Squirrel Nut Zippers - Ghost of Stephen Foster

Squirrel Nut Zippers - "Ghost of Stephen Foster" music video. From the album "Perennial Favorites" (Mammoth Records). Winner of "Best Animated Music Video" at the 1999 Vancouver Animation Festival. Directed by Raymond Persi and Matthew Nastuk.
www.snzippers.com
/ snzippers

[@Nikococo1936]

This is genuinely the most authentic recreation of old rubberhose animation i've ever seen.

[@MrTony-rx7tk]

Cuphead is great too, but even that has a level of polish that this doesn’t - that an average cartoon from that time wouldn’t

[@daveq7414]

That's original rubber hose. It's Silly Symphonies Skeleton Dance.

[@falcychead8198]

There's a house for old rubbers??

[@daveq7414]

@@falcychead8198 it's called the Rising Funk.

[@Joeypopshot]

Anyone here in 3023? Update - REAL TIME 10-22-24 : I honestly didn't think this post would get as popular as it has. All jokes aside. Im glad to see that there are STILL a significant amount of y'all listening to this masterpiece.

[@donlindell1994]

Not yet, but it’s on my calendar 🧐

[@how_am_i_not_myself]

I damn sure will be

[@sunflowing]

Yes. Cause we're all Alice. Since then is happening now and now is happening then. It's. A party.

[@bevgordon7619]

Half way into 2024

[@hihatjas9477]

Is that Boo Boo shama lama ding dong 😮

[@EvanFowler]

Just saw them tonight. They played this on a projector during the song. The whole stage was blacked out. It was friggin' amazing. At the end of the show they all grabbed horns and marched into the crowd and jammed for like tne minutes with all of us bouncing and smiling around. It was the coolest show ever. e even had a conga line. I've never been to a show where the band asked the crowd to form a conga line. till now, that is.

[@billdavies3459]

They are a great band. I've seen them twice and they are a lot of fun.

[@haley040505]

i get to see them live tonight!!

[@EvanFowler]

@@haley040505 Man, it is weird as hell to see a comment that I made 14 years ago. KZbin is getting old and it's making me feel even older, lol. That's awesome, though! You'll have a blast. They remain one of the most fun live bands ever. Have fun!

[@SerafinDrake]

This is in one of the playlists I made to listen to while I write (I'm writing a trilogy - this is in the playlist for the second novel. I also have Gogol Bordello, They Might Be Giants, Voltaire, and some other stuff. It's eclectic). I find it inspiring. I also think it's _amazing_ that Squirrel Nut Zippers is still around, and still perfoming. If they ever make their way to Indianapolis (where I live) I have got to see them live. No if's, and's, or buts.

[@jeffdamon1098]

2023..the zipperS!! Yay!

[@rachelpsmith3129]

2024. Still coming back for this. Chapel Hill in the 90s. Holy Shit.

[@sarahfogerty1463]

🎉YESSSSS 🎉

[@headcasey6375]

same

[@L4bapPupel]

Yep...2024. 🎵🎼

[@Gamer12666]

Finally 2025

[@TokimoSoda]

The live action opening with the take on Cab Calloway dance is amazing and this is the best homage to the Fleischer Brothers animation style, I absolutely love it.

[@jonathanyeager982]

Just saw them 12/8/23 in Reading, Pa. By far one of the most enjoyable concert experiences 20+ years in the making. I remember when I discovered SNZ in the late 90s. 😊

[@larcielist]

Saw them last night, very good show. Wish it was longer.

[@gravityfallsfilms]

Which one I saw them last night in Phoenix

[@rimmersbryggeri]

I remember hearing Hell on mtv once or twice and then forever trying to find it. Finally did last year and found they are a great band all around.

[@sidDkid87]

*"Ships were made for sinking* / *Whiskey made for drinking* / *If we were made of cellophane* / *we'd all get stinkin' drunk much faster"*

[@lockjaw7437]

sidDkid87 going to run all day going run all night

[@samm7371]

Camptown ladies NEVER sang all the do dah day!

[@lockjaw7437]

Sam M going to run all day going to run all night

[@samm7371]

Lock Jaw Camptown ladies *never* sang all the do dah day! Nonono!

[@lockjaw7437]

At the ghost of Stephen foster at the hotel paradise this is what I told him as I gazing into his eyes rooms where made carpet

[@hebahabahobaheben]

my god, even paying homage to the old jazz, and Max Fleischer cartoons, this video is a breath of fresh air, sweeping away all other videos and music today. Absolutly brilliant!

[@sammicopor]

It just sounds like klezmer band music, its nothing new.

[@nhmooytis7058]

@@sammicoporsure Jan.

[@Sabastian2035]

🎉😊 0:53

[@HarryThePaladin]

Love how this takes so much from the stlye of Fleischer's "Minnie the Moocher" cartoon...even the recreation of Cab Calloway dancing in front of the orchestra near the beginning...absolutely fantastic!

[@Beefy-Cheese]

"Bimbo's Initiation" too.

[@PatrickRsGhost]

Not only is this done in the style of the classic Fleischer cartoons (primarily Betty Boop and Bimbo), but there are a few nods to the cartoons as well. The live-action sequence at the beginning is similar to the live-action sequence of Cab Calloway and his band shown at the beginning of "Minnie the Moocher". When the couple falls down the hole, the girl pulls her dress down to hide her undies. Betty does the same thing when she falls down the rabbit hole in "Betty in Blunderland". Unlike Betty, the girl in the video doesn't use a clothespin to anchor her dress. When the couple lands in the basement (at around 2:14), the casket on the left side of the screen is that of the walrus Betty and Bimbo encountered in "Minnie the Moocher". The wall made up of the hotel manager's face (at 3:19) is similar to some of the freaky backgrounds used in some of the Betty Boop cartoons such as "Minnie" and a few others. Protip: Never watch classic Fleischer cartoons while you're sick. It can cause some seriously fucked up fever dreams.

[@pearlytheegg3838]

I think it references Bimbo's Initiation at 1:03

[@garpogods8323]

So what I got out of that is definitely watch them when Im sick to see some cool shit.

[@siddharthiyer7244]

I had to rewatch to convince myself that it wasn't, in fact, Cab Calloway. Well done!

[@TheGreatMoonFrog]

When they first fall down a shoot it's exactly like the episode where betty dresses up as a secret organization and tries to get the little dude to join.

[@lauralol9210]

1:52 the movement he does is exactly like the one the circus boss does to betty’s leg in “Boop-oop-a-doop” (1932)

[@frankietheghost9385]

2:59 god that violin solo gets me every time

[@nwttp]

Andrew bird is the best. Check out his solo stuff.

[@painterdawn2]

That violin solo is my favorite part of the whole song. I'm just crazy about it.

[@markgreen2170]

are you familiar with klezmer? ...if not, you may find a LOT you like there ...also algeriain chaabi has 'epic violinist' ...

[@sarahfogerty1463]

Yeah it's like magic ❤

[@getoutofthatbox176]

It’s awesome but I think it was originally meant to be a clarinet.

[@peterdangelo5882]

Here again - been visiting every year for 17 years. Be back after I am dead as well. Campy Fun - :)

[@jasontimothywells9895]

Are you dead yet 🤔🤪

[@peterdangelo5882]

@@jasontimothywells9895 Someday, just not today ;)

[@cha5]

This has got to be the best homage to the Fleischer Brothers style of animation I've ever seen, Nothing else comes close.

[@Snavels]

With the Release of Cuphead, has that opinion changed at all?

[@cha5]

@@Snavels Not really, Cuphead just goes out of it’s way to be nihilistic more often than not.

[@Snavels]

@@cha5 Might I ask what that means? What do you mean it goes out of its way to be nihilistic?

[@cha5]

@@Snavels Basically the attempts at humor with Cuphead’s death and the meaninglessness of his life especially in the Goon Cartoon shorts, For me they just come up short and aren’t up there as a Fleischer homage in comparison with The Squirrel Nut Zippers ‘Ghost of Stephen Foster’ video. I’ve just never cared for Cuphead basically. The Netflix show though does have better animation I’ll admit, it just not for me.

[@Snavels]

@cha5 Thats Strange, I dont recall very many jokes like that being made in the game and certainly not in the Cartoon Shorts that StudioMDHR put out. Its weird that youd think that the Netflix show has better animation when that's all digital, and the original game was all handdrawn. Are you referring to the Death Cards you see when you die to a boss in game? Because those aren't exactly supposed to be funny

[@jesseb2200]

this is a delightful masterpiece. love the throwback to the 20's toons with the knee-bouncing cutesy horror theme.

[@AvatarOfKhaine972]

Didn't used to know he was imitating cab calloway

[@opalyasu7159]

@John Sohn I thought the animation was imitating Betty Boop

[@101Volts]

Late 20s and 1930s, really. Fleischer-style animation, which includes Popeye, Betty Boop, Bimbo and Koko the Clown. The last two were in early Betty Boop cartoons, 1931 - 1934.

[@edjfitz]

And now they're touring with X.

[@patrickmarsh2538]

Whoever directed this is a master of the ancient art of good cartoons!

[@sidDkid87]

There are certain bands out there that make one think "Damn, I'm glad these guys got together somehow" - and this one of them!

[@jessicahowell632]

I will never get tired of this song or this video.. EVER!

[@markking2466]

Haha, I agree

[@Ur0n]

Same here, awesome song

[@diamer-8185]

and now? jajaja

[@cliffordreynolds1835]

It's amazing that a dude named Stephen Foster who was popular during the American civil war era is still well known today, and people still sing his songs. He was a rockstar of his era.

[@Robert-ou2iz]

He wrote the state song of Kentucky

[@cheekofnut]

Yeah! the lyrics also reference a Stephen Foster composition, Camptown Races - “gwine to run all night, gwine to run all day / Camptown ladies never sang all the doo-dah day” Really the theme in the song, to some degree, is espousing a more dangerous, hedonistic lifestyle than Foster’s vision of the world - his music was/is very popular but kind of saccharine and inoffensive. You can picture the singer accosting a more conservative Foster, literally being seen as a ghost like in a vision, telling him how he himself is going to live - ships were made for sinking, whiskey made for drinking, etc.

[@Who_We_Are_podcast]

He was my great great uncle. On my mom’s side. I think he wrote camptown races

[@MariePommer]

I've been in his 🏡. On one of those Family Vacations where we saw the Sights. Museums , Zoos, ......

[@kezisthename]

havent listened to this for like 10 years and it still bangs

[@kimifw58]

Well, someone watches Fleischer cartoons. I'm not complaining. I love Fleischer cartoons, and this is a well-made tribute to them. Good job.

[@kimifw58]

Kimi FW That said, I would like to see one cartoon where the main character wanders into a ratty hotel occupied by ghosts, skeletons, etc. only to find that it's actually a nice place once he looks past the spooky atmosphere.

[@spasticpug5209]

+Kimi FW oh you mean monsters inc in reverse And with better animation and characters

[@kimifw58]

Spastic pug Yeah. I guess so.

[@rabbit0664]

+Kimi FW I like that idea.

[@jvgreendarmok]

@@kimifw58 One of the episodes of "Over The Garden Wall" is a bit like that. :)

[@RileyAudio]

The year is 1998, you just bought "Headliners" a compilation CD from Best Buy. You just heard Jonny Lang's "Still Rainin'" and this song comes on. After hearing this track, you listen to Fastball's "Fire Escape" :)

[@thatrandomarthobo2769]

I found these guys recently and was telling my dad about them and he said " the squirrel nut zippers? That's from when I was a kid!" Great bonding experience :]

[@101Volts]

IDK how many people saw this, but one of the mice on the slide at 1:11 is tumbling head over paws as they all go down.

[@Dresdentrumpet]

Just saw it, thanks for pointing that out. What a lovely detail in the animation.

[@teddyhose]

TIL Andrew Bird was in SNZ at the height of their popularity, so that's probably him taking the lead on the fiddle. Also, I saw SNZ play this live to the animated video projected at the Crocodile Cafe in Seattle in 2000, and was absolutely floored. One of the best live shows I've ever seen.

[@tjshere206]

I was at that same show. I'll never forget it.

[@L4bapPupel]

Love this song...play it all the time! My coworkers like it too when l play it at work. Who's here in 2024? 🎼🎵💯

[@T-DawgUnitSupreme]

Im from the far future of 2025. Trump wins the election...just a heads up.

[@nathannakonieczny1343]

This is it! She's gone now and I didn't need her to find it for me, this is the song! Thank you, Almighty algorithm.

[@jessicakassanavoid9790]

Play my wedding if I ever have one. The vibes would be amazing 🥹

[@renatasuerth]

Just saw them tonight in Chicago 12-21-24. Brilliant!!! Jimbo was so sweet after the concert

[@MareeStone798ms]

What a thoroughly interesting band.

[@dieselscience]

They're on a reunion tour this fall...

[@Samuelsoon97]

Just saw them a week or so ago, they played two half hour sets and closed the show. They played well but I was pretty disappointed with such a sort show.

[@MareeStone798ms]

That's a shame. In my day those sets would have been called intermission. :(

[@jeremymullins1294]

Jimbo Mathus is a national treasure... He has many great solo albums(which are more along the lines of blues). I've had the pleasure of hanging out with him a few times as well. A true character.

[@AsianTheDomination]

new album out today

[@Man-Corgi]

I love how you're totally convinced that this is an actual old cartoon until the end when you see "1999"

[@poweroffriendship2.0]

It is said "1999 Vancouver Festival", which it was played on Vancouver.

[@Brewnoe]

scoob ruhoh

[@Brewnoe]

call me the sparkle

[@EyeLean5280]

Yes, it looks just like Fleischer could have animated it.

[@szpeketor]

well, it makes it pretty old now

[@dannystlaurent]

That intro is clarinet at the highest level. Absolute ripper on the woodwind madman!

[@zekeyp]

👁️👄👁️

[@medicalmisinformation]

This bodacious Cab Calloway and Fleischer Studios tribute justifies the existence of the western world.

[@jstohler]

Of all the songs SNZ did live, this one of the most amazing.

[@tracylemme1375]

Whow. Real animation as I know it. No computer generated images. Just hand drawn animation. Ala. Max Fleischer

[@MronoC]

Love it. A brilliant homage to the classic Fleischer cartoons. The live action opening with the bizarre take on the Cab Calloway dance was fantastic touch.

[@chellastation]

OMG. I have not heard this song in more than 3 years. Still catchy 🎶

[@ryanhoward8694]

Saw them a week and a half ago. Still putting on an incredible show all these years later.

[@thomasdjonesn]

You see, the problem with this music, is that there's not enough of it.

[@OzCroc]

1:53 she really got "goosebumps"

[@casvandijck9338]

I love metaphors in cartoons

[@elizabethkizzar5489]

I love how the gentleman in the white suit was channeling classic Cab Calloway.

[@personmarquez1]

It only had to be one time, to listen to this band on a local station in a program at midnight, to awaken my taste for it. Thanks today I am 47 years old and over 17 listening to them. Thank you very much, gentlemen.

[@Amarana]

Must...stop...listening...before it gets stuck in my head forever! Crap, too late.

[@korkukokusu8311]

LOL

[@Apollyon67]

@@korkukokusu8311 and it is still stuck there!

[@vibethecat4194]

poor "productive" sienna never became truly productive and ended up procrastinating for 11 years

[@Amarana]

@@vibethecat4194 And lookie here, you summed up why I chose this name in the first place.

[@PatrickRsGhost]

On this day in 1864, Stephen Foster died in a New York hospital, three days after being found in a hotel, sick and broke.

[@thomasdjonesn]

Camptown ladies never sang, "oh-la-doo-dah-dey."

[@yrMomIsHere]

Saw them dressed to the nines on stage back in '96 or '97. Amazing musicians. It felt like being swept away in time. Stand up bass...banjo...vests...ties...and a beautiful long skirt...and round straw hat..shiny trombones and trumpets...and so so much energy everywhere.

[@argonath667]

This video never gets old, no matter how many times I see it.

[@kevinmulvey9965]

Well for all the kids in band at Notre Dame HS Sherman Oaks class of 2019 I hope you find these tunes and stay inspired because music can be very fun and creative. Cheers to the SNZ for playing the music they like.

[@onefineday111]

I love the Cab Calloway reference at the start

[@lilyofthevalley5586]

Homage to Cab Callaway in the intro of video? This is brilliant!

[@problemsalving]

I’m watching this while high, 10/10 would do it again

[@timbaker1605]

Oh you like king crimson? Name every song by them .

[@daywar13]

@@timbaker1605 yikes

[@wiscgaloot]

@@timbaker1605 d-head

[@Satellitegirl41]

Still come back to his and listen. Love it.

[@vidmoosh]

A masterpiece. I come back to this song again and again and again

[@jeffw6445]

2024-12-15 Pittsburgh - ish, PA - SNZ performed it and they sounded even better live than recorded. Happy they are still touring. Great show, great vibe in the room. Hope to see them again soon.

[@TheReapersSon]

Greatest revival band ever! I love this group! It's a shame that more people don't speak of them these days...

[@austinmorrison6953]

Still such a gorgeous masterpiece!

[@NickJohnCoop]

The animation is beyond perfect.

[@CliveNebula71]

Yo who still rockin' out to this snog in 2025?

[@michellee3575]

Just saw them in Chicago 12/21/24, this was soo great live! Definitely one of the highlights of the show

[@thekinginyellow1744]

One of the songs I always return to.

[@JCCassis]

Cannot believe this is ten years old. So great.

[@namedwhatsittoya1354]

Love the squirrel nut zippers. They make me want to start up my own band haha great music !

[@groovin4real]

It's 2023 now getting a kick out of this video lol

[@VMichaelTheMan]

These guys are swing music. They captured a genuine 20's jazz sound but add this cool stuff in at times. They're my heros. Perrenial Favorites is the album

[@purplgrl77]

I never knew there WAS a video for this - THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU!!! I've loved these guys for years....

[@indridcold8467]

Met the Ghost of Stephen Foster at the Hotel Paradise This is what I told him as I gazed into his eyes: Rooms were made for carpets, Towers made for spires, Ships were made for cannonade fire off from inside them. Gwine to run all night Gwine to run all day Camptown ladies never sang all the doo dah day no, no, no. Met the Ghost of Stephen Foster at the Hotel Paradise This is what I told him as I gazed into his eyes: Ships were made for sinking, Whiskey made for drinking, If we were made of cellophane, we'd all get stinking drunk quite faster ha, ha, ha.

[@Dr._Bacco]

Yep that’s what he said, I don’t understand the point of this comment

[@orionette6898]

I couldn't tell what some of the words were so thank you

[@rodrigocoockiemonster4460]

@@Dr._Bacco It is appreciated by many users that people write the lyrics of songs, either to clear out some words or for non-native speakers ti make out the lyrics. I don't understand your reply, it's full of shit.

[@buob02]

@@Dr._Bacco lots of people can't hear all the words properly. I spent a good 10 minutes searching for this exact comment because there are no lyrics anywhere. thank you @indridcold8467

[@ryoko65]

LOVED the VIDEO!!!!!!! Cab Calloway, a nice send up of the bizarre world of Fleischer animation..... and of course the awesome music of the Squirrel Nut Zippers :)

[@aaronkennedy7458]

I shown this to my friend and he said "Why do I feel like eastern Europe is about to invade my house?"

[@Dresdentrumpet]

Because this is an awesome klezmer song.

[@SetTopGames]

Aww man, I stumbled upon three SNZ CDs today and Perennial Favorites wasn't in the lot! I still bought the other ones, great music all around!

[@trumpet444]

I remember seeing this video for the first time on direct tv almost 9 years ago! It was some 1 1/2 long special on eccentric/indie animation. Love this video and song!

[@schizoproductions5612]

The best Cab Calloway tribute ive ever seen, 2 generations of amazing jazz

[@stevesteward9436]

THANKS FOR THE VIDEOS,THE WORK YOU PUT INTO ALL OF THIS IS JUST FABULOUS, HILARIOUS, THANKS AGAIN!!!!!!

[@modernartrock8883]

Only just discovering this band, loving the music and the animation is amazing. Modern Art Rock's 'video of the day'!

[@Scrib3d]

this song is incredible this video is incredible its basically ALL INCREDIBLE LOVE IT!

[@EyeLean5280]

Never gets old!

[@Reyskywalker8120]

December 2023 and feels like it was made specifically for me 😅

[@JoeyTv.]

This is my favorite music video of all time, I wish I could’ve been there (wasn’t born in time hahaha!) when this was awarded as best animated short film of 1999

[@EdMan6623]

When I found out this song and video were made in the late 90s I could hardly believe it. Why aren't there more bands like this?

[@raizelcortez3219]

Went to the Mob Museum here in Vegas back in February for my brother's birthday, and they were playing this in the speakeasy. I got so excited.

[@erickdircks]

Excellent piece of work!! Thank you very much for Sharing!!!!! What a way of meeting people and get to see their talent. At first was reluctant being on youtube, but getting to do this has brought me into the houses of some very special people. You are one of them. Life; isn't it wonderful!!! Keep up the good work. Hope You Are Having A Splendid Day!!!! A New Friend Erick

[@CarlsBeardedBanter]

Brilliant song with the coolest music video ever!

[@teamhunley]

SNZ rule! I can be in a crappy mood, watch/ listen to this vid, and be ready to go out and put a smile on my face!

[@noellewilliams3362]

This song makes me miss being in high school band! I played tenor saxophone and took great pleasure in it.

[@hlalakar4156]

A very clear homage to the cartoon "Bimbo's Initiation."

[@caseysmith544]

Yep I agree that slide in this is dead on copy to the one in Bimbo's Intiation.

[@gianthonyevillani3537]

Best song ever created.

[@vampiroangelico]

I love old stuff too! I believe that we have to appreciate the old, to be able to invent the "new" with any credibility. And, most of all, I'm very much into WW2 and the 1940s, and SNZ songs and this cartoon bring me back to that magic time I wish I would have lived. :-)

[@brettkiser87dgb]

i have seen SNZ several times in NC... LEAF, ORANGE PEEL,etc... really one of my best concert experiences. PLEASE COME BACK!!

[@davidjones6015]

glad we don't live in a world where people constantly bounce up and down

[@Reconbombful]

Easy for you to say if you don't suffer from a muscle tics.

[@DVDRAR]

That would sure hurt your knees wouldn't it?

[@Andy-pz5pk]

lol they dance to the music

[@saturnus423]

Look at tik tok and you won't be so sure, nowadays I mean. Worst shit ever

[@Mikeztarp]

It's only because of the song. Before it starts, they're not bouncing.

[@malum4.440]

Fantastic.

[@men_of_god7]

I'm concerned that the internet is not able to produce a band this good today.

[@italia689]

(Petersens?)

[@bjb7587]

Ten years later. Still true, maybe moreso.

[@nopenop1495]

This is up there with my favorite music videos of all time.

[@fr8trayn1953]

One of my favorites! SNZ ROCK!! Now get your butts to Phoenix on your latest tour!

[@ParanormalKitten]

I've been listeneing to these people since elementary/middle school. Oh the wonders

[@robbiefarabee6954]

That was awesome! It really looked like if it really came from a Fleischer bros. cartoon.

[@adamc1966]

One of the best music videos and a great song.

[@itsallinallston]

I've watched five times in a row. Better each time!

[@VisualSOLUTIONSMedia]

I live in a world FULL of music, and constantly bounce and move to it!!!

[@marz_mitzi]

I LOVE THOSE CHARACTERS OMFG

[@lindanorris2455]

craazy video! fabulous music!

[@Marbles471]

I cannot believe how spot-on this homage is. They got EVERYTHING right. Down to the last detail of the way the 1930s Fleischer animation really felt. Compare this to that recent Popeye video from Wilco, which is very lame and halfhearted by comparison. It doesn't achieve anywhere near the vintage feeling this does. And you know why? Partly because it insists on leaning on computer inking, which gives it a cold, mechanical texture. Also because the animation itself is nowhere near as good.

[@stevenbingham7874]

They are hard working people and they know what the people want!

[@Darkness-ie2yl]

St James infirmary

[@TheNeoVid]

I'm legitimately disappointed that nothing from this video made a cameo in Cuphead. Or hey, maybe it did and I missed it, since it wouldn't have stood out with how perfect both of them are as examples of the rubberhose style!

[@kellingc]

I was thinking more if Max worked for Warner Brothers. The rat kind of looked like Micky Mouse in Steamboat Willie, too. This is a great blend of styles.

[@Noob_For_Life]

15 years ago

[@PhilMachi]

Would love to see this get remastered -- some really beautiful animation that holds up!

[@stevenwestfall7638]

Why is it this feels like it belongs in the Animaniacs?