The 1957 Tail-Fin Fiasco, “39 Grams” (2018): Something Else! Sneak Peek

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There are thirty-nine grams of sugar in a 12-ounce can of Coca-Cola.

With all the suspense on what this song is about gone, here’s another thing to know about “39 Grams”: it’s the first single from the 1957 Tail-Fin Fiasco’s upcoming album The Harvard Tango. This is a song that’s more in the dance/electronica vein and has me suspicious that 1957’s messin’ with our minds. I mean, first they come out with an album that evokes early period Squeeze and mid-period Steely Dan. Later, they make an ‘unplugged’ record, and now with this latest tune, David Myers and Malcolm Moore — the band’s Becker and Fagan — signal a one-eighty into something that sounds way like the most contemporary thing they’ve put out thus far.

Yet, the constant factors that make the 1957 Tail-Fin Fiasco so appealing through all these stylistic jukes remain. They can still craft the most addictive pop hooks this side of Paul McCartney and pair it with rhymes full of grown-up wit. So yes, there’s a hip-hip rhythm track that pervades through this song, but they also came up with a nice, mushy Wurlitzer riff to go with it and sly lines like “I’ve got the heart for this liquid candy/Still got all my teeth.” All that while urging you to move, too. Little wonder that “39 Grams” is addictive as an ice cold cola over ice on a hot summer day.

Like the Real Thing, you might attempt to resist the 1957 Tail-Fin Fiasco’s “39 Grams” but let’s face it, you can’t. And you can grab a free download from here.


S. Victor Aaron