| "Boss of Me" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Single byThey Might Be Giants | ||||
| from the albumMink CarandMusic from Malcolm in the Middle | ||||
| B-side | "Reprehensible" | |||
| Released | July 16, 2001 | |||
| Recorded | 1999 | |||
| Genre | Ska punk[1] | |||
| Length | 2:56 | |||
| Label | Restless /PIAS(EU) Restless /Shock(AU) Rykodisc(US) | |||
| Songwriters | John Flansburgh,John Linnell | |||
| Producers | Pat Dillett,John Flansburgh,John Linnell | |||
| They Might Be Giants singles chronology | ||||
| ||||
| Music video | ||||
| "Boss of Me" onYouTube | ||||
"Boss of Me" is a song by Americanalternative rock bandThey Might Be Giants. The song is famously used as the openingtheme song for the television showMalcolm in the Middle, and was released as the single from the soundtrack to the show. In 2002, "Boss of Me" won the band their firstGrammy Award, in the category ofBest Song Written for a Motion Picture, Television or Other Visual Media. The song was one of the band's most commercially successful singles and is one of their best-known songs. The song was originally written with the chorus "Who's gonna guess the dead guy in the envelope" for a contest presented by thePreston and Steve show during theirY-100 days.
"Boss of Me" was released commercially in theUnited Kingdom,Australia and mainlandEurope. Mainland Europe was given a separate release from the British release, which had different cover artwork and a different track listing. The single was marketed as the single from the soundtrack album,Music from Malcolm in the Middle,[2] but the B-sides to all releases were tracks from They Might Be Giants albums, as opposed to being other tracks from the soundtrack album. "Reprehensible" comes from the band's1999 internet-only album,Long Tall Weekend. "Mr. Xcitement" went on to be included on their albumMink Car, released two months after the single. "Boss of Me" charted in three countries, reaching number 21 in the UK,[3] number 89 in theNetherlands,[4] and saw the band's first appearance on theAustralian Singles Chart, reaching number 29.[5] It also reached the Top 50 on two US radio airplay charts, Alternative (number 48)[6] and Pop (number 50).[7]
The "Boss of Me" music video was directed by Ted Crittenden. It is based onMalcolm in the Middle, and contains the characters and set from the show. It begins withDewey going through a dumpster that says "TMBG Toys". He climbs out of the dumpster and rides his bike home while dragging the box full of toys. The band is performing inside the box. The box goes into Dewey's backyard whereMalcolm is raking leaves, their father,Hal, is cooking on abarbecue grill, andReese is using hedge clippers on a tree. Dewey opens the box, revealing toy versions of TMBG. But whenever there's a close-up in the box, it is the real band in miniature. A Hawaiian hula dancer toy joins TMBG as Dewey sways back and forth with her. Malcolm and Reese begin shooting the toys with paintball guns until one of them accidentally shoots Hal. Though not shown, it's presumed to have been Reese who shot him as he is later seen using a weed whacker. TheJohn Flansburgh toy is lying in the grass with his arm detached. Reese spots him and, while using theweed whacker, launches him onto the grill where Hal accidentally eats him, much to Dewey's shock. Later, theJohn Linnell toy is placed in a model airplane that is launched across the street before curving back and landing on the driveway. As Hal drives up, he picks up the airplane to examine it. The plane explodes because it still had a lit fuse. Hal then angrily gathers the TMBG toys into the box and drives back to the dumpster where he promptly tosses it back in.
Theska-punk bandLess Than Jake covered the short televised version of the song for their albumTV/EP.
All songs written by They Might Be Giants, unless otherwise noted.
| Chart (2001) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Australia (ARIA)[5] | 29 |
| Netherlands (Single Top 100)[4] | 89 |
| UK Singles (OCC)[3] | 21 |
| US Alternative Airplay (Radio and Records)[6] | 48 |
| US Pop Airplay (Radio and Records)[7] | 50 |
| Episodes | |
|---|---|
| Related | |
