From: owner-tmbg-list To: tmbg-digest Subject: They Might Be Giants Digest V1 #7 Reply-To: tmbg-list@tmbg.org Errors-To: owner-tmbg-list Precedence: bulk They Might Be Giants Digest Sunday, 24 September 1995 Volume 01 : Number 007 ---------------------------------------------------------------------- From: "Ben Allen" Date: Sat, 23 Sep 1995 10:23:43 +0000 Subject: Re: Boat of Crap > From: DrSzusz@aol.com > Date: Sat, 23 Sep 1995 12:26:24 -0400 > To: tmbg-list@ufp.org > Subject: Re: Boat of Crap > Reply-to: tmbg-list@ufp.org > I can't stop thinking that there might be such a thing as thinking > too much! I mean, think about it! > Yeah, your head might explode! - Free the expo '67 ------------------------------ From: dodsonsblehproductions@mail.utexas.edu (Scott Dodson) Date: Sun, 24 Sep 1995 01:52:19 +0700 Subject: Absolutely Bill Nye's mood. ................................................................................ Someone said this: >I've always thought that the boat of car is one of those amphibious >boat/car vehicles (as featured in one episode of Bill Nye the >Science Guy, but...I guess you've probably never seen it). And "traces >of your fingernails" means, at least IMHO, scratches in the >windshield someone made with their fingernails. I know that this isn't TMBGish, but I'd just really like to say that Bill Nye is one of the coolest shows I've ever seen. In fact, I'd say that I liken it to some of the stuff that TMBG comes up with. I LOVE THAT SHOW! Scott PS- I don't mean to tease about my paper. I just don't want to post it if anyone has objections. I would do the whole FTP thing with the necessary copyrights, but I don't know how, and it looks as if even if I did find out how, I still wouldn't be able to do it. Maybe I'll just send my paper to John and John and see if they like it. What's their address? ................................................................................ ------------------------------ From: Jonathan.Chaffer@cmich.edu (Jonathan Chaffer) Date: Sat, 23 Sep 1995 17:23:19 -0600 Subject: Voting for Fave Song Just a note to ask that everyone with access visit http://www.geodyn.psu.edu/~cramer/They/ and vote for your favorite TMBG song, album, and video. I am attempting to draw some conclusions from the results to this survey, and I would like as complete a representation of you guys as possible. Thanks. "In German, we like to call it 'Vogelhaus in deiner Zahle.'" **************************************************************** Jonathan Chaffer Rabidchild on RealmsMud jonathan.chaffer@cmich.edu Telnet realms.dorsai.org 1501 - -----BEGIN GEEK CODE BLOCK----- Version: 3.1 GM/MU d-(--) s++:--->++:- a--- C++ U--- P--- !L E? W++>+++ N- o? K+ W--- !O M+++++$ !V PS-- PE+ Y+ PGP- t+ 5? X? R+/C tv b++ @DI !D G++ e*>++++ r y- - ------END GEEK CODE BLOCK------ ------------------------------ From: Matthew James Date: Sat, 23 Sep 1995 20:19:26 -0400 (EDT) Subject: Re: Boat of Crap > I've always thought that the boat of car is one of those amphibious > boat/car vehicles (as featured in one episode of Bill Nye the > Science Guy, but...I guess you've probably never seen it). And "traces > of your fingernails" means, at least IMHO, scratches in the > windshield someone made with their fingernails. > - > Free the expo '67 > Bill Nye rocks! I watch him ever chance I get. I did see that episode where they had the cars that doubled as boats. That was awesome! - --Matt - -- - ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Matt James mjames@love.loyola.edu, elrond@charm.net Loyola College "I'm not the only dust my mother raised."--TMBG "Look at the size of that thing!"--Wedge "Hail to the king, baby"-Ash Anything Box--U.S. synthpop claim to fame Warsaw-Joy Division-New Order - ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ ------------------------------ From: Jay Crockett -- General Purpose Confused Person Date: Sat, 23 Sep 1995 19:19:38 -0500 (CDT) Subject: boat of car Boat of a car: That song seemed pretty simply to me. Boat of a car = really big car, you, a land yaught? Like a 70's ford LTD. "Hop in my Chrystler, its as big as a whale, and its about to set sail" etc. The other part "traces..." is the singer running someone down. Makes more sense to me than 'Hot Cha' to name one of many... jay c ------------------------------ From: "'Feces Fred' E. Koenen" Date: Sat, 23 Sep 1995 18:04:29 -0700 (PDT) Subject: Re: Big Blue -vs- Pink It's the debut album, or, as we in the medical profession say 'the debut album' .............................................................................. . . . Be the first one on your block, to have your boy sent home in a box . . . .............................................................................. ------------------------------ From: Matt Powers Date: Sat, 23 Sep 1995 18:15:21 -0700 (PDT) Subject: Re: boat of car I've always gone with the interpretation that "Boat of Car" is about the Ted Kennedy/Chappaquidick incident. I'm not too familiar with the event, but I gather that Ted Kennedy and a woman went driving, the car went off a cliff into a body of water, Ted climbed out and saved his own butt, but the woman drowned. Anyone who knows better, speak up. I took my boat for a car [boat = big car] I took that car for a ride I was trying to get somewhere [trying to get somewhere politically] But now I'm following the traces of your fingernails That run along the windshield on the boat of car [but now I'm a political mess] Traces of your fingernails that run along the windshield On the boat of car [the car was, for a very short time, a boat] m@t ------------------------------ From: gaufred@leland.Stanford.EDU (Kasey Hicks) Date: Sat, 23 Sep 1995 22:24:36 -0700 Subject: Re: Paper Ben Allen wrote: >Please, everyone with papers ... POST 'EM! Any curious persons who are not offended by pedantic academic prose and irremediable overanalysis are invited to read the paper I delivered at the Patheticism Conference in Dublin at Trinity College last month. There is a copy (unfortunately still undergoing HTML conversion, and thus lacking full footnote notation and exhaustive proofing) on my web page at http://www-leland.stanford.edu/~gaufred/. Dig it if you wish. If you don't have web access and absolutely feel you must subject yourself to this, go ahead and email me. I'll try to zip you a copy as soon as possible. Kasey Hicks =E6=E6=E6=E6=E6=E6=E6=E6=E6=E6=E6=E6=E6=E6=E6=E6=E6=E6=E6=E6=E6=E6 Mortals that would follow me, Love vertue, she alone is free, She can teach you how to clime Higher than the Spheary chime; Or if Vertue feeble were, Heav'n it self would stoop to her. =E6=E6=E6=E6=E6=E6=E6=E6=E6=E6=E6=E6=E6=E6=E6=E6=E6=E6=E6=E6=E6=E6 ------------------------------ From: Jonathan.Chaffer@cmich.edu (Jonathan Chaffer) Date: Sun, 24 Sep 1995 11:28:13 -0600 Subject: Re: boat of car >Boat of a car: That song seemed pretty simply to me. Boat of a car = really >big car, you, a land yaught? Like a 70's ford LTD. "Hop in my Chrystler, its Woohoo! I drive a Mercury Grand Marquis station wagon (complete w/ wood paneling) and my friends call it the Boat of Car all the time. Funky fresh and minty clean, Jon **************************************************************** Jonathan Chaffer Rabidchild on RealmsMud jonathan.chaffer@cmich.edu Telnet realms.dorsai.org 1501 - -----BEGIN GEEK CODE BLOCK----- Version: 3.1 GM/MU d-(--) s++:--->++:- a--- C++ U--- P--- !L E? W++>+++ N- o? K+ W--- !O M+++++$ !V PS-- PE+ Y+ PGP- t+ 5? X? R+/C tv b++ @DI !D G++ e*>++++ r y- - ------END GEEK CODE BLOCK------ ------------------------------ From: engj@ix.netcom.com Date: Sun, 24 Sep 1995 09:35:14 -0700 Subject: Re: Boat of Crap At 10:46 AM 9/23/95 -0400, you wrote: >Ben or Been here. >Yes, truthfully. > >"Boat of Car" I would have to say for myself is perhaps the most >nonsensical song of TMBG's I've heard. I try to think, "What does this >mean?" and get frazzled, for when I think I piece together some inherent >meaning to the song, one piece leads me astray. > >The lyrics (from the top o' my cranium, literally): > >I took my boat for a car >I took my car for a ride >I was trying to get somewhere but now I'm following >The traces of your fingernails >That run along the winshield on the >Boat of Car >[etc.] >[with intermingling "Daddy sings bass" mouthings] > >I ponder, as do many, I imagine: >How does one take a boat for a car? It's almost as if semantic shift is >applying to the word 'car,' transforming the noun into a verb. But >English, as far as I am knowledgable, does not allow this word's shift. > >Perhaps TMBG is making a strange proof: >I took my X for a Y ] > ] therefore, >I took my Y for a Z ] > X is to Y as Y is to Z > or maybe, X = Y, Y = Z; therefore, X = Z > where X=boat, Y=car, Z=ride(noun) >So, >a boat is a ride, they prove. Just in a lot of words. > >As for the traces: >traces [TRAY sez] n. 1. remnants; faded markings. 2. outlines; a >circumference or perimeter. 3. [etc.] > >"Traces of fingernails" can thus be > remnants of fingernails, i.e., fingernail clippings gone undisposed > OR EVEN > the outlines of a windshield, made by the trace of fingernails > >I ambiguous. > >*** >Now that I've offered for you some info, see what you can do with it. >Perhaps you can better interpret the song. > > >Any takers? I hope so. >Ich spiele mit (Freunden), >Ben or Been >(hey, that rhymes!) > > > > > Just a thouht . . . have you seen the Frank Black video for "Los Angales" from his second to last album? John F. directed this video. In the video, Frank is in a hover craft floating all over some roads and salt plains in California somewhere. Maybe a Boat of Car is really just a hover craft. A hover craft kind of looks like a cross between a boat and a car. See what you can do with this new angle. Mister Me ------------------------------ From: Benjamin Hauck Date: Sun, 24 Sep 1995 12:36:14 -0400 (EDT) Subject: Ben or Been's Dial-A-Song!!! Yes, it's Ben or it's Been HERE. To tell you about: Ben's Dial-A-Song!!!!! Yes, Ben or Been has set up his own Dial-A-Song, so give him a call whenever you want to hear a nice, ear-relieving, quirky song from the song library of Ben or Been! That is, if you reach his answering machine. Else, if you're lucky, you can talk to Ben or Been himself! That's right! If you do call, leave a message saying Hi, after the song. Leave any comments you might have about the song, or any requests for the near future. I'll make you love it!!!!! Write me via personal e-mail for my phone number. Today's selection: A song by the group Soul Coughing, who opened for TMBG in their March concert in Columbus's Newport ... Sounds like a demonic Warner Brothers cartoon!!! ------------------------------ From: "Genevieve Atlas" Date: Sun, 24 Sep 95 13:33:53 CST Subject: small things Hi there - been following along for awhile, usually forgetting to post my thoughts on several topics - but now here they are, and conviently in one post for all those who care. . . 1) I've got the Pink album on cassette (the "newer" version w/out the lyrics inside) and see NO Big Blue Dog on the cover - fishbowl/Camaro, pirate-type ship, vacum cleaner, bowling pin man, yes... therefore I'm in favor of just calling it the Pink album (I suppose the Dog might be on a CD cover?) 2) why do I keep pressing tab instead of enter (that's 5x within this message) I'm starting to annoy myself 3)Whatever happened w/ the contest to rename the spooky girl? Ben or Been - do you have the results? 4)I think that Superfueled Freaksicle is the best name for an album, EVER! 5) I also thought a Boat of Car would be like a combination (a guy on my block used to have one). You underestimate tmbg lovers knowledge of Bill Nye - - he's funny. I also use boat as an adjective - I often call my '82 Custom Cruiser station wagon (my car rocks!) a boat, or a tank. 6) I've never tried TMBG in other languages, but have been known to sing Violent Femmes in Norwegian. And that's all I have to say right now. :) Gennie "Dag, etter dag - jeg skal gaa og jeg skal lek, men dagen etter idag, jeg skal slutt og jeg skal skal start" ------------------------------ From: kjolson4@students.wisc.edu (Katherine Johnna Olson) Date: Sun, 24 Sep 1995 17:19:42 -0500 Subject: Re: Boat of Crap >How does one take a boat for a car? Possibly "took the boat for the car" the way one would say, "Oh, sorry, I took you for someone else." ? **************************************************************************** "What a piece of work is man! How noble in reason! how infinite in faculty! in form, in moving how express and admirable! in action how like an angel! in apprehension how like a god! --Hamlet, Act II scene ii "Men will lie on their backs, talking about the fall of man, and never make an effort to get up." --Henry David Thoreau, "Life Without Principle" - --kranberry ------------------------------ From: tmbgfan@bga.com (Adam Gierisch) Date: Sun, 24 Sep 1995 19:31:35 -0500 Subject: Woo Hoo! Hey Everybody! All hail Jonathon for undertaking the task of putting the list back together and thanks to everybody helping to run the server. Just a couple of questions: 1.What's the official release date of Their new album? 2.What about tour dates? 3.Anybody know of some good places in austin to get singles?the new album? Thanks to anybody who answers. - --Adam ****************************************************************************** *Adam J. Gierisch tmbgfan@bga.com * *"Unity Through Diversity" * *I saw it at the House of Blues when They played. * *http://smf-staff11.facsmf.utexas.edu/adam/ * **************************************************************************** ** ------------------------------ End of They Might Be Giants Digest V1 #7 ****************************************