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Review: John Linnell's 'State Songs'
by Jordan Hoffman

published 11/8/99

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Jordan Hoffman is LeisureSuit.net's Queens-based Senior Editor.



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Subj: Review: John Linnell's 'State Songs'
South carolina is the best state song

-- me
May 3, 2005 at 5:11AM

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Linell's crazy new cd
He's finally done it. John Linnell, the godfather of quirk-rock, novelty-rock, fact-rock, whatever you want to call it, has released his album of State Songs. State Songs had been popping up at special events here and there, and most fans of Linnell's main gig, They Might Be Giants, knew that he'd been working on this for some time. I'd heard the rumor that he was going to write one for all fifty. Then I heard he was actually going to play real state songs (they do exist.) What's finally been released is a collection of sixteen songs. Fifteen are named for states. There is a kind-of overture "The Songs of the Fifty States" that heralds the whole affair. Of course, it is not the first on the album.

The other titles? "Idaho," "Michigan," "Maine," "Utah," "New Hampshire." Neither New York, where Linnell has lived for decades, nor Massachusettes, where he was born, are represented. They are all original compositions. Most are sparkly pop songs with a touch of polka, often as good as some of the best TMBG (I speak specifically of "Michigan," "Montana," "South Carolina," and "Maine.") "Nevada" is a-cappela, backed by schoolyard sounds, bordering on a-melodic. "Illinois" and "Mississippi" are instrumentals. "Pennsylvania" is almost an instrumental. There is a nice melody, then some scatting ("La la la la, la la la la, la la la-la la la, la la la-la LA la la-la") and then one word ( "Pennsylvania!") I can't tell if it is infantile or pure genius.

I'll give Linnell the benefit of the doubt: it is brilliant. His previous work demands respect. Apart from being a clever tunesmith, with a craggy, lovable, nasal twang, he's done a lot of legwork as far as bringing intelligence to pop. He's played this gimmick stuff before, most notably with "James K. Polk" from the TMBG album "Factory Showroom." Critics say that he just looked up Polk in the encyclopedia, jotted down notes, and made them rhyme. I say not so. Firstly, the tune grooves. Second, any man who can cause a packed house at the Mercury Lounge to shout "No!" after the line "He sought no second term," is definitely tapping into something good. TMBG also covered two popular quirk-tunes "Why Does the Sun Shine?" and "Istanbul, Not Constantinople." Yes, you read that right, someone else wrote both of those songs. Decades ago.

Linnell also wrote "Dead" from the TMBG album "Flood," one of the greatest songs of all time, a tune that manages to blend Sartre, Freud and "Buckley" from King of the Hill.

The tunes on "State Songs" have little to do with the states they are about, except a few about shape. "Montana" builds to a rousing, sing-along chorus ("I realized Montana was a leg!") but I'm not even sure this is true. "West Virginia," all swaggery and 60s (a potential hit, in these Smash Mouth days,) features the line "like I told you, you are concentric in your form," and is almost a forlorn love song. "There's another deep inside" he sings, as though the state were a troubled girlfriend. The tune's got a dark, angry messageĀ—it's just a message written by an insane man, so we'll never know just what the hell he's saying. I've played it 25 times, though. . .it is great. "Arkansas" is a beautiful ballad about a model ship shaped like Arkansas, built on a scale of one-to-one. The song takes place on "the shores of Arkansas." This is gorgeous stuff, stuff I'd never force on someone who can't stand TMBG.

The funniest tune on the album is "Oregon." A 20's piano roll of an intro, and then some info. According to Mr. Linnell, "Oregon is bad, stop it if you can/Here it comes, here it comes/Now it's after you, flee to someplace new/Run away, run away." The vocal stylings are similar to "O Do Not Forsake Me!" from "John Henry." Then the soulful sax solo.

So what can a reviewer say? The life of this mini-release from Rounder is predictable: strictly for the fans that love it. Newcomers will either flip for it, or consider it sub-Raffi. I think it is obvious how I feel about it. Linnell and TMBG's following is small but hardcore. He knows how to play to his own audience.

The other Giant that Might Be, John Flansburgh, has a solo project, as well. His band Mono Puff plays around and puts out decent records. His humor is slightly less absurd than Linnell's, which tends to make Linnell the more popular of the two. Flansburgh certainly has more stage presence, and I have it on good authority that he's also a lot more friendly to fans. There's no real reason to mention him in this "State Songs" review, other than that I like him, too.


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Name: me
Subject: Review: John Linnell's 'State Songs'
-- May 3, 2005 at 5:11AM
South carolina is the best state song

Name: Mr. Horrible
Subject: West Viginia
-- Apr 21, 2005 at 3:36PM
That's the only State song I've got to listen to. I really want to hear Utah, though.

Name: Fan Man
Subject: Meeting John Linnell and WV
-- Jan 20, 2005 at 9:59AM
I got to meet Linnell after a TMBG show a few months ago, I was the only one waiting outside of his tour bus on the street after the show, hoping to meet the Giants as they got on, so I got to have a short but sweet one on one conversation with him about "State Songs" and other work (With Danny Weinkamph, and Dan Miller and all those instrumental cats standing there sort of talking amongst themselves).
I am not sure, but I always thought what he is referring to in WV song is the not so flattering idea that WV is full of incest. "Another deep inside of you" "you have got yourself to keep you warm" "constantly a part of you" "you'll always be the party who is partial to you" ...all of that makes me think of how WV people don't go far to look for relationships, they are attracted to relatives and such. Huh? Huh?

Name: Fan Man
Subject: Linnell and West VA
-- Jan 19, 2005 at 1:11AM
I got to meet Linnell after a TMBG show a few months ago, I was the only one there and got to have a short but sweet one on one conversation with him about "State Songs" and other work. I am not sure, but I always thought what he is referring to in WV song is the not so flattering idea that WV is full of incest. "Another deep inside of you" "you have got yourself to keep you warm" "constantly a part of you" "you'll always be the party who is partial to you" ...all of that makes me think of how WV people don't go far to look for relationships, they are attracted to relatives and such. Huh? Huh?

Name: Hotel Detective
Subject: Lyrics
-- May 22, 2003 at 1:12PM
A friend and fellow fan put together the State Songs lyrics. Long live Linnell.

http://students. cs.byu.edu/~rwerner/ linnell.html

Feel free to post objections/suggestio ns.

Also, notice that at the end of "the songs of the 50 states", the last time John sings "I can't wait for my favourite one", it segues into the beginning phrase of "Arkansas" , my personal favourite.

Name: Marko Moises
Subject: Maine
-- Jun 22, 2002 at 6:49PM
Best song. More like the TMBG's of old.

Name: I love Michael Morrison He is Hot
Subject: Arkansas
-- Apr 30, 2002 at 8:34PM
I love the song Arkansas. But where can i find the lyrics? It is bugging me to death. I am only 11 but i love that song. I love Michael Morrison more than that song though. Byezies. P.S. Michael said to say hi and that he loves The song Arkansas also! byezies! He is my Boyfriend. Byezies!

Name: Dr. Worm
Subject: State Songs
-- May 13, 2001 at 6:50PM
Rock on.

Name: Lacie
Subject: State Songs
-- Feb 8, 2001 at 4:12PM
Where can I get the lyrics for the fifty state song?

Name: Dr. John
Subject: John Linnell's State Song Album
-- May 9, 2000 at 12:46PM
We have a book on the state songs at press, and we are working on an album. Our reason for contacting you is to try and get a copy of John Linnell's State Song Album for a state song archive that we are setting up. My e-mail address is statesongproject@yahoo.com
Thanks,
sincerely,
Dr. John

Name: Jordan Hoffman Responds
Subject: Re: state songs
-- Apr 20, 2000 at 1:30PM
Try under "L" for Linnel or "T" for They Might Be Giants. Or hit the link we have up top to take you to CDnow.com

Name: AHGB
Subject: state songs
-- Apr 20, 2000 at 12:53PM
where can I find this cd
in a store?

Name: Chess-piece face
Subject: State Songs
-- Apr 4, 2000 at 4:22PM
Don't hold us back,
Don't hold us back,
We must eat Michigan's brain
So roll back Michigan.
We Miss you again.

clever. genius. hilarious. rocks.

Anyone know where one can get a lyic sheet for this cd?

Name: Randy
Subject: Mr. Klaw
-- Feb 23, 2000 at 2:47PM
Is that really how the song goes? I always thought that Linnell was singing "Johnny Pump" not "Jolly Cup." I thought I had heard that "Johnny Pump" is Long Island slang for a fire hydrant. What the hell is a jolly cup?

Name: Mr. Klaw
Subject: Linnell
-- Feb 11, 2000 at 8:38AM
If anyone doubts Linnell's genius, consider the lyrics to "Stormy Pinkness":

Stormy Pinkness, human weakness
fills my jolly cup with gloom
your progression, my digression
forty days this afternoon

the things we cherish are small indeed
so much the larger, the need

stormy pinkness, set me thanklessly free

Name: mr tambo
Subject: SS
-- Feb 11, 2000 at 8:35AM
I am a huge TMBG fan, know every album by heart, have most of the hard-to-find singles. Best band of all time. So don't get upset when I say, I think "State Songs" is better than even anything TMBG has done. Except maybe "Fingertips".
There are definitely similarities between "Montana" and TMBG's "Destination: Moon".

Woman wonders, who's your itchy friend?
They crushed my head! Garcon, where's my drink!?
I love you only, I promise there's no other state..
Drivin' my house to Idaho.

Name: Seta
Subject: State Songs
-- Feb 7, 2000 at 12:35PM
True, Linnell tends to shy away from his devoted fans, but I think it's only because the majority of the fans he is confronted with are foaming at the mouth and begging to kiss his feet. I saw a State songs concert at Schuba's, a tiny cafe in Chicago, and another girl and I approached Linnell at the same time for autographs. She was a freaky, foaming fan, and I merely asked politely for an autograph. He signed for me, but not for the manic girl. So let the lesson be learned! Be nice to Linnell and he'll stop fearing fans!

Name: dr worm
Subject: state songs
-- Jan 17, 2000 at 1:36PM
THEY MIGHT BE GIANTS ARE THE GREATEST BAND EVER!!
THE JOHNS CAN DO NO WRONG!!
EVEN MY GRANDMA LIKES STATE SONGS...
JUST THE OTHER DAY SHE WAS SINGING NEW HAMPSHIRE WHILE COOKING DINNER!!
TMBG RULE!!!!!!!!

Name: Dan L
Subject: State Songs
-- Dec 15, 1999 at 12:43AM
Being a long term TMBG fan, I was thrilled when 'State Songs' came out. I occasionally listen to the two Mono Puff (Flansburgh's side project) disks, but I have not been able to shake several of the State Songs (West Virgina, South Carolina, Montana) from my head. There are weak songs, but the good ones far outnumber the bad.

I saw John perform everything from the disc at a small club, the Turning Point, outside of NYC. The show was fun and the music sounded great. Having also seen TMBG and Mono Puff, I can agree that John F is a bit more of a showman (he also tends to meet and greet fans after the show) then John L, but that is one of things that makes a live TMBG show great.

Enjoy the disc, see the shows. It's just damn fun!

Name: Johnny5Ace
Subject: State Songs
-- Nov 14, 1999 at 7:43PM
West Virginia--Like I told ya', you're concentric in your form.

Brilliant.

Name: Johnny5Ace
Subject: TMBG
-- Nov 8, 1999 at 9:31AM
The Godfather of quirk rock, huh? I'll buy that.


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