Song
"Genius of Love" was Tom Tom Club's second single. Although the album had not been released in North America, over a hundred thousand copies of the single sold as imports from Island Records's UK, at which point Sire Records made a deal to release the single and the album in North America in late 1981.
"Genius of Love" was a huge hit making the top 40 on the US Billboard Hot 100 (Peaking at #31), in the clubs and on the R&B and dance charts, soon earning the Tom Tom Club LP a Gold Sales Award in 1982. Despite its relatively low chart position in the United Kingdom, the song received a great deal of airplay on UK radio and became a club favorite in Britain, helped by the popularity of the accompanying video. A song based on the keyboards-and-bass rhythm in "Genius of Love" was used in a long-running TV advertising campaign in the UK by the Bird's desserts company in the second half of the 1980s, the commercials featuring a spin on the psychedelic animation of the Tom Tom Club video using rudimentary CGI. In 2002 it was also used in a popular TV commercial for Kia cars.
The song's narrator implies that her boyfriend is a "maven of funk mutation" and compares him to James Brown, Bob Marley, Smokey Robinson, Hamilton Bohannon, George Clinton, Bootsy Collins, Sly and Robbie, and Kurtis Blow.
Tom Tom Club appeared in the 1984 Talking Heads concert movie Stop Making Sense performing "Genius of Love," although this incarnation of the group did not include Tina Weymouth's sisters Laura and Lani. Director Jonathan Demme added "Genius of Love" to the concert primarily so that David Byrne could exit the stage and change into his oversized suit, and he assured Weymouth that the performance would not be included on the final cut of the film. When Weymouth saw an early screening of the film she was thus surprised and irritated to see "Genius of Love," but Demme refused to change anything before the official release.
Genius of Love
Tom Tom Club Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
I'm gonna have some fun
What do you consider fun?
Fun, natural fun
I'm in heaven
With my boyfriend, my laughing boyfriend
There's no beginning and there is no end
He'll take my arm
When we're walkin', rolling and rocking
It's one time I'm glad I'm not a man
Feels like I'm dreaming, but I'm not sleeping
I'm in heaven
With the maven of funk mutation
Clinton's musicians such as Bootsy Collins
Raise expectations to a new intention
No one can sing
Quite like Smokey, Smokey Robinson
Wailin' and skankin' to Bob Marley
Reggae's expanding with Sly and Robbie
Oops! Your mama said uh
Oops! Your mama said uh
Oops! Your mama said uh
Oops! Your mama
All the weekend
Boyfriend was missing
I surely miss him
The way he'd hold me in his warm arms
We went insane when we took cocaine
"Bohannon, Bohannon, Bohannon, Bohannon"
"Bohannon, Bohannon, Bohannon, Bohannon"
Stepping in a rhythm to a Kurtis Blow
Who needs to think when your feet just go?
With a hippie-the-hip and a hippie-the-hop
Who needs to think when your feet just go
"Bohannon, Bohannon, Bohannon, Bohannon"
Who needs to think when your feet just go
"Bohannon, Bohannon, Bohannon, Bohannon"
James Brown, James Brown
James Brown, James Brown
If you see him
Please remind him, unhappy boyfriend
Well he's the genius of love
He's got a greater depth of feeling
Well he's the genius of love
He's so deep
The lyrics of Tom Tom Club's song "Genius of Love" are a celebration of fun, music, and love. The song opens with a playful conversation between two people. The first asks the other what they will do when they get out of jail, to which the second replies that they want to have fun. The first then asks what the other considers fun, and the reply is "Fun, natural fun." This exchange sets the tone for the rest of the song, which is all about having a good time.
The second verse describes a woman who is in love with her boyfriend. She describes herself as being in heaven with him and says that there is no beginning or end to their relationship. Time does not exist in their dimension. The couple enjoys walking, rolling, and rocking together. The woman is glad that she is not a man because she feels like she is dreaming, but she is not sleeping.
The third verse celebrates the "genius of love." The lyrics reference musicians like Bootsy Collins, Smokey Robinson, Bob Marley, and Sly and Robbie. The song pays homage to these artists for their contributions to music, and it also acknowledges the power of love to inspire creativity.
Overall, "Genius of Love" is an upbeat and joyful song that celebrates the pleasures of life, love, and music.
Line by Line Meaning
What you gonna do when you get out of jail?
What will be your plan when you are released from incarceration?
I'm gonna have some fun
I will indulge in enjoyable activities.
What do you consider fun?
What do you find pleasurable?
Fun, natural fun
Unadulterated enjoyment.
I'm in heaven
I am elated and content.
With my boyfriend, my laughing boyfriend
In the company of my jolly beau.
There's no beginning and there is no end
The experience feels infinite and eternal.
Time isn't present in that dimension
The temporary man-made concept of time doesn't apply.
He'll take my arm
He will hold my hand.
When we're walkin', rolling and rocking
When we stroll along swaying and dancing to the music.
It's one time I'm glad I'm not a man
I am content being a woman in this moment.
Feels like I'm dreaming, but I'm not sleeping
This experience is surreal, but I am not unconscious.
With the maven of funk mutation
In the company of the master of innovative funk music.
Clinton's musicians such as Bootsy Collins
Referring to Bootsy Collins and other musicians associated with George Clinton's P-Funk collective.
Raise expectations to a new intention
Sets the bar high for new musical ambitions.
No one can sing
No other individual has the same vocal abilities or talent as.
Quite like Smokey, Smokey Robinson
As Smokey Robinson, nobody else is capable of singing the same way.
Wailin' and skankin' to Bob Marley
Dancing passionately to the music of Bob Marley.
Reggae's expanding with Sly and Robbie
Sly and Robbie's music is vital to the growth and development of reggae music.
Oops! Your mama said uh
Exclamation of surprise or disbelief.
All the weekend
Throughout the entire weekend.
Boyfriend was missing
My partner was absent.
I surely miss him
I certainly longed for him.
The way he'd hold me in his warm arms
His embrace which enveloped me with warmth and affection.
We went insane when we took cocaine
We became erratic and unpredictable after consuming cocaine.
"Bohannon, Bohannon, Bohannon, Bohannon"
Repetition of musician Hamilton Bohannon's name.
Stepping in a rhythm to a Kurtis Blow
Dancing to the beat of music by rapper Kurtis Blow.
Who needs to think when your feet just go?
Why bother overthinking when enjoying the rhythm and flow of music is sufficient.
With a hippie-the-hip and a hippie-the-hop
Incorporating different styles of music and dance, specifically the hippie/hop culture.
"Bohannon, Bohannon, Bohannon, Bohannon"
Continuing to repeat Hamilton Bohannon's name.
James Brown, James Brown
Referring to the soul legend James Brown.
If you see him
In case you run into him.
Please remind him, unhappy boyfriend
Inform him that he is an unhappy spouse.
He's got a greater depth of feeling
He feels more intensely and profound than most people.
He's so deep
He is incredibly introspective and complex.
Lyrics © Freibank Musikverlags und vermarktungs GmbH, BMG Rights Management, Universal Music Publishing Group, Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: Tina Weymouth, Christopher Frantz, Adrian Belew, Steven J.C. Stanley
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@hamsterdiving7593
I was still a newlywed in 1981, living in Eden Prairie, Minnesota, in an apartment complex that was rather dull and ordinary...
One Saturday, while trying to be a good wife at the age of 20 (🤯) and perform some housecleaning, I turned on the newly created MTV channel on the newly created cable TV, and witnessed a revelation: Tom Tom Club's Genius Of Love music video...
I'd never seen anything like it.
I was mesmerized and didn't get much cleaning done. I also realized as time went on that there was a great big wide world out there that I wanted to experience that my staid, safe, stockbroker husband wasn't into
I realized I was too young to have gotten married and we sadly split up in 1983.
It's safe to say that Genius Of Love was my gateway to independence and it's been a favorite of mine ever since...
❤
@AngiePhoenix85
[Lyrics]
What you gonna do when you get out of jail?
I'm gonna have some fun
What do you consider fun?
Fun, natural fun
I'm in heaven
With my boyfriend, my laughing boyfriend
There's no beginning and there is no end
Time isn't present in that dimension
He'll take my arm
When we're walking, rolling and rocking
It is one time I'm glad I'm not a man
Feels like I'm dreaming, but I'm not sleeping
I'm in heaven
With the maven of funk mutation
Clinton's musicians such as Bootsy Collins
Raise expectations to a new intention
No one can sing
Quite like Smokey, Smokey Robinson
Wailin' and skankin' to Bob Marley
Reggae's expanding with Sly and Robbie
Oops! Your mama said uh
Oops! Your mama said uh
Oops! Your mama said uh
Oops! Your mama
Stepping in a rhythm to a Kurtis Blow
Who needs to think when your feet just go
With a hippie-the-hip and a hippie-the-hop
Who needs to think when your feet just go
Bohannon, Bohannon, Bohannon, Bohannon
Who needs to think when your feet just go
Bohannon, Bohannon, Bohannon, Bohannon
James Brown, James Brown
James Brown, James Brown
If you see him
Please remind him, unhappy boyfriend
Well, he's the genius of love
He's got a greater depth of feeling
Well, he's the genius of love
He's so deep
@Mikemikemike13579
This song is almost 40 years old... and still sounds like it could play with today's music.
@iamboomer.4673
No.......................m
@gratefulape12
Because for a couple of decades, pop music has been eating itself.
@leilanilamour5173
Be sure to be obnoxious and bump it extra-loud when driving through your neighborhood lol. I don’t think anyone would mind 🤩👍🏼💖💖💖💖
@Trixtah
Dude, I'm 52, and no, it really could not. it's still fresh in a way, but it doesn't sound like contemporary stuff at all
@Uncle-Smart-Alec
Play with???It destroys today's "musuck!"🧐😤🤬
@lauriekrebs4522
Fun fact: This band was a start-up formed by the bassist for the talking heads. The Talking Heads were huge at the time, but she wanted to get out and sample and do different music. Amazing that this song has so much relevance today. It's an excellent, zany piece of work
@irlBarraON
Superb fun fact!
@theshadowknows6969
I heard somewhere that this is the most sampled song in history. Think it was a talking heads documentary. ..
@NewWaveEnthusiast
@@theshadowknows6969 Yup, this is my first time hearing the original