Birdhouse in Your Soul
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| “Birdhouse in Your Soul” | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Single by They Might Be Giants from the album Flood |
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| Released | USA: 1989; UK: 1990 | ||||
| Format | 7", Cassette, CD | ||||
| Recorded | 1989 | ||||
| Genre | Alternative rock | ||||
| Length | 3:19 | ||||
| Label | Elektra | ||||
| Producer | Clive Langer & Alan Winstanley | ||||
| They Might Be Giants singles chronology | |||||
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- For the EP by this name, see Birdhouse in Your Soul (EP).
"Birdhouse in Your Soul" is a song by American alternative rock band They Might Be Giants. It was released in March of 1990 as a single from the album Flood. It reached #3 on the United States Modern Rock Tracks chart and #6 on the UK Singles Chart and remains their highest-charting single in both countries. The song is apparently sung from the point of view of a nightlight.
Contents |
[edit] Track Listing
- Birdhouse In Your Soul
- Hot Cha
The track later appeared on many other They Might Be Giants releases, including:
- Birdhouse in Your Soul (EP)
- Direct from Brooklyn
- Severe Tire Damage
- Dial-A-Song: 20 Years Of They Might Be Giants
- A User's Guide to They Might Be Giants: Melody, Fidelity, Quantity
[edit] Notes
The song's lyrics allude to Jason and "countless screaming Argonauts", the lightbulb's primitive ancestry (depicted in a picture of a lighthouse on the opposite wall), filibustering, infinity, a Longines Symphonette (said not to rest, referencing the watches of the same name's longevity, the continuous output of the eponymous record label, and/or the many works of the symphony belonging to Longines), and guardian angels. The chorus line sings the praise of the "Blue canary in the outlet by the lightswitch / Who watches over you!"; the most widely held and logical interpretation is that the song is indeed sung from a nightlight's point of view.[citation needed]
The song's video was filmed inside the New York County's Surrogate's Court and Hall of Records building located at 31 Chambers Street in Manhattan.
Mark Feldman contributes some violin, while the trumpet sample was played by Frank London.
[edit] Notable Performances
The band once performed the song on the Tonight Show with Doc Severinsen's orchestra. A recording of this performance appears as a bonus feature on the Gigantic DVD.
This song was covered by Lemon Demon on his third album, Live From The Haunted Candle Shop, released on July 23, 2003. He also cites They Might Be Giants as a major influence in his music.
The television series Pushing Daisies featured a performance of the song by Kristin Chenoweth with Ellen Greene in the episode "Pigeon".
