Skip to content

Cover of Back to Skull by They Might Be Giants — Cover: Back to Skull

Song · They Might Be Giants

“Snail Shell” by They Might Be Giants

From the EP Back to Skull (1994)

“Snail Shell” by They Might Be Giants appears on 17 radio countdowns from 3 stations between 1994 and 2014. It was first released in 1994 on the EP Back to Skull. Its best result is #92 on the Radio & Records Top 94 Songs of 1994. In the combined RockLists rankings it is the #293 alternative song of 1994 and #1,637 alternative song of all time.

17countdowns

3stations

#92best position

0#1 finishes

0top 10 finishes

1994–2014years charted

Watch

They Might Be Giants - Snail Shell (BEST QUALITY Official Music Video)

Video from YouTube (ParticleMen). Pressing play loads YouTube's player. Watch on YouTube

"Snail Shell" arrived on They Might Be Giants' Back to Skull EP in August 1994, written by John Flansburgh and John Linnell. Linnell takes the lead vocal and plays piano and keyboards, Flansburgh handles electric guitar and backing vocals, and Brian Doherty on drums and Tony Maimone on electric bass make up the rhythm section. Paul Fox produced it with the band, and Ed Thacker recorded and mixed it. It's alternative rock with a nervy, knotted energy, guitar and keys jostling for room while Linnell's voice threads through the middle.

Written with AI assistance from RockLists chart data, MusicBrainz.

RockLists rankings

Alternative & Modern Rock

All Rock Formats

Year-end countdowns

Year	#	Station	Countdown	of
1994	92	Radio & Records United States (national airplay chart)	Radio & Records Top 94 Songs of 1994	94

All-time and decade countdowns

Year	#	Station	Countdown	of
1999	1239	CD101	CD101 Top 2000 Songs of All-Time (December 1999)	2000
2000	1239	CD101	CD101 Top 2001 Songs of All-Time (December 2000)	2001
2001	1240	CD101	CD101 Top 2002 Songs of All-Time (December 2001)	2002
2002	1239	CD101	CD101 Top 2003 Songs of All-Time (December 2002)	2003
2002	1518	Fred (XM 44)	Fred XM Top 2002 Songs of All-Time (July 2002)	2002
2003	1224	CD101	CD101 Top 2004 Songs of All-Time (December 2003)	2004
2003	1337	Fred (XM 44)	Fred XM Top 2044 Songs of All-Time (July 2003)	2044
2004	1224	CD101	CD101 Top 2005 Songs of All-Time (December 2004)	2005
2005	1225	CD101	CD101 Top 2006 Songs of All-Time (December 2005)	1994
2007	1194	CD101	CD101 Top 2008 Songs of All-Time (December 2007)	2008
2008	1219	CD101	CD101 Top 2009 Songs of All-Time (December 2008)	2009
2009	1249	CD101	CD101 Top 2010 Songs of All-Time (December 2009)	2010
2010	1280	CD101	CD101 Top 2011 Songs of All-Time (December 2010)	2011
2011	1332	CD101	CD101 Top 2012 Songs of All-Time (December 2011)	2011
2013	1385	CD101	CD101 Top 2013 Songs of All-Time (December 2013)	2012
2014	1447	CD101	CD101 Top 2014 Songs of All-Time (2014)	2013

Charting alongside it in 1994

Best songs of 1994 →

Comments

Log in or create a free account to join the conversation about "Snail Shell" by They Might Be Giants.

No comments yet. Be the first to share your thoughts.