Adam was singularly one of the most extraordinary human beings I’ve had the good fortune to call my friend. There are few days that pass that I don’t think of him at least once. Thank you for producing this fantastic piece. One thing that’s overlooked here is, one of Adam’s first breaks into the music biz was being hired by Jody to play bass in his band The Belltower, who had helped usher in the Shoegaze/BritPop movement in the late 80’s and early 90’s. That band eventually dissolved following the divorce of Jody and his then wife, Britta Phillips (Luna/Dean & Britta). It was in the wake of that divorce that Adam sent the demo for the FoW debut to Jody and asked him if he’d like to join the band. Bri later came onboard as he stepped off The Posies train, and was positively the only drummer this band could have ever had. Jesus, Brian Young is one of the best drummers in rock. Together, this was very much a band, not just Chris and Adam working in a vacuum (although they handled all the songwriting). In the end, this video certainly left me in quiet tears, as I appreciated the tone and treatment of the news of Adam’s passing and his imprint on so much of pop culture.
Thank you for posting such a beautiful ode to your friend. We loved Adam’s music (as Gen Xers we adored his take on pop culture), and we were just amazed at his brilliance and versatility. Reading about his very untimely death in those early days of the pandemic was just so brutal.
In 2021, I finally got around to a long-in-development book about the Josie and the Pussycats movie, and I’m heartbroken how little Adam ever talked about his role and thus how little he is featured in the book.
I am a lifelong mega Monkees fan. When I heard "That Thing You Do!" back in the day, I immediately thought "this guy gets pop. He should produce a record for the Monkees!" When I told people that they looked at me like I had a horn growing out of my head. It took twenty years, but he ultimately did. And it was fantastic! Monster good, a classic! Thanks Adam, for all the melodic music and smiles. Welcome Interstate Managers has a place of pride on red vinyl in my collection right next to my teal blue vinyl copy of the Monkees Good Times, and Psonic Psunspot by the Dukes of Stratosphere. What higher compliment can I give? Rest in Peace Mr. Music Man.
Stacy's Mom, Hackensack, Leave The Biker, Radiation Vibe, Sink To The Bottom, Red Dragon Tattoo, Mexican Wine, Richie And Ruben, Denise, those were all played a lot on Dutch speaking Belgian radio. I love them all and it's so sad Adam had to fall victim to covid19 at such a young age... Thanks for this delightful documentary.
Welcome Interstate Managers is such a criminally underrated album. It's an incredible run of pop songs wrapped in different genres and built around amazing miniature screenplays. It's magnifying glass critique of suburban America was about 5 years before 'The Office', and I think it was just overlooked, partially because of Stacy's Mom.
Hackensack, Halley's Waitress, All Kinds of Time, and Hung Up on You are tracks that I'll bump forever and it sucks that they're stuck in the towering shadow of the third song on that album.
It’s been one of my Desert Island Discs (That’s not a thing anymore, is it?) since the day it came out. Stacy’s Mom is probably my least favorite song on the album, but I still love it.
@@bro9991 "Valley Winter Song" is another I'd add to that list. I don't know that I've ever heard another song that captures the melancholy of being stuck inside on a grey winter day quite like that one.
Hearing the "you're playing the wrong chords" story made me laugh. I knew Chris Collingwood in High School and I've never met anyone as arrogant about their musical knowledge/taste/talent. But as I got to know him better I realized it's not bragging if you can back it up.
Very nicely done; i wasn't familiar with much more than "Stacy's Mom" but by the end I felt that I was mourning the loss of a genuinely multifaceted talent. Few can create the kind of sheer number of good songs he had a hand in.
Very strange that he died of covid, and that so many people died of covid. I caught covid at age 66, and it was no big deal. Not much worse than a cold or flu. Maybe I was helped by the fact that I had received two vaccination shots prior to catching it. Now I've had four shots, and I will take a fifth shot if it is available. Get vaccinated, everyone.
Didn't realise how much music Adam wrote. Way back into love is such a brilliant song, as are most in this video. What a shame he died.... and from Covid, at such a young age. You will be fondly remembered.
I was in the same college class as both Adam and Chris. Everyone who attended a party in college knew them, because they were always playing music, but with the typical paths of law, medicine & Wall Street for most Williams grads, I don't think anyone realized music would be their full-time careers. I still remember seeing them playing back up in a quick scene on the first season of "the Real World" for one of the cast members and thinking "are they doing music full time?" then not realizing Radiation Vibe was them for the longest time. I will die mad, though, that "That Thing You Do" didn't win the Oscar, because it's not just period perfect & right for the film, making it pivotal to the plot; after 11 renditions in less than 2 hours, you don't hate it. As for my favorite songs, with Fountains of Wayne, it's Hackensack, because it's like a Neil Simon play in miniature. For his comedy songs, I have to go with "It's Not Just for Gays Anymore," because it was side-splitting hilarious. Oddly, my favorite Fountains of Wayne song is a Collingwood creation, "Valley Winter Song," because it so perfectly evokes the Berkshires. When the news came of Adam's passing, so early in the pandemic, it was a gut punch to everyone in our class, and oddly made us all come together in various virtual ways, which was a perfect tribute to him. My favorite memory, though, is at our 25th reunion, in 2014, when Adam walked into the dorm that was our headquarters and various classmates started doing the Wayne's World "we're not worthy" bow, and he couldn't quite accept we all thought of him as a superstar.
I was in your class too, @CPTDoom. I saw Adam pretty often in the 90s when we both lived in NYC, but one time I remember especially, I was walking somewhere in Midtown and my path was blocked by the Pope's motorcade coming through, and then Adam was there too, also just walking somewhere. I asked him what he'd been up to, and he said "Well, I wrote this song that Tom Hanks is thinking about putting in a movie. I don't think he will, though. It's not that great...it rhymes 'do' with 'do'."
Whenever Trash Theory post one of their mini documentaries I click and click like and then I get round to watching it. Even if it is about something I've not previously been a fan of. They are that good, always informative, interesting, and usually a bit of fun. Sometimes I have even gained a new appreciation of an artist or song. Supposed what I am trying to say is keep up the good work, I hope it brings you as much joy as it brings me.
Their videos are so well created that they always give me something even if I am not a fan of the artist or genre. But when they do video about something I like those videos are absolute pleasure!
@@josefacundo6140 Must admit I hit my teens in the early 80's, kind of musically aware late 70's (then acts like the Boomtown Rats, Blondie were new) so as a music nerd I know most of them. However if you are younger than me, many of these are probably new to you, or more like ancient Greek hero's, often referenced, when spoken of directly, it's in hushed reverence .If you pick up on an artist through these, welcome aboard, I'm a bit jealous as you have all "That" (points to discography) to enjoy discovering.
I am re-watching Crazy Ex-Girlfriend now. I adore it. Also, last month I watched Rachel Bloom's new live show, wherein she shares a lot of her feelings about Adam and his passing. It's a brilliant and painful show.
“Welcome Interstate Managers” is an absolute underrated classic: “Mexican Wine”, “Bright Future In Sales”, “No Better Place”. If there was true justice in this world, FOW would’ve been hailed as the heir to the portraiture style writing of Ray Davies.
R.I.P. Adam Schlesinger♡ Before coming upon this video I only knew of _Stacy's Mom_ and not the guys or even band behind that catchy song that is so obviously so well etched into the cultural memory of the collective consciousness that I had recently paraphrased it to make a smart-ass joke online and therefor wound up eventually looking up the song again for a listen to refresh my own memory, ultimately leading me to this beautiful and genuinely appreciative and loving video essay. Now I can whole-heartedly say that I am very glad to, through this heartfelt tribute and memoriam of a reportage, have gotten a bit more familiar with Adam Schlesinger, the band Fountains of Wayne and the other guys behind it and to thus have learned about the important and meaningful contributions they all made to popular culture and music. The whimsical yet covertly serious (by slight of word rather than hand) _lightness of being_ that emenated from their boys/guys-next-door's perspective driven kind of investigations of the humanity, human condition and woes of mundane, average and often rather uneventful people is portrayed as very sincere here and speaks to their personable integrity! So it seems to me that this tribute is very well deserved and that I would have loved to ever gotten to meet Adam Schlesinger in person, had I ever gotten the chance to do so. So may all of you who did personally know him in a favourable way keep him in your hearts and minds and not allow the world to forget about his person and his works for a long time to come!♡☆🙂
Hey Julie, is not only my favorite Adam Schlesinger song, it is one of my favorite songs ever. It never fails to put a smile on my face with its beautiful melody and lyrical combination of funny observations about working m in an office and sweet sincerity of missing your significant other.
When I was a kid my favorite band was REM. The response to that answer was always "oh the band that plays Stand" or "Shiny Happy People", and I was always like "yeah...but..." And then they went on become one of the biggest bands in the world. Nowadays when asked and I say Fountains of Wayne the response is "oh that band that plays Stacy's Mom." And I'm like "first of all, that's a great song...but..." I always hoped they'd follow the same trajectory, like maybe that would draw enough attention for people to pull back the curtain. Fountains of Wayne, and particularly Adam Schlesinger, will go down as one of the most criminally underrated artists in history, IMHO.
I won’t pretend, I absolutely love the Josie and the Pussycats songs. I bought the cd back in the day. My 18 year old self had to often times defend it for having it in my collection.
I've always been a big They Might Be Giants fan, but I never knew Fountains of Wayne. I first heard of Adam Schlesinger when I saw Music & Lyrics and loved the whole soundtrack (including the tracks by Andrew Wyatt of Miike Snow). Thanks for this video - I hear a lot of the offbeat cleverness of TMBG in Fountains of Wayne and Schlesinger's other songs.
Loved “Radiation Vibe” from the first time I heard it, it was like a blast through the sludge of 90s grunge…but “Sick Day” is a masterpiece of the mundanity and sadness running through the lives of anyone in a meaningless office job. A Poignant and honest window into a real-life character’s thoughts and feelings.
In that initial couple months of the pandemic news, I had completely forgotten Adam had passed away. I'm not a fan of musicals in general, but Crazy Ex Girlfriend is one of the most brilliant TV shows ever created. The musical numbers are just top notch throughout its run. And to think they were doing that with the typical TV show deadlines you always hear about. His life was too brief, but wow, what a genuinely amazing list of accomplishments.
Adam is possibly one of the best American songwriters in rock and pop. I'm so glad a video exists to show how much impact he made on modern pop music and his excellent soundtracking. He's the Danny Elfman of the 00s and I mean that in the best possible way. Hey Julie and almost every song off Traffic and Weather live in my head forever. Rip Adam
THANK YOU for doing this episode on such a remarkably gifted writer, doing this man's legacy justice, and in turn, putting a spotlight on a criminally under-acknowledged band. I was crying by the end of the episode. As a fan of his work AND of Fountains Of Wayne, I'm just grateful that he left behind a hell of a catalog that all of us can listen to, admire and celebrate. RIP Adam Schlesinger. Thank You, for all of what you did.
I had only started to appreciate the breadth of Adam's talent through CXG. I am a huge fan and it is a very important show for me personally. Through behind the scenes stuff I found out 'oh that's the Stacey's Mom guy' and 'oh the Stacey's Mom guy also wrote That Thing you do'. I realised he must be a stupidly talented songwriter to be on that team and to write such varied hits. It was a total shock when he died. I still can't believe it. It was only after he died that I realised he'd written on Josie and the Pussycats too. It's so weird how 1 writer can be involved in so many of your fave songs and you don't even realise it. Thanks for this video, he deserves the appreciation. 🖤💜🖤💜
My and my two daughters (19 & 15) went to the airport to pickup my wife and my old daughter had a random playlist when "Buddha's delight" came on this led to a discussion of Adam and his songs. My girls were just amazed at his output and when I told them he passed away early from COVID-19 they were sad to hear it as they never realized how many songs o his they loved. It will started with my playing FOW in the car when they were young.
You know, I like the movie “music and lyrics” and always thought the music was phenomenally well suited for it. Now I know why…Adam had a super talent for being able to write music…both ballads and songs with humor. The soundtrack and High Grant make it a pretty fun movie!
I loved Ivy and, when I wrote reviews for a weekly rag in Savannah, made Apartment Life one of my top 10 of '97. Of course, I also loved That Thing You Do. What an unexpected and sweet tribute this video was. Thank you, TT.
@@tassherb Oh, god, that's like choosing between my children. Barbara H is wondrous though. The whole album is. Sick Day, I guess, if I had to pick - from that album, at least - would probably pip it, but fortunately I don't have to pick! I remember it being one of the first CDs I owned, when I finally moved over from tapes, and so I was more able to just start listening from the beginning every time I put it on. Naturally the first few songs got more play, so became more familiar...but I remember my little sister saying at the time that whenever we did listen all the way through, it was full of songs that all made us both say "Oh, and this one's incredible too! It's all amazing!" And it still is.
Clicked the link because I liked Stacey's Mom. Ended up on a beautiful musical journey, with lots of references I recognised, and a teary end to discover Adam had died of Covid. A well told story, thank you. And thanks to Adam for much more than Stacey's Mom.
I heard "that thing you do" in a Kohl's one time and thought a lot about how even though it's a fake 60s jangle hit, it slotted in perfectly with the actual songs they used to put on the muzak. Dude wrote a song that not only sounded like a certain era, but like one you'd been hearing on oldies stations all your life. Crazy Ex-Girlfriend just proved he could do one of those for every imaginable genre. Unbelievable talent and my personal Tri-State hero.
I only saw Fountains once. Last time they played in Belgium. I only knew "Welcome Interstate managers" and im glad they played A LOT from their first album. It was a véry magical concert and it broke my heart when i heard the news that mister Schlesinger passed. Thanks for the docu!
Adam with his absolute genius, and the great original lead singer of The Cars (the band Adam admired so deeply), Benjamin Orr, left us waaaaay too song. Decades apart but both were way too young…I cried when I read the news about Adam - the early days of the pandemic were just so horrible but Adam’s death (a fellow Gen Xer) just seemed so personal.
In my teens, the tiny fortnightly local alternative night used to close with "sink to the bottom" - so it's always had a deeply nostalgic and melancholic vibe for me. Later is life I got really into Crazy Ex Girlfriend, which completely sidestepped my usual ambivalence to musicals. Each pastiche was so brilliantly realised that they could just swing from Death Metal to the Spice Girls without missing a beat. It was clear that they had a lot of affection for what they were trying to emulate. Then, eventually I started to clock just what other projects Adam had been involved with and it blew my mind. His passing was my first real gut-punch of 2020. It just sucks that he’s gone, it really does.
I remember playing That Thing You Do to death and having no clue who wrote it, everything else I liked continued in that way too come to think of it. My favourite song of his is actually Hackensack. Katy Perry did it on her MTV unplugged and she announced where its from and it genuinely shocked me that the Stacey's Mom dudes did Hackensack. But that's the point isn't it. That's their song and you'd hope people find them and look past it.
I knew Fountains Of Wayne from Stacy's Mom, first and foremost. I'd heard snippet of Mexican Wine here and there, but when I REALLY got into them was while going through an "anything remotely John Hughes-esque" phase. I found a movie called Trojan War and I've Got A Flair was on the soundtrack for that and my true love for them started. Truly one of their most underrated songs. I bought their self-titled and wore it out. I think I've bought it used, three or four times now, until the advent of streaming, just because it'd constantly be in my car CD player. From there, I got into all their other records. Welcome Interstate Managers was ALWAYS a must listen when my cousin and I went on a roadtrip. I've seen them live more than any other band, including a weird performance where they were a back up band for Brooke Shields as she relayed the story of a one off date with George Michael. It hit me like an atom bomb when Adam died. The last show I went to, they busted out I've Got A Flair and I nearly cried.
I never really liked this band that much, but the title of this video was really good and lured me in. I found myself being really inspired by the story you told about this band. Great job!
Love this video, Fountains are one of my favourite bands and Collingwood/Schlesinger deserve to be spoken in the same breath as Lennon/MCCartney. Always been a huge fan of Bright Future in Sales, 92 Subaru and New Routine but there are so many to choose from. Probabaly the COVID death that upset me the most, RIP Adam.
My favorite Adam Schlesinger (and Dominique Durand) song is "Edge of the Ocean", from the Ivy album 'Long Distance'. That song is a strong contender for my favorite song ever.
It's hard to do Adam (and Fountains of Wayne) justice in 30 minutes. But you did an excellent job, thank you. For those who know Fountains of Wayne for only one song, you are missing so much. One thing that didn't get mentioned here was Adam's production work with various artists. The Monkees thought so highly of him for example that he was brought in to produce their Good Times! album, marking their 50th anniversary, which was both critically acclaimed and a success in the charts.
I've always like FoW, but had no idea of their musical journey or Adam Schlesinger's role in the band. Nor of his role in so many other amazing songs. Thanks!
I had just moved to a new country when COVID hit and there was a massive lockdown in your new place. It was weird, hard to understand. When Adam died, it was like a kick in the gut., This was real. I was heartbroken. I got to meet them in 2002 or so in Vegas. Very nice guys. Crap, we lost him too early. The band lasted just long enough, and I hope they will be appreciated more as time goes on. Thanks for this video.
Totally worth the happy cry fountains of Wayne is one of my favorite underrated bands and losing Adam was such a big blow so many even this fan don't know how incredibly accomplished he was God damn everybody who appreciates fantastic pop music should listen to fountains of Wayne I don't understand how their wonderfulness is missed and disregarded by so many. A genuine treasure of a band.
Hello Ash! This episode is truly a gift to all the subscribers! I could not appreciate enough your work while watching 👏👏👏 I was so curious where this song by Wonders came from and was so pleasantly surprised to discover it was connected with Fountains of Wayne! Definitely one of the most magnificent and outstanding, state of the art episodes on the channel, provided them all being superior!
So well put together it doesn't matter if you have any interest/knowledge of the topic at hand, you always learn and appreciate the content. Thanks for your effort and keep them coming. Always come here to learn about bands/genres I've never really had a previous appreciation for. Outstanding work... 🤝
Thanks for highlighting Fountains of Wayne, they are a favourite of mine though incredibly underrated by most. It is almost criminal to think they will forever more be remembered for Stacey’s Mom when they have so many other great songs. Some of my favourites include Troubled Times, Fine Day for a Parade, It Must Be Summer, Valley Winter Song and The Summer Place. I wasn’t aware of Adam’s work for film and television though so that was a pleasant surprise and explains why I also like a lot of that content.
I have spent my whole creative life trying to write the kind of music that Schlesinger, Collingwood, and co. The stunning clarity of this work still stymies me. In many ways, there has been nothing better. Schlesinger's work for film just underscores the brilliance of his work and that of Chris'
Crazily, I had no knowledge of the existence of "Stacy's Mom", or even of Fountains of Wayne. Instead, I've always known Adam Schlesinger as one of the key forces behind the Monkees' 2016 album "Good Times". He didn't just write the one song, he produced the whole thing (and in fact Jody Porter and Brian Young did some session work on some of the songs). Let me tell you, it's one of the best production jobs in the Monkees' catalog. That is to say, Schlesinger's work as a musician and songwriter is phenomenal, but he was also a great producer, and that shouldn't be left unsaid.
What a talented couple of guys.....I have a soft spot for anyone from Williams Collage, as my Dad was alumni class of 42! Great video and a lot of research you are incredible!
My late Mom loved "That Thing You Do" & I loved Fountains of Wayne covering The Kinks' "Better Things" on Conan. He died on my birthday just like Marvin Gaye so I will always think of those 2 guys on that day. RIP Adam.
I was a huge FoW fan from the moment I heard their first album right after it came out. In the late '90s they were one of those bands that was like a secret that you wish weren't. (Beulah is another one that comes to mind.) In a better, alternative universe, "Red Dragon Tattoo" and "Leave the Biker" were smash hits. Schlesinger's death, early in the pandemic, was deeply sad. He had so many great songs left in him.
Whoa, a Beulah shout out? That makes me so effing happy. I still occasionally get the chorus of A Man Like Me stuck in my head randomly when I wake up in the morning. I have a whole shelf of CDs from the mid 2000s that all have a very specific, jangly glitterblack sound to them. That Beulah record, Doves Some Cities, Nada Surf's Lucky, there was this sound I was very specifically in love with in my mid 20s.
Absolutely effing brilliant! Never really liked “Stacey’s Mom” so never thought about it as anything other than a naff pop single, usually just making up the numbers on every second power pop/indie compilation release, but eyes and ears are opened (again) by an incisive and thoughtful Trash Theory rockumentary. Thanks. Again.
That Thing You Do! was one of my favorite childhood movies, so I'm shocked to only learn now that it was written by Schlesinger. Great tribute to pop songwriter who loved looking at pop in the past for inspiration.
I've always loved "That Thing You Do!" movie. Adam is a genius! My other faves from Fountain of Wayne are the songs "Traffic and Weather" and "Strapped for Cash".
What I love about your videos: A little while ago I started to get into FoW and dig deeper by doing some light research to find out more about them... Then you release this video that's so thorough, easy to follow, and does such a good job filling in gaps that I never knew about the band/Schlesinger, and now I have a MUCH deeper appreciation for the band and their music... Truly a treasure on TH-cam, thank you Trash Theory!! 🤘😋
THANKS a lot for covering one of my favourite bands of all time. I fell in love with “Denise” since the first time I heard it. Not trying to be pedantic or anything, but “Stacy’s mom” never catched my ear like “Hey Julie” or “mexican wine” in that album. I was able to talk to them and get my copy of “Traffic and Weather” signed by the band when they toured here in Spain. Any chance you could cover, even briefly, his parallel project Ivy or the superband Tinted Windows? R.I.P. Adam Schlesinger. A true pop genius
I heard a song on a commercial for the Texas Lottery and thought to myself it sounded like a Fountains of Wayne song. So after digging around a bit I discovered yes indeed, Adam had written it!
20:24 I don't think the moms daughter is his girlfriend, the song doesn't indicate it and the music video explicitly shows they aren't boyfriend and girlfriend at all. But she wishes he was her boyfriend while he's fantasising about the mother.
‘Stacey’s Mom’ was the first song I heard by them and I didn’t think much of it. But quite a few years later I heard ‘Radiation Vibe’ and I was like, wow. This is so much better.
0:26 What's the most catchiest song ever written about a "girlfriends" parents? Putting in parentheses because when I listen to it, she's not his girlfriend, she wants him to be her boyfriend, but he just hangs out with her to sneek a peak at the mom.
I've been an Ivy fan for a long time, listening to all their songs and researching their history. Adam really is a great songwriter, and I knew he'd had some success writing songs for hollywood films, but I didn't know the extent until sort of recently. I was so shocked when I heard he died a couple of years ago; they had his music featured on the front page of spotify to commemorate his life. Later I found out his bandmate Andy Chase wrote a song about him and put it on youtube. It's so bittersweet. They really were close. I keep seeing people comment about how much they love Apartment Life; hell yeah, my favorite album. Realistic is underrated imo. All their music is good, but I just like the 90s sounds the best. It had a more lush and rich alt feel to it. Hell, talking about it's making me want to listen right now. I think "Over" is my favorite song of theirs.
One of two great writers in a great band. Anyone who bothered to listen past their biggest hit knew that FoW could not only craft songs as well as as anyone, but deliver an emotional punch to the gut than better-known bands. The Kinks is an apt comparison, and I’ll put No Better Place against anything in terms of lasting, aching melancholy.
His work with Ivy was so under appreciated…”Hideaway” is easily one of the best power pop ballads you will ever hear! 4 in the morning, Ocean City Girl, all of the songs used on the Something about Mary soundtrack. Just a phenomenal songwriter who is often not taken 100% seriously probably because he had a sense of humor and put that into some songs that snobs would say aren’t serious enough for the music biz. Guy was a genius. RIP Adam. ❤️
I didn't know Adam Schlesinger's name until he died from COVID. That was also when I learned he had written "That Thing You Do," which is a flawless Beatlemania pastiche that is great pop rock on its own merit. I gained a lot of respect for him as a songwriter with that song, because it's both accurate to the time harmonically and catchy enough that you like hearing it played multiple times in one movie!
Well written and worthwhile. It was a shock when he died. I had just posted my song of the day on Facebook that week. … his song Sick Day as Covid loomed darkly over the world. Rip Adam.
Fountains of Wayne and The All-American Rejects will always remain in my memory for 1 reason and 1 reason alone - The use of Gibson Firebird guitars in videos, even if I had only recently started my journey on bass guitar 🤣
"The Girl I Can't Forget" is probably my favorite song. I really think every man in their early 20's can relate to the circumstances... and FOW songs are built on relatability. The music is up beat and suits the story. Plus, our nervous, drunk hero wins in the end.
Yep, I only knew him from CEG, where one could only gape in wonder at the quality of the pastiches. So it was a shock that immediately made complete sense to learn that he was involved in the fantastic J&tP movie. What an amazing grasp he had of what guitar pop is/should be. So sad he's gone :( RIP Adam.
Thank you for this video! Adam's (and Chris') songs have meant a lot to me. I'm a big fan of both Ivy and FoW, especially the slice-of-life stories and great harmonies. RIP Adam.
That Thing The You Do and Pretend to be Nice were always favorite "movie hits" of mine. Crazy they were written by the same guy who happened to write Stacy's Mom, which to be honest was always a guilty pleasure. It's one of those songs a top 40 snob like myself hates to love. But I do love it and have to admit Schlesinger has an enviable talent at creating power pop. As usual plenty of story behind the song. Great content, you are one of my favorite YT channels.
I am not in the demographic for Fountains of Wayne (too old), but when I heard "Radiation Vibe" for the first time, I thought, "God, I wish I had been young when this song was recorded." There is a real elegiac quality to it that tugs at the heartstrings (an archaic expression, I know). "Valley Winter Song" is very, very good also.
Jeez, I’m 65 and I’ve loved FOW since I heard “Radiation Vibe”. Possibly my favourite band of all time. Their melodies and lyrics warrant a “genius” label.
Oh I completely agree, I was lucky enough to see them live several times and I could never take my eyes off Jody Porter. Tasteful, inventive and a complete repertoire of guitar god moves. I still can’t believe that they’ll never be another FOW album, every one had at least two or three works of complete perfection and the rest were way better than most bands could ever produce.
I bought the “That Thing You Do!” soundtrack CD in 1996 and listened to it constantly. I still do listen to it and have often covered the titular song myself. It’s an amazing song.
Really glad you made this video. Fountains of Wayne and more generally Adam’s songwriting has been largely overlooked but Fountains have so many amazing, catchy tongue in cheek songs that you have to listen closely to really understand the brilliance of. This is a great honor to Adam’s legacy and genius. Gone way too soon, Rest In Peace Adam.
Such an underrated songwriter and musician. That Thing You Do and Stacy's Mom will always hold a special place in my heart, and I'm sure the same is true for many others. Can't believe I only learned how close he lived to me from his passing at a nearby hospital. Definitely gonna check out more of his work after watching this video.
I have no idea about FoW beyond "Stacy's Mom" and I just started to watch the video even though the topic at hand is not that interesting on it's own to me - but that's just TT for you. With the consistent output and it's quality, even if I don't 'get' the band or the movement - for whatever reason - it's simply always a treat to delve deep into the unknown. I might not end up loving them after this one but damn it, I'm here for a ride I know I will enjoy even if the subject matter never has been interesting enough for me to check out on my own. The only other musical channels to get me hooked like that were Todd and Deep Cuts - and truth told, as much as I love both to death, you've definitely beaten them for me these past three years. Now on to the video.
I love Fountains of Wayne. I stumbled on them quite unexpectedly. When Ohio State (I'm a huge Buckeye football fan) got a commitment from HS quarterback Terrelle Pryor in March 2008, the website I subscribe to that covers OSU football then had a weekly audio show call the Bucknuts Radio Hour, and that week the big story was Pryor's commitment. They opened the show that week with FoW's "All Kinds of Time," which I heard right then for the first time and fell in love with the song. I had to find out who did the song, realized they were the Stacy's Mom guys and the rest was history for me. I love both Interstate Managers and Traffic and Weather. I think my favorite song is "92 Subaru," the lyrics in the bridge are just incredible.
This was an incredible video. The real history behind Mexican Wine as a single is fascinating and sad - the music video had to be pulled last minute because censors wouldn’t allow children drinking wine to be shown on the TV. As a result, MW was never officially released as a single and they had to quickly release Hey Julie in its place. Due to all the last minute changes and drama surrounding that, Hey Julie didn’t do well as a follow-up to Stacy’s Mom and cemented their unfortunate status as a “one-hit wonder”. MW is my favourite song of theirs and I genuinely believe if it was released as the official next single, it would have done well and FoW wouldn’t just be remembered for Stacy’s Mom. I assume it’s a coincidence their first album vinyl reissue came out today? My copy is thankfully on its way to me! RIP Adam. His passing on April 1st 2020 made me realise how bad Covid was going to be. It’s truly heartbreaking.
I have been a fan ever since TTYD came out - yes, loved it on the big screen & never tire of rewatching it - I have the soundtrack on CD (yes, I'm that old). BUT - I am firmly amazed by the scope & body of his work. His respectful treatment of (what could be seen as) trashy popular radio songs is total genius. Completely unique. I was shocked at the news of his passing, and I cried watching this. I hope that time will be kind, and he will be remembered for a very long time. He made a mark on the world, bigly
Adam was singularly one of the most extraordinary human beings I’ve had the good fortune to call my friend. There are few days that pass that I don’t think of him at least once. Thank you for producing this fantastic piece. One thing that’s overlooked here is, one of Adam’s first breaks into the music biz was being hired by Jody to play bass in his band The Belltower, who had helped usher in the Shoegaze/BritPop movement in the late 80’s and early 90’s. That band eventually dissolved following the divorce of Jody and his then wife, Britta Phillips (Luna/Dean & Britta).
It was in the wake of that divorce that Adam sent the demo for the FoW debut to Jody and asked him if he’d like to join the band. Bri later came onboard as he stepped off The Posies train, and was positively the only drummer this band could have ever had. Jesus, Brian Young is one of the best drummers in rock. Together, this was very much a band, not just Chris and Adam working in a vacuum (although they handled all the songwriting). In the end, this video certainly left me in quiet tears, as I appreciated the tone and treatment of the news of Adam’s passing and his imprint on so much of pop culture.
FoW will live on forever
@@michaeldutko2383 yep. In one form or another. Jody’s new solo record is great, btw.
@@Queensizemusic love waterways!
Thank you for posting such a beautiful ode to your friend. We loved Adam’s music (as Gen Xers we adored his take on pop culture), and we were just amazed at his brilliance and versatility. Reading about his very untimely death in those early days of the pandemic was just so brutal.
In 2021, I finally got around to a long-in-development book about the Josie and the Pussycats movie, and I’m heartbroken how little Adam ever talked about his role and thus how little he is featured in the book.
I am a lifelong mega Monkees fan.
When I heard "That Thing You Do!" back in the day, I immediately thought "this guy gets pop. He should produce a record for the Monkees!" When I told people that they looked at me like I had a horn growing out of my head.
It took twenty years, but he ultimately did.
And it was fantastic! Monster good, a classic!
Thanks Adam, for all the melodic music and smiles.
Welcome Interstate Managers has a place of pride on red vinyl in my collection right next to my teal blue vinyl copy of the Monkees Good Times, and Psonic Psunspot by the Dukes of Stratosphere. What higher compliment can I give?
Rest in Peace Mr. Music Man.
Stacy's Mom, Hackensack, Leave The Biker, Radiation Vibe, Sink To The Bottom, Red Dragon Tattoo, Mexican Wine, Richie And Ruben, Denise, those were all played a lot on Dutch speaking Belgian radio. I love them all and it's so sad Adam had to fall victim to covid19 at such a young age... Thanks for this delightful documentary.
Studio Brussel.. ah., to be young again.
Welcome Interstate Managers is such a criminally underrated album. It's an incredible run of pop songs wrapped in different genres and built around amazing miniature screenplays. It's magnifying glass critique of suburban America was about 5 years before 'The Office', and I think it was just overlooked, partially because of Stacy's Mom.
Hackensack, Halley's Waitress, All Kinds of Time, and Hung Up on You are tracks that I'll bump forever and it sucks that they're stuck in the towering shadow of the third song on that album.
You are 100% right. Its the most underrated record of all time
It’s been one of my Desert Island Discs (That’s not a thing anymore, is it?) since the day it came out. Stacy’s Mom is probably my least favorite song on the album, but I still love it.
I think the first 12 tracks are a perfect album. Just sublime. The last four are a nice bonus LP. (Taken altogether it’s a bit long IMO.)
@@bro9991 "Valley Winter Song" is another I'd add to that list. I don't know that I've ever heard another song that captures the melancholy of being stuck inside on a grey winter day quite like that one.
Hearing the "you're playing the wrong chords" story made me laugh. I knew Chris Collingwood in High School and I've never met anyone as arrogant about their musical knowledge/taste/talent. But as I got to know him better I realized it's not bragging if you can back it up.
He balanced it out with his "never in the center of the note" intonation and "I'd rather be anywhere else" stage presence.
@@shawnuel I mean you're not wrong but ouch
Very nicely done; i wasn't familiar with much more than "Stacy's Mom" but by the end I felt that I was mourning the loss of a genuinely multifaceted talent. Few can create the kind of sheer number of good songs he had a hand in.
I had no idea of the band at all, but, wow, as you say, by the end… what a loss
Look up the band TINTED WINDOWS !! Taylor Hanson James Iha , Adam and Bun E Carlos of Cheap Trick. Power pop BLISS
Very strange that he died of covid, and that so many people died of covid. I caught covid at age 66, and it was no big deal. Not much worse than a cold or flu. Maybe I was helped by the fact that I had received two vaccination shots prior to catching it. Now I've had four shots, and I will take a fifth shot if it is available. Get vaccinated, everyone.
Didn't realise how much music Adam wrote. Way back into love is such a brilliant song, as are most in this video. What a shame he died.... and from Covid, at such a young age. You will be fondly remembered.
"Lead us not into Penn Station" is such a great lyric
I was in the same college class as both Adam and Chris. Everyone who attended a party in college knew them, because they were always playing music, but with the typical paths of law, medicine & Wall Street for most Williams grads, I don't think anyone realized music would be their full-time careers. I still remember seeing them playing back up in a quick scene on the first season of "the Real World" for one of the cast members and thinking "are they doing music full time?" then not realizing Radiation Vibe was them for the longest time. I will die mad, though, that "That Thing You Do" didn't win the Oscar, because it's not just period perfect & right for the film, making it pivotal to the plot; after 11 renditions in less than 2 hours, you don't hate it. As for my favorite songs, with Fountains of Wayne, it's Hackensack, because it's like a Neil Simon play in miniature. For his comedy songs, I have to go with "It's Not Just for Gays Anymore," because it was side-splitting hilarious. Oddly, my favorite Fountains of Wayne song is a Collingwood creation, "Valley Winter Song," because it so perfectly evokes the Berkshires. When the news came of Adam's passing, so early in the pandemic, it was a gut punch to everyone in our class, and oddly made us all come together in various virtual ways, which was a perfect tribute to him. My favorite memory, though, is at our 25th reunion, in 2014, when Adam walked into the dorm that was our headquarters and various classmates started doing the Wayne's World "we're not worthy" bow, and he couldn't quite accept we all thought of him as a superstar.
Thanks so much for sharing.
I was in your class too, @CPTDoom. I saw Adam pretty often in the 90s when we both lived in NYC, but one time I remember especially, I was walking somewhere in Midtown and my path was blocked by the Pope's motorcade coming through, and then Adam was there too, also just walking somewhere. I asked him what he'd been up to, and he said "Well, I wrote this song that Tom Hanks is thinking about putting in a movie. I don't think he will, though. It's not that great...it rhymes 'do' with 'do'."
That’s EPIC!
Whenever Trash Theory post one of their mini documentaries I click and click like and then I get round to watching it. Even if it is about something I've not previously been a fan of. They are that good, always informative, interesting, and usually a bit of fun. Sometimes I have even gained a new appreciation of an artist or song. Supposed what I am trying to say is keep up the good work, I hope it brings you as much joy as it brings me.
Trash theory is one of the best creators in TH-cam imo. And I spend way too long on TH-cam it's basically an addiction.
Because you are homosexual, but you just can't admit it to yourself, everyone around you probably suspect's it but you deny it.
Their videos are so well created that they always give me something even if I am not a fan of the artist or genre. But when they do video about something I like those videos are absolute pleasure!
Haha most of their videos I don't know who it's about and I still watch them very intently
@@josefacundo6140 Must admit I hit my teens in the early 80's, kind of musically aware late 70's (then acts like the Boomtown Rats, Blondie were new) so as a music nerd I know most of them. However if you are younger than me, many of these are probably new to you, or more like ancient Greek hero's, often referenced, when spoken of directly, it's in hushed reverence .If you pick up on an artist through these, welcome aboard, I'm a bit jealous as you have all "That" (points to discography) to enjoy discovering.
Thanks for bringing me in to do VO!
Fountains Of Wayne Deep Disc Dive?
A Blink 182 Deep Disc Dive would be really cool
I knew it!
Great reads, dude.
His work (alongside Rachel Bloom) in crazy ex girlfriend is remarkable. More than 150 original songs in a 4 year run.
I am re-watching Crazy Ex-Girlfriend now. I adore it. Also, last month I watched Rachel Bloom's new live show, wherein she shares a lot of her feelings about Adam and his passing. It's a brilliant and painful show.
“Welcome Interstate Managers” is an absolute underrated classic: “Mexican Wine”, “Bright Future In Sales”, “No Better Place”. If there was true justice in this world, FOW would’ve been hailed as the heir to the portraiture style writing of Ray Davies.
couldn’t agree more!
"No Better Place" is, in my opinion, one of the best-written songs in the past 20 years; the lyrical rhythm alone elevates it to "legend" status.
@@mooniejohnson Absolutely! Quite possibly my favorite song off the album.
@@mooniejohnson The bridge of that song is absolute fire
So right about that. FOW's cover of "Better Things" is just perfect -if you can find it.
This channel is genuinely phenomenal. Thank you so much for all of the well sourced, written, voiced and edited videos.
When God returns to rain fire and brimstone down on TH-cam he will see this channel and let TH-cam live.
I was playing fire island in my studio when I got the news of his passing. He lives on in all our hearts!
R.I.P. Adam Schlesinger♡
Before coming upon this video I only knew of _Stacy's Mom_ and not the guys or even band behind that catchy song that is so obviously so well etched into the cultural memory of the collective consciousness that I had recently paraphrased it to make a smart-ass joke online and therefor wound up eventually looking up the song again for a listen to refresh my own memory, ultimately leading me to this beautiful and genuinely appreciative and loving video essay. Now I can whole-heartedly say that I am very glad to, through this heartfelt tribute and memoriam of a reportage, have gotten a bit more familiar with Adam Schlesinger, the band Fountains of Wayne and the other guys behind it and to thus have learned about the important and meaningful contributions they all made to popular culture and music. The whimsical yet covertly serious (by slight of word rather than hand) _lightness of being_ that emenated from their boys/guys-next-door's perspective driven kind of investigations of the humanity, human condition and woes of mundane, average and often rather uneventful people is portrayed as very sincere here and speaks to their personable integrity! So it seems to me that this tribute is very well deserved and that I would have loved to ever gotten to meet Adam Schlesinger in person, had I ever gotten the chance to do so. So may all of you who did personally know him in a favourable way keep him in your hearts and minds and not allow the world to forget about his person and his works for a long time to come!♡☆🙂
Hey Julie, is not only my favorite Adam Schlesinger song, it is one of my favorite songs ever. It never fails to put a smile on my face with its beautiful melody and lyrical combination of funny observations about working m in an office and sweet sincerity of missing your significant other.
When I was a kid my favorite band was REM. The response to that answer was always "oh the band that plays Stand" or "Shiny Happy People", and I was always like "yeah...but..." And then they went on become one of the biggest bands in the world.
Nowadays when asked and I say Fountains of Wayne the response is "oh that band that plays Stacy's Mom." And I'm like "first of all, that's a great song...but..." I always hoped they'd follow the same trajectory, like maybe that would draw enough attention for people to pull back the curtain.
Fountains of Wayne, and particularly Adam Schlesinger, will go down as one of the most criminally underrated artists in history, IMHO.
About time Fountains of Wayne got the recognition they deserve. I have all their albums and each one is all killer no filler😀😀😀😀😀
I won’t pretend, I absolutely love the Josie and the Pussycats songs. I bought the cd back in the day. My 18 year old self had to often times defend it for having it in my collection.
Top 10 all time for me, no joke
One of the best power pop albums of that period.
I was 39 when that came out and I never felt embarrassed about owning it.
I've always been a big They Might Be Giants fan, but I never knew Fountains of Wayne. I first heard of Adam Schlesinger when I saw Music & Lyrics and loved the whole soundtrack (including the tracks by Andrew Wyatt of Miike Snow). Thanks for this video - I hear a lot of the offbeat cleverness of TMBG in Fountains of Wayne and Schlesinger's other songs.
Loved “Radiation Vibe” from the first time I heard it, it was like a blast through the sludge of 90s grunge…but “Sick Day” is a masterpiece of the mundanity and sadness running through the lives of anyone in a meaningless office job. A Poignant and honest window into a real-life character’s thoughts and feelings.
Radiation love song had a bouencey others at the time didnt
In that initial couple months of the pandemic news, I had completely forgotten Adam had passed away. I'm not a fan of musicals in general, but Crazy Ex Girlfriend is one of the most brilliant TV shows ever created. The musical numbers are just top notch throughout its run. And to think they were doing that with the typical TV show deadlines you always hear about. His life was too brief, but wow, what a genuinely amazing list of accomplishments.
Ivy's "Apartment Life" is still one of the best records of the 90's.
Yeah, great album. Reminds me of Saint Etienne a lot.
ivy is my fucking jam
I liked their debut album “Realistic” even better, but was already a fan when I heard the “Lately” ep even before that.
GREAT album
@@hexagonsun33 Ivy was f'n awesome. So good.
Ivy's '97 album Apartment Life is a classic. IMO Adam Schlesinger's best work. Think Rick Beato almost joined Ivy in the mid 90s.
Thank god he didn't..
Fountains never got it's due. RIP Adam. Your music will live forever.
Adam is possibly one of the best American songwriters in rock and pop. I'm so glad a video exists to show how much impact he made on modern pop music and his excellent soundtracking. He's the Danny Elfman of the 00s and I mean that in the best possible way.
Hey Julie and almost every song off Traffic and Weather live in my head forever. Rip Adam
THANK YOU for doing this episode on such a remarkably gifted writer, doing this man's legacy justice, and in turn, putting a spotlight on a criminally under-acknowledged band. I was crying by the end of the episode. As a fan of his work AND of Fountains Of Wayne, I'm just grateful that he left behind a hell of a catalog that all of us can listen to, admire and celebrate. RIP Adam Schlesinger. Thank You, for all of what you did.
I had only started to appreciate the breadth of Adam's talent through CXG. I am a huge fan and it is a very important show for me personally. Through behind the scenes stuff I found out 'oh that's the Stacey's Mom guy' and 'oh the Stacey's Mom guy also wrote That Thing you do'. I realised he must be a stupidly talented songwriter to be on that team and to write such varied hits. It was a total shock when he died. I still can't believe it. It was only after he died that I realised he'd written on Josie and the Pussycats too. It's so weird how 1 writer can be involved in so many of your fave songs and you don't even realise it. Thanks for this video, he deserves the appreciation. 🖤💜🖤💜
My and my two daughters (19 & 15) went to the airport to pickup my wife and my old daughter had a random playlist when "Buddha's delight" came on this led to a discussion of Adam and his songs. My girls were just amazed at his output and when I told them he passed away early from COVID-19 they were sad to hear it as they never realized how many songs o his they loved. It will started with my playing FOW in the car when they were young.
You know, I like the movie “music and lyrics” and always thought the music was phenomenally well suited for it. Now I know why…Adam had a super talent for being able to write music…both ballads and songs with humor. The soundtrack and High Grant make it a pretty fun movie!
i love She's Got a Problem, Hackensack, I-95, Fine Day for a Parade, & of course "That Thing You Do!"
RIP Adam Schlesinger.
I loved Ivy and, when I wrote reviews for a weekly rag in Savannah, made Apartment Life one of my top 10 of '97. Of course, I also loved That Thing You Do.
What an unexpected and sweet tribute this video was. Thank you, TT.
Their debut album is one of my personal favorites. “Barbara H.” is one of the most perfect power pop songs ever written, and very few know of it.
I'm a big FoW fan and if you had to force me into nominating one song of theirs as an all-time favourite it would be Barbara H.
I might pick that as well. Great one!
@@tassherb Oh, god, that's like choosing between my children. Barbara H is wondrous though. The whole album is. Sick Day, I guess, if I had to pick - from that album, at least - would probably pip it, but fortunately I don't have to pick!
I remember it being one of the first CDs I owned, when I finally moved over from tapes, and so I was more able to just start listening from the beginning every time I put it on. Naturally the first few songs got more play, so became more familiar...but I remember my little sister saying at the time that whenever we did listen all the way through, it was full of songs that all made us both say "Oh, and this one's incredible too! It's all amazing!" And it still is.
Maureen
I love that debut album. It remains very high in my own best-albums-of-all-time list.
Clicked the link because I liked Stacey's Mom. Ended up on a beautiful musical journey, with lots of references I recognised, and a teary end to discover Adam had died of Covid. A well told story, thank you. And thanks to Adam for much more than Stacey's Mom.
I heard "that thing you do" in a Kohl's one time and thought a lot about how even though it's a fake 60s jangle hit, it slotted in perfectly with the actual songs they used to put on the muzak. Dude wrote a song that not only sounded like a certain era, but like one you'd been hearing on oldies stations all your life. Crazy Ex-Girlfriend just proved he could do one of those for every imaginable genre. Unbelievable talent and my personal Tri-State hero.
Not even those AI-generated "oldies" they're pumping out these days are as perfect for the period as that song.
I only saw Fountains once. Last time they played in Belgium. I only knew "Welcome Interstate managers" and im glad they played A LOT from their first album. It was a véry magical concert and it broke my heart when i heard the news that mister Schlesinger passed. Thanks for the docu!
Adam with his absolute genius, and the great original lead singer of The Cars (the band Adam admired so deeply), Benjamin Orr, left us waaaaay too song. Decades apart but both were way too young…I cried when I read the news about Adam - the early days of the pandemic were just so horrible but Adam’s death (a fellow Gen Xer) just seemed so personal.
“Too soon” sigh.
In my teens, the tiny fortnightly local alternative night used to close with "sink to the bottom" - so it's always had a deeply nostalgic and melancholic vibe for me.
Later is life I got really into Crazy Ex Girlfriend, which completely sidestepped my usual ambivalence to musicals. Each pastiche was so brilliantly realised that they could just swing from Death Metal to the Spice Girls without missing a beat. It was clear that they had a lot of affection for what they were trying to emulate. Then, eventually I started to clock just what other projects Adam had been involved with and it blew my mind.
His passing was my first real gut-punch of 2020.
It just sucks that he’s gone, it really does.
I remember playing That Thing You Do to death and having no clue who wrote it, everything else I liked continued in that way too come to think of it.
My favourite song of his is actually Hackensack. Katy Perry did it on her MTV unplugged and she announced where its from and it genuinely shocked me that the Stacey's Mom dudes did Hackensack. But that's the point isn't it. That's their song and you'd hope people find them and look past it.
I knew Fountains Of Wayne from Stacy's Mom, first and foremost. I'd heard snippet of Mexican Wine here and there, but when I REALLY got into them was while going through an "anything remotely John Hughes-esque" phase. I found a movie called Trojan War and I've Got A Flair was on the soundtrack for that and my true love for them started. Truly one of their most underrated songs. I bought their self-titled and wore it out. I think I've bought it used, three or four times now, until the advent of streaming, just because it'd constantly be in my car CD player. From there, I got into all their other records. Welcome Interstate Managers was ALWAYS a must listen when my cousin and I went on a roadtrip. I've seen them live more than any other band, including a weird performance where they were a back up band for Brooke Shields as she relayed the story of a one off date with George Michael.
It hit me like an atom bomb when Adam died. The last show I went to, they busted out I've Got A Flair and I nearly cried.
I never really liked this band that much, but the title of this video was really good and lured me in. I found myself being really inspired by the story you told about this band. Great job!
THIS MAN SAID WEAPONS GRADE POWER POP, THAT'S FIRE
I love that the music analysis community is collaborating with each other. I hear your voice "MicTheSnare"
Love this video, Fountains are one of my favourite bands and Collingwood/Schlesinger deserve to be spoken in the same breath as Lennon/MCCartney. Always been a huge fan of Bright Future in Sales, 92 Subaru and New Routine but there are so many to choose from. Probabaly the COVID death that upset me the most, RIP Adam.
My favorite Adam Schlesinger (and Dominique Durand) song is "Edge of the Ocean", from the Ivy album 'Long Distance'. That song is a strong contender for my favorite song ever.
There are so many great Ivy songs! I love this one, too.
It’s right up there with I’ve got a Feeling.
It's hard to do Adam (and Fountains of Wayne) justice in 30 minutes. But you did an excellent job, thank you.
For those who know Fountains of Wayne for only one song, you are missing so much.
One thing that didn't get mentioned here was Adam's production work with various artists. The Monkees thought so highly of him for example that he was brought in to produce their Good Times! album, marking their 50th anniversary, which was both critically acclaimed and a success in the charts.
I've always like FoW, but had no idea of their musical journey or Adam Schlesinger's role in the band. Nor of his role in so many other amazing songs. Thanks!
Jeff Rosenstock and Mic the Snare being featured in this video are easily worth the Like
I had just moved to a new country when COVID hit and there was a massive lockdown in your new place. It was weird, hard to understand. When Adam died, it was like a kick in the gut., This was real. I was heartbroken. I got to meet them in 2002 or so in Vegas. Very nice guys. Crap, we lost him too early. The band lasted just long enough, and I hope they will be appreciated more as time goes on. Thanks for this video.
Totally worth the happy cry fountains of Wayne is one of my favorite underrated bands and losing Adam was such a big blow so many even this fan don't know how incredibly accomplished he was God damn everybody who appreciates fantastic pop music should listen to fountains of Wayne I don't understand how their wonderfulness is missed and disregarded by so many. A genuine treasure of a band.
Hello Ash! This episode is truly a gift to all the subscribers! I could not appreciate enough your work while watching 👏👏👏 I was so curious where this song by Wonders came from and was so pleasantly surprised to discover it was connected with Fountains of Wayne! Definitely one of the most magnificent and outstanding, state of the art episodes on the channel, provided them all being superior!
So well put together it doesn't matter if you have any interest/knowledge of the topic at hand, you always learn and appreciate the content. Thanks for your effort and keep them coming. Always come here to learn about bands/genres I've never really had a previous appreciation for. Outstanding work... 🤝
Thanks for highlighting Fountains of Wayne, they are a favourite of mine though incredibly underrated by most. It is almost criminal to think they will forever more be remembered for Stacey’s Mom when they have so many other great songs. Some of my favourites include Troubled Times, Fine Day for a Parade, It Must Be Summer, Valley Winter Song and The Summer Place. I wasn’t aware of Adam’s work for film and television though so that was a pleasant surprise and explains why I also like a lot of that content.
I have spent my whole creative life trying to write the kind of music that Schlesinger, Collingwood, and co. The stunning clarity of this work still stymies me. In many ways, there has been nothing better. Schlesinger's work for film just underscores the brilliance of his work and that of Chris'
Thank you for telling the story of the most under appreciated song-writers in rock and roll
Crazily, I had no knowledge of the existence of "Stacy's Mom", or even of Fountains of Wayne. Instead, I've always known Adam Schlesinger as one of the key forces behind the Monkees' 2016 album "Good Times". He didn't just write the one song, he produced the whole thing (and in fact Jody Porter and Brian Young did some session work on some of the songs). Let me tell you, it's one of the best production jobs in the Monkees' catalog. That is to say, Schlesinger's work as a musician and songwriter is phenomenal, but he was also a great producer, and that shouldn't be left unsaid.
It is a phenomenal album! Worthy of their great sixties hits and more people should hear that album.
@@TomWardleMusic Not only that, they actually made it onto the charts with it. How many other bands can do that after fifty years?
What a talented couple of guys.....I have a soft spot for anyone from Williams Collage, as my Dad was alumni class of 42! Great video and a lot of research you are incredible!
My late Mom loved "That Thing You Do" & I loved Fountains of Wayne covering The Kinks' "Better Things" on Conan. He died on my birthday just like Marvin Gaye so I will always think of those 2 guys on that day. RIP Adam.
I was a huge FoW fan from the moment I heard their first album right after it came out. In the late '90s they were one of those bands that was like a secret that you wish weren't. (Beulah is another one that comes to mind.) In a better, alternative universe, "Red Dragon Tattoo" and "Leave the Biker" were smash hits. Schlesinger's death, early in the pandemic, was deeply sad. He had so many great songs left in him.
I dearly love both FoW and Beulah too. I still occasionally check to see if Miles Kurosky is up to anything new. There are literally dozens of us!
I completely agree with all of that.
Whoa, a Beulah shout out? That makes me so effing happy. I still occasionally get the chorus of A Man Like Me stuck in my head randomly when I wake up in the morning. I have a whole shelf of CDs from the mid 2000s that all have a very specific, jangly glitterblack sound to them. That Beulah record, Doves Some Cities, Nada Surf's Lucky, there was this sound I was very specifically in love with in my mid 20s.
Absolutely effing brilliant! Never really liked “Stacey’s Mom” so never thought about it as anything other than a naff pop single, usually just making up the numbers on every second power pop/indie compilation release, but eyes and ears are opened (again) by an incisive and thoughtful Trash Theory rockumentary. Thanks. Again.
Ironically, because it was featured in a Cadillac commercial, it's probably paying the future cost of his kids' college.
That Thing You Do! was one of my favorite childhood movies, so I'm shocked to only learn now that it was written by Schlesinger. Great tribute to pop songwriter who loved looking at pop in the past for inspiration.
I've always loved "That Thing You Do!" movie. Adam is a genius!
My other faves from Fountain of Wayne are the songs "Traffic and Weather" and "Strapped for Cash".
"Traffic and Weather" is really underrated as an album.
What I love about your videos: A little while ago I started to get into FoW and dig deeper by doing some light research to find out more about them... Then you release this video that's so thorough, easy to follow, and does such a good job filling in gaps that I never knew about the band/Schlesinger, and now I have a MUCH deeper appreciation for the band and their music... Truly a treasure on TH-cam, thank you Trash Theory!! 🤘😋
Thank you for doing this doc about a criminally underappreciated band and writer.
This was amazing. Thank you.
And I bloody love Stacy's Mom. It's a great song.
I just want to say thank you for helping me appreciate one of my favorite bands even more by making this video.
Fascinating. Great Documentary. "Stacy's Mom". Fountains of Wayne and the Hits of Adam Schlesinger.
THANKS a lot for covering one of my favourite bands of all time. I fell in love with “Denise” since the first time I heard it. Not trying to be pedantic or anything, but “Stacy’s mom” never catched my ear like “Hey Julie” or “mexican wine” in that album. I was able to talk to them and get my copy of “Traffic and Weather” signed by the band when they toured here in Spain.
Any chance you could cover, even briefly, his parallel project Ivy or the superband Tinted Windows?
R.I.P. Adam Schlesinger. A true pop genius
"Hey, Julie" is so much fun. 🎈
A really beautiful homage to a criminally underrated band. Thanks!
I heard a song on a commercial for the Texas Lottery and thought to myself it sounded like a Fountains of Wayne song. So after digging around a bit I discovered yes indeed, Adam had written it!
Although Stacey's Mom is a banger, I have a undying love for That Thing You Do! Adam's talent is truly missed.
20:24 I don't think the moms daughter is his girlfriend, the song doesn't indicate it and the music video explicitly shows they aren't boyfriend and girlfriend at all. But she wishes he was her boyfriend while he's fantasising about the mother.
yeah. and he said this is the 2nd most famous song about a milf. what is the 1st??
‘Stacey’s Mom’ was the first song I heard by them and I didn’t think much of it. But quite a few years later I heard ‘Radiation Vibe’ and I was like, wow. This is so much better.
0:26 What's the most catchiest song ever written about a "girlfriends" parents?
Putting in parentheses because when I listen to it, she's not his girlfriend, she wants him to be her boyfriend, but he just hangs out with her to sneek a peak at the mom.
Mrs. Robinson presumably
@@leafsinseven ah that might be it
Also; "Apartment Life" by Ivy is fucking BRILLIANT!
I've been an Ivy fan for a long time, listening to all their songs and researching their history. Adam really is a great songwriter, and I knew he'd had some success writing songs for hollywood films, but I didn't know the extent until sort of recently. I was so shocked when I heard he died a couple of years ago; they had his music featured on the front page of spotify to commemorate his life. Later I found out his bandmate Andy Chase wrote a song about him and put it on youtube. It's so bittersweet. They really were close.
I keep seeing people comment about how much they love Apartment Life; hell yeah, my favorite album. Realistic is underrated imo. All their music is good, but I just like the 90s sounds the best. It had a more lush and rich alt feel to it. Hell, talking about it's making me want to listen right now. I think "Over" is my favorite song of theirs.
Stacy's' Mom and That Thing That You Do - I'm thankful for both - my life has been made better for it - THANKS !!! :-)
One of two great writers in a great band. Anyone who bothered to listen past their biggest hit knew that FoW could not only craft songs as well as as anyone, but deliver an emotional punch to the gut than better-known bands. The Kinks is an apt comparison, and I’ll put No Better Place against anything in terms of lasting, aching melancholy.
Love your reference to The Kinks. So spot on.
His work with Ivy was so under appreciated…”Hideaway” is easily one of the best power pop ballads you will ever hear! 4 in the morning, Ocean City Girl, all of the songs used on the Something about Mary soundtrack. Just a phenomenal songwriter who is often not taken 100% seriously probably because he had a sense of humor and put that into some songs that snobs would say aren’t serious enough for the music biz. Guy was a genius. RIP Adam. ❤️
This band and the work of Adam Schlesinger is so incredibly underrated. So glad you made a video documenting this.
I didn't know Adam Schlesinger's name until he died from COVID. That was also when I learned he had written "That Thing You Do," which is a flawless Beatlemania pastiche that is great pop rock on its own merit. I gained a lot of respect for him as a songwriter with that song, because it's both accurate to the time harmonically and catchy enough that you like hearing it played multiple times in one movie!
Ooh that last line gave me chills - beautiful tribute to Adam’s incredible work
Well written and worthwhile. It was a shock when he died. I had just posted my song of the day on Facebook that week. … his song Sick Day as Covid loomed darkly over the world. Rip Adam.
Fountains of Wayne and The All-American Rejects will always remain in my memory for 1 reason and 1 reason alone - The use of Gibson Firebird guitars in videos, even if I had only recently started my journey on bass guitar 🤣
"The Girl I Can't Forget" is probably my favorite song. I really think every man in their early 20's can relate to the circumstances... and FOW songs are built on relatability. The music is up beat and suits the story. Plus, our nervous, drunk hero wins in the end.
I had no idea he wrote That thing you do and Pretend to be nice. Man this guy basically wrote 2 of my favorite songs growing up. What a talent. RIP
Yep, I only knew him from CEG, where one could only gape in wonder at the quality of the pastiches. So it was a shock that immediately made complete sense to learn that he was involved in the fantastic J&tP movie. What an amazing grasp he had of what guitar pop is/should be. So sad he's gone :( RIP Adam.
Thank you for this video! Adam's (and Chris') songs have meant a lot to me. I'm a big fan of both Ivy and FoW, especially the slice-of-life stories and great harmonies. RIP Adam.
This is a great resume of Adam's work and the history of his band. Quite the genius we lost.
This deserves more views. It's extremely well done and a very interesting story.
That Thing The You Do and Pretend to be Nice were always favorite "movie hits" of mine. Crazy they were written by the same guy who happened to write Stacy's Mom, which to be honest was always a guilty pleasure. It's one of those songs a top 40 snob like myself hates to love. But I do love it and have to admit Schlesinger has an enviable talent at creating power pop. As usual plenty of story behind the song. Great content, you are one of my favorite YT channels.
I am not in the demographic for Fountains of Wayne (too old), but when I heard "Radiation Vibe" for the first time, I thought, "God, I wish I had been young when this song was recorded." There is a real elegiac quality to it that tugs at the heartstrings (an archaic expression, I know). "Valley Winter Song" is very, very good also.
Jeez, I’m 65 and I’ve loved FOW since I heard “Radiation Vibe”. Possibly my favourite band of all time. Their melodies and lyrics warrant a “genius” label.
@@martindumont5553 I am 68. They are a genius band, and Jody Porter is a genius guitarist.
Oh I completely agree, I was lucky enough to see them live several times and I could never take my eyes off Jody Porter. Tasteful, inventive and a complete repertoire of guitar god moves. I still can’t believe that they’ll never be another FOW album, every one had at least two or three works of complete perfection and the rest were way better than most bands could ever produce.
I bought the “That Thing You Do!” soundtrack CD in 1996 and listened to it constantly. I still do listen to it and have often covered the titular song myself. It’s an amazing song.
Really glad you made this video. Fountains of Wayne and more generally Adam’s songwriting has been largely overlooked but Fountains have so many amazing, catchy tongue in cheek songs that you have to listen closely to really understand the brilliance of. This is a great honor to Adam’s legacy and genius. Gone way too soon, Rest In Peace Adam.
Such an underrated songwriter and musician. That Thing You Do and Stacy's Mom will always hold a special place in my heart, and I'm sure the same is true for many others. Can't believe I only learned how close he lived to me from his passing at a nearby hospital. Definitely gonna check out more of his work after watching this video.
I am so happy this video exists!
I have no idea about FoW beyond "Stacy's Mom" and I just started to watch the video even though the topic at hand is not that interesting on it's own to me - but that's just TT for you. With the consistent output and it's quality, even if I don't 'get' the band or the movement - for whatever reason - it's simply always a treat to delve deep into the unknown. I might not end up loving them after this one but damn it, I'm here for a ride I know I will enjoy even if the subject matter never has been interesting enough for me to check out on my own. The only other musical channels to get me hooked like that were Todd and Deep Cuts - and truth told, as much as I love both to death, you've definitely beaten them for me these past three years. Now on to the video.
I love Fountains of Wayne. I stumbled on them quite unexpectedly. When Ohio State (I'm a huge Buckeye football fan) got a commitment from HS quarterback Terrelle Pryor in March 2008, the website I subscribe to that covers OSU football then had a weekly audio show call the Bucknuts Radio Hour, and that week the big story was Pryor's commitment. They opened the show that week with FoW's "All Kinds of Time," which I heard right then for the first time and fell in love with the song. I had to find out who did the song, realized they were the Stacy's Mom guys and the rest was history for me. I love both Interstate Managers and Traffic and Weather. I think my favorite song is "92 Subaru," the lyrics in the bridge are just incredible.
This was an incredible video. The real history behind Mexican Wine as a single is fascinating and sad - the music video had to be pulled last minute because censors wouldn’t allow children drinking wine to be shown on the TV. As a result, MW was never officially released as a single and they had to quickly release Hey Julie in its place. Due to all the last minute changes and drama surrounding that, Hey Julie didn’t do well as a follow-up to Stacy’s Mom and cemented their unfortunate status as a “one-hit wonder”. MW is my favourite song of theirs and I genuinely believe if it was released as the official next single, it would have done well and FoW wouldn’t just be remembered for Stacy’s Mom.
I assume it’s a coincidence their first album vinyl reissue came out today? My copy is thankfully on its way to me!
RIP Adam. His passing on April 1st 2020 made me realise how bad Covid was going to be. It’s truly heartbreaking.
I have been a fan ever since TTYD came out - yes, loved it on the big screen & never tire of rewatching it - I have the soundtrack on CD (yes, I'm that old). BUT - I am firmly amazed by the scope & body of his work. His respectful treatment of (what could be seen as) trashy popular radio songs is total genius. Completely unique. I was shocked at the news of his passing, and I cried watching this. I hope that time will be kind, and he will be remembered for a very long time. He made a mark on the world, bigly