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Shows/1987-03-04/Interviews

From This Might Be A Wiki

[edit] Transcriptions of the interviews conducted on March 4, 1987 on the Frank O'Toole show 

Key:
FO = Frank O'Toole
JF = John Flansburgh
JL = John Linnell

[edit] Interview - Part #1 

JF: La la la laaa!... [singing the ending of "Snowball in Hell"; loudly]

JL: La!

FO: Oh my god.

JL: Ow.

JF: Nice lady!

FO: Bring those levels down. Needles are pinned-ah! [pause] Hey! Hi!

JL: Frank!

FO: Ho!

JF: We're back!

FO: What were those dates?

JF: Oh, we don't-- we're only doing one big show, but it's Saturday night and we are asking everyone in your listening audience to come because we need people to be at this place that holds 450 people, known as "The Village Gate." This Saturday night, 9 and midnight, and it's-- it's a really good deal; we're really crossing over into a whole new jazz experience that everyone's going to enjoy.

FO: There was once a show there called "Let My People Come," by the way. I'm serious.

JF: Really?

JL: [background] I know.

FO: Earl Wilson Jr. wrote it.

JF: Really?

FO: That's as trivial as you can get.

JF: (laughs) [funny voice] You know your trivia, Frank!

FO: Welcome to the wacky world of WFMU, guys; John and John. And Bill, the silent partner. Bill is here, too. Without Bill, these guys wouldn't be here, am I correct?

JL: [quietly] We'd be the silent partners.

FO: A-ha; I'd be talking to dead mice. We were talking to Dead Mice earlier...um, that was a band, by the way, nevermind. What did we hear?

JF: Uh.

JL: The last thing was called "Avalanche or Roadblock"...

JF: Parenthesis.

JL: ..and that was the original phone version. If people are listening, it's probably a good time to, like--

FO: "Avalanche or Roadblock"?! I thought it was called "Snowball in Hell"!

JF: Actually, it is called "Snowball in Hell." __I Was__ a Snowball in Hell, but--

JL: But I like to call it--

JF: (laugh)

JL: Nevermind.

FO: Okay...

JL: Before that, we heard, uh, "It's Not My Birthday," also the original phone machine version. Not the version that.. doesn't exist on our album.

JF: And then before that we heard a song that I can't hardly remember. Oh!

JL: So long ago.

JF: Yeah, but, it was on the phone today. We have a Dial-A-Song service; actually, people probably don't even know what we're talking about, so we should clarify that we have a-- we are They Might Be Giants, which is like a rock band, and we have a Dial-A-Song service--

FO: We love you like a rock band.

JF: Well, it, it feels like a rock band. Often. But, uh, the Dial-A-Song is 718-387-6962, and that has a new song every day. If you look in The Village Voice, you can find the number in the Club section, in an ad for the band They Might Be Giants.

FO: Ah, I wasn't paying attention, what was that, 718-what?

JF: 718-387-6962, is the number for Dial-A-Song.

FO: The first time you were on, we must've given the phone number about fifteen times. And somebody called up later and said that when he was listening we left off the last number.

JF: Every time.

FO: As if that was an "s" as in "savings".

JF: Right.

[laughter]

JF: Hey.

FO: Um, so you guys are playing--

JF: Aren't you Robert Merrill of the Daryl Hannah school?

[snickering and laughter]

FO: Um, you guys are playing at The Village Gate. Who are you playing with, Pharoah Sanders?

[laughter]

FO: Joseph Lati? [???]

JF: Yeah, Phar-- Pharaoh is gonna be sitting in... on... bass.

JL: He's gonna be sitting on the bass.

FO: On-- on those 88's.

JF: No, uh, a performance group called Watchface who are actually exceptionally... interesting are going to be opening for us there, and, um, there's going to be a special appearance by Frida, the Swedish--

FO: ABBA?

JF: Well, sort of like ABBA!

FO: No, but, is Frida from ABBA?

JF: It's not the exact same Frida from ABBA, but it's a very similar Frida from ABBA.

FO: Okay, this is, uh--

JF: They're both from Sweden.

FO: What a coincidence!

JF: They are both from Sweden. And um, so, it's-- it's a power-packed evening of entertainment, happening at The Village Gate.

FO: At 9 and midnight.

JF: 9 and midnight are two shows; two completely different shows. They're gonna push everyone out at 10:30 and make way for everyone; or at 11 or whatever.

FO: They-- yeah, they have thugs? No, they don't have thugs. They're a club!

JF: No, actually, it's gonna be--

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