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Muppets: The Green Album

Muppets: The Green Album is a cover album of twelve songs originally from the Muppets, covered by alternative rock and pop artists.[1] The album was released by Walt Disney Records on August 23, 2011, on a digipak CD and as a digital download.[2][3] A music video was also produced for the album's sole single; "Muppet Show Theme Song", featuring OK Go attempting to produce their own music video until they are interrupted by the Muppets' antics.[4]

Muppets: The Green Album
Compilation album by
Various artists
ReleasedAugust 23, 2011
StudioVarious
Genre
Length36:40
LabelWalt Disney
ProducerDani Markman
The Muppets chronology
A Muppets Christmas: Letters to Santa
(2008) 		Muppets: The Green Album
(2011) 		The Muppets: Original Soundtrack
(2011)
Singles from Muppets: The Green Album
  1. "Muppet Show Theme Song"
    Released: August 19, 2011

Walt Disney Records announced the album at the 2009 D23 Expo as Muppets Revisited with a projected 2010 release date.[5] The original project's name paralleled the title of Nightmare Revisited, the cover album that Disney had released for The Nightmare Before Christmas in 2008. The album was part of Disney's dualistic effort to revitalize the franchise and to promote the subsequent release of the seventh Muppet film, three months later.[6] The album's name is derived as a parody of the Beatles' White Album and the artwork features a "typographic portrait" of Kermit the Frog's face, which is reminiscent of cover art derived from the rock albums of the 1960s.[7]

Muppets: The Green Album was generally well received by critics and debuted at number 1 on both Billboard's Rock Albums and Alternative Albums charts.[8][9] With an estimated 30,000 copies initially sold, the album also peaked at number 8 on the Billboard 200 chart, becoming the first Muppet album to reach the top 10.[10][11]

Release and promotion

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Walt Disney Records made the entire album available for preview through NPR's First Listen program a week before release.[12]

The music video for "Muppet Show Theme Song" was released online and for purchase on August 19, 2011.[4] On August 31, OK Go and Animal[13] had a live performance on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno.[14]

Music video

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The members of OK Go are preparing to sing "The Muppet Show Theme" (titled as "Muppet Show Theme Song" on the album), with the help of an elaborate machine, which is inadvertently destroyed by Sweetums. The band is then shown through recreations of their own music videos and homages of traditional Muppet Show sketches, while being accompanied by The Muppets. Statler and Waldorf, are shown at one point briefly watching the video from a computer, but are not satisfied with the Muppets' performances as usual and decide to watch cat videos instead. The video concludes/ends with a series of pseudo-fictional dream sequences, such as Damian Kulash waking up in terror while sleeping with Animal, Dr. Teeth, and Floyd Pepper, Dr. Teeth himself, waking up alongside the OK Go members, and Tim Nordwind finding himself next to Rowlf the Dog, Foo-Foo, a sheep and Kulash's dog, Bunny. The video alludes to former OK Go music videos, including; "Here It Goes Again", "This Too Shall Pass", "All Is Not Lost" and "White Knuckles".[14][15][16]

The video has been broadcast on the Disney Channel, Disney XD and Radio Disney. It won the People's Voice Webby Award for the "Viral Video" category at the 16th Annual Webby Awards.[17]

Muppet performers

Reception

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Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
SourceRating
Metacritic60/100[18]
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic     [19]
Alternative Press     [20]
Artistdirect     [21]
Cinema Blend     [22]
Consequence of Sound     [23]
IGN(8/10)[24]
Spin(7/10)[25]
Sputnikmusic(2.5/5)[26]
Toronto Star    [27]

Muppets: The Green Album received mixed to positive reviews from music critics.[18] At Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics, the album received an average score of 60, based on 8 reviews, indicating "mixed or average reviews".[18]

Chrysta Cherrie of AllMusic concluded her review by stating that, "Muppets: The Green Album freshens up the franchise for the newish millennium, and Generation Z listeners will enjoy hearing current artists in this different context, but other listeners may be left reaching for their classic Muppets fare."[19] A Sputnikmusic reviewer said that "too few of the artists approach the material with the right ideas".[26] Jeremy Frye wrote that the album's potency largely depended on the nostalgia factor; "If you were to see The Green Album sitting on the counter at Starbucks and consider making an impulse buy because you love The Muppets, I’d say go for it. As tributes to significant portions of your childhood go, it could be much worse."[28]

Conversely, Cinema Blend's Joseph Giannone favorably compared the album to The Muppet Show saying that, "Like the original program, The Green Album is an eclectic, smart and eccentric journey through each guest appearance's effort."[22] Consequence of Sound wrote that; "All that's 'green' isn't necessarily gold here, but most of it shines."[23] Elizabeth Keenan of MTV Geek!, commented that, "The album fits well in the grand tradition of the Muppets' connections with real-world pop culture."[29] Alistair McGeorge described the album in her Female First review as "good for a nostalgic listen, the songs have a surprising amount of strength in this setting, and it's a good collection in its own right."[30] Doug Wortel awarded the album an 8 out of 10, while positively remarking that, "The wonderful thing about The Green Album that sets it apart from those other records, besides the source material, is nearly every performer on this album sounds like they’re having a ball, which is exactly what any Jim Henson fan would want from a record like this."[31]

In regards to the album's roster of artists, Sara Baumberger wrote that the selected songs were paired effectively well.[32] Spin's Mikael Wood praised Andrew Bird's rendition of "Bein' Green" remarking, "Andrew Bird sidesteps the precious self-pity you'd expect from "Bein' Green": His Kermit gets the clever-to-cuddly ratio just right."[25] Web Behrens of Time Out Chicago spoke highly of OK Go's cover; "Layering in everything from electronica to a perfectly quirky "Flight of the Bumblebees" sample, the homegrown band knows just how to push the envelope. We loved it even before we saw the video, which is sure to be another viral hit for Kulash and Company, taking their trippy cover to an even higher level."[33] Peter Chianca of Wicked Local, wrote in regards to Weezer and Hayley Williams' cover; "complete with twittering swamp sounds, approximates the wistfulness that the late Jim Henson brought to the original." Chianca also noted that, "Alkaline Trio's punky take on "Movin' Right Along" is the album's standout, riffing playfully on the Kermit-and-Fozzie banter."[34] John Terauds of the Toronto Star commended the album as a whole, highlighting that, "The finest treats come from two of the gentlest and most memorable melodies brought to us by Kermit the Frog: "Rainbow Connection", where Hayley Williams of Paramore sweetly recaptures the original's innocent wonder and longing, boosted by Weezer's pastel-swampy backdrop; and Andrew Bird's clean, frank delivery of "Bein' Green"."[27]

Track listing

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No.TitleWriter(s)ArtistLength
1."Muppet Show Theme Song"Sam Pottle, Jim HensonOK Go2:36
2."Rainbow Connection"Paul Williams, Kenneth AscherWeezer & Hayley Williams4:00
3."Mahna Mahna"Piero UmilianiThe Fray2:13
4."Movin' Right Along"Williams, AscherAlkaline Trio2:33
5."Our World"WilliamsMy Morning Jacket3:05
6."Halfway Down the Stairs"Harold Fraser-Simon, A. A. MilneAmy Lee2:25
7."Mr. Bassman"Johnny CymbalSondre Lerche2:41
8."Wishing Song"Paul TraceyThe Airborne Toxic Event2:47
9."Night Life"Joseph RaposoBrandon Saller (Of Atreyu) & Billy Martin2:59
10."Bein' Green"RaposoAndrew Bird4:10
11."I Hope That Somethin' Better Comes Along"Williams, AscherMatt Nathanson2:42
12."I'm Going to Go Back There Someday"Williams, AscherRachael Yamagata4:15
Total length:36:40
Australia/New Zealand Bonus Tracks
No.TitleWriter(s)ArtistLength
13."Simon Smith and the Amazing Dancing Bear"Randy NewmanMissy Higgins1:58
Total length:38:38

Personnel

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Charts

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Charts (2011) Peak
position[35]
Canadian Albums Chart 14
U.S. Billboard 200 8
U.S. Billboard Alternative Albums 1
U.S. Billboard Digital Albums 5
U.S. Billboard Kids Albums 1
U.S. Billboard Rock Albums 1
U.S. Billboard Tastemakers Albums 11

See also

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References

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  1. ^ Schillaci, Sophie (June 29, 2011). "Hayley Williams of Paramore joins 'Muppets: The Green Album'". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved July 24, 2012.
  2. ^ "Walt Disney Records Presents Muppets: The Green Album". PR Newswire. June 27, 2011. Retrieved August 10, 2011.
  3. ^ Rosenblum, Lenni (June 27, 2011). "Details Revealed About 'Muppets: The Green Album'". Phonenix NewTimes. Archived from the original on August 8, 2011. Retrieved August 11, 2011.
  4. ^ a b "OK Go's 'Muppet Show Theme Song' Music Video". The Huffington Post. August 23, 2011. Retrieved September 4, 2011.
  5. ^ Truitt, Warren. "Rock Stars Cover Classic Songs on Muppets Revisited". About.com. Archived from the original on November 18, 2012. Retrieved June 21, 2012.
  6. ^ Jurgensen, John (August 19, 2011). "A Muppet Makeover". The Wall Street Journal. Retrieved July 24, 2012.
  7. ^ "The Green Album Muppets compilation is the best album for the week of August 23, 2011". Album Art Exchange. Archived from the original on July 25, 2012. Retrieved July 24, 2012.
  8. ^ "Rock Albums - Week of September 10, 2011". Billboard. Retrieved July 24, 2012.
  9. ^ "Alternative Albums - Week of September 10, 2011". Billboard. Retrieved July 24, 2012.
  10. ^ Trust, Gary. "The Muppets Score First Billboard 200 Top 10". Billboard. Archived from the original on January 15, 2013. Retrieved July 24, 2012.
  11. ^ Morris, Christopher (August 31, 2011). "The Game wins rap battle on chart". Variety. Retrieved October 6, 2014.
  12. ^ Hilton, Robin (August 14, 2011). "First Listen: 'Muppets: The Green Album'". NPR. Retrieved August 16, 2011.
  13. ^ Archived at Ghostarchive and the Wayback Machine: "OK GO feat. Animal - The Muppet theme song @ Jay Leno 08-31-11". YouTube.
  14. ^ a b Levy, Glen (August 24, 2012). "Watch: OK Go and the Muppets Star in New Video, Internet Explodes". Time. Retrieved August 24, 2012.
  15. ^ "OK Go Covers Muppets Theme Song". ReelzChannel. August 23, 2011. Archived from the original on February 27, 2014. Retrieved December 17, 2011.
  16. ^ "The Muppets Get Hip". The Daily Beast. August 24, 2011. Retrieved December 17, 2011.
  17. ^ "16th Annual Webby Awards Nominees". Webby Awards. Archived from the original on April 12, 2012. Retrieved April 12, 2012.
  18. ^ a b c "Muppets: The Green Album". Metacritic. Retrieved August 26, 2011.
  19. ^ a b Cherrie, Chrysta. "Various Artists: Muppets: The Green Album". AllMusic. Retrieved August 28, 2018.
  20. ^ "Reviews- Muppets: Green Album". Alternative Press. August 23, 2011. Retrieved July 23, 2012.
  21. ^ "Muppets: The Green Album". Artistdirect. August 23, 2011. Retrieved July 24, 2012.
  22. ^ a b "Album Review: Muppets Green Album". Cinema Blend. August 30, 2011. Archived from the original on November 27, 2011. Retrieved August 30, 2011.
  23. ^ a b "Album Review: Various Artists – Muppets: The Green Album". Consequence of Sound. August 23, 2011. Retrieved August 31, 2011.
  24. ^ "Today's rock stars deliver solid updates to Muppets classics". IGN. August 23, 2011. Archived from the original on December 24, 2011. Retrieved August 31, 2011.
  25. ^ a b Wood, Mikael. "Various Artists 'Muppets: The Green Album'". Spin. Retrieved August 23, 2011.
  26. ^ a b H, Keelan. "The Muppets- The Green Album". Sputnikmusic. Retrieved July 23, 2012.
  27. ^ a b Terauds, John. "CD Reviews: Muppet tunes marvelous; forgotten songs even better". Toronto Star. Archived from the original on March 23, 2012. Retrieved August 29, 2011.
  28. ^ Frye, Jeremy. "CD Review: Muppets — The Green Album". Atlanta Music Guide. Retrieved July 24, 2012.
  29. ^ Keenan, Elizabeth. "MTV Geek Review – 'The Muppets: Green Album'". MTV. Archived from the original on December 7, 2011. Retrieved July 23, 2012.
  30. ^ McGeorge, Alistair. "Album Review: Various Artists – Muppets: The Green Album". Female First. Retrieved July 24, 2012.
  31. ^ "Music Review: Muppets: The Green Album". GeeksofDoom.com. August 16, 2011. Retrieved July 23, 2012.
  32. ^ Baumberger, Sara (August 31, 2011). "Muppets: The Green Album". The National. Retrieved July 24, 2012.
  33. ^ Behrens, Web. "Muppets: The Green Album". Time Out Chicago. Retrieved July 23, 2012.
  34. ^ Chianca, Peter. "ALBUM REVIEW: 'Muppets: The Green Album'". Wicked Local. GateHouse Media. Retrieved July 24, 2012.
  35. ^ "Muppets: The Green Album – Various Artists". Billboard. Retrieved July 23, 2012.
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