Mudhoney's early releases on the Sub Pop label, particularly their debut single "Touch Me I'm Sick" and the Superfuzz Bigmuff EP, were massively influential on the Seattle music scene. More than almost any other release of the era they inspired the dirty, high-distortion sound that would become grunge. Later on, Mudhoney also mixed heavy blues rock and punk rock into their sound at various stages. Although the band has found little commercial success during its long career, which has yielded ten studio albums, it has inspired countless grunge and alternative rock musicians.
Band history
Mr. Epp and the Calculations
The very beginnings of Mudhoney start out in Bellevue, Washington, a suburb of Seattle. While at Bellevue Christian High School, Mark McLaughlin (later known as Mark Arm) and some friends started Mr. Epp and the Calculations, a band named after a math teacher of his. The band was more a joke band than a real band; their first "show" was in class singing Marvin Gaye's "Got to Give It Up" and using rolled up maps as guitars because they couldn't play real instruments. "Mr. Epp" finally played their first show three years after they formed in 1981. Around this time Mark Arm and a friend of his, Steve Turner formed a more serious yet still humorous band, Limp Richerds. Mr. Epp appeared on KZAM-AM radio and were introduced being called "the worst band in the world". They played their last show on February 3, 1984 with Malfunkshun at the Metropolis in Seattle.
Green River
Green River was formed in 1984 when Mark Arm and Steve Turner pulled together and recruited Alex Vincent, who had previously played with Turner in Spluii Numa. Looking for a bass player the band asked Jeff Ament to join their band. Ament had recently arrived in Seattle with his band Deranged Diction who had come out of Montana. Another one of Turner's former bandmates, Stone Gossard, also decided to play with them. Steve Turner left the band after the recording of Come on Down due to his distaste in the heavy metal leanings of the band. He was replaced by another Derranged Diction member, Bruce Fairweather. After recording two EPs and a full-length album, the band decided to call it quits in 1987. Gossard, Ament, and Fairweather went on to join Mother Love Bone. Following lead singer, Andrew Wood's death, Gossard and Ament went on to form Pearl Jam and Fairweather joined Love Battery. Arm reunited with Steve Turner to form Mudhoney.
Sub Pop (1988–1991)
Steve Turner wanted to start a band that actually rehearsed before they played. He and Mark Arm began working on some music along with Bundle of Hiss drummer Dan Peters. The trio decided that Matt Lukin, who had recently left Melvins, should join them as the bassist. They named themselves Mudhoney after a Russ Meyer film that none of the band members had actually seen.
Mudhoney's partial success led to a number of other Seattle bands, such as Soundgarden, Nirvana, and Tad, gaining some recognition. In the early '90s, Sub Pop was not making very much money. As a result, many of its bands left the label to search for backing by major labels. Mudhoney decided to stay and they released their second album, Every Good Boy Deserves Fudge in 1991. However, after this album was released they were offered a deal with Reprise Records and they left Sub Pop Records to join their new major label in 1992.
Reprise (1992–1999)
As grunge was becoming more mainstream, Mudhoney shifted away from their early grungy music sound. Many of the bands that they were friends with (Nirvana and Pearl Jam) were having huge success and gaining popularity worldwide. Their first album on Reprise was Piece of Cake, which was an album that sounded much more like garage rock than grunge. Despite the fact that the band had signed on to a major label, they still kept their quirkiness and non-careerist attitude with them.
In 1995, when grunge was in its last days in the mainstream, Mudhoney decided to go back to the sound that they used to have. With their album My Brother the Cow they managed to mix both their early heavy dirge songs and some of their more punk rock songs on the same album. The song "Into Your Shtik" is said to be a song which bashes Courtney Love, saying that she should blow her head off too like her husband Kurt Cobain. The album is a fan favorite and is considered one of their finest albums. Two years later they released Tomorrow Hit Today. The album showed that Mudhoney still had their garage rock roots in them as well as including new blues rock type songs.
In 1996, Mudhoney appeared in the comedy movie Black Sheep, starring Chris Farley and David Spade. Mudhoney was shown playing at an MTV concert and then speaking with Farley backstage.
After a few years of touring, Reprise decided to release Mudhoney from their label. One of the reasons was Mudhoney's record sales had reached a career low despite the fact their live shows were drawing more people than ever before. Subsequently, bassist Matt Lukin called it quits, saying that he didn't like touring. The band released March to Fuzz, a retrospective compilation of songs from throughout their career. Many fans thought that the band was going to stop playing music altogether, although they did play a few shows around the Northwest area.
Return to Sub Pop (1999— )
These shows were doing so well that Mudhoney decided to resurrect their careers. They found permanent bassist Guy Maddison (of Monroe's Fur, Lubricated Goat) who had played with Mark Arm in one of his many side projects, Bloodloss. After Arm and Turner spent time with their side project, The Monkeywrench, the band recorded and released Since We've Become Translucent in 2002. In late 2005, the band opened Pearl Jam's South American tour, with concerts in Santiago de Chile, Buenos Aires, Porto Alegre, Curitiba, São Paulo and Rio de Janeiro. In March of 2006, the band released the well received LP, Under a Billion Suns. The band has promoted the album by touring in Europe and the U.S. with bands such as Jennifer Gentle, The Holy Soul and Comets on Fire.
You Got It
Mudhoney Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
They say you got it
I'll say you got it
That's right, you got it
You got it good
You got it
Oh hell, you got it
You got it
You give it away like free samples
But I don't want what anyone can have
You got it
Damn right, you got it
So what?
Keep it outta my face
Keep it outta my face
Keep it outta my face
Keep it outta my face
Yeah
Just 'cause you got it
You think everyone wants you
Just 'cause you got it
You think you're so damn neat
You got it
That's right, you got it
Fuck you
Keep it outta my face
Keep it outta my face
Keep it outta my face
Keep it outta my face
Ow
Yeah
Oh
The lyrics of Mudhoney’s song “You Got It” can be interpreted in a number of ways, but the overall theme seems to be about the superficiality and emptiness of those who solely rely on their physical attributes or material possessions. The song’s opening lines, “They say you got it, I’ll say you got it, That's right, you got it, You got it good” suggest that the subject of the song possesses something that others find attractive or desirable. However, the repetition of the phrase “keep it outta my face” and the aggressive tone of the chorus imply that the singer is not interested in such superficiality or is even repulsed by it.
The second verse of the song highlights this disdain further by saying, “Just 'cause you got it, You think everyone wants you, Just 'cause you got it, You think you're so damn neat.” The singer seems to be fed up with people who flaunt what they have as if it sets them above everybody else. The final lines of the song, “Fuck you” almost seem like an exclamation of frustration towards this type of behavior.
Line by Line Meaning
Well
Starting point, establishing context for following lines
They say you got it
You have a reputation for possessing something desirable (presumably, sex appeal)
I'll say you got it
Confirming that the person being addressed does indeed have this desirable quality
That's right, you got it
Reiterating that the person has the desirable quality
You got it good
The person's possession of the desirable quality is exceptional or noteworthy
You got it
Reaffirming person's possession of desirable quality
Oh hell, you got it
Acknowledging the person's possession of desirable quality with emphasis or hyperbole
You can have it
Acknowledging the person's possession of desirable quality, but notifying them that the artist has no interest in it
You give it away like free samples
The person is promiscuous and indiscriminate in sharing their desirable quality
But I don't want what anyone can have
The artist prefers things that are exclusive or difficult to obtain
You got it
Reaffirming person's possession of desirable quality
Damn right, you got it
Reaffirming person's possession of desirable quality with emphasis
So what?
Implying that the singer does not find the person's possession of desirable quality impressive or important
Keep it outta my face
The singer does not want to be reminded or confronted with the person's desirable quality
Just 'cause you got it
The person is arrogant or presumptuous because of their possession of desirable quality
You think everyone wants you
The person overestimates the appeal of their desirable quality
You think you're so damn neat
The person has an inflated sense of superiority because of their desirable quality
Fuck you
The singer is expressing contempt or anger towards the person
Ow
A vocalization of pain or discomfort
Yeah
An affirmative or supportive interjection
Oh
An exclamation of surprise or amazement
Lyrics © O/B/O APRA AMCOS
Written by: MATTHEW D LUKIN, MARK T MCLAUGHLIN, DANIEL JOE PETERS, STEVEN NEIL TURNER
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind