Rock Lobster is Kid Apprpriate, Right?

My wife made a CD for our kid’s first birthday, containing a mix of classic kids’ songs, songs from They Might Be Giants’ albums No and ABC’s, and a few other songs she thinks are fun for kids, or at least, for adults and kids together. (Examples: REM’s “Stand,” The White Stripes’ “We’re going to be friends.”)

One of the songs in the latter category is the B-52’s “Rock Lobster.” I can’t understand 100% of the lyrics. Just want to make sure–its kid appropriate, right?

-FrL-

You be the judge. They seem fine to me, mostly nonsense, which kids like.

Like a good percentage of their songs, the B-52’s Rock Lobster is quirky but fluffy nonsense. I believe it’s kid-safe (warning: I have no actual children of my own, so my viewpoint may differ radically from yours).

The Lyrics

“Everybody’s fruggin’”…

Hmm… surely they mean Pretending to be conducting a survey when really trying to raise funds for a cause.

Sounds fine to me!

-FrL-

The frug (pronounced “froog”) was a dance in the sixties. Nothing sexual there.

One of my favourite songs. Silly, nearly meaningless lyrics, as you can see here . If you think the line "Everybody’s fruggin’ " sounds a bit suspect, be aware that the Frug was a dance in the 1960s. The only other thing I can think of that might be “damageing” to young minds is near the end of the song, where she represents a dogfish by saying “miaow” and a catfish with “woo-oof”, but if you calmly explain to your kids that “it’s only a song”, and then distract them with ice-cream or biscuits, it shouldn’t cause too much harm.
My verdict - Totally Kid Safe, and a great little song.

Rocky

Cake, on the other hand, is more than a little blatant in its choice of imagery.

Hey, if you can’t figure out what the lyrics mean, what are the odds your kid will be able to do it?

I don’t trust that narwhal!

I dunno - my husband listened to a lot of B-52s when he was a kid, and he turned out pretty weird. Consider this fair warning. :wink:

Huh. I once dated an older woman who introduced to me the G Spot with a judicious application of Rock Lobster. It seemed to work.

Maybe it was the rhythm. shrug

Given his parentage, I fully expect my kiddo to turn out pretty wierd, so that’s not my worry. :stuck_out_tongue:

I didn’t mention the CD is being distributed to other children. I was more concerned about the other kids’ parents’ reaction than my own kid’s mental health.

-FrL-

The only good version of “Rock Lobster” is the Peter Griffin version. :slight_smile:

My mother used to work with one of the women in the B52’s…at a research company that did phone surveys. I don’t believe any frugging went on.

Kate or Cindy?

Kate, I think. The one with red hair who’s on those VH1 “One Hit Wonders” countdowns.

Also Ricky Wilson went to my college (Grinnell). I don’t think he graduated, though.

And that’s all my personal connections to the B52’s.

Pfft. My Dad raised me on a steady diet of B-52s and Devo since the day I sprung forth from my mother’s loins, and I turned out…

Ah, forget it. I’ve got no credibility here. :smack:

I’m gonna go wear my red Devo hat and sit in front of the strobe light. And eat Quiche Lorraine. And think about 54 girls, west of venus. I’m through being cool. I’m living in my own private Idaho.

Did you know there’s a moon in the sky? It’s called “the moon”.

There’s a monster in my pants and it does a nasty dance… oops. Sorry Fred.

I love you sweetie, but I think you meant 52 girls.

and i always thought i was the only person who bought this album :smiley:

Come on, now, that song was popular (with my dad) when I was one! One! It’s amazing I could remember there was a number in it at all! :wink:

My husband secretly loathes me for owning it and subjecting him to it now and then. :cool: