Entry of Sultan Mehmed II in Constantinople (1453), painting dated 1876

"Istanbul (Not Constantinople)" is a 1953 novelty song, with lyrics by Jimmy Kennedy and music by Nat Simon. It was written on the 500th anniversary of the fall of Constantinople to the Ottomans. The lyrics humorously refer to the official renaming of the city of Constantinople to Istanbul. The song's original release, performed by The Four Lads, was certified as a gold record. Numerous cover versions have been recorded over the years, most famously a 1990 rock version by They Might Be Giants.

Musical influences

Jazz historian Will Friedwald mentioned that the song is an answer to "C-O-N-S-T-A-N-T-I-N-O-P-L-E," written by Harry Carlton and recorded in 1928 by Paul Whiteman and His Orchestra.[1][2]

The Four Lads original version

"Istanbul (Not Constantinople)" was originally recorded by the Canadian vocal quartet The Four Lads on August 12, 1953. This recording was released by Columbia Records as catalog number 40082. It first reached the Billboard magazine charts on October 24, 1953, and it peaked at #10. It was the group's first gold record.[3][4]

Cover versions

Frankie Vaughan

Frankie Vaughan's 1954 version for HMV reached the UK charts that year with a peak position of No. 11.[5]

Col Joye's Joy Boys

Col Joye's backing band recorded an instrumental version on the Festival Records label, which peaked No. 16 in November 1960 according to the former brand of the ARIA Charts, ending up as No. 95 for the 1961 year-end ranking.[6]

Big Muffin Serious Band

Big Muffin Serious Band, a ukulele-based music performance group from New Zealand, released a cover on their LP "Jabberwocky Goes To Town" in 1987.[7]

They Might Be Giants

"Istanbul (Not Constantinople)"
Single by They Might Be Giants
from the album Flood
B-side"James K. Polk"
ReleasedMay 14, 1990 (1990-05-14)
Genre
Length2:34
Label
Composer(s)Nat Simon
Lyricist(s)Jimmy Kennedy
Producer(s)
They Might Be Giants singles chronology
"Birdhouse in Your Soul"
(1989) 		"Istanbul (Not Constantinople)"
(1990) 		"Twisting"
(1990)
Music video
Istanbul (Not Constantinople) on YouTube

One of the best-known versions of "Istanbul (Not Constantinople)" is the cover by the alternative rock band They Might Be Giants (TMBG), who released it on their album Flood in 1990. It was released as the second single from that album in the same year. TMBG's version is at a faster tempo than the original. The music video was featured in the first season of MTV's Liquid Television. TMBG's version of the song is prominently featured in the Tiny Toon Adventures episode "Tiny Toon Music Television", as the soundtrack to a segment featuring Plucky Duck as a private detective hired to find a missing statue. It was also used as the theme in the 1992 thriller Black Magic starring Judge Reinhold. It later appeared in the first season of the Netflix series The Umbrella Academy, as well as an ending to an episode of The Simpsons, "Mobile Homer". The single reached number 61 on the UK Singles Chart in 1990.[8] TMBG later recorded an electronic version of the song for their 2011 compilation album, Album Raises New and Troubling Questions.

The Sacados

A Spanish language version called "Estambul" was recorded by Argentine synth-pop trio The Sacados in 1990. The song was included on their debut album "Te pido + respeto" (1990).

Bart & Baker

Electro Swing duo Bart & Baker covered the song for their album "The Jet Lag EP" (2012).[9] Another version called "Istanbul 2016" was included on their curation album "Best Of Electro Swing By Bart & Baker" (2016).[10]

Bette Midler

Bette Midler performed the song as part of her 1976 special for Home Box Office, "Live at Last." It appears on the album of the same name.[11]

PJ Harvey

PJ Harvey used a loop of the song as inspiration for the title track of her album Let England Shake. Her release Let England Shake – Demos revealed that The Four Lads original recording was used as a constant sound bed under Let England Shake with PJ Harvey singing lyrics from the song at the end of demo.[12][13]

Live performance cover versions

The Doox of Yale, an a cappella group at Yale University, perform the song at the end of most of their concerts. The song has been in the repertoire of the group since 1953 (when they were known as "The Duke's Men").

During the 2000s, the song was performed live by Australian Klezmer/Gypsy Jazz band Monsieur Camembert, appearing on the album Live on Stage.

References

  1. ^ CD Album: The Four Lads - 16 Most Requested Songs (1991), retrieved 2023-08-25
  2. ^ Carlton, Harry (1928). Constantinople (Published sheet music). New York City: De Sylva, Brown and Henderson, Inc.
  3. ^ "Gold & Platinum certification of albums at RIAA". www.riaa.com. Archived from the original on June 8, 2007. Retrieved November 26, 2006.
  4. ^ Whitburn, Joel (1973). Top Pop Records 1940–1955. Record Research. (Source gives 10/17/1953 as the date that it reached the Billboard charts, see p. 23)
  5. ^ Roberts, David (2005). British Hit Singles & Albums (2005 ed.). London: Guinness World Records. p. 531. ISBN 1-904994-00-8.
  6. ^ "AMR Top Singles of 1961".
  7. ^ "Big Muffin Serious Band – Jabberwocky Goes To Town (1987, Vinyl)". 1987. Retrieved Apr 25, 2021 – via www.discogs.com.
  8. ^ Roberts, David (2005). British Hit Singles & Albums (2005 ed.). London: Guinness World Records. p. 507. ISBN 1-904994-00-8.
  9. ^ "Bart & Baker – Istanbul (Not Constantinople)". Retrieved Apr 25, 2021 – via genius.com.
  10. ^ "Bart&Baker". Apple Books. Retrieved Apr 25, 2021.
  11. ^ Bette Midler - Istanbul (Not Constantinople), 1976, retrieved 2023-09-06
  12. ^ Grow, Kory (2021-12-02). "Hear How a Fifties Novelty Hit Influenced One of PJ Harvey's Best Songs". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 2024-01-31.
  13. ^ "PJ Harvey: Let England Shake - Demos". Pitchfork. Retrieved 2024-01-31.
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