
I'm a bird lover. First attracted by the song title, "Birdhouse in Your Soul", listened, loved the duo! Loved Istanbul, because I grew up listening to my father's music --- including "Puttin' on the RItz" (Irving Berlin, 1929). Great what they did with this tune! The 80's and 90's were great times for a little creative branching out in popular music! Awesome interview.
"I came back as a bag of groceries accidentally taken off the shelf before the date stamped on myself"-from the song Dead.Probably the best lyric ever written.
Love TMBG! Thanks for this video. The very first CD I ever bought was their first album. Back in the day when Cd's started, to get people to buy into this new format they would stick extra songs on the Cd's. I loved everything I heard from this band. Which may have just been Don't Let's Start, I'm sure 120 minutes deserves credit here. I had to have as much TMBD as I could get. I didn't even own a CD player but my friend did. I couldn't listen to this at home but I had to have those extra songs. I even used to call their dial a song back then. Why they aren't one of the most beloved bands of all time, I don't understand. Violent Femmes deserves that rank too BTW.
Living in the Boston area for almost 30 years, these guys were one of our absolute favorite acts. Big shows and small, they delivered! One of my best old buds went to the same high school (a few years after them), and never failed to remind us of that fact;) We probably saw them live more than anyone else, except another great group that was more regularly doing clubs in our heyday; Bim Skala Bim.
Hey Adam, it would be really cool if you toured with these guys! I'm actually thinking of seeing them in Oakland in April because of this video.
I wish they’d bring that deal back!! Ahhhh, nostalgia!!!! Thanks for another great segment as always Professor!!
You and me both!
There's a real depth to the fun and the quirk. It's beautiful.
I learned this band's music from my younger sister. I am glad they are still together after all this time!
You've got a cool sister!
I learned them from my mom!
I love TMBG! My children LOVE TMBG! they've been putting out great music for generations. I see "NO" in the background there. Flood is an iconic record. No is an iconic record. Great episode Adam.
the story about istambul was so interesting. i had no idea it was a cover. ive been a fan of their work for many years. i love their sense of humor and how clever their lyrics are and admire them musically. the song fits right in with their work. i love how the song has strains of middle eastern music in it, the clever rhymes. i was shocked it was a cover.
Wow, just to be reminded of Columbia record club, I can't believe I forgot about that! Thanks for bringing back some great old memories, Prof!!
Love this band! My older cousin introduced me to them by making me a tape that had their first album on one side and Lincoln on the other. So when Flood came out it was one of the early tapes that I bought with my own money. I introduced TMBG to many of my friends. And now its so fun to hear them being introduced to my kids through things like Micky Mouse Clubhouse.
They’re such a hoot! So many great songs from them.
If you're introducing to them to someone, show them: "A Tale of Two Johns." A wonderful introduction to the band!
These guys are so great. That film is out of print so they put it on RUclips so everyone can enjoy it
Learned a bunch from today’s segment! There’s always something new to appreciate in the world of music. Thx Adam!
Thanks Robster! I really appreciate you!
Such a great, creatively, funny band.
The other day I thought...damn, I been listening to these guys for over 30 years and I still look forward to their albums. Such a great band
Flood cd was my 1st purchase of theirs and been hooked ever since. Birdhouse was so BRILLIANT - There's no one else like TMBG!
The first time I had heard about them was in a magazine called Sassy. The article was called "Stuck in traffic with TMBG". Then, of course, Tiny Toons Adventures....I was hooked.
They did a concert for DirectTV in the early 2000s. I still have it on VHS.
You went and did it. You interviewed my all-time faves, and earned a sub in the process!
Oh I love the two Johns! My favorite TMBG album remains Lincoln. So many catchy songs.
I have a skewed sense of the popularity the band enjoyed. My former coworker is John's cousin (no, the other John), so Friday after work in Allston (right next door to the "Send it to Zoom!" Post Office) was usually "Hey, where are they playing tonight? Let's go!"
And that lasted for a year and a half--until Lincoln came out. And the rest was history.
I loved this band because they weren't afraid to know things and share that knowledge in their lyrics. The first time I sat down and listened to Ana Ng with the lyrics in my hand, i felt like Keanu Reeves--"Whoaaa..."
When I saw the teaser for this podcast, I knew immediately it had to be them. Thanks so much for sharing them with us again.
One of my favorite songs still. So lovely!
So glad you guys talked about tiny tunes.. totally how I got into TMBG as a kid. Flood still is my favorite nostalgia album
I love hearing how these songs were made and what was going on with the bands members at the time. It's like AMC when Nick Clooney would enlighten us about the actors and the background of what was going on at that time in their lives. This is one of my favorite RUclips channels, and I would have watched this on television if it was on back in the days of American Bandstand. I mean what incredible explanations and interviews. Wonderful tidbits of mental health, surgeries, divorces and breakups. Professor of Rock has it all.
SF’s Radio Live105 (KITS) held a free concert of Flood in Union Square (think Coppola’s ‘74 “Conversation”) in fall ‘90. Will always treasure that experience. [left: “ERRRRRRR!!!; right “BANG!” Echoing b/w bldgs]😂
That was such a badass place to see a concert.
FLOOD was a requirement for all theatre nerds in the 90s...I used to teach theatre Tech to youth and I told them they needed to buy the CD...It was great for testing sound systems as well...
I love TMBG still to this day. I saw the "Don't Let's Start" video on MTV when their first album was new and immediately fell in love with their music. Flood of course was in constant play when it came out and I probably wore out my cassette in the first month. I still consider it one of the best albums of the 1990s. And I still listen this band on a regular basis. Hope they get very old before they die.
Another great episode! Flood was my intro to TMBG, but I made my way backwards. The first album is still one of my all-time favorites, a true art rock masterpiece. And Lincoln is one of those great records that sounds all sunny but has such a dark edge…think tracks like Lie Still Little Bottle or They’ll Need A Crane. Of course, all their stuff is great. John Henry is a masterpiece, and would love for you to do an episode on their cover of Cub’s New York City.
Flood hooked me when I first heard it in 1990, Apollo 18 is my favorite album of theirs, but they literally have no bad albums. Such a breadth of work, TMBW lists 1866 songs, of which 1005 are individually ranked. They must have a couple hundred songs that are truly S-tier great. There really is no other band like them.
Watching Istanbul and Particle Man on Tiny Tunes is a memory that will never leave me. Flood is truly in my top 5 albums start to finish.
One of my favorites ever! Such an amazing band and album.
Great memories! Wish I could go back to those days just for a few days.
Yes! My favorite John's! I've been a fan since i first heard 'Ana Ng' on the radio back in 88......🙂
this video warms my heart so much because it feels like a grandson asking his grandparents questions about their life when they were his age
I love this album so much. My 7th grade science teacher got me into the band by playing us Why Does the Sun Shine in science class. I'm a little surprised you didn't ask about the song We Want a Rock. I've always been curious what that song was inspired by.
On May 15th, 2024, I saw TMBG’s The Big Tour and they still got it. Unbelievable show.
As a kid I had insomnia. When I was 12 I found Dr. Demento on the westward one radio network while scanning the radio in bed. I would listen to it every night it was on. I remember distinctly when “Don’t Let’s Start” came on. I was never going to be the same again. It matched the emotions I felt when I had first heard DEVO at age 5. This was how I identified. These were my people.
My thoughts: Great interview. Excellent video. I knew Bridhouse.....liked it; That song was a staple of early 90s indie.
Never really got into this band but I can definitely see why they would have a lot of loyal fans.
It's difficult to explain, but looking back on the 90s, I can see a lot "pop culture" during the 90's that copied their geek-style.
Can’t wait for the FLOOD anniversary tour next spring! It’s a long time coming! 🎉🎉🎉