A friend of mine is acquainted with some members of Chumbawumba. The story, as I've heard through my friend, is that Tub Thumping was a very deliberate sell out. Apparently the band all decided, let's have one massive pop smash that will pay for everything else we want to do. I salute that.
@@InfiniteRhombus I didn't know that but I'm not surprised. Thing is the anarcho punk scene really is a small world. I have no reason to doubt that my friend met people who were in Chumbawumba. It's plausible and they're not the sort to bullshit me like that.
Hard not to-"We need money to keep the collective going? Sure, let's do a big populist hit that can pay for our other left-of-the-dial shit!" It's just too bad they didn't finance it using that Bootstraps Fund Thatcher came up with that Rick Astley used to get big. The thought of them farting in The Iron Bitch's face and using her two-faced bullshit money to do it would be the only thing better....
Kimi FW pretty sure EMI owned the rights to Tubthumping. After they broke up it was probably passed to one of the innumerable entities that scavenged its corpse.
one of the little known facts about the "Charity singles" craze, was that they were all recorded without drums, they just used the sounds of the artists patting themselves on the back. (for you young-un's, that was a joke popular at the time.)
Tiny brain- Tubthumping is a good song. Regular Brain - Chumbawumba were a punk band who sold out. Super Brain- Chumbawumba were committed musicians and activists. Their pop works feature some genuinely good tunes that satirise popular music and their later works spotlight working class folk songs from throughout British history, I'd argue that their entire discography is worth listening to. Galaxy Brain- Tubthumping is a good song.
@Anarchist Mugwump - Yup! Tubthumping is a great song... 100%! The rest I cannot actually comment on... (See a comment I have left for Todd...) - It was the wrong Era for me... But, Maybe they can send Todd a Thank you... I am actually GENUINELY INTERESTED to hear more of their work! Both old and Not so old (Not exactly new as they have long since broke up!).
They were serious drinkers, before they had the hit they played my university and I had a shift at the bar that night. Alice Nutter was ordering quad vodkas all night and drinking them neat. I guess she literally spent many nights pissing.
One of my favorite Chumbawamba facts is that they recorded an EP called "In Memoriam: Margaret Thatcher", where it could only be pre-ordered prior to Margaret Thatcher's death. Once she died, they sent out the EP and immediately canned sales to it. You can find the EP on youtube, but the whole album is essentially a giant middle finger to her, which I find entertaining.
@@8bitorgy taking a shit isn’t entertaining, original, or clever, but you still need to do it. Or else the shit comes out your mouth like it does yours.
"Maybe if RATM had recorded a party song once in a while..." If RATM had recorded a party song, it would either be the worst thing ever or the best thing ever.
I'm a huge fan of Chumbawamba, and the song interpretation that suits me the most is that this is indeed about an impoverished working class guy getting wasted in a pub, but they are not mocking him, they take his side, they don't scoff at him like most radical thinkers do, they genuinely understand that binge drinking, singing and chanting at football are the things that help him carry on with his life. They don't want him to give it up for rallying, they want to be part of his life, they want to give him a song to enjoy and sing along with them. For me the message of Chumbawamba is not "FUCK THE SYSTEM! FUCK THE SYSTEM!" but "LET'S FUCK WITH THE SYSTEM AND HAVE SOME FUN WHILE DOING SO!"
"I swear to fuck, that we fight more systems when we're passed out on the floor, than the works of Kropotkin ever could, and all the works of Karl Marx ever fucking could" wise words of Johnny Hobo
I can't think of a single other band who essentially sold out, got popular, decided to stop selling out and looked back on the whole thing fondly. That is really strange.
The lead singer, Danbert Nobacon ended up being a high school drama teacher in Twisp, Washington. I'm not joking, I was in the high school drama class and all of our plays were written by us and him and were ALL anti-conformity/anti-establishment. It was ridiculous in the best kind of way, our principal made up keep rewriting our plays until she couldn't take it any more. Too bad we would never hear the end of it when it came to him being in chumbawumba, not from him but everyone in our tiny, tiny town.
Great story...just to add, Danbert went to my high school in Burnley, Lancashire when he was a nipper....Habergham High, although he'd long gone by the time I arrived there. Always thought it cool that. He was the guy that dumped water over Prescott and when I asked our headteacher about it at the time he said "I certainly don't endorse it" whilst giving me one of those wry smiles that suggested he did on that particular occasion.
Gets banned in Germany Get's banned for Japanese Get's banned in USA Get's banned for 30 days He posts on Vimeo pining for some good times He reposts on RU-vid pining for some better times
I love that they allowed GM to use "Pass It Along" (which is a great song) in their ads for $ 70K and then used the money to fund a campaign against GM. They are geniuses.
We weren't allowed to listen to any secular music in my house. When my dad was in earshot, we couldn't even listen to contemporary Christian music. To get around this, when I was around 12, I saved up my Sunday School points for an alarm clock radio, and would spend my insomnia-ridden nights with the volume the lowest it could be, pressed up to my ear. This was in the early 2010's, so this song was played on a 'classics' station. So now, it's always interesting looking at how those songs actually functioned in the real world, because even though I had no idea what the words meant (like, what's lager? What's pissing?), the earnestness of the escapism, fun, and longing would have me crying as silently as I could - but outside of my weird bubble, these throwback songs were meant to be silly references when played, and the contemporary ones of the time were heard as silly too.
Wow, that kind of religious radicalism is only seen in a Muslim theocratic country under Sharia law, or in the US (that hypocritically swears they’re against that kind of law).
Hilariously, I'm almost positive he would have been more than ok with some of their other work. The band itself was worth so much more than just a "one hit wonder" Seriously, if anyone has a "secular dad" who would frown upon a song like "Tubthumping" then play "Coal Not Dole" for him, and tell them it's the same band. Just saying, they're worth a re-listen, in this day and age where their catalog is at your fingertips at any given moment
@@moaningpheromones religion is a personal journey. Most of the secular beliefs that plague Christianity were passed down from the "Puritan's" we like to celebrate on Thanksgiving. The "get with me, *OR GO TO HELL,"* types that close themselves off to the world, "because I am right, and you are wrong!" Their are two types of gospel that get preached in America (maybe globally, but my experience does not apply): A "Fear of God" gospel, and a "Love of God" gospel. Avoid the first (regardless) and embrace the second (if such is your want). Not ideologically, just embrace the people, because they're the good ones. "Fisher's of men" with patience, understanding, and respect, instead of these "dynamiters of the lake," scaring people for profit. Television pastor's are the worst, but a lot of revival preacher's are like this, too. And I'm so sorry you got saddled with one of, what I'm guessing was, the typical "High-holier than thou" Christian-types (if that was your experience, and not just someone you know, my Step-dad came up with a mother like that, fu¢$ed him up, _hard),_ but that's _never_ been what Christianity was supposed to be about (despite the holy wars, crusades, and every heinous act ever undertaken "in the name of God" to throw in my face, "to the contrary, my good man," style) Religion is a personal journey, and I wish you well in yours, my friend.
Chumbawumba are legitimately cool. They're one of the most authentic punk bands ever, they just do their own thing forever. They're so non-conformist they didn't even conform to any non-conformist subcultures.
Let's be honest a lot of "non-comformist" are the most up their own ass people one will ever met. They suck joy and fun out of every room they enter because if anyone is having a good time, that means they don't care about the world's problems. Chumbawumba very much care but they know that party needs no reasons besides "party."
_"Truth is I thought it mattered, I thought that music mattered. But does it bollocks; not compared to how people matter."_ -Danny Ormondroyd (Pete Postlethwaite), "Brassed Off" (1996); quoted in the intro of Tubthumping on the album
"Give The Anarchist A Cigarette" is my favorite Chumbawumba track. They did exactly what they wanted to do; proved how stupid the recording industry is and that they could slay in it if they really wanted to. They could have done an entire album of number one tracks if they really wanted to; but they did just enough to prove their point and then tanked their own career. Mainstream career anyway. This is a group that could have spent their 30 years defining mainstream music, proved it, and went back to just being brilliant and creative on their own. They proved that they weren't outsiders complaining about a reality they were outside of, they proved they understood the inner workings of the things they bucked against and could dominate it if they gave the slightest care.
Honstly I'm kinda liking "She's Got All the Friends That Money Can Buy" myself. These guys seem like the best kind of activists, fighting for a cause, but completely self aware about it and willing to poke fun about the issues as well as themselves at times.
Do you know where they got the image from for their Anarchy album cover. The picture of the baby being born? I was trying to find information on it. Like, the story behind it.
Does Green Day count as that? I live in the same part of California as them, and sometimes even I find their music whiney and annoying. Then again, lean more towards metal than punk.
He was talking about anarcho-punk, not punk in general. And most of punk does not suck. Hell, I'm not too fond of anarcho-punk (not because of their politics, I just don't like the music), and I still wouldn't say it sucks.
“Some people think it’s a song that parodies the meaningless nostalgic existence of blue collar pub life. I think that’s overthinking it. I think it’s a genuine celebration of it.” I’ve always assumed like the best art it is somehow both and the performer is unconcerned with “picking a side” and so the song isn’t too snide nor too sincere. “Pissing the night away” has always clearly meant to me “night after night, you/we are pissing our lives away” but there’s also culture and empathy there so it works.
@@wowisntitanamazinglyamazin9550 Baku is not talked about by socialists publicbly and is not part of their indoctrination since he predicted Soviet Union.
The Wonky Angle Rewatching this review actually solved the ongoing mystery of what that song was. I've always wondered because it sounded great but I could never understand the lyrics enough for me to try to look them up. And now that I know the name of it and can listen to the full song I finally figured out what she's saying.
"3AM Eternal" would be a great One Hit Wonderland episode... I mean, the KLF burned a million pounds on stage on one occasion, and opened fire over the heads of the crowd with AK-47s loaded with blanks on another. Kids think Blink 182 and their ilk are punk? Fuck that. Chumbawamba & the KLF are the punkest bands ever to walk this earth.
@@haolekoa737 KLF brought Extreme Noise Terror, a fucking grindcore band, to play 3am Eternal with them on an awards show. They wrote a smash hit, then dived out of the window flipping double birds at the industry they just fleeced. Fuck, I love the KLF.
Actually, "tubthumping" doesn't mean campaigning. It means going drinking after protesting. Basically, the song is about protesters celebrating a job well done with a few drinks.
I heard a similar meaning. Not "campaigning" in the election meaning of the word. More like stating your viewpoint. The American idiom would "shouting from the top of your soapbox."
The song had all the elements of a memorable one hit wonder: foreigners, sang by kids & dudes at bars, controversy ("pissin' the night away"), can be played at any event (sports, weddings, AA/NA), danceable, athemable, and it has an interesting enough lore to make it conversation worthy.
"The Day The Nazi Died" is one of my favorite political songs of all time. Also Amnesia was the theme to Before They Were Rock stars on VH1. Watched that a lot as a kid
I like how instead of whining about it or just admitting defeat you just keep uploading the videos. Stick it to the man (And by man I mean bots but whatever)
"Galaxie" and "Tones of Home"? Those were minor hits on the alternative charts, IIRC. also, I'm still waiting for his review of Soup. I hope it's not part of Trainwreckords.
Yeah, definately EMI fucking with the video, rather than Chumbawamba. I imagine if they even know of this video's existence, they're just glad to get more exposure.
The band encouraged people to steal their albums. I doubt they'd have much issue with RU-vid uploads. Band's nowadays generally don't see much money from sales, downloads or streaming anyway. Its usually those who stand to gain the most money (ie record companies) enforcing copyright.
Also, my interpretation of the song: The after protest party. It's full of people who are knocked down, got back up, and decided to make a stink about the shit in the world because of it. Also there's a lot of liquor, dancing, sing alongs, weed, and hooking up.
"Pissing away" also means wasting something, so I wonder if they meant that phrase to mean both urinating and wasting the entire evening. Anyway, I love how many wacky, out of left field songs came out in the latter half of the 90's.
I could help you with the definition of anarchism. Anarchism: a system of society that power is distributed horizontally instead of vertically. Basically the word means "without rulers". Its not about no rules, just saying.
basically a society without any unjust hierarchy, what exactly constitutes unjust is debatable, many would argue there is no such thing as a just hierarchy
@@rileyyoung4762 I’d argue a parent telling their child not to touch a hot stove is an example of justified authority/hierarchy. If they didn’t, it could literally be considered child neglect
@@rashotcake6945 You could argue that they should explain to their child that it's hot and will burn them and hurt them but they still dont have the right to physically prevent them from doing so because that logic: "they are less intelligent than I am therefore I have the right to force what I believe is best for them on them against their will", sets a pretty bad precedent
@@rileyyoung4762 yet children don’t always listen and need either a physical example for their parent to prevent them from harming themselves before they reach controlled thinking, and even then. All hierarchies can be just and unjust simply based on the context, and I always saw anarchism as throwing the puzzle out the window instead of solving it. Hell, horizontal power structures can also be unjust, as it forces people in the system to follow a horizontal system with forced responsibility, when forcing responsibility of knowledge or work in society is a direct lead to depression and suffering.
I still love listening to SLAP and SWINGING WITH RAYMOND ...All their stuff is good ...AND THEIR BIT OF SELLING OUT meant I got to see them live a bunch !
"if EMI was stupid enough to sign a band like Chumbawumba, why not?" TRUE! i love that for them. we absolutely stan Anarcho-Punks creating an accessible populist drinking song. i believe Godspeed You! Black Emperor is also some kind of AnCom Art Collective. all their songs are like 30+ minutes long though, so they avoid the charts like the plague.
This was legit my favorite song when I was 7. I thought the title was "I get knocked down but I get up again" but I'm sure a lot of people thought that.
They are not one hit wonders. The Verve's Bittersweet Symphony in the UK charted at number 2. They released another single off the same album where that charted to number 1 in the UK.
Thank you. I loved ʻTubthumpingʻ with every fiber of my being as a dopey suburban teenager who hadnʻt heard any "real" punk yet, and always felt vaguely embarrassed by that, until this video prompted me to listen to their other stuff. They really were the band I always knew they were deep down.
On th e cover of the single one of the band is holding a copy of 'The Manual' by the KLF guys. Diving down that rabbit hole will connect the dots between anarchists and pop number 1.
“If RATM had released a party song once in a while they might not have sat out the Bush administration” *thinks about the Clear Channel blacklist and Audioslave* *steam coming out of ears* *cracks knuckles, types a thousand rage comments*
I love Chumbawamba. Their association with Crass (who I also like) helped. There is a DVD of their last concert called "Going...going...Gone". Alice Nutter dressed as a nun smoking, drinking, and kick dancing is the highlight for me.
Oh gods, CASSETTE TAPES! I remember using my boombox to record songs from the radio onto tapes. And my old Lion King soundtrack from when I was 6... Oh, the memories.
I'd recommend you pick up "What you see is what you get" (WYSIWYG), I would personally call it their best album, and one of their more accessible ones.
The KLF wrote a book called 'The Manual- How to have a number 1 the easy way'. It did what it said on the tin, or rather the book cover. You would seriously enjoy this book, noting when it was published. I think I'm correct in saying Chumbawumba followed the instructions in that book in order to have a no 1 hit. Why? Just for the hell of it. I may be getting confused with another band, but I don't think so. Just listen to the structure of this song- you mention most of the salient points, essentially something drunk guys will enjoy singing. Perhaps they were just trying to demonstrate how easy it was to have a big hit if you just conformed to the simple rules of pop. :-)
At the time of 'Tubthumping' becoming a big hit, I was working in a workers' co-operative which was affiliated to an umbrella organisation of co-ops called Radical Routes. Chumbawamba were also part of the Leeds RR network. I remember there being a great deal of earnest debate as to how the proceeds of 'Tubthumping's success should be spent - Chumbawamba never expected to make any serious money, and when they did, they were not the kind of band who'd have been happy to squander it all on drugs and fur coats like proper rock stars.
Legit too punk for punk, these guys :D Also, considering that they gave tens of thousands of dollars of their big label money and licensing fees to charity and activists, they objectively had more of an effect than most punk bands.
Glad this is back, although knowing the history of this review and copyright, it may not last long. Also, I can't hear "Amnesia" anymore without thinking about Billboard Breakdown.
The entire Tubthumper album is solid stuff. I revisit it every couple of years and there's not a single track I skip. (The end of track skits, yes.) The musical complexity exemplified by the end of "Tubthumping" where the "we'll be singing....", "pissing the night away...", and "I get knocked down..." phrases are all intertwined happens several other times across the album. "Scapegoat" is a total banger track, too.
Speaking of that very same Chumbawumba album, the song "Mary Mary" was featured in the movie STIGMATA. Also, I still hear "Amnesia" on the radio when it does 90's throwback weekends.
I was once grocery shopping and a woman passed by with her cart. Her 3-4 year old daughter was lying on the bottom rack and started loudly singing Tubthumping and the woman looked confused/embarrassed and apologized to everyone else in the aisle.
I remember seeing this video on 120 Minutes like the weekend before they got famous. It's a fun little "Jock Jam" song like Blur Song #2 or Rock N Roll Part 2
One thing worth noting is that even after they broke up, they maintained their integrity. Years before they recorded an EP, which could be pre-ordered, but they said it wont be send out before the day Thatcher dies. And then she did and they fulfilled their promise on the very same day.
I always wondered why this band looked so much like they were straight British punk (Sex Pistols style real punk) but put out a pop anthem like Tubthumping. Now I know. This channel is amazing! Keep up all the good work! I am having a ball going through your playlist.
Speaking from 2024, I'm inclined to agree that Chambawumba is the coolest OHW artist you've covered thus far. And this made me want to check out their discography. They sound sick as fuck and so does their other music. Also, Tubthumping feels like one of those songs that'll last forever. Like, I'm sure my children's children will know about this song. It also helps that it unironically slaps.
