John Linnell
Encyclopedia
John Sidney Linnell is an American
musician
, is known primarily as one half of Brooklyn
, New York alternative rock
duo They Might Be Giants
. In addition to singing
and songwriting, he plays accordion
, baritone
and bass saxophone
, clarinet
, and keyboards
for the group.
Linnell's lyrics are perhaps most well-known for their inclusion of strange subject matter and wordplay
. Persistent themes include aging, delusional behavior, bad relationships, death, and the personification of inanimate objects. Conversely, the accompanying melodies are usually cascading and upbeat.
He is married and has a son, Henry. Henry appeared as a performer on They Might Be Giants' children's albums Here Come the ABCs
and Here Come the 123s
.
in 1982 with high school friend John Flansburgh
. While the two split singing and songwriting duties roughly in half, Linnell's songs enjoyed the most commercial success in their early years: singles like "Don't Let's Start
" and "Ana Ng
" introduced the band to college radio
, and they made waves on the Billboard charts in 1990 with "Birdhouse in Your Soul
".
Linnell described his role in the group during an interview for Splatter Effect in 1994:
In December 2005, the band began to produce a twice-monthly podcast
. Early on, Linnell frequently contributed humorous spoken-word pieces to the program.
EP
, which he expanded to a full-length album in 1999. The EP and album's concept is intentionally misleading: U.S. states feature prominently in the title and chorus of each song, but have very little to do with their actual narratives: "Montana", for instance, is about the insane ramblings of somebody who is about to die; "Idaho" explores a famous rock story in which John Lennon
, having consumed hallucinogenic drugs, believed he could drive his house; "South Carolina" is about getting rich as a result of a bicycle accident.
Other side-projects include the limited-release House of Mayors EP in 1996, the 1997 Olive, the Other Reindeer
single released under pseudonym Johnny Hart, and playing the accordion on David Byrne
's 2004 effort, Grown Backwards
.
In 2009 he sang "Other Father Song" in the movie, Coraline
.
, and 1,038 behind Madonna
). He responded to the curious poll results with an op-ed piece in The New York Times
:
He went on to say, of online voting:
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
musician
Musician
A musician is an artist who plays a musical instrument. It may or may not be the person's profession. Musicians can be classified by their roles in performing music and writing music.Also....* A person who makes music a profession....
, is known primarily as one half of Brooklyn
Brooklyn
Brooklyn is the most populous of New York City's five boroughs, with nearly 2.6 million residents, and the second-largest in area. Since 1896, Brooklyn has had the same boundaries as Kings County, which is now the most populous county in New York State and the second-most densely populated...
, New York alternative rock
Alternative rock
Alternative rock is a genre of rock music and a term used to describe a diverse musical movement that emerged from the independent music underground of the 1980s and became widely popular by the 1990s...
duo They Might Be Giants
They Might Be Giants
They Might Be Giants is an American alternative rock band formed in 1982 by John Flansburgh and John Linnell. During TMBG's early years Flansburgh and Linnell were frequently accompanied by a drum machine. In the early 1990s, TMBG became a full band. Currently, the members of TMBG are...
. In addition to singing
Singing
Singing is the act of producing musical sounds with the voice, and augments regular speech by the use of both tonality and rhythm. One who sings is called a singer or vocalist. Singers perform music known as songs that can be sung either with or without accompaniment by musical instruments...
and songwriting, he plays accordion
Accordion
The accordion is a box-shaped musical instrument of the bellows-driven free-reed aerophone family, sometimes referred to as a squeezebox. A person who plays the accordion is called an accordionist....
, baritone
Baritone saxophone
The baritone saxophone, often called "bari sax" , is one of the largest and lowest pitched members of the saxophone family. It was invented by Adolphe Sax. The baritone is distinguished from smaller sizes of saxophone by the extra loop near its mouthpiece...
and bass saxophone
Bass saxophone
The bass saxophone is the second largest member of the saxophone family. Its design is similar to that of the baritone saxophone, with a loop of tubing near the mouthpiece. It was the first type of saxophone presented to the public, when Adolphe Sax exhibited a bass saxophone in C at an exhibition...
, clarinet
Clarinet
The clarinet is a musical instrument of woodwind type. The name derives from adding the suffix -et to the Italian word clarino , as the first clarinets had a strident tone similar to that of a trumpet. The instrument has an approximately cylindrical bore, and uses a single reed...
, and keyboards
Keyboard instrument
A keyboard instrument is a musical instrument which is played using a musical keyboard. The most common of these is the piano. Other widely used keyboard instruments include organs of various types as well as other mechanical, electromechanical and electronic instruments...
for the group.
Linnell's lyrics are perhaps most well-known for their inclusion of strange subject matter and wordplay
Word play
Word play or wordplay is a literary technique in which the words that are used become the main subject of the work, primarily for the purpose of intended effect or amusement...
. Persistent themes include aging, delusional behavior, bad relationships, death, and the personification of inanimate objects. Conversely, the accompanying melodies are usually cascading and upbeat.
He is married and has a son, Henry. Henry appeared as a performer on They Might Be Giants' children's albums Here Come the ABCs
Here Come the ABCs
Here Come the ABCs is a 2005 DVD and audio CD release by They Might Be Giants, aimed at young children learning the alphabet. The CD and DVD were originally released separately, but since have been released together as a combo....
and Here Come the 123s
Here Come the 123s
Here Come the 123s is the 13th studio album by They Might Be Giants. It is the sequel to the group's 2005 album Here Come the ABCs. The songs are edutainment music aimed at kids, this time dealing with numbers. Like ABCs, there is a CD and DVD...
.
They Might Be Giants
Linnell co-founded They Might Be GiantsThey Might Be Giants
They Might Be Giants is an American alternative rock band formed in 1982 by John Flansburgh and John Linnell. During TMBG's early years Flansburgh and Linnell were frequently accompanied by a drum machine. In the early 1990s, TMBG became a full band. Currently, the members of TMBG are...
in 1982 with high school friend John Flansburgh
John Flansburgh
John Conant Flansburgh is an American musician. He is half of the longstanding Brooklyn, New York-based alternative rock duo They Might Be Giants, for which he writes, sings and plays rhythm guitar...
. While the two split singing and songwriting duties roughly in half, Linnell's songs enjoyed the most commercial success in their early years: singles like "Don't Let's Start
Don't Let's Start
"Don't Let's Start" is a song by alternative rock band They Might Be Giants, from their eponymous debut album They Might Be Giants. It was the first single released from the album, released as a maxi-single. The song is one of the band's most popular and well-known songs, despite failing to chart...
" and "Ana Ng
Ana Ng
"Ana Ng" is a song by alternative rock band They Might Be Giants. It was released as the lead single from the band's 1988 album Lincoln. Although the song was their first US chart appearance, hitting #11 on the US Modern Rock chart, the single was never officially released in the US...
" introduced the band to college radio
Campus radio
Campus radio is a type of radio station that is run by the students of a college, university or other educational institution. Programming may be exclusively by students, or may include programmers from the wider community in which the radio station is based...
, and they made waves on the Billboard charts in 1990 with "Birdhouse in Your Soul
Birdhouse in Your Soul
"Birdhouse in Your Soul" is a song by American alternative rock band They Might Be Giants. It was released in March 1990 as a single from the album Flood. It reached #3 on the United States Modern Rock Tracks chart and #6 on the UK Singles Chart and remains their highest-charting single in both...
".
Linnell described his role in the group during an interview for Splatter Effect in 1994:
In December 2005, the band began to produce a twice-monthly podcast
Podcast
A podcast is a series of digital media files that are released episodically and often downloaded through web syndication...
. Early on, Linnell frequently contributed humorous spoken-word pieces to the program.
Side projects
Since 1994, Linnell has done some solo work: in that year he released the State SongsState Songs
State Songs is an album released by John Linnell of They Might Be Giants in 1999. It was Linnell's second full solo album, following 1996's House of Mayors. Four of the tracks on the album featured the carousel organ. This concept album consists almost entirely of tracks that are named after, and...
EP
Extended play
An EP is a musical recording which contains more music than a single, but is too short to qualify as a full album or LP. The term EP originally referred only to specific types of vinyl records other than 78 rpm standard play records and LP records, but it is now applied to mid-length Compact...
, which he expanded to a full-length album in 1999. The EP and album's concept is intentionally misleading: U.S. states feature prominently in the title and chorus of each song, but have very little to do with their actual narratives: "Montana", for instance, is about the insane ramblings of somebody who is about to die; "Idaho" explores a famous rock story in which John Lennon
John Lennon
John Winston Lennon, MBE was an English musician and singer-songwriter who rose to worldwide fame as one of the founding members of The Beatles, one of the most commercially successful and critically acclaimed acts in the history of popular music...
, having consumed hallucinogenic drugs, believed he could drive his house; "South Carolina" is about getting rich as a result of a bicycle accident.
Other side-projects include the limited-release House of Mayors EP in 1996, the 1997 Olive, the Other Reindeer
Olive, the Other Reindeer
Olive, the Other Reindeer is a CGI animated Christmas television special written by Steve Young, and directed by Oscar Moore. The feature was produced by Matt Groening's The Curiosity Company and animated by DNA Productions...
single released under pseudonym Johnny Hart, and playing the accordion on David Byrne
David Byrne
David Byrne may refer to:*David Byrne , musician and former Talking Heads frontman**David Byrne , his eponymous album*David Byrne , Irish footballer*David Byrne , English footballer...
's 2004 effort, Grown Backwards
Grown Backwards
Grown Backwards is an album by David Byrne, released March 16, 2004.-Track listing:All tracks written by David Byrne, except where noted.#"Glass, Concrete & Stone" – 4:13...
.
In 2009 he sang "Other Father Song" in the movie, Coraline
Coraline (film)
Coraline is a 2009 stop-motion 3D fantasy/horror children's film based on Neil Gaiman's 2002 novel of the same name. It was produced by Laika and distributed by Focus Features. Written and directed by Henry Selick, it was released widely in US theaters on February 6, 2009, after a world premiere at...
.
People magazine poll In a People magazine online poll — "The Most Beautiful People of 1998" — John Linnell finished ninth (with 4,189 votes, eight ahead of Sarah Michelle Gellar
Sarah Michelle Gellar
Sarah Michelle Prinze , known professionally by her birth name of Sarah Michelle Gellar , is an American actress, singer and executive producer...
, and 1,038 behind Madonna
Madonna (entertainer)
Madonna is an American singer-songwriter, actress and entrepreneur. Born in Bay City, Michigan, she moved to New York City in 1977 to pursue a career in modern dance. After performing in the music groups Breakfast Club and Emmy, she released her debut album in 1983...
). He responded to the curious poll results with an op-ed piece in The New York Times
The New York Times
The New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded and continuously published in New York City since 1851. The New York Times has won 106 Pulitzer Prizes, the most of any news organization...
:
He went on to say, of online voting: