Sung by: John Flansburgh
Length: 0: 0
On Albums: John Henry, Blender 1.1
- Contributors:
- Sara Beth Berman
- Ronald C. Bonham
- Jonathan Chaffer
- Dave Cornelius
- Brenden Rensink
- Gary Manka
- Shawn Miller
Interpretations offered for this song include the surface one (that a suave man is speaking), one that says TMBG is speaking, and a comparison to the Wizard of Oz.
It will help to define savoir-faire from the start. It comes from the French words "savoir," to know, and "faire," to do. The term when used as a whole means "to know what to do." English usage has the connotation of being stylish and classy. Interestingly, when the term is used literally, it makes the song a paradox. If the singer had savoir-faire, he would be well-prepared for any circumstance, including that of having too much of it. He would certainly know what to do with it.
The first reading is that a man is simply stating that he is a very suave person. That is his extra savoir-faire. Other guys looking like elves is his way of saying that they are not as classy as he. It is hard to understand him because he is more stylish than the listener. In the second verse, he indicates that nobody can possibly ever be as with it as he is. People that think it can be done are dreaming, and will find out they are wrong in the end.
The second interp is similar to the first, but from the band's point of view. Mere take the first reading and add the "you may try to copy me" line is about other bands attempting to imitate Their style.
The third view claims that the song is analogous to the play "The Wizard of Oz." Apparently, the phrase "extra savoir-faire" is actually used in the play. If anyone can confirm or refute this, please do so. The theory goes that the guys who look like elves are Munchkins, and that the language is hard to understand because of their high voices. One idea is that the Cowardly Lion is the one with the extra savoir-faire, and that he has it after geting cleaned up and feeling he has courage. The rest of the song would refer to him, except the dream part, which alludes to Dorothy finding herself back in Kansas. Also, the extra savoir-faire could be belonging to the Wizard's feelings of himself prior to his being discovered as a fraud.