"Flagpole Sitta" | ||||
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Single by Harvey Danger | ||||
from the album Where Have All the Merrymakers Gone? | ||||
B-side |
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Released | April 27, 1998 | |||
Recorded | June 1996 | |||
Studio | John and Stu's Place (Seattle, Washington) | |||
Genre | ||||
Length | 3:37 | |||
Label | ||||
Songwriter(s) |
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Producer(s) |
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Harvey Danger singles chronology | ||||
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"Flagpole Sitta" is a song by American rock band Harvey Danger from their 1997 debut album, Where Have All the Merrymakers Gone? It was released as the band's debut single in April 1998 and was met with critical and commercial success, peaking at number 38 on the US Billboard Hot 100 Airplay chart, number three on the Billboard Modern Rock Tracks chart, and number nine on the Canadian RPM Alternative 30. A music video was produced to promote the single. [1]
"Flagpole Sitta" was recorded in June 1996 at John and Stu's Place in Seattle, Washington, during the Where Have All the Merrymakers Gone? recording sessions. [2] According to drummer Evan Sult, the song was written as a response to the Seattle music scene of the 1990s and its effect on mainstream culture. [3]
The title of the song was inspired by the 1930 Marx Brothers film Animal Crackers , which features a line of dialogue about the pole sitting fad of the 1920s. [4] The band was inspired to spell "sitter" as "sitta" by the Pavement song "Fame Throwa" and the N.W.A album Straight Outta Compton . [4]
"Flagpole Sitta" gained popularity after Seattle radio station KNDD put the song into rotation. Afterwards, London Records sent a copy of Where Have All the Merrymakers Gone? to KROQ-FM in Los Angeles, who began to air "Flagpole Sitta" and received a positive response from listeners. [5] On April 27, 1998, the song was officially serviced to US rock radio, and a release to contemporary hit radio followed on June 9 of the same year. [6] [7] The song gained further exposure when it was used as the music in theatrical trailers and TV spots for the 1998 film Disturbing Behavior . [8] The track subsequently charted at number 38 on the Billboard Hot 100 Airplay chart. [9]
"Flagpole Sitta" is regarded as a power pop single by MTV and a post-grunge anthem by author Ericka Chickowski. [10] [11] PopMatters describes the single as "a hyper-literate alternative rock dissection of the stupidity of the modern age". [12] Music journalist Rob Sheffield also considers the song as "nineties pop-punk rage at its loudest". [13]
No. | Title | Length |
---|---|---|
1. | "Flagpole Sitta" | 3:37 |
2. | "The Ballad of the Tragic Hero (Pity and Fear)" | 4:30 |
No. | Title | Length |
---|---|---|
1. | "Flagpole Sitta" | 3:37 |
2. | "Wrecking Ball" | 4:39 |
3. | "The Ballad of the Tragic Hero (Pity and Fear)" | 4:30 |
Weekly chart
| Year-end chart
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Region | Date | Format(s) | Label(s) | Ref. |
---|---|---|---|---|
United States | April 27, 1998 | Rock radio | [6] | |
June 9, 1998 | Contemporary hit radio | [7] | ||
United Kingdom | July 20, 1998 |
| [29] |
"Flagpole Sitta" was used as the theme song for the British sitcom Peep Show for the second series through the ninth. In 2008, Harvey Danger singer Sean Nelson stated that Peep Show is "...the only pop culture item the song has been associated with that feels like a kindred spirit to the original attitude of the lyric." [30] In 2016, he said: "It's a joy to be affiliated with something that's so smart and so funny and so kind of rude and weird." [3]
Rolling Stone ranked the track as the 25th-best song of the 1990s and the best song of 1998. [31] [32]
The song was featured in "Weird Al" Yankovic's "Polka Power", the polka medley from his 1999 album, Running with Scissors .
It was also included on the soundtrack to Scooby-Doo 2: Monsters Unleashed . [33]
It was featured in a 2024 Taco Bell television commercial advertising the $7 Luxe Cravings Box's inclusion of 1990s menu item the Gordita Supreme. [34]
"Complicated" is the debut single by Canadian singer-songwriter Avril Lavigne from her debut album, Let Go (2002). It was released on 11 March 2002 by Arista Records. Lavigne and production team the Matrix are credited as writers. Production on the song was helmed by the Matrix. According to Lavigne, the song is about being honest with oneself rather than "putting on a face".
Harvey Danger was an American indie/alternative rock band. It was formed in 1992 in Seattle, Washington, by Aaron Huffman and Jeff J. Lin, who were both journalism students at the University of Washington. Drummer Evan Sult and singer Sean Nelson were brought into the band in 1993, solidifying the band's lineup for the remainder of their initial existence.
"Bitch", also known by its censored title "B***h ", is a song by American singer-songwriter Meredith Brooks and co-written with Shelly Peiken. It was released in March 1997 by Capitol Records as the lead single from Brooks' second album, Blurring the Edges (1997). The song was produced by punk notable Geza X.
Where Have All the Merrymakers Gone? is the debut studio album by American rock band Harvey Danger. It was initially released by the independent record label the Arena Rock Recording Company on July 29, 1997. The second song on the album, "Flagpole Sitta", received extensive airplay in the United States and resulted in the band's fame. As the song gained national attention, the album was picked up and reissued by Slash Records, a label associated with London Records. On July 29, 2014, 17 years to the day after the album's initial release, Where Have All the Merrymakers Gone? was re-released, for the first time as a vinyl LP, by No Sleep Records. The album has been described by Fuse as "a definitive indie power pop punk record at a time and place where grunge reigned supreme".
King James Version is the second studio album by American rock band Harvey Danger, released on September 12, 2000, through London-Sire Records. It was the band's only album recorded for a major label, and their last with drummer Evan Sult. Written and recorded over the span of 16 months with producer John Goodmanson, the album marked a substantial departure from the lo-fi sound of the band's debut, Where Have All the Merrymakers Gone? (1997); it encompassed a variety of rock music styles and explored "the conflict between faith and skepticism". Although the bulk of the album's material was recorded in March and April 1999, work on the album continued periodically until February 2000 due to a dispute surrounding Harvey Danger's contract, which delayed its release.
"Iris" is a song by the American alternative rock band Goo Goo Dolls. Written for the soundtrack of the 1998 film City of Angels, it was included on the sixth Goo Goo Dolls album, Dizzy Up the Girl, and released as a single on April 1, 1998. No character named Iris appears in the film, and the song title is not heard in the lyrics.
"Song 2" is a song by English rock band Blur. The song is the second song on their eponymous fifth studio album. Released physically on 7 April 1997, "Song 2" peaked at number two on the UK Singles Chart, number four on the Australian ARIA Singles Chart, It was also popular on radio stations in the US; consequently, it peaked at number 55 on the Hot 100 Airplay chart, number 6 on Billboard's Modern Rock Tracks chart, staying on that chart for 26 weeks. "Song 2" is certified triple platinum in the UK.
"You Get What You Give" is a song by American alternative rock band New Radicals. It was the first and most successful single from their only studio album, Maybe You've Been Brainwashed Too (1998). Released on November 3, 1998, it reached number 36 on the US Billboard Hot 100 and number eight on the Billboard Modern Rock Tracks chart. Outside the US, it reached number five in the United Kingdom, number four in Ireland, and number one in Canada and New Zealand.
"Smooth" is a song performed by American rock band Santana and Rob Thomas of Matchbox Twenty, who sings the lead vocals. It was released to radio on June 15, 1999, as the lead single from Santana's 1999 studio album, Supernatural. It was physically released as a single in August. It was written by Itaal Shur and Thomas, who re-wrote Shur's original melody and lyrics, and produced by Matt Serletic.
"Wishlist" is a song by the American rock band Pearl Jam. Written by vocalist Eddie Vedder, "Wishlist" was released on May 5, 1998, as the second single from the band's fifth studio album, Yield (1998). In the United States, the song peaked at number six on both the Billboard Mainstream Rock and Modern Rock Tracks charts. The song was included on Pearl Jam's 2004 greatest hits album, rearviewmirror .
"Torn" is a song written by Scott Cutler, Anne Preven—who composed all of the lyrics—and Phil Thornalley in 1991 as a solo song for Preven. It was recorded and performed live during this period, but not given its first formal release until 1993, when Danish singer Lis Sørensen released the song in Danish under the title "Brændt".
"Plush" is a 1993 song by American rock band Stone Temple Pilots, released in August 1993 as the second single from their debut album, Core. It became their first single to top the US Billboard Album Rock Tracks chart; it went on to become that listing's number-one song of 1993.
"One Headlight" is a song by American rock band the Wallflowers. The song was written by lead singer Jakob Dylan, and produced by T Bone Burnett. It was released in January 1997 as the second single from the band's second studio album, Bringing Down the Horse (1996).
"3AM" is the third single and the third track from American rock band Matchbox 20's debut album, Yourself or Someone Like You (1996). Written by Rob Thomas, Jay Stanley, John Leslie Goff, and Brian Yale, the song was inspired by Thomas dealing with his mother's cancer as a teenager. The song was officially serviced to US modern rock radio in October 1997 and was given a commercial release outside North America the following month.
"Push" is a song by American rock band Matchbox Twenty. It was released in 1997 as the second single from their debut album, Yourself or Someone Like You (1996). After landing "Long Day" on several rock radio stations paving the way, "Push" topped the US Modern Rock Tracks chart and became one of the band's signature songs.
"Every Morning" is a song by American rock band Sugar Ray, released as the lead single from their third studio album, 14:59 (1999). The track is an alternative rock and flamenco pop song that references Malo's "Suavecito" and Hugh Masekela's "Grazing in the Grass". Serviced to US radio in December 1998, "Every Morning" was released in Japan in January 1999 and in the United States two months later, making it Sugar Ray's first commercially available single in the US.
"Here Is Gone" is a song by American rock band Goo Goo Dolls. A song about yearning for a deeper relationship with someone, "Here Is Gone" was released on March 11, 2002, as the lead single from the band's seventh studio album, Gutterflower (2002). It reached number 18 on the US Billboard Hot 100 chart and number three on the Adult Top 40. The single also reached number 17 in New Zealand, becoming the group's second top-20 hit there.
"Real World" is a song by American rock group Matchbox 20. It was released in March 1998 as the fourth single from their debut album, Yourself or Someone Like You. The single was initially ineligible to chart on the US Billboard Hot 100 due to not receiving a physical release in North America; it instead peaked at number nine on the Billboard Hot 100 Airplay chart in August 1998. However, in December 1998, the Hot 100 chart rules were changed to allow airplay-only singles to chart, and "Real World" became the band's first single to enter the listing, debuting and peaking at number 38. Worldwide, "Real World" reached number five in Canada and number 40 in Australia.
"Back 2 Good" is a song by American rock band Matchbox 20, released as the fifth single from their 1996 debut album, Yourself or Someone Like You, in September 1998.
"Meet Virginia" is the debut single of American roots rock band Train, released in 1998 from their self-titled debut album. Originally serviced to adult album alternative radio in March 1998, the song took over a year to gain popularity on mainstream radio, eventually reaching number 20 on the US Billboard Hot 100 chart in January 2000, becoming Train's first top-20 hit and their first single to appear on the Hot 100. It also reached the top 20 in Canada, peaking at number 15 on the RPM 100 Hit Tracks chart.
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