Samiksha Jaiswal (Editor)

Don't Let's Start

Updated on
Edit
Like
Comment
Share on FacebookTweet on TwitterShare on LinkedInShare on Reddit
Released
  
November 2, 1987

Length
  
2:36

Genre
  
Alternative rock

B-side
  
"We're the Replacements", "When It Rains It Snows", "The Famous Polka"

Recorded
  
Dubway Studio, New York City

Label
  
Bar/None, Restless Elektra (Re-issue)

"Don't Let's Start" is a popular 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 achieve significant commercial success. The single peaked at #94 on the Australian ARIA singles chart in 1988. It was later re-released by Elektra in 1990 after the success of the band's third album, Flood.

Contents

The single mix differs slightly from the album version, including an unprocessed tone for the synth bass, and a different drum take.

Lyrical content

The lyrics of "Don't Let's Start" include a number of dark, pointed statements as "everybody dies frustrated and sad, and that is beautiful," John Linnell has repeatedly insisted that some of its lyrical twists, though pondered extensively by fans, were constructed to complement the melody and are not always meaningful. This is further stressed by Linnell's ambiguity, upon being asked about the origin of the song's obscure lyrics, replying "where did it come from? I made it up."

Music video

A music video was produced for the song, and it found some success at that time on MTV. It was included on MTV's 1999 list of the "100 Greatest Music Videos Ever Made" at #89. The video was directed by Adam Bernstein and filmed inside the New York State Pavilion in Flushing Meadows Park, the site of the 1964 New York World's Fair. The band is featured wearing tall hats which consist of rolled-up carpets with fabric stapled to the outside. The video also features large cardboard cutouts of the face of William Allen White. His face also appears on the "Don't Let's Start" CD single, and has frequently been used in other contexts associated with TMBG.

  • The song was covered by the band Common Rotation on their album The Big Fear.
  • Jimmy Eat World quotes the song in "A Praise Chorus" on their 2001 CD, Bleed American (although the part is sung by guest vocalist Davey von Bohlen of The Promise Ring).
  • The song is referenced in Ernest Cline's novel, Ready Player One.
  • Episode six from season eleven of Grey's Anatomy was named after the song.

    • Track listing

    Maxi-single
    1. "Don't Let's Start" (single mix) – 2:35
    2. "We're The Replacements" – 1:55
    3. "When It Rains It Snows" – 1:36
    4. "The Famous Polka" – 1:32
    1990 maxi-single re-release
    1. "Don't Let's Start" (single mix) – 2:35
    2. "Your Racist Friend" (remix) – 3:50
    3. "She's an Angel" – 2:37
    4. "Absolutely Bill's Mood" – 2:38
    1990 single re-release
    1. "Don't Let's Start" (single mix) – 2:35
    2. "Letterbox" – 1:25
    3. "Sapphire Bullets of Pure Love" – 1:36

    References

    Don't Let's Start Wikipedia
    (Text) CC BY-SA