They'll Need A Crane (EP)

	They'll Need A Crane EP by They Might Be Giants
	First released	February 10, 1989 Release details / collectors: Show | Hide	Tracks	4
	Label	Bar/None / Restless <7 72611>	Length	8:56

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Vinyl release back cover

They'll Need A Crane was a four-song EP released through Bar/None and Restless records. With the exception of the title track, this was the first release produced by They Might Be Giants without Bill Krauss.

Two of the B-sides included in this release had been previously written and demoed during the Lincoln album cycle. "It's Not My Birthday" had been previously recorded on 8-track with Krauss for potential inclusion on Lincoln, while "I'll Sink Manhattan" had been written, demoed, and performed, but was not known to have been considered for inclusion during the recording of the album. "They'll Need A Crane" was chosen as the title track for its lack of novelty, as mentioned by John Flansburgh in a February 1989 interview with Hatchet: "We try to steer away from releasing songs as singles that seem like they might be misconstrued as novelty songs, because we basically want people to hear our music before they hear the humor."

Although all of the B-sides were credited as being recorded at John Flansburgh's Hello Studio apartment space, "I'll Sink Manhattan" had mostly been recorded with jazz musician John Eric Greenberg in a "tiny room in the apartment directly across the street" from Hello^[1]. In the liner notes for Then: The Earlier Years, John and John mentioned it was their first time experimenting with sampling their own voices, which were engineered by Greenberg through a Casio sampler^[2] along with many other homemade sounds. It would later be mixed at Hello alongside the other B-sides after the song was tracked at Greenberg's studio^[3]. A Casio CZ-101 was also used for the keyboard sounds heard throughout the EP, which were described in the Then liner notes as "further proof of [the keyboard's] limitless versatility"^[4].

The EP's cover artwork was designed by Hiroko Hoshikawa, while the back cover photograph was taken by Elizabeth Van Itallie.

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Track listing

#	Title	Length	Lyrics	Guitar Tab
1	They'll Need A Crane	2:33
2	It's Not My Birthday	1:52
3	I'll Sink Manhattan	2:32
4	Nightgown Of The Sullen Moon	1:59

Trivia

• In the back cover photograph, the shrine built by Brian Dewan for Lincoln's cover artwork can be seen peering into frame.

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CD

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  Longpack

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  Longpack back

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  CD sleeve back

Vinyl

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  Side One label

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  Side Two label

Cassette

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  Cassette cover

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  Full cassette card foldout

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  Cassette

Promotional Material

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  Print ad from Bar/None

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  Ad from The Village Voice

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  Press release

UK Release

	They'll Need A Crane EP by They Might Be Giants
	First released	January 30, 1989 Release details / collectors: Show | Hide	Tracks	4
	Label	One Little Indian <22TP12>	Length	9:37

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Back cover

Track listing

#	Title	Length	Lyrics	Guitar Tab
1	They'll Need A Crane	2:33
2	I've Got A Match	2:36
3	Kiss Me, Son Of God	1:54
4	I'll Sink Manhattan	2:32

Newsprint ad

Trivia

• The absence of "It's Not My Birthday" and "Nightgown Of The Sullen Moon" is likely due to their inclusion on the UK release of the "Ana Ng" single.

UK 7" Single

	They'll Need A Crane Single by They Might Be Giants
	First released	January 30, 1989 Release details / collectors: Show | Hide	Tracks	2
	Label	One Little Indian <22TP7>	Length	5:09

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Track listing

#	Title	Length	Lyrics	Guitar Tab
1	They'll Need A Crane	2:33
2	I've Got A Match	2:36

European Single

	They'll Need A Crane Single by They Might Be Giants
	First released	February 27, 1989 Release details / collectors: Show | Hide	Tracks	2
	Label	Grabaciones Accidentales <GA-306> Vogue <102308>	Length	4:25

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Back

Track listing

#	Title	Length	Lyrics	Guitar Tab
1	They'll Need A Crane	2:33
2	It's Not My Birthday	1:52

• A transcription and translation of the bio sheet included with the Spanish release is viewable here.

12" Promo

	They'll Need A Crane Single by They Might Be Giants
	First released	1989 Release details / collectors: Show | Hide	Tracks	1
	Label	Bar/None / Restless <EPRO-167>	Length	2:33 (listed as 2:29)

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Track listing

#	Title	Length	Lyrics	Guitar Tab
1	They'll Need A Crane plays the same both sides	2:33

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Promotional VHS

	They'll Need A Crane Video by They Might Be Giants
	First released	1989 Release details / collectors: Show | Hide	Tracks	1
	Label	Bar/None Rough Trade	Length	2:29

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Track listing

#	Title	Length	Lyrics	Guitar Tab
1	They'll Need A Crane	2:29

German release

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  Cover

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  Back cover

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  Tape