10,000 Maniacs have gone through a variety of musicians throughout the history of the band. Here is a partial list of the past, present, and touring musicians:
Jerry Augustyniak - Jerry has been the drummer of 10,000 Maniacs since 1983. He's also played with the bands The Stains, Only Humen, League of Blind Women, The Michael Lee Jackson Band, Buffalo Rising, The Damn Straights, etc. He has been the band's main backing vocalist since 1994.
Rob Buck - Rob was the lead guitar player from 1981 to 1999. He co-wrote many of the band's most popular songs. Rob died December 19, 2000 of liver failure at the age of 42.
Duane Calhoun - Duane played lead guitar for 10,000 Maniacs in 1981 while Rob Buck was officially in the band, but not performing with them.
Chet Cardinale - Chet was an early drummer for the band. He left to pursue a career in acupuncture.
Jim Colavito - Jim played saxophone with the band in 1981.
Dennis Drew - Dennis has been the keyboard player in the band since 1981. He's also played with The Mighty Wallop!, where he co-wrote much of the band's material, played keyboards, and had lead and harmony vocal duties.
Jeff Erickson - Jeff took over lead guitar after his friend and guitar teacher Rob Buck died, beginning by playing a short set during the band's only 2001 appearance. The first time he played with the band was December 12, 1998 on the song "These Are Days", while Buck was away from the band. Jeff was a lead singer/guitar player in the short-lived band The Mighty Wallop!.
Tim Edborg - Tim played drums with 10,000 Maniacs in 1981.
Morgan Fichter - Morgan was a touring musician with the band in 1992-1993, playing violin and singing backing vocals. She's also played with Camper Van Beethoven and Phish among others.
Jim Foti - Jim was the studio drummer for the band's 1982 EP Human Conflict Number Five.
Steve Gustafson - Steve has been the band's bass player since 1981. He has also been one of the band's backing vocalists in their live performances since 1994. He was also the bass player in The Mighty Wallop!.
Debbie Heverly - Debbie played piano with the band in 1981.
Michael Lee Jackson - Michael replaced Rob Buck as the touring lead guitar player on December 11, 1998 and stayed in that spot until the summer of 1999, when Buck returned. Michael has played in Animal Planet and The Michael Lee Jackson Band.
Amanda Kramer - Amanda was a touring musician with 10,000 Maniacs in 1992 and 1993 as a second keyboard player, also lending her harmony vocals to some of the songs. Occasionally, she'd back Rob up on guitar, picking up an acoustic on several songs. She was formerly the Keyboardist for the 80's New Wave band Information Society
John Lombardo - John, the band's rhythm guitar player and occasional odd vocalist, co-wrote most of the early Maniacs songs, but left the band in 1986, right before the band "made it big." He returned in 1994 with his duo partner Mary Ramsey, and picked up right where he left off by writing and shaping the band's music. He left the band again in 2002 after the first rehearsal before the "hits" tour.
Natalie Merchant - Natalie was the voice of 10,000 Maniacs from 1981 until she decided to embark on a solo career in 1993. In her later years with the band, she played piano as well.
Terry Newhouse - Born February 19, 1957 in Corry, Pennsylvania, Terry was a keyboard player and vocalist in the band "Still Life", which was the band's name before they began calling themselves "10,000 Maniacs." At one time, she was married to Rob Buck. Newhouse died June 8, 2005 at WCA Hospital in Jamestown, New York at the age of 48.
Mary Ramsey - Mary opened up shows with John Lombardo as John & Mary in 1990 and would play viola and sing backing vocals with the band on a few songs in 1990-1991. She a touring musician with the band in 1992-1993, playing viola and singing backing vocals. When Natalie Merchant left the band in 1993, Mary replaced her on lead vocals and added the viola as a main instrument of the band, starting with live shows in 1994 and continuing on until 2001. Oskar Saville replaced her as lead singer in 2002, but Mary agreed to become a touring musician with the band in 2006, singing backing vocals and playing viola on select songs. Mary agreed to be the lead singer for the band again for their final show of 2007 after Oskar Saville left the band.
Oskar Saville - Oskar took over lead vocals from Mary Ramsey in 2002. She occasionally plays acoustic guitar during live performances. May 8, 2003 was her first live performance with the band. During the song "Stockton Gala Days", she pulled the band's webmaster (at the time) Adam Zeitz on stage to share lead vocals. Oskar was the former lead singer of Rubygrass and also has a solo career. She left the band in late Summer, 2007 and was replaced by the woman she replaced, Mary Ramsey.
You Happy Puppet
10000 Maniacs Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
How did you learn everything that comes along with slavish funnery?
Tell me something, if the world is so insane,
is it making you sane again to let another man tug at the thread that pulls up your nodding head?
How did they teach you to be just a happy puppet dancing on a string?
How do you manage to live inside this tiny stage you can't leave?
Tell me something, if the world is so insane,
A dullard strung on the wire.
When the master's gone you hang there with your eyes and your limbs so lifeless.
How did they teach you to be just a happy puppet dancing on a string?
How do you manage to speak, your mouth a frozen grin?
A dullard strung on the wire.
When the master's gone you hang there with your eyes and your limbs so lifeless.
Tell me something, if the world is so insane,
is it making you sane again to let another man tug at the thread that pulls up your empty wooden head?
Your hollow head, your marble eyes, your wooden hands and your metal jaw pins
all wait in limbo for the man who knows how to move you this way.
The lyrics of 10000 Maniacs' song "You Happy Puppet" explore the idea of conformity and the power dynamics implicit in social structures. The song asks how people are taught to be "happy puppets," going through the motions of life without questioning their place in society. The lyrics describe the puppet as being strung up on a wire, controlled by an unseen master. The puppet's limbs are described as "lifeless" when the master is gone, suggesting that the puppet has no agency or autonomy outside of the master's control.
The song questions whether it is truly "sane" to let another person control one's actions and thoughts, and whether conformity is worth sacrificing one's individuality. The chorus repeats the question, "How did they teach you to be just a happy puppet dancing on a string?" emphasizing the idea that this is something that is learned, rather than innate.
The lyrics also draw a comparison between the puppet and the singer of the song, asking how they manage to live in a world that feels so stifling and controlled. The puppet's frozen grin is juxtaposed with the singer's questioning tone, suggesting that while the puppet may appear happy, the singer sees through the facade and recognizes that there is something deeply wrong with the puppet's situation.
Line by Line Meaning
How did they teach you to be just a happy puppet dancing on a string?
How were you conditioned to be content with a limited, controlled existence?
How did you learn everything that comes along with slavish funnery?
How did you acquire the skills to perform for the entertainment of others, without any sense of agency?
Tell me something, if the world is so insane, is it making you sane again to let another man tug at the thread that pulls up your nodding head?
If the world is chaotic and unpredictable, does relinquishing your autonomy and allowing someone else to control you provide a sense of stability?
How do you manage to live inside this tiny stage you can't leave?
How do you cope with the limitations and boundaries imposed upon you by others, without any opportunity for self-determination?
A dullard strung on the wire. When the master's gone you hang there with your eyes and your limbs so lifeless.
You are a dull, unthinking prop until someone else pulls the strings, leaving you without vitality or animation once they depart.
How do you manage to speak, your mouth a frozen grin?
How do you maintain a facade of happiness and contentment, even though you are unfulfilled and trapped?
Tell me something, if the world is so insane, is it making you sane again to let another man tug at the thread that pulls up your empty wooden head?
If the world is chaotic and unpredictable, does relinquishing your autonomy and allowing someone else to control you provide a sense of stability, even though it leaves you feeling hollow and lifeless?
Your hollow head, your marble eyes, your wooden hands and your metal jaw pins all wait in limbo for the man who knows how to move you this way.
All of your attributes and features have been carefully constructed and sculpted to facilitate manipulation by those who seek to control and exploit you.
Lyrics Ā© WORDS & MUSIC A DIV OF BIG DEAL MUSIC LLC
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
loser71
Most underrated album EVER!!!! Pure masterpiece from start to finish!
Raul Garza
Ya blind man's zoo
AlyssHeart88
Ive been listing to Natalie all my life.. She is my moms Favorite singer ever. She was my 1st concert. And now that im older.. her music speaks to mw more than ever. Every verse is its own beautiful poem. She is what music should be.. She puts her heart and soul into everything she does and that is REAL talent.
Michele Michele
Yes AlyssHeart88: EVERYTHING YOU SAID!!! She is exactly what music was made for. From her soul right into ours. And she's one of the big inspiration to always made me wish that I could sing, š„°šāļøš
JONATHAN LOCKE
When she looks up and casts a glance directly into the camera, I feel like she is looking into my soul...I die a little, and love her forever...
Lonnie Kerr
Natalie made the band and this is a wonderful trip to better music and yes they were very understated but I guess at the time it just made them more personal to you like your own treasure. They deserved to have made more money for sure but they kept real and i respect Natalie and the band to this day for that.
Amber Puga
The lyrics ring so true today and for such a long time. Imagine if people actually thought for themselves are far ahead a society we would be....
uncpatsskins alfonzo
LOVE HER! what a voice and what a song!
3msyndicate
Is it making you sane again to let another man tug at the thread that pulls up your nodding head?
Natalie was woke af in '89.
Michele Michele
It's funny you want to make it this like club or something almost like BLM we didn't even call it woke we still don't call it woke those of us who are what you would call woke