John Flansburgh, vocalist, guitarist and drum-programmer of They Might Be

Giants, was born 38 years ago today. Reared in Lincoln, Mass.,

Flansburgh and childhood schoolmate John Linnell (vocals, accordion,

keyboards) formed a musical alliance in New York in the early '80s. The

duo named themselves They Might Be Giants after a George C. Scott movie

and began specializing in quirky, geeky alternative-pop (delivered in

short, jingle-like songs) that seemed to be influenced by just about

everyone. Song titles such as "Put Your Hand Inside The Puppet Head"

and "Chess Piece Face" ensured their eventual discovery, and they were

welcomed as part of Manhattan's underground.

They Might Be Giants began displaying their strange but melodic music

and humorous lyrics on a Dial-A-Song telephone service, on which callers

were treated to a different tune every day. They were signed by

Bar/None Records and released their eponymous debut album in 1986. The

duo became college-radio favorites and received some MTV airplay. In 1988,

they released Lincoln, which expanded their following beyond the

college circuit when the track "Ana Ng" enabled the album to crack the top 100.

Elektra Records soon came calling and in 1990 it issued the duo's Flood.

The album went gold, based on

the minor success of the singles "Birdhouse in Your Soul" and "Istanbul

(Not Constantinople)," both of which had videos directed by Flansburgh. To

capitalize on this success, Bar/None released the B-sides and rarities

compilation Miscellaneous T. For the tour supporting their next

album, 1992's Apollo 18, the duo played with a full band for the

first time. But the emergence of grunge soon thwarted They Might Be

Giants' chance at big-time success and the duo now seems destined to be

filed permanently under cult status. Their 1994 album, John Henry, on

which they were accompanied by a full band, was practically ignored by radio

and MTV. Despite continuing their popular gigs on college campuses, They

Might Be Giants had little success with 1996's Factory Showroom.

The album received even less attention than John Henry. In 1997,

the band toured in support of Then: The Earlier Years, a

compilation of its earliest albums plus some unreleased tracks.

Other birthdays: Colin Earl (Mungo Jerry/Foghat), 56; Bob Seger, 53; Jimmie

Dale Gilmore, 53; David Narcizo (Throwing Muses), 32; and Mark Bryan (Hootie

& the Blowfish), 31.