The Flaming Lips are known for their lush, multi-layered arrangements, spacey lyrics and bizarre song titles. They are also acclaimed for their elaborate live shows, which typically feature animal suits, puppets, streamers, video projections and complex stage light configurations.
In 2002, Q magazine named The Flaming Lips one of the "50 Bands to See Before You Die". In 2006, Oklahoma City named a street Flaming Lips Alley in their honor.
The group recorded several albums and EPs for Restless Records in the 1980s and early 1990s. After signing to Warner Brothers, they scored a #9 hit on the Billboard Alternative charts (and #55 on Billboard's Hot 100 chart) in 1994 with "She Don't Use Jelly". Although it would be their only hit single, the band has maintained critical respect and, to a lesser extent, commercial viability with sonically majestic albums such as 1995's Clouds Taste Metallic, 1999's The Soft Bulletin, 2002's Yoshimi Battles the Pink Robots and 2006's At War with the Mystics. The Flaming Lips' 12th studio album, Embryonic, was released in October of 2009. A complete cover of Pink Floyd's The Dark Side of the Moon was released in May 2010. The Flaming Lips and Heady Fwends, their collaborative album which features artists like Ke$ha, Bon Iver, Nick Cave and Erykah Badu, was released on Record Store Day, April 2012.
Their next studio album, tentatively titled The Terror, will be released in January 2013.
Their song "Do You Realize??" is the official State Rock Song of Oklahoma.
www.flaminglips.com
Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band
The Flaming Lips Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Sgt. Pepper taught the band to play,
They've been going in and out of style
But they're guaranteed to raise a smile.
So may I introduce to you
The act you've known for all these years
Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band.
We're Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band
We hope you will enjoy the show,
We're Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band
Sit back and let the evening go.
Sgt. Pepper's lonely, Sgt. Pepper's lonely,
Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band
It's wonderful to be here
It's certainly a thrill
You're such a lovely audience
We'd like to take you home with us
We'd love to take you home
I don't really like to stop the show
But I thought that you might like to know
That the singer's going to sing a song
And he wants you all to sing along
So let me introduce to you
The one and only Billy Shears
And Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band.
The opening lines of The Flaming Lips's song Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band pay homage to The Beatles and their album, Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band, which was released twenty years prior. The song is a concept album that tells the story of a fictional band called Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band. The character of Sgt. Pepper is introduced as the one who taught the band to play. The lyrics suggest that the band has been around for some time, going in and out of style, but they are guaranteed to make you smile. The song is a tribute to The Beatles and their music, celebrating the impact they had on society.
As the song progresses, the members of the Lonely Hearts Club Band introduce themselves and invite the audience to enjoy the show. They express their gratitude for being able to perform and address the audience as a lovely group of people, who they would love to take home with them. The singer then introduces Billy Shears, who is the lead vocalist of the band. With these lyrics, The Flaming Lips pay tribute to The Beatles, and the many musicians who were influenced and inspired by them. Overall, this song serves as a homage to the amazing music created by The Beatles and highlights the power of their work even years later.
Line by Line Meaning
It was twenty years ago today,
Sgt. Pepper started teaching the band to play 20 years ago.
Sgt. Pepper taught the band to play,
Sgt. Pepper taught the band how to make music.
They've been going in and out of style
The band's popularity has been fluctuating.
But they're guaranteed to raise a smile.
Their music is sure to make people happy.
So may I introduce to you
Allow me to present to you
The act you've known for all these years
The band you've been familiar with all this time.
Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band.
The band is called Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band.
We're Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band
We are the band called Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band.
We hope you will enjoy the show,
We hope that you'll like our performance.
Sit back and let the evening go.
Relax and let the night unfurl.
Sgt. Pepper's lonely, Sgt. Pepper's lonely,
Sgt. Pepper is alone and lonely.
Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band
This is Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band.
It's wonderful to be here
We're happy to be present.
It's certainly a thrill
It's definitely exciting.
You're such a lovely audience
You are all great listeners.
We'd like to take you home with us
We would love to have you come with us.
We'd love to take you home
We really want to take you home with us.
I don't really like to stop the show
I hate to interrupt the performance.
But I thought that you might like to know
But I think you should know
That the singer's going to sing a song
That the vocalist will perform a song.
And he wants you all to sing along
And he would like for all of you to join in.
So let me introduce to you
Let me present to you
The one and only Billy Shears
Here is the one and only Billy Shears.
And Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band.
Together with Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band.
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: John Lennon, Paul Mccartney
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind