7. They Might Be Giants--Flood
#7: They Might Be Giants--Flood (1990)
Top-Notch Tracks: "Birdhouse In Your Soul," [HJ200 #66,] "Istanbul (Not Constantinople)," [HJ200 #80,] "Someone Keeps Moving My Chair," [HJ200 #138,] "Minimum Wage," "Whistling In the Dark," "Particle Man," "Twisting," "They Might Be Giants," "Letterbox," "Your Racist Friend," "Dead"
Album Depth: "Theme from Flood," "Lucky Ball and Chain," "Women and Men," "We Want a Rock," "Road Movie to Berlin," "Sapphire Bullets of Pure Love," "Hot Cha," "Hearing Aid"
Weak Link: Lack of success on the Billboard charts.
Stand-Out Lyrics: "Why is the world in love again? Why are we marching hand in hand? Why are the ocean levels rising up? It's a brand new record for 1990, They Might Be Giants brand new album, Flood!"--"Theme from Flood"
"I'm your only friend. I'm not your only friend, but I'm a little glowing friend. But, really, I'm not actually your friend. But, I am."--"Birdhouse In Your Soul"
"Blue canary in the outlet by the light switch. Who watches over you? Make a little birdhouse in your soul. Not to put too fine a point on it, say I'm the only bee in your bonnet. Make a little birdhouse in your soul."--"Birdhouse In Your Soul"
"There's a picture opposite me of my primitive ancestry which stood on rocky shores and kept the beaches shipwreck free. Though I respect that a lot, I'd be fired if that were my job, after killing Jason off and countless screaming Argonauts."--"Birdhouse In Your Soul"
"Every gal in Constantinople lives in Istanbul, not Constantinople. So if you've got a date in Constantinople, she'll be waiting in Istanbul."--"Istanbul (Not Constantinople)"
"Even old New York was once New Amsterdam. Why they changed it, I can't say. People just liked it better that way!"--"Istanbul (Not Constantinople)"
"Mr. Horrible. Mr. Horrible. We're not done with you yet, Mr. Horrible. You have to try on these pants so the Ugliness Men can decide if they're just as embarrassing as we think. We have to be sure about that. But, Mr. Horrible says, 'I don't mind. The thing that bothers me is someone keeps moving my chair.'"--"Someone Keeps Moving My Chair"
"Would you mind if we balance this glass of milk where your visiting friend accidently was killed? Would it be okay with you if we wrote a reminder of things we'll forget to do today, otherwise, using a green magic marker, if it's alright, on the back of your head?"--"Someone Keeps Moving My Chair"
"Minimum wage! Heeyaw!"--"Minimum Wage"
"A woman came up to me and said, 'I'd like to poison your mind, with wrong ideas that appeal to you, though I am not unkind.' She looked at me, I looked at something written across her scalp. And these are the words that it faintly said as I tried to call for help."--"Whistling In the Dark"
"There's only one thing that I know how to do well. And, I've often been told that you only can do what you know how to do well. And that's be you. Be what you're like. Be like yourself. And, so, I'm having a wonderful time, but I'd rather be whistling in the dark."--"Whistling In the Dark"
"A man came up to me and said, 'I'd like to change your mind, by hitting it with a rock,' he said. 'Though I am not unkind.' We laughed at his little joke and then I happily walked away and hit my head on the wall of the jail, where the two of us live today."--"Whistling In the Dark"
"Particle Man. Particle Man. Doing the things a particle can. What's he like? It's not important. Particle Man. Is he a dot, or is he a speck? When he's underwater does he get wet? Or does the water get him instead? Nobody know. Particle Man."--"Particle Man"
"Triangle Man. Triangle Man. Triangle Man hates Particle Man. They have a fight, Triangle wins. Triangle Man."--"Particle Man"
"Universe Man. Universe Man. Size of the entire universe, man! Usually kind to smaller man. Universe Man. He's got a watch with a minute hand, millennium hand, and an eon hand. And when they meet, it's a happy land. Powerful man, Universe Man."--"Particle Man"
"Person Man. Person Man. Hit on the head with a frying pan. Lives his life in a garbage can. Person Man. Is he depressed, or is he a mess? Does he feel totally worthless? Who came up with Person Man. Degraded man, Person Man."--"Particle Man"
"She set your goldfish free, and now she's sighing. Blew out your pilot light and made a wish."--"Twisting"
"She's not your satellite. She doesn't miss you. So, turn off your smoke machine and Marshall stack. She doesn't have to have her Young Fresh Fellows tape back. But, there's not a lot of things that she'll take back."--"Twisting"
"They might be giants. (Boy.) They might be giants. They might be brain. They might be washed. They might be Dr. Spock's backup band."--"They Might Be Giants"
"To make the merry-go-round go faster, so that everyone needs to hang on tighter just to keep from being thrown to the wolves."--"They Might Be Giants"
"Tabloid footprints in your hair. Tabloid footprints everywhere. We can't be silent, 'cause they might be giants, and what are we gonna do unless they are."--"They Might Be Giants"
"I'll never know what you find when you open up your letterbox tomorrow. 'Cause a little bird never tells me anything I want to know. She's my best friend, she's a sparrow."--"Letterbox"
"This is where the party ends. I can't stand here listening to you and your racist friend. I know politics bore you, but I feel like a hypocrite talking to you and your racist friend."--"Your Racist Friend"
"Can't shake the devil's hand and say you're only kidding."--"Your Racist Friend"
"I returned a bag of groceries accidently taken off the shelf before the expiration date. I came back as a bag of groceries accidently taken off the shelf before the date stamped on myself."--"Dead"
"Did a large procession wave their torches as my head fell in the basket? And was everybody dancing on my casket? Now it's over, I'm dead, and I haven't done anything that I want. Or, I'm still alive, and there's nothing I want to do."--"Dead"
"I will never say the word 'procrastinate' again. I'll never see myself in the mirror with my eyes closed. I didn't apologize for when I was eight and I made my younger brother have to be my personal slave."--"Dead"
"She walked away from a happy man. I thought I was so cool. I just stood there whistling 'There Goes the Bride' as she walked out the door."--"Lucky Ball and Chain"
"When the ship runs out of ocean, and the vessel runs aground, land's where we know the boat is found. Now, there's nothing unexpected 'bout the water running out. 'Land's' not a word we have to shout."--"Women and Men"
"We were once so close to heaven, Peter came out and gave us medals, declaring us the nicest of the damned."--"Road Movie to Berlin"
"Fondue forks for everybody."--"Hot Cha"
"More coffee for me, boss, 'cause I'm not as messed up as I wanna be."--"Hearing Aid"
Album cover: 7 our of 10. It's a really good photograph, by famed photographer Margaret Bourke-White, but it's a tad bland to be a dynamic album cover. The blue and yellow logo helps a little.
Comments: Let's talk about "quirky brilliance," shall we? Little did I know that when I ordered "Flood" as one of my 12 (or was it 13?) albums on one of the several times I signed up for the Columbia Records and Tapes club, that it would have such a profound influence on me. From the very first time I popped the cassette into my tape player, my brain was flooded with reactions like, "Dang, that's good!" and "Dang, that's weird!" and "Dang, that's funny!"
It didn't take long for me to become a super fan of They Might Be Giants. And what made it even more fun was that it seemed like it was an exclusive club. They Might Be Giants weren't as widely known or critically acclaimed as other bands of the era, like Nirvana or U2. It was almost like the band was a secret that only smart people and people with a good sense of humor knew about. You know, "quirky brilliance." Sometimes it feels good to be in on something that not everyone else gets. (A few years later I would feel the same way about Brak and "Cartoon Planet.") It was okay if the "cool" kids didn't like They Might Be Giants, because they weren't for everyone, just for the weird smarties.
(Of course, "Flood" was They Might Be Giants' third album. Other people got in on the secret with their first album back in 1986. As is often the case, I was a little bit slower than most to get a clue.)
The depth of the lyrical fun on this album is incredible! Take another look at the lengthy "Stand-Out Lyrics" section above. That's (if I counted correctly) 32 different entries, each one brilliant and/or quirky. And, those lyrics are seared into my brain. With many of the other albums on this list, I've relied on the crutch of looking up the lyrics on those song-lyric websites, because I wasn't 100% positive on a word here or a phrase there. But, with this album, I was able to rattle off most of those lyrics, word for word, from the depths of my simple mind.
What's that? You say you want more talk about quirky brilliance? Okay, who am I to disappoint?
QUIRKY: There are battles between fictional superheroes Particle Man, Triangle Man, Universe Man, and Person Man. There's someone writing a note to himself with a green magic marker on the back of someone else's head. There are tabloid footprints in your hair. There are tabloid footprints everywhere.
BRILLIANCE: There's a treatise on the etymology of place names, focusing on the Byzantine and Ottoman Empires, and their influences on modern-day Turkey and New York City. There's a study on modern nightlights and primitive lighthouses, comparing their relative effectiveness in maintaining the safety of sailors featured in ancient literature, specifically Jason and the Argonauts. There's an op-ed about the importance of not tolerating casual racism, a subject that is somehow more important and relevant today than it was when originally released in 1990. And there's a 46 second-long song that does more with just two words and one sound effect to show the disparity between the working class and their corporate overlords than any of the countless articles appearing on the subject over the last 50 years in the Wall Street Journal.
In fact, you might say that They Might Be Giants are the physical, spiritual, and literal embodiment of quirky brilliance. (And what are we gonna do, unless they are?)
Up next: Just in time for the 2022 Olympic Winter Games in Beijing.
I remember seeing John and John perform "Birdhouse In Your Soul" and "Istanbul (Not Constantinople)" on the Tonight Show back in 1990.
ReplyDeletehttps://youtu.be/2FkcdEfHh-c
I also remember them performing these two songs when we went to see them in concert. I also remember thinking at that concert that we were probably the oldest people in the audience, which is ironic because we were in our 30s back then (I don't remember what year we saw them in concert, but I'm pretty sure it happened before we turned 40). And now that I'm 55, the 30s seems to be a young age to me now. But all that goes to prove is that you were actually AHEAD of the curve when it came to recognizing the quirky (LEE) brilliant nature of their music. Because you (and me) liked They Might Be Giants before most of the kiddies at the concert got their permanent molars.
To me, this also sounds like the first album in a greatest hits double album for They Might Be Giants. There's just so much good stuff here. By the way, I played "Minimum Wage" for my coworker, and she instantly recognized the song. In fact, she said that she stood right next to John and John in a line to get into a movie once in Kansas City. She said it was very exciting just to be in their presence. I don't think she got up the courage to say anything to them though. But I think John and John are actually the kind of people that wouldn't mind having someone standing next to them in line at the theater start up a conversation with them. I do have lots of respect for them for staying independent and not going full-blown commercial with their music and signing up with a big record company. They're dedicated to keeping it real and quirky and (LEE) brilliant!
Nardo