"The Monorail Song" is a song written and performed by ''The Simpsons'' cast, for the fourth-season episode of ''

The Simpsons ''The Simpsons'' is an American animated sitcom created by Matt Groening for the Fox Broadcasting Company. The series is a satirical depiction of American life, epitomized by the Simpson family, which consists of Homer, Marge, Bart, Lisa, ...

'' entitled "

Marge vs. the Monorail "Marge vs. the Monorail" is the twelfth episode of the fourth season of the American animated television series ''The Simpsons''. It originally aired on the Fox network in the United States on January 14, 1993. The plot revolves around Springfie ...

", which originally aired on January 14, 1993.

Production

The song was written by then-show runner Al Jean and

Conan O'Brien Conan Christopher O'Brien (born April 18, 1963) is an American television host, comedian, writer, and producer. He is best known for having hosted late-night talk shows for almost 28 years, beginning with ''Late Night with Conan O'Brien'' (19 ...

,Alf Clausen has created so many classic ‘Simpsons’ songs. Here are 12 of his most memorable. - The Washington Post
/ref> and was performed by Phil Hartman as

Lyle Lanley Lyle may refer to: People Surname * Lyle (surname) Given name * Lyle Alzado (1949–1992), American NFL All-Pro football player * Lyle Beerbohm (born 1979), professional mixed martial arts fighter * Lyle Bennett (1903–2005), head coach of th ...

, along with other Simpsons characters.

Synopsis

The song sees a traveling salesman razzle dazzle the local town into spending their windfall of money on a monorail, with all criticism being washed aside through the charismatic performance. The song begins with a repeated whispered chant of "monorail," as Miss Hoover, Apu Nahasapeemapetilon, Barney Gumble,

Abraham Simpson Abraham Jebediah "Abe" Simpson II, better known as Grampa, is a recurring character in the animated television series ''The Simpsons''. He made his first appearance in the episode entitled " Grandpa and the Kids", a one-minute Simpsons short on ...

, and Chief Wiggum each question his plan in turn, to which Lanley rebukes each with a rhyming phrase. The crowd is swept into a frenzy, singing a chorus of "monorail." The only person continuing to dissent is Marge Simpson, who hoped to spend the money on fixing Main Street's potholes. Her son Bart points out that "the mob has spoken." The chorus sings the word "monorail" four more times, and

Homer Simpson Homer Jay Simpson is a fictional character and the main protagonist of the American animated sitcom ''The Simpsons''. He is voiced by Dan Castellaneta and first appeared, along with the rest of his family, in ''The Tracey Ullman Show'' short "G ...

attempts to sing one more: "mono-

D'oh! "D'oh!" () is the most famous catchphrase used by the fictional character Homer Simpson, from the television series ''The Simpsons,'' an animated sitcom (1989–present). It is an exclamation typically used after Homer injures himself, realizes ...

" The song is based on " Ya Got Trouble" from the 1958 musical ''

The Music Man ''The Music Man'' is a musical with book, music, and lyrics by Meredith Willson, based on a story by Willson and Franklin Lacey. The plot concerns con man Harold Hill, who poses as a boys' band organizer and leader and sells band instruments and ...

'', which also concerns a fast-talking salesman conning a small town, with the chorus repeating the word "trouble" under dialogue. During the song, the residents of Springfield get "swept up in Lanley's patter".

Critical reception and analysis

''Bustle'' deemed it a "quintessential moment" of ''The Simpsons'', when the whole town is caught up in a group number. Like the musical on which its based, Bustle argues the song teaches "small lesson in infrastructure and the real reason cons work". It felt the song acted as a "commentary on corruption in political infrastructure" that filled the viewer with "pure dumb joy". ''The Washington Post'' deemed it a "brilliant...sendup" of ''The Music Man''. Junkee felt it was "One of the show’s most overt tributes to musical theatre", and described it as the most "uniquely memorable" the Springfield "hive mind" ever got. ''Paste Magazine'' deemed it the "quintessential Springfield ensemble number", and noted how the song summarizes the town's general mob mentality while giving individual characters their moments, and showing that even the 'smart' people of Springfield can be duped. ''Bustle'' felt the song " highlight the wonderful recipe of old fashioned small-town whimsy and modern cynicism and aggressive ignorance" that makes up Springfield.

Legacy

The song commonly rates very highly on reviewers' rankings of the best Simpsons songs. In 1997 it was released as part of the Simpsons soundtrack album '' Songs in the Key of Springfield''.

Live performances and covers

In 2014, Conan O'Brien and Hank Azaria performed the song live at a Simpsons-themed performance at the Hollywood Bowl entitled ''The Simpsons Take The Hollywood Bowl''.

References

The Simpsons songs 1993 songs Songs from television series {{Simpsons-stub