Drink!

This song, like so many of their songs, hides the tragedy of the story with an upbeat melody and cheerfully deceptive refrain.

The narrator opens for scolding the already drunk second person. The drunk is mindlessly whacking at the pinata - and he's not even blindfolded!

The song switches to sarcasm in the refrain, as if the narrator is describing the situation from the drunk's point of view. He points out that there's "no big surprise" in getting drunk and foreshadows the demise of the drunk; "burried alive".

Next we learn more about the drunk, who is described as a wallflower. Usually, people who are wallflowers at parties or bars don't feel as though they belong, and drink to compensate. "Look through your peephole" describes how the drunk has shut himself off to the people around him.

Finally, we see into the drunk's job. He's wearing a monkey suit (tuxedo), maybe working for a hotel or restaurant. The point is he's ignored by the lunchtime crowd. All the same, he doesn't want attention paid to him. Poor guy feels like a peon, so continues his downfall into alcoholism.

Maybe there is no second person, and the narrator is actually the drunk. Who knows? There are so many ways to interpret They Might Be Giants.

This song is about how people are "bruried alive" by the 9-5 daily grind of modern society and how alcohol brings them out of their routines for a couple of days only to have them thrown back to the grind.

Let's drink, drink this town is so great Drink, drink cuz it's never too late To drink, drink to no big surprise But what words rhyme with buried alive What words rhyme with buried alive (this is alot like most cities/towns, where most people spend their time drinking off the work week)

You could be a float for the 4th of july Based on your theme of wallflowers grown wild Look thru your peephole, you've won every prize (Refers to how normally quiet and aloof people become extremely social and extroverted under the influence)

In your monkey suit on a cigarette break The lunchtime crowd, they won't even blink But you'd be sad if they did But you'll be sad... (One of the coolest lines in the song, he describes the working man as a monkey trained to do specific tasks and also makes reference to the notion that the every day man wouldn't dare step out of the box during regular hours ' but you'd be sad if they did'

I think that this song, as with most other TMBG songs, was sung for fun, instaid of to put a spiritual message across. Tell me what you guys think.

dang, i thought it was just about some guy(s) getting smashed