The Spirit of MMMBop

Mature beyond their years? Philosophers worthy of the world's respect and admiration? Gurus? Gods?

When Isaac, Taylor, and Zac Hanson ascended from the magical, faraway land known as “Tulsa” to bless the world with the gift of MMMBop in 1997, time stood still. All of nature took a breath in anticipation of finally ushering in the long-awaited event known as 'world peace'.

Leading up to the album's release, it is recorded that natural disasters worldwide suddenly ceased, a lion was seen lovingly snuggling a lamb, and, in an event still inexplicable by the scientific community, a group of Israeli men were seen spontaneously flash mob dancing in perfect choreography with their Palestinian brothers without previous coordination.

However, as the album dropped, like pearls before swine, instead of worldwide euphoric bliss, MMMBop merely sat atop the Billboard 100 for a while, was danced to by teeny boppers for a year or two, then was summarily relegated to the proverbial attic of American culture, bouncing around in the back of our minds with Chumbawumba and The Verve Pipe.

But no matter. Swine they will stay. The Spirit of MMMBop lives on in the hearts of those who appreciate art, are in touch with reality, or occasionally google things like "MMMBop lyrics."

Anyone who has spent time in Hawaii knows that there is a noticeable vibe change as soon as you disembark. Subtle differences in the way that the average Hawaiian moves through the world. They call it the Spirit of Aloha, the “coordination of mind and heart within each person.” It's hard to put your finger on it and even harder to explain but, to try, one thinks and projects good feelings to others with affection and warmth, with no sense of reciprocation implied. Something like that. Aloha is, as one graffiti project along Kam highway notes, "a way of life."

And so I submit, respectfully, that the poetic grace of the one-hit wonder known as MMMBop has a similar quality. It is more than a poem, a hit, a track of an album. It is a way of life. Now feel free to pull it up, turn it up, and listen as we work through this masterpiece line by line...

​Oh Oh Oh

oh oh Yeah

For art to transcend, it requires anticipation, a tension before the climax. A gourmet meal without tableware is savagery. A sexual experience without foreplay is for wild dogs. The Spirit of MMMBop requires patience.

You have so many relationships in this life

Only one or two will last

And now we're given a taste...

You go through all the pain and strife

Then you turn your back and they're gone so fast

Oh yeah And they're gone so fast, yeah

Oh, so hold on to the ones who really care

In the end they'll be the only ones there

And when you get old and start losing your hair

Can you tell me who will still care

Can you tell me who will still care?

Oh care

To ponder on love ultimately requires one to ponder on death. "As you kiss your son good night," says Epictetus, "whisper to yourself, 'He may be dead in the morning.'” Life is short and wasting time with people that don't care about you is a fools errand.

No doubt the experience of the Hanson brothers informed their words of wisdom. Lives rich of love, passion, heartbreak, and coping with death.

Mmmbop, ba duba dop

Ba du bop, ba duba dop

Ba du bop, ba duba dop

Ba du, oh yeah

Mmmbop, ba duba dop

Ba du bop, ba du dop

Ba du bop, ba du dop

Ba du, yeah

Ella Fitzgerald. Louis Armstrong. Hanson.

Scatting has evolved along with popular music, but never before has it seen such bravery, an eloquence previously unknown. Has the artform transcended, becoming something new altogether, birthed by the collective soul of the three brothers from Oklahoma? Does the term "scatting" even apply here? Perhaps. Or, like a caterpillar breaking free of its prison and finally being set free to fly as the majestic monarch that it is, perhaps there is simply no word to describe its beauty.

Said oh yeah

In an mmmbop they're gone

Yeah yeah

Yeah yeah

There is a quote apocryphally attributed to John Lennon says that "life is what happens to you while you're busy making other plans."

The Buddha said, "All things are impermanent."

Hanson said, "In an MMMBop they're gone."

Plant a seed, plant a flower, plant a rose

You can plant any one of those

Keep planting to find out which one grows

It's a secret no one knows

It's a secret no one knows

Oh, no one knows

Of the "so many relationships" that we have in this life, how are we to know which are the "one or two" that will last?

Gratefully, unlike a Buddhist koan meant to puzzle the plebs and reward the enlightened, the Hanson's don't require months of silent devotion in the Tibetan mountains of their followers to receive the answer to the riddle.

It is quit simple, they say. "No one knows."

Can you tell me?

Oh (which flower's going to grow?)

No, you can't 'cause you don't know

Can you tell me? (if it's going to be a daisy or a rose?)

Because we don't know, we can't run away from each other, but must embrace each as a brother and a sister, with unconditional love emenating from us with no sense of reciprocation implied. The Spirit of MMMBop is to love everyone, because we don't know who will become a long, lost acquaintance and who will change your life, fill it with joy, and continue to do so day after day after magical day.

"Which flower is going to grow?"

"It's a secret no one knows."

"Can you tell me?"

"You say you can but you don't know."

"Will it be a daisy or a rose?"

"Can you tell me?"

"Mmmbop, ba duba dop Ba du bop"

"Oh yeah"