They Might Be Giants? Never Heard Of Them

It happens all the time. I'll be talking to some one and mention something about this band I follow. "Oh, what band?" they say. I answer, "They Might Be Giants." And nine times out of ten the person has never heard of them. Then I am faced with my inevitable dilemma. What TMBG song do I mention that this person might have heard but doesn't know is TMBG?

This is part one of Audience Participation. What do you use as your reference song for people who haven't heard of the band? Do you always use the same one? Do you tailor it to the person?

For my part, I usually start with Boss of Me. I figure even if somebody has never consciously heard TMBG, there is a pretty good chance they watched Malcolm in the Middle. Actually, and this had honestly never occurred to me until just now, I guess Boss of Me was almost (excepting Istanbul) the first TMBG song I heard, as I was certainly watching Malcolm in the Middle in college, several years before I met my boyfriend and began being introduced to the band.

If that doesn't ring any bells, I usually try Istanbul next. I guess I steer towards the songs I "knew" before I knew the band figuring if I knew them, then other people must too. If that still doesn't work, I'll typically try the Dunkin Donuts ads, or if I know the person has kids in the family, even Mickey Mouse Clubhouse. Occasionally, I'll throw Birdhouse in their too, but I guess I generally figure if they don't know Istanbul, they wont know Birdhouse either. And if I haven't gotten them by that point, I tend to give up and accept that they have just not heard the band.

Now, part two of this Audience Participation. A friend expresses interest in hearing some of the band's music. They are either only familiar with one or two songs or have never heard them at all. What album (or collection) do you play them first?

I am often tempted to play a collection first, either homemade or the User's Guide or Dial A Song. But that, at least in my mind, always seems to reduce the band to their greatest hits which, especially in the case of TMBG, are not terribly representative of their entire body of work. There is just too much variety in the catalog. So instead, I always go with Flood. That may seem like the "easy" choice, but I have legitimate reasons for choosing it. First, if the listener has heard anything by the band before, it was probably Istanbul or Birdhouse and their presence on the album can help develop a pre-existing comfort level with the album. Second, it is TMBG's most popular album for a reason. It is really, really good. Over one million album purchasers agree. Third, it is a great showing of the range of They Might Be Giants songs. There is a little bit of everything on that album. Some great songs. Some weird songs. Fast songs. Slow songs. Songs with whips. There is really something for everybody. And lastly, whether the person likes the album is a great gage for whether they should delve further into the band. Because, while it is entirely possible to enjoy Flood, and then not enjoy much of the rest of the band's music, it is pretty unlikely that someone who dislikes Flood is suddenly going to like an entire different album. A song maybe, but probably not the whole album.

Agree? Disagree? What's your approach? And have you successfully developed any TMBG converts? I have one: my friend Marie. Though I suspect she enjoys the kids music better than the grown-up stuff which is handy since she is about to have a baby and I shall be converting him into a tiny TMBG rock fan at the first available opportunity.

P.S. Doesn't it feel good when you tell someone that your favorite band is They Might Be Giants and the person has actually heard of them? It happens so rarely for me, but is so very appreciated.