The Mesopotamians

They Might Be Giants, my favorite band in the world, have a new album called The Else. And the last song on that album is the snappiest, hippest, most excellent TMBG song in a while: The Mesopotamians. Writing about a song is like dancing about architecture, so I highly recommend you go listen to it by buying it from iTunes or for free on Rhapsody.

The song is wonderful for many reasons. First is the upbeat, catchy tune, a direct but insane descendent of Hey Hey We're the Monkees in both form and content. But these four mop tops are kings of the ancient middle east: Sargon, Hammurabi, Ashurbanipal, and Gilgamesh, as the lyrics cheerfully inform us over and over and over again.

We've been driving around
From one end of this town to the other and back
But no one's ever seen us (No one's ever seen us)
Driving our Econoline van (And no one's ever heard of our band)
And no one's ever heard of our band

We're the Mesopotamians
Sargon, Hammurabi, Ashurbanipal, and Gilgamesh

And they wouldn't understand a word we say
So we'll scratch it all down into the clay
Half believing there will sometime come a day
Someone gives a damn
Maybe when the concrete has crumbled to sand

We're the Mesopotamians
Sargon, Hammurabi, Ashurbanipal, and Gilgamesh

The Mesopotamians are ancient kings, but by the power of anachronism, they're also somehow a modern band driving around, and nobody's ever heard of them, and they're a little pissed off about that.

The Mesopotamish sun is beating down
And making cracks in the ground
But there's nowhere else to stand
In Mesopotamia (No one's ever seen us)
The kingdom where we secretly reign (And no one's ever heard of our band)
The land where we invisibly rule

As the Mesopotamians
Sargon, Hammurabi, Ashurbanipal, and Gilgamesh

OK, the Mesopotamish sun -- how awesome a lyric is that? And John Linnell sings it beautifully, drawing it out just right.

This is my last stick of gum
I'm going to cut it up so everybody else gets some
Except for Ashurbanipal, who says my haircut makes me look like a Mohenjo-Daroan

Hey, Ashurbanipal
I'm a Mesopotamian
Sargon, Hammurabi, Ashurbanipal, and Gilgamesh

We're the Mesopotamians
Sargon, Hammurabi, Ashurbanipal, and Gilgamesh

So much goodness here. First, the singer exercises the quaint modern custom known to moms everywhere: only one "stick" of gum, so he "cuts it up so everybody else gets some". But not Ashurbanipal, who has insulted the cranky singer by suggesting he looks like a Mohenjo-Daroan: a dude from a rival city-state, and no doubt a mean thing to say. And why a Mohenjo-Daroan? Because of his haircut. The singer's response: "Hey, Ashurbanipal! I'm a Mesopotamian!" And no gum for you!

"Hey, man, I thought that you were dead
I thought you crashed your car"
"No, man, I've been right here this whole time playing bass guitar
For the Mesopotamians"

We're the Mesopotamians
Sargon, Hammurabi, Ashurbanipal
Sargon, Hammurabi, Ashurbanipal, and Gilgamesh

We're the Mesopotamians
Sargon, Hammurabi, Ashurbanipal, and Gilgamesh

Just when you think the fun is all done, we get this great verse. The singer is talking to somebody who thinks he died. But no, he's still the bass player for The Mesopotamians. This is a reference to the "Paul is dead" era of The Beatles, when Paul McCartney supposedly died in a car crash. It also slyly connects TMBG to The Beatles, something fans (and occasionally the band themselves) have done over the years.

Then we get a few more name-heavy choruses, and it's over.

The Mesopotamians by They Might Be Giants is awesome. Check it out.

Comments

[Lex]

Thank you, yes, yes, thank you. This song is pure genius, and appreciable on too many levels. After I listen to it, I often listen to it again so I can focus on something else: "Gosh, what a great song! Now I'm going to listen again - just for the harmonies!"

[mike3k]

I just bought the whole album from eMusic (which I prefer to iTunes since their music is DRM free).

[Julia]

I already liked the song, but the way you break it down is genius!

[mpm]

by far my favorite track on the album.

[Meeg]

I just heard this song for the first time, and it's great.

For a Mohenjo-Daroan you are alright.

[proslaviy]

Hi, how I can send PM?

[generic viagra]

The Babylonian astronomers were very interested in studying the stars and sky, and most could already predict eclipses and solstices. People thought that everything had some purpose in astronomy. Most of these related to religion and omens. Mesopotamian astronomers worked out a 12 month calendar based on the cycles of the moon. They divided the year into two seasons: summer and winter. The origins of astronomy as well as astrology date from this time.
During the 8th and 7th centuries BC, Babylonian astronomers developed a new approach to astronomy. They began studying philosophy dealing with the ideal nature of the early universe and began employing an internal logic within their predictive planetary systems.

[Halie]

hey, great blog post. just wanted to let you know that that last "verse" about someone thinking the bass player is dead is called the bridge :)

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