The studio core comprises Spike Slawson on vocals, bassist Fat Mike, Joey Cape on guitar and backing vocals, Dave Raun on drums, and Chris Shiflett on guitar (his brother Scott of Face To Face/Viva Death fills in for Chris on tour). Touring members have included Brian Baker (Bad Religion/Minor Threat), Barry DaLive (Crosstops/RKL), Eric Melvin (NOFX), Matthew MacNasty (bagpipes player from the Real McKenzies), and Warren Fitzgerald (The Vandals).
Originally a themed 7" singles project, now each of their full length albums covers a different genre of music spanning the 50's to the 90's. Their first release in 1997 was entitled Have a Ball, followed by Are a Drag in 1999. In 2001 they released Blow in the Wind and two years later released Take a Break. Almost immediately after the release of Take a Break the released a live album Ruin Johnny's Bar Mitzvah The genres they've butchered now include country, on Love Their Country featuring covers of songs made popular by The Dixie Chicks, Johnny Cash and others. Their most recent release is a collection of B-sides from their album Have a Ball, simply titled Have Another Ball.
The Gimme Gimmes perform to entertain themselves as much as for the entertainment of their fans. Their albums and concerts are some of the most lighthearted and off the wall musical experiences in the punk world. Concerts are often interrupted between songs to freshen cocktails at the on stage tiki bar. CD liner notes relate the hardships of recording such as Fat Mike getting so caught up in "Wild World" that he believed he was Fat Stevens, a guitar-toting Islamic Extremist, so that when Spike sang "All My Lovin" he mistook it for "Allah my Lovin" and condemned Spike to death for heresy.
The Gimmes are also known for their costumes. Each album has a 'theme' for which they all dress up for the cover art and live shows. Some themes include red suits, metallic suits with fezzes, cheerleader outfits, drag (each Gimme dressed as a character from a musical they took songs from on the cover of Are a Drag: Chris Shiflett was Columbia and Spike was Dr Frank N. Furter from Rocky Horror, Joey Cape was Annie, Fat Mike was Sandy from Grease and Dave Raun was Dorothy from the Wizard of Oz). During a Warped Tour they dressed as AFI, to the confusion of many fans. Most recently they have been dressing as cowboys, but are possibly best known for their lurid Hawaiian shirts.
Or their live album, "Me First and the Gimme Gimmes Ruin Jonny's Bar Mitzvah", the band performed for a crowd of 30 at a Bar Mitzvah. The CD contained video of the actual event and the liner notes were written by attendee Benjamin Rosenblatt who describes the events: "They made a lot of mistakes. They even started a song then stopped, then started again." -track 7 "Strawberry Fields Forever" on the CD.
Sloop John B.
Me First and the Gimme Gimmes Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Grandfather and me
Around Nassau Town we did roam
Drinking all night
Got into a fight
Well I feel so broke up, I wanna go home
The first mate he got drunk
The constable had to come and take him away
Sheriff John Stone
Why don't you leave me alone?
Well I feel so broke up I wanna go home
So hoist up the John B's sail
See how the mainsail sets
Call for the captain ashore
Let me go home, let me go home
I wanna go home
I feel so broke up, I wanna go home
The poor cook he caught the shits
And threw away all my grits
And then he took and ate up all of my corn
Let me go home
Why don't they let me go home?
This is the worst trip I've ever been on
The lyrics to "Sloop John B." by Me First and the Gimme Gimmes describe a drunken and disastrous trip on a ship with Grandfather and the singer. The story follows the crew as they travel around Nassau Town drinking all night and getting into a fight. The first mate gets drunk and breaks into the captain's bunk, causing the constable to come and take him away. The sheriff, John Stone, seems to be bothering the singer as well, and they are all feeling so hopeless and broken up that they just want to go home.
The singer recounts how the cook became ill and threw away all his grits, then ate all the corn, making him feel even more miserable. The song ends with a plea to "hoist up the John B's sail" and to "let me go home" because this was "the worst trip" of the singer's life. The lyrics paint a picture of a chaotic, uncomfortable, and stressful experience that makes the characters yearn for the comfort and solace of their homes.
Line by Line Meaning
We come on the sloop John B
We arrived on the ship named Sloop John B
Grandfather and me
My grandfather accompanied me
Around Nassau Town we did roam
We wandered around Nassau Town
Drinking all night
We consumed alcoholic drinks all night
Got into a fight
We got into a physical altercation
Well I feel so broke up, I wanna go home
I feel distressed and want to return home
The first mate he got drunk
The first mate became intoxicated
Broke in the captains bunk
The first mate forcibly entered the captain's sleeping quarters
The constable had to come and take him away
The law enforcement officer had to arrest and remove him from the ship
Sheriff John Stone
A sheriff named John Stone
Why don't you leave me alone?
Why don’t you stop bothering me?
Well I feel so broke up I wanna go home
I feel distressed and want to return home
So hoist up the John B's sail
Raise the sail of the ship, Sloop John B
See how the mainsail sets
Look at how the biggest sail is positioned
Call for the captain ashore
Request the captain of the ship to come to land
Let me go home, let me go home
Allow me to return home
I wanna go home
I desire to go back to my residence
I feel so broke up, I wanna go home
I feel distressed and want to return home
The poor cook he caught the shits
The chef contracted diarrhea
And threw away all my grits
And disposed of all my food made of coarsely ground corn
And then he took and ate up all of my corn
And then he consumed all the corn I had
Let me go home
Allow me to return home
Why don't they let me go home?
Why aren’t they permitting me to return home?
This is the worst trip I've ever been on
This journey is the worst experience of my life so far
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: Brian Wilson
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@rowser2468
You have to wonder how Martin Scorsese comes across these songs ! Unbelievable songs
@TheKassicRock2
This song is a traditional folk song, but The Beach Boys made it popular, he just couldn't afford their version (which is a lot better honestly)
@Ader03A
John P
True, as a song Beach Boys' version is better but in my opinion this version suits the scene better.
@TheKassicRock2
I agree, the scene wouldn't be the same with out this version
@rowser2468
I thought this version was much better than the beach boys
@TheKassicRock2
Usually, whichever you hear first you end up liking better
@dinoramone6761
Love the Ramones intro, then the Beach Boys cover.
I'm sure Joey would have loved it.
@beinyourguard
YOU KNOW WHAT I CALL THEM? FUN COUPONS!
@RuledByMars
just saw Wolf yesterday! Great scene!
@hooleefakrun9846
Bitteeeeeee bitteeeeeeee