Greetings from Timbuk 3

Infobox Album | Name = Greetings From Timbuk 3
Type = Album
Artist = Timbuk 3


Released = 1986
Recorded = ???
Genre = Rock
Length = 36:05
Label = I.R.S.
Producer = Pat McDonald
Reviews =
* [http://www.allmusic.com/cg/amg.dll?p=amg&sql=10:tdjc7iajg75r Allmusic.com] Rating|4|5| Last album =
This album = "Greetings From Timbuk 3"
(1986)
Next album = "Eden Alley"
(1988)

"Greetings From Timbuk 3" was the debut album from Timbuk 3. The album contains their only charting single, "The Future's So Bright, I Gotta Wear Shades". Other singles from the album include "Life is Hard" and "Hairstyles and Attitudes". All three singles had accompanying music video releases.

Aside from the iconic "Future's So Bright", the album is notable for establishing Timbuk3's brand of cynical optimism (or at least sarcastic good humor), as conveyed through Pat MacDonald's wise-cracking lyrics. Examples:

(from "The Future's so Bright...")"I got a job waitin' / for my graduation / 50 thou a year'll buy a lot of beer / things are going great / and they're only getting better / I'm doin' alright / gettin' good grades / The future's so bright, I gotta wear shades."

(from "Life is Hard")"After he stiffed a waitress / and ran out on his tab / Big Mac had a heart attack / in the back of a yellow cab / By the time the sound of the siren / said the ambulance was comin' / his heart had stopped beating / but the meter was still runnin'."

(from "Shame On You")"Shame on you / you could've been on T.V. / Shame on you / you've got too much integrity / Shame on you / you shoulda kept the door open / shame on you / you're just too outspoken."

The album also establishes Timbuk3's tendency toward social and political commentary - perhaps most explicitly in the opening lines of "Just Another Movie":

"Presidential elections / are planned distractions / to divert attention / from the action behind the scenes / Like a game of chess when the house is a mess / or a petty-money squabble when your marriage is in trouble / or a football game, when there's rioting in the streets / It's just another movie..."

Timbuk3 would press further into the realm of socio-political commentary in their subsequent albums, especially Edge of Allegiance and Eden Alley.

Track listing

All songs were written by Pat McDonald.

# "The Future's So Bright, I Gotta Wear Shades" – 3:21
# "Life is Hard" – 4:08
# "Hairstyles and Attitudes" – 2:51
# "Facts About Cats" – 3:16
# "I Need You" – 3:50
# "Just Another Movie" – 4:16
# "Friction" – 3:44
# "Cheap Black and White" – 2:54
# "Shame On You" – 5:04
# "I Love You in the Strangest Way" – 2:41