this song was written from the perspective of a nightlight, an anthropomorphic nightlight in the shape of a blue canary…lyrics relate to electricity & illumination damn catchy chorus, isn’t it?
There's a picture opposite me Of my primitive ancestry Which stood on rocky shores And kept the beaches shipwreck free Although I respect that a lot I'd be fired if that were my job After killing Jason off And countless screaming Argonauts I love this whole album, the lyrics and wordplay are God Level.
@@thomasolson1154 It's about your conscience and subconscious, the part that looks out for you, the blue canary that sings out and switches the lights on in your mind when there's danger or trouble. This is an important part of you which you should nurture and cherish, so put a place for it in your deepest heart. Make a little birdhouse in your soul.
Yes, the lyrics are pretty literal. The night light's "primitive ancestry who stood on rocky shores and kept the beaches shipwreck free" are lighthouses.
Lots of people never heard of They Might Be Giants until they recorded the theme song to Malcolm In The Middle (for which they won their only Grammy Award)....but fans like me knew how cool they were way before that song ever came out!
Why is the World in love again? Why are they dancing hand in hand? Why are the ocean levels rising up? It's a Brand New album, for 1990... They Might Be Giants, FLOOOD!
I called them! I was about 14yo. They answered. BOTH OF THEM. My nerd nards crawled up into my viscera and I eventually hung up without ever saying a thing. "hello?" ... "is no one there?" ... ugh! My 2nd biggest regret behind missing my chance to meet Paul Erdős. Sorry, guys. I was there 😞 "Free when you call from work!"
They're absurdists. I love them. One of my favorite lines, "We were once so close to heaven, Peter came out and gave us medals, declaring us the nicest of the damned." They're hella clever, I think.
Best song ever to be written from the perspective of a blue canary nightlight. To my knowledge, it’s also the _only_ one, but I’m confident that it could stand up to any competition.
Thanks for doing They Might be Giants. Such a good 80-90's band. They were a staple in college radios at that time. No one quite like them. I've have always loved this song.
TMBG are such a great band with a back catalogue bigger than most other bands combined! They write quirky upbeat songs, quirky melancholy songs and quirky educational songs for kids about science, nature and knowledge (they'll be GREAT for Jack to learn without realising that's what's happening)!
@@adamdonovan4071They met in high school in Lincoln, MA. Neither studied engineering. They formed the band after moving into the same building in Brooklyn after having moved away to college/jobs.
"not to put too fine a point on it, say I'm the only bee in your bonnet"... It's a nightlight singing about watching over a "little one" as they sleep, talking about how it protects them as they sleep, and longs to be the kids best and only friend ("only bee in your bonnet"). Pull up the lyrics and re-listen from the perspective of a little night-light plugged into the wall outlet and it will make more sense.
These guys were pretty popular with all the kids who were on the nerdier side back in the 80s and 90s. I got to see them live on my 15th birthday and it was lots of fun.
I’ve resembled that since the 90s! A buddy & I put Minimum Wage on loud repeat in the break room of the McDonalds where we worked for a couple of hours. Coworkers were cracking up.
As said, it’s a night lite - spelled lite. Opposit the nightlite is a painting of a lighthouse. The lite mentions that while serving similar functions, he would be fired if his job was to keep sailors safe. Jason and the Argonauts were the most famous sailors in Greek Mythology. And “Not to put too fine a point on it” is just a common figure of speech that means something like “sorry if I’m over-explaining, but I think you get what I’m saying “. A fine (sharp) point like a freshly sharpened pencil.
Since 1986 They Might Be Giants have released 23 albums! The most recent in 2021. I think that includes a few albums meant for children, but they are prolific none the less. I find their songs kinda hit or miss, but there are many I love. I keep going back to listen to "Brontosaurus" (it's on youtube, but no video).
TMBG was always a very quirky band with lots of clever wordplay. The album this in on, Flood, is pretty solid from start to finish, if you're into this sort of thing. Definitely a kid-friendly sound.
The song is about a night-light shaped like a blue canary that watches over the person who owns it. The night-light sings to the person and asks them to make a little birdhouse in their soul, meaning to keep a place for it in their heart. The night-light also tells some stories about its origins and its views on the world. The song is whimsical and catchy, with a lot of wordplay and references to Greek mythology, Longines Symphonette, and Jason and the Argonauts.
Thank you! I have been waiting for a long time for you to react to TMBG. I have requested it so many times that I finally gave up. Other great songs by TMBG include: "Ana Ng", "You're on Fire", "The Guitar" and "Don't Lets Start". They have also created so many kids songs! "E Eats Everything", "The Hot Dog Song", "Clap Your Hands"...and lot's more.
3 other band's had similar theme, Smash mouth, Bare Naked Ladies, O K Go. This band did theme song from Malcom in The Middle, Bare Naked Ladies did theme song for Big Bang Theory. Butt, OK go is a truly different experience. You have to watch videos to get full genius of they're compositions. Please check them out won't be disappointed 😁
They Might Be Giants is a very great and silly group that has usually been relagated to the label of "College Rock." They've been around for over 40 years, and have 23 albums. They had an episode of Tiny Toon Adventures where the Toons did a rip-off of MTV, and all the videos were songs from the band. Mostly, if you're a fan, and you know, you know. Kind of like Tool. They aren't mainstream in any way, but the fans still love them.
There's a real detailed explanation out there on the web. But as odd as it sounds, it's about a nightlight shaped like a blue canary singing to its owner asking to appreciate it (make a little birdhouse in your soul).
I love the lines "I'd be fired if that were my job, after killing Jason off and countless screaming argonauts". It's Lomo the poor little night lite has dreams and ambitions of being something better.
Goth? LOL Good lord no. They Might Be Giants is their own genre. Many of their songs are weird for the sake of being weird. Some "song stories" that are just stories. They've even done a lot of kid's TV music.
TMBG song lyrics are usually more than just silly. I think that Brad would especially enjoy puzzling over the various possible interpretations of many of their songs. The lyrics are quite often very clever, and the tunes catchy. Definitely have the lyrics handy for the next TMBG song you do. I suggest "Ana Ng" or "She's an Angel".
Loved them! Flood was a fun early 90s album. Istanbul is one of their most ... indie-famous songs. For goth, as Lex mentioned - you gotta go Siousxsie and the Banshees and Bauhaus.
These guys were fun, and time appropriate, early nineties. They played on children’s radio shows sometimes. Like kid’s corner on WXPN. Love this song. It would grow on you. Lol.
@@amyk9175yeah, I remember. But the album Flood (with their hits) ushered in the 90’s. The songs gained popularity later. I think the cartoon tiny toons even did a Particle Man toon video.
Cool band. Definitely quirky stuff. Kids Love them! 😊 They also did the theme for "Malcolm in the Middle ". Also check out... "Why the Sun Shines" ""Your Racist Friend"!
In the 90s the Giants played a free concert in Union Square in San Francisco. I had class that day. I skipped class. It was worth it! The Giants fall into the same Technicolor suburban revolt that spawned other bands like R.E.M. and The B-52s also. A little Punk. A sprinkle of New Wave. A dash of Jon Waters. A deep injection of sideshow geek. Strange lyrics and relaxed glee fueled music.
@@Tbass-yy8uc where did I say they were from the same era? I didn't. I said basically they are cut from the same cloth, not the same era. Easy mistake.
Happy goth? lol. Well, they were an '80s/'90s alt/indie rock band. College rock. Played often on college radio stations and alt stations. Music videos on alt night on MTV. Early alt rock band like REM, Dinosaur Jr, Replacements, DEVO, B-52s, Ween, Eels, XTC, RHCP, etc. But, kind of a goofy band like Talking Heads, Bare Naked Ladies, B-52s, DEVO, etc. Nerdy, quirky, cerebral music. They Might Be Giant had other hits, too like "NG Ana" , "Snail Shell" ('90s), etc Also TV show themes like Malcolm in the Middle (2000s show) "Boss of Me" (upbeat Ska punk) and other TV shows. . . Check those videos out! Yall done "Istanbul" already, which Lex loved.
The entire album is AMAZING and was in my car for MONTHS (not only because the cassette was broken and kept getting stuck in the tape deck in the car…had to record it onto another cassette). “Particle Man” has always been one of my favorites (played on the local “modern music” station in SLC…KJQ then X-96). Check out “Someone Keeps Moving My Chair”
Nerd shit, they were big with the college kids in the 90s. Datarock, Moses Leroy, Cibo Matto... if you want more of the genre. Check out Mammals from the album Apollo 18.
its a song about a Blue Bird Night Light that watches over you and your room at night told from the Night Lights point of view, it wants you to remember it.
I love this song so much. It came on Sirius XM on my way to work a couple weeks ago, and I cranked it and was bopping along like crazy, at 6:30am. Got some very strange looks from other motorists, but I didn’t care!
"Not to put too fine a *point* on it" is an expression. Perhaps it's not used much by young people, but I'm surprised you haven't heard it. It means more or less that someone is about to tell you exactly what they think in a direct, concise way. They Might Be Giants' Flood is the first album I ever bought with my own money. Not to put too fine a point on it, they're one of my all-time favorite bands.
TMBG at this point in 1990 was just two guys and they're fantastic. Hollywood loved this song and others from this album. Animaniacs made cartoons to two of their songs (Particle Man and Istanbul), and this song was used in 3 or 4 different shows that I've seen.
One of the best concerts I've ever attended, sometime in the early-mid 1990s, probably 1000+ people crammed in a 800 cap club, and TMBG calls for a conga line. Good times.
I love this album. They Might be Giants also did some kids songs we used to listen to when my kids were very little. It is obviously a song from the perspective of a night light but my friends and I always tried to find deeper meanings ( exact meanings) in their songs. They have some much crazier and better songs. I like this one though.
❤ TMBG This isn’t “modern” music, it’s postmodern music. Literally. They are a fun band, but toss out all expectations of what music should be. Istanbul (not Constantinople) Particle Man and my evil twin are great; if you’re in for a weird set of songlets fingertips is super funny. Boris the spider lol
I think one thing this proves above anything else, is that you guys are GENUINELY reacting to these songs, when hearing them for the first time. Some of your confusion and theories from the misheard lyrics, are wild but very entertaining. Thanks and keep going 😂
I always thought this song was sung from the perspective of a little canary shaped night light that provides comfort to the child in whose room it is plugged in. It also encourages them to keep a night light on in a bird house in their soul, where they keep all their hopes and dreams.
TMBG Have so many great songs. Istanbul (Not Constantinople), Kiss Me Son of God, Snail Shell, Man It's So Loud in Here, Doctor Worm, Hovering Sombrero, The Mesopotamians, I'm Impressed, Sad Sack, Damn Good Times, etc.... I've seen them live and they are fantastic!
The phrase Brad was hung up on is "not to put too fine a POINT on it." It kind of means "I don't want to overexplain things." You're right though. Incredibly catchy chorus.
This is a song for a very well-read self-aware child lying in a crib after dark and gazing at the night light - and the night light is singing a bedtime song back to the child - kinda
They're not really clear on that line and it does kinda sound like, "Not to put too fine a pine on it." But no. It's "Not to put to fine a POINT on it." Which makes way way way more sense. :) (To be fair, I have most of this album totally committed to memory cuz I've listened to it so much LOL)
The saying is "not to put to fine a POINT on it, but..." Derived I think from sharpening a pencil. And that means, "not to dwell on it, but...." I agree - it sounds like he's saying pine not point, and they maybe wrote it that way on purpose, or when he sings point it sounds like pine.
Now we’re talking! Massive rabbit hole of great songs! Try ‘Minimum Wage’ for the world’s shortest reaction! Got to love a band that started their set with ‘Let’s Get This Over With’.
OK so the superficial meaning is -- it is a night light (shaped like a bird) singing to a child! Yep - pretty eccentric but that's They Might be Giants for you! The bit about the shipwreck and Jason is talking about how the nightlights ancestors were lighthouses!
Just fun stuff with a smart hint of parody, sort of like Bare Naked Ladies in their lighter moods. This one was written from the perspective of a kid’s nightlight.
TMBG, is just an awesome band, kings of quirk, and bring out the emo geek in all of us!! They are sooo fun and have so much to explore! "Ana-Ang", "Don't Let's Start", "I-Palindrome-I", "The Mesopotamians", and "Purple Toupee" are just some of their other tunes I like. Goofy, skilled and insightful is how I see them! They also have lots of educational songs too, like "The Sun" and "Time is marching On". They also wrote and performed the theme song for Malcom in the Middle, "You're not the boss of Me". They're also incredible to see in concert! Edit: Brad, your urge to sing along happens a TON with TMBG songs. It's just what they do.
They Might Be Giants are an acquired taste. A lot of fun, very very catchy, and more than a little bit left-field. Don't try to understand, just enjoy :) Their most straightforward song - and one of the catchiest - is the wonderful "Ana Ng", but even their weirdest numbers are potent earworms ("Shoehorn with Teeth" and "Particle Man", for instance).
In addition to being a great indie band starting in the 80s, these guys have an extensive catalog of kids songs. I loved them back in the day and when I had kids in the mid 2000s they were big fans of the Mickey Mouse Club. The FIRST time I watched I could immediately identify TMBG as the band singing the theme song and "Hot Dog." Really upped my enjoyment of watching it every day.
this song was written from the perspective of a nightlight, an anthropomorphic nightlight in the shape of a blue canary…lyrics relate to electricity & illumination
damn catchy chorus, isn’t it?
It's also a commentary on religion.
There's a picture opposite me
Of my primitive ancestry
Which stood on rocky shores
And kept the beaches shipwreck free
Although I respect that a lot
I'd be fired if that were my job
After killing Jason off
And countless screaming Argonauts
I love this whole album, the lyrics and wordplay are God Level.
And those poor argonauts.
@@littlejimmy7402 He's a nightlight and his ancestor was a lighthouse that kept the shores free of shipwrecks.
@@thomasolson1154 It's about your conscience and subconscious, the part that looks out for you, the blue canary that sings out and switches the lights on in your mind when there's danger or trouble. This is an important part of you which you should nurture and cherish, so put a place for it in your deepest heart. Make a little birdhouse in your soul.
It’s a love song. From a bird-shaped night light to the child it protects by keeping the darkness away.
Yes, the lyrics are pretty literal. The night light's "primitive ancestry who stood on rocky shores and kept the beaches shipwreck free" are lighthouses.
Right?! And it's one of the most touching, beautiful sentiments.
It's a love song from a stalker.
*lite
Lots of people never heard of They Might Be Giants until they recorded the theme song to Malcolm In The Middle (for which they won their only Grammy Award)....but fans like me knew how cool they were way before that song ever came out!
Marlboro College students know. Their mother knows. I love They Might Be Giants.
As cool as pavarotti😂
Why is the World in love again?
Why are they dancing hand in hand?
Why are the ocean levels rising up?
It's a Brand New album, for 1990...
They Might Be Giants,
FLOOOD!
@@dracoargentum9783 every word is magic
Correction: Their first grammy. TMBG won their 2nd Grammy, for Best Childrens' Album, for their album Here Come The 123's.
The lyric is, “Not to put too fine a point on it,” it means they’re trying not to be too literal. It’s ironic because they’re never literal.
Great misheard lyrics of Brad and Lex. 😂 I did a blues cover of this, so had to get real comfortable with the lyrics.
"Not to put too fine a point on it" means "not to emphasize the point" of (me) being the birdhouse in your soul / the only bee in your bonnet
*Maybe instead of having a weird photo over the video, someone could've put the lyrics.*
Back in the '80s, these guys had Dial-A-Song, where you call, and their daily new song plays. Off-the-wall creativity and catchiness is their M.O.
The ad said the call was free if you made it from work.
Dial-a-song still exists.
“Whaddaya thi… whaddaya make out of that recording?”
I used my call from jail once for dial a song.
I called them! I was about 14yo. They answered. BOTH OF THEM. My nerd nards crawled up into my viscera and I eventually hung up without ever saying a thing. "hello?" ... "is no one there?" ... ugh! My 2nd biggest regret behind missing my chance to meet Paul Erdős.
Sorry, guys. I was there 😞
"Free when you call from work!"
They're absurdists. I love them. One of my favorite lines, "We were once so close to heaven, Peter came out and gave us medals, declaring us the nicest of the damned." They're hella clever, I think.
And an entire song about getting lost on the way to a radio interview.
One of mine is "Life is just a mood ring we're not allowed to see, and this is what it said to me."
@@artao5 Yes. Heck, yeah. Ain't it though?
“Every jumbled pile of person has a thinking part that wonders what the part that isn’t thinking isn’t thinking of”
@@artao5my room is comfortably small with rubber lining the walls and someone’s always calling my name
How is this song 33 years old? Like all their songs, the lyrics are phenomenal.
Well shit, now I feel REALLY OLD. Thanks, Parzooman. :p
Best song ever to be written from the perspective of a blue canary nightlight. To my knowledge, it’s also the _only_ one, but I’m confident that it could stand up to any competition.
There's so many killer orange nightlight tracks out there too. They spotted the gap in the market well.
Thanks for doing They Might be Giants. Such a good 80-90's band. They were a staple in college radios at that time. No one quite like them. I've have always loved this song.
Not to argue, but they are a great 2000s, 2000-teens, and 2000-20's band, too!
TMBG are such a great band with a back catalogue bigger than most other bands combined!
They write quirky upbeat songs, quirky melancholy songs and quirky educational songs for kids about science, nature and knowledge (they'll be GREAT for Jack to learn without realising that's what's happening)!
The met at Carnegie Mellon university, I believe they were studying engineering.
@@adamdonovan4071They met in high school in Lincoln, MA. Neither studied engineering. They formed the band after moving into the same building in Brooklyn after having moved away to college/jobs.
They have a knack for writing sad songs with upbeat music. They'll Need a Crane is a classic example.
"not to put too fine a point on it, say I'm the only bee in your bonnet"... It's a nightlight singing about watching over a "little one" as they sleep, talking about how it protects them as they sleep, and longs to be the kids best and only friend ("only bee in your bonnet"). Pull up the lyrics and re-listen from the perspective of a little night-light plugged into the wall outlet and it will make more sense.
These guys were pretty popular with all the kids who were on the nerdier side back in the 80s and 90s. I got to see them live on my 15th birthday and it was lots of fun.
Probably the best pop song ever.
TMBG is another one of those bands that has a big following in nerd/geek circles. Great stuff :)
I’ve resembled that since the 90s!
A buddy & I put Minimum Wage on loud repeat in the break room of the McDonalds where we worked for a couple of hours. Coworkers were cracking up.
As said, it’s a night lite - spelled lite. Opposit the nightlite is a painting of a lighthouse. The lite mentions that while serving similar functions, he would be fired if his job was to keep sailors safe. Jason and the Argonauts were the most famous sailors in Greek Mythology. And “Not to put too fine a point on it” is just a common figure of speech that means something like “sorry if I’m over-explaining, but I think you get what I’m saying “. A fine (sharp) point like a freshly sharpened pencil.
Since 1986 They Might Be Giants have released 23 albums! The most recent in 2021. I think that includes a few albums meant for children, but they are prolific none the less. I find their songs kinda hit or miss, but there are many I love. I keep going back to listen to "Brontosaurus" (it's on youtube, but no video).
Congratulations. You will now have this chorus lodged in a part of your brain for the rest of your life.
TMBG was always a very quirky band with lots of clever wordplay. The album this in on, Flood, is pretty solid from start to finish, if you're into this sort of thing. Definitely a kid-friendly sound.
MINIMUM WAGE...he-yah!.....
Particle Man!!!
Or my other favorite “Someone Keeps Moving My Chair”!!!
The song is about a night-light shaped like a blue canary that watches over the person who owns it. The night-light sings to the person and asks them to make a little birdhouse in their soul, meaning to keep a place for it in their heart. The night-light also tells some stories about its origins and its views on the world. The song is whimsical and catchy, with a lot of wordplay and references to Greek mythology, Longines Symphonette, and Jason and the Argonauts.
A love song to a blue plastic canary night light ? That’s the best I can do.
@@Spo-Dee-O-Dee oh it’s from. Well I was pretty close. Thanks.
Love these guys. There isnt a bad song on the whole album this is from
Thank you! I have been waiting for a long time for you to react to TMBG. I have requested it so many times that I finally gave up. Other great songs by TMBG include: "Ana Ng", "You're on Fire", "The Guitar" and "Don't Lets Start". They have also created so many kids songs! "E Eats Everything", "The Hot Dog Song", "Clap Your Hands"...and lot's more.
God damn these guys are so talented and funny and weird. They have many many other great songs
Istanbul
Ana Ng
The statue got me high
Love their version of Istanbul (Not Constantinople), but it is a cover of a song from back in the 50’s.
Their best song is "Dead".
Youth culture killed my dog
Snail Shell
Ana Ag is still one of my most favorite songs
3 other band's had similar theme, Smash mouth, Bare Naked Ladies, O K Go. This band did theme song from Malcom in The Middle, Bare Naked Ladies did theme song for Big Bang Theory. Butt, OK go is a truly different experience. You have to watch videos to get full genius of they're compositions. Please check them out won't be disappointed 😁
Just a fun little song of a night light singing to a child. TMBG are really cool the more you get into them.
They Might Be Giants is a fabulous rabbit hole to go down. ✌️
This is late 80’s “alternative” music. TMBG had a few hits played on alternative stations. They were cool.
They Might Be Giants is a very great and silly group that has usually been relagated to the label of "College Rock." They've been around for over 40 years, and have 23 albums. They had an episode of Tiny Toon Adventures where the Toons did a rip-off of MTV, and all the videos were songs from the band. Mostly, if you're a fan, and you know, you know. Kind of like Tool. They aren't mainstream in any way, but the fans still love them.
There's a real detailed explanation out there on the web. But as odd as it sounds, it's about a nightlight shaped like a blue canary singing to its owner asking to appreciate it (make a little birdhouse in your soul).
Yes! More They Might Be Giants
Istanbul
Ana Ng
Don't Let's Start
Boss Of Me
Particle Man
They'll Need A Crane
Hotel Detective
I love the lines "I'd be fired if that were my job, after killing Jason off and countless screaming argonauts". It's Lomo the poor little night lite has dreams and ambitions of being something better.
Goth? LOL Good lord no.
They Might Be Giants is their own genre. Many of their songs are weird for the sake of being weird. Some "song stories" that are just stories. They've even done a lot of kid's TV music.
TMBG song lyrics are usually more than just silly. I think that Brad would especially enjoy puzzling over the various possible interpretations of many of their songs. The lyrics are quite often very clever, and the tunes catchy. Definitely have the lyrics handy for the next TMBG song you do. I suggest "Ana Ng" or "She's an Angel".
We got my son a little blue bird night light for Christmas years ago. They are a fun band to see live.
Loved them! Flood was a fun early 90s album. Istanbul is one of their most ... indie-famous songs.
For goth, as Lex mentioned - you gotta go Siousxsie and the Banshees and Bauhaus.
They Might Be Giants - Flood is one of my favorite albums. But I am a little quirky.
Song about a popular style of 1950's era Blue Canary night lights...usually used in young kids rooms.
These guys were fun, and time appropriate, early nineties. They played on children’s radio shows sometimes. Like kid’s corner on WXPN. Love this song. It would grow on you. Lol.
They’ve been making music and performing since the 80s.
I heard them a lot on Kid's Corner. I was a teen but my dad played WXPN in the car a lot.
@@amyk9175yeah, I remember. But the album Flood (with their hits) ushered in the 90’s. The songs gained popularity later. I think the cartoon tiny toons even did a Particle Man toon video.
I used to play a metal guitar version of this in a band with a female goth singer. It's a pretty cool tune.
TMBG is awesome! Been listening for over thirty years. Even their kid song stuff is great!
TMBG are one of the more unique bands of the last 30 years or so. Not to put too fine a point on it...
I see what you did there. 😉
I’ll put a finer point on it. Their first album was released November 4, 1986.
Cool band. Definitely quirky stuff.
Kids Love them! 😊
They also did the theme for
"Malcolm in the Middle ".
Also check out...
"Why the Sun Shines"
""Your Racist Friend"!
I Fn LOVE They Might BE Giants... been a fan since 1990
They Might Be Giants is awesome. I've been listening to them since 1988. Maybe check out Snail Shell?
I LOVED this album when it came out! ❤️
In the 90s the Giants played a free concert in Union Square in San Francisco. I had class that day. I skipped class. It was worth it! The Giants fall into the same Technicolor suburban revolt that spawned other bands like R.E.M. and The B-52s also. A little Punk. A sprinkle of New Wave. A dash of Jon Waters. A deep injection of sideshow geek. Strange lyrics and relaxed glee fueled music.
Sorry but r.e.m. in the b-52s were Way before they might be Giants
@@Tbass-yy8uc where did I say they were from the same era? I didn't. I said basically they are cut from the same cloth, not the same era. Easy mistake.
@@Tbass-yy8uc B-52s formed in 1976, first album in 1979.
R.E.M. formed in 1980, first album in 1983.
TMBG formed in 1982, first album in 1986.
@@bashirijones7008 said in a statement that spawned bands like REM and B-52. Please look up the definition of Spawned.
They did alot of kid. Show like Nickelodeon and boom a rang great music
blue canary in the outlet by the light switch, who watches over yoooou
Happy goth? lol. Well, they were an '80s/'90s alt/indie rock band. College rock. Played often on college radio stations and alt stations. Music videos on alt night on MTV.
Early alt rock band like REM, Dinosaur Jr, Replacements, DEVO, B-52s, Ween, Eels, XTC, RHCP, etc.
But, kind of a goofy band like Talking Heads, Bare Naked Ladies, B-52s, DEVO, etc. Nerdy, quirky, cerebral music.
They Might Be Giant had other hits, too like "NG Ana" , "Snail Shell" ('90s), etc Also TV show themes like Malcolm in the Middle (2000s show) "Boss of Me" (upbeat Ska punk) and other TV shows. . . Check those videos out! Yall done "Istanbul" already, which Lex loved.
The entire album is AMAZING and was in my car for MONTHS (not only because the cassette was broken and kept getting stuck in the tape deck in the car…had to record it onto another cassette). “Particle Man” has always been one of my favorites (played on the local “modern music” station in SLC…KJQ then X-96). Check out “Someone Keeps Moving My Chair”
Nerd shit, they were big with the college kids in the 90s. Datarock, Moses Leroy, Cibo Matto... if you want more of the genre. Check out Mammals from the album Apollo 18.
its a song about a Blue Bird Night Light that watches over you and your room at night told from the Night Lights point of view, it wants you to remember it.
I love this song so much. It came on Sirius XM on my way to work a couple weeks ago, and I cranked it and was bopping along like crazy, at 6:30am. Got some very strange looks from other motorists, but I didn’t care!
“Happy goth” best description of Ska music I’ve ever heard.
They might be Giants are brilliant between the two of them I think they can play over 600 instruments.
Love TMBG! If you want more weird, give Robyn Hitchcock & The Egyptians a try (start with Balloon Man).
Yes! It IS fun to sing along to! And I don’t think it really means anything. I mean, Jason and countless screaming Argonauts? Lol.
"Not to put too fine a *point* on it" is an expression. Perhaps it's not used much by young people, but I'm surprised you haven't heard it. It means more or less that someone is about to tell you exactly what they think in a direct, concise way.
They Might Be Giants' Flood is the first album I ever bought with my own money. Not to put too fine a point on it, they're one of my all-time favorite bands.
Such a cool band. Check songs Ana Ng or Your Racist Friend. Always creative
TMBG at this point in 1990 was just two guys and they're fantastic. Hollywood loved this song and others from this album. Animaniacs made cartoons to two of their songs (Particle Man and Istanbul), and this song was used in 3 or 4 different shows that I've seen.
One of the best concerts I've ever attended, sometime in the early-mid 1990s, probably 1000+ people crammed in a 800 cap club, and TMBG calls for a conga line. Good times.
I love this album. They Might be Giants also did some kids songs we used to listen to when my kids were very little.
It is obviously a song from the perspective of a night light but my friends and I always tried to find deeper meanings ( exact meanings) in their songs. They have some much crazier and better songs. I like this one though.
❤ TMBG
This isn’t “modern” music, it’s postmodern music. Literally.
They are a fun band, but toss out all expectations of what music should be.
Istanbul (not Constantinople)
Particle Man and my evil twin are great; if you’re in for a weird set of songlets fingertips is super funny.
Boris the spider lol
OMG you need to do Istanbul not Constantinople next lol
I think one thing this proves above anything else, is that you guys are GENUINELY reacting to these songs, when hearing them for the first time. Some of your confusion and theories from the misheard lyrics, are wild but very entertaining. Thanks and keep going 😂
I think you guys would like Don't Let's Start. It's the first song I heard from them and then I bought all their albums.
Happy goth? No, more like unhappy power pop. And all the better for it.
5:20 definitely clipping these few seconds out to include in the mp3 rotation.
One of the absolutely tip top greatest songs of the 90s. Love it so much.
He's saying "Not to put too fine a point on it" (not pint).
TMBG are such a fun band from the '80s! Strange, clever lyrics, catchy melodies, and quirky videos.
I always thought this song was sung from the perspective of a little canary shaped night light that provides comfort to the child in whose room it is plugged in. It also encourages them to keep a night light on in a bird house in their soul, where they keep all their hopes and dreams.
If you want more TMBG, you might try 'Ana Ng'
TMBG Have so many great songs. Istanbul (Not Constantinople), Kiss Me Son of God, Snail Shell, Man It's So Loud in Here, Doctor Worm, Hovering Sombrero, The Mesopotamians, I'm Impressed, Sad Sack, Damn Good Times, etc.... I've seen them live and they are fantastic!
It's a song about a bird shaped night light, sung from the night light's point of view.
The phrase Brad was hung up on is "not to put too fine a POINT on it." It kind of means "I don't want to overexplain things." You're right though. Incredibly catchy chorus.
This is a song for a very well-read self-aware child lying in a crib after dark and gazing at the night light - and the night light is singing a bedtime song back to the child - kinda
“Not to put too fine a point on it. Say I’m the only bee in your bonnet”
Nothing to do pine trees here 😌
They're not really clear on that line and it does kinda sound like, "Not to put too fine a pine on it." But no. It's "Not to put to fine a POINT on it." Which makes way way way more sense. :)
(To be fair, I have most of this album totally committed to memory cuz I've listened to it so much LOL)
Brad is right, this song is very fun to sing along to!
Love love love TMBG! Istanbul probably my favorite, but this one is definitely my second!
Awesome sauce!! This is my high school years! ❤️❤️❤️
They straight tell us that the song is about a night light . Fun and clever as always TMBG
The saying is "not to put to fine a POINT on it, but..." Derived I think from sharpening a pencil. And that means, "not to dwell on it, but...." I agree - it sounds like he's saying pine not point, and they maybe wrote it that way on purpose, or when he sings point it sounds like pine.
I don't think there is a better sing-a-long band. I had a co-worker at Wendy's BITD and we would sing TMBG songs all day long. #scienceisreal
Now we’re talking! Massive rabbit hole of great songs! Try ‘Minimum Wage’ for the world’s shortest reaction! Got to love a band that started their set with ‘Let’s Get This Over With’.
OK so the superficial meaning is -- it is a night light (shaped like a bird) singing to a child! Yep - pretty eccentric but that's They Might be Giants for you! The bit about the shipwreck and Jason is talking about how the nightlights ancestors were lighthouses!
Just fun stuff with a smart hint of parody, sort of like Bare Naked Ladies in their lighter moods. This one was written from the perspective of a kid’s nightlight.
TMBG, is just an awesome band, kings of quirk, and bring out the emo geek in all of us!! They are sooo fun and have so much to explore! "Ana-Ang", "Don't Let's Start", "I-Palindrome-I", "The Mesopotamians", and "Purple Toupee" are just some of their other tunes I like. Goofy, skilled and insightful is how I see them! They also have lots of educational songs too, like "The Sun" and "Time is marching On". They also wrote and performed the theme song for Malcom in the Middle, "You're not the boss of Me". They're also incredible to see in concert! Edit: Brad, your urge to sing along happens a TON with TMBG songs. It's just what they do.
If these lyrics weird weird for them I wonder what they'd make of Born Slippy by Underworld.
They Might Be Giants are an acquired taste. A lot of fun, very very catchy, and more than a little bit left-field. Don't try to understand, just enjoy :) Their most straightforward song - and one of the catchiest - is the wonderful "Ana Ng", but even their weirdest numbers are potent earworms ("Shoehorn with Teeth" and "Particle Man", for instance).
I liken them to The New Pornographers.
Check out Doctor Worm!
They have some great children's albums
It is physically impossible to stay depressed if you sing along with this song.
if you've never done Istanbul (Not Constantinople) you should
In addition to being a great indie band starting in the 80s, these guys have an extensive catalog of kids songs. I loved them back in the day and when I had kids in the mid 2000s they were big fans of the Mickey Mouse Club. The FIRST time I watched I could immediately identify TMBG as the band singing the theme song and "Hot Dog." Really upped my enjoyment of watching it every day.
guess now you gotta do dead milkmen and/or ween.
4:50 TMBG has 5 albums aimed at children. They’re easy to sing along with and help with learning basics.
Just saying 😊 and Congratulation on Jack!