Todd in the Shadows - One Hit Wonderland - The Safety Dance by Men With Hats

[@tangerinelacroix3867]

Suspect is hatless, I repeat hatless

[@thefuturist8864]

I hope they throw his hatless butt in jail.

[@medes5597]

Yes that's the joke Todd already referenced.

[@JJ-fg2wd]

Eggplant Xerxes Narwahl

[@caeserromero3013]

Blonde chick in the video was a journalist sent to write about the band and ended up in the video. She later edited UK Cosmopolitan magazine...

[@otaking3582]

*Video Title:* "Men _With_ Hats" *Copyright bots:* "I see nothing wrong here."

[@StuffWePlay]

Interesting to see this recommended. Fun fact: Ivan (lead singer) actually lives in my neighbourhood!

[@BroForce426]

Does anyone recognize him as the Safety Dance dude?

[@StuffWePlay]

@@BroForce426 On occasion? Used to see him around local festivals and such from time to time, back when those were a thing haha

[@mattsheezy5469]

I remember thinking that the safety dance video was actual historical footage when I was 5.

[@PugsMalone]

That's ridiculous! The only movie cameras they had in the Middle Ages were black and white.

[@elltell1990]

One hit wonders depend on the country really. Madness are considered one hit wonders in the US (Our House) but in the UK, they're anything but! They had top 10 hits every other week!

[@T2G-DJT]

True

[@rateeightx]

Yeah, I Remember In One Video Someone Suggested He Make A Video About Rage Against The Machine, To Which He Noted That, In The U.S., They're Not A One-Hit Wonder. Although Ofcourse I've Lived In The U.S. All My Life And Only Heard Of One Song By Them, So It's An Easy Mistake To Make IN My Opinion.

[@substatikvideos]

Yeah, 'Night Boat to Cairo' for example.

[@alittlebitgone]

Yup, Men Without Hats had about ten charting singles in Canada.

[@TetraDax]

@@alittlebitgone To be fair, just being Canadian is a cheatcode to get charting singles in Canada due to your guys' radio playtime laws.

[@fahs]

Would love to see Todd do a video on Johnny Hates Jazz. Ironically, the lead singer's dad was the first one hit wonder of the pop music era. A generational one hit wonder phenomenon is screaming for Todd to tell.their story.

[@JJ-fg2wd]

Shattered Dreams is such a money song

[@BigDLiquor]

"Hatless REPEAT Hatless," is such a great Simpsons quote only a true nerd would pick up on.

[@KingKongs]

He is driving a...car...of some sort...

[@Maxmulham]

Going to that place that sells chilli

[@rileyk5228]

I hope they throw his hatless butt in jail

[@LittlePinkMew]

Confession: this is one of my favorite songs ever. I love how ridiculous it is and it always makes me smile 😀 Also, the beat is iconic

[@T2G-DJT]

Hi

[@DOSRetroGamer]

That's Pop goes the World for me. Huge guilty pleasure

[@dalehoward3704]

A Fav of Mine too!❤

[@rsmith6425]

As a Canadian I have both strong memories of Pop Goes the World and Bonhomme who use to come to my elementary school.

[@divinedelaware7541]

The medieval theme was genius for the time. D&D, Willow, neverending story all that stuff. Blended well

[@julieporter7805]

It actually reminds me of Johann and Peewit, the comic and series by Peyo which was also when the Smurfs got their start.

[@GamesFromSpace]

It wasn't a theme, this was just Canada in the 80s.

[@ForceMaximus84]

It actually predates all but D&D, but fantasy definitely became prominent in the decade and they jumped ahead of it.

[@LauraMoncur]

Two years ago they opened for BT and Howard Jones. They are actually amazing live. Totally worth any money to go see them.

[@KahlessTheUnforgettable]

Blues Traveler?

[@bigguys45s29]

Off topic, but Madness of, “Our House” actually had another Top 40 U.S. hit: “It Must Be Love” (No. 33 on the Billboard Hot 100 in 1983)

[@rileyk5228]

This is the second post about Madness where a bunch of singles are listed EXCEPT the obvious ONE STEP BEYOND!

[@JJ-fg2wd]

:aggressive skanking ensues:

[@TSFboi]

"Hatless, repeat, hatless!" Geez Todd, how obscure can your Simpsons references get?

[@michealpersicko9531]

about as obscure as the concept of comedy is to The Simpsons since season 8

[@天国TSUKUYOMI]

@@michealpersicko9531 nice one

[@louisduarte8763]

5:46 And a few years later, Tadd talked about "Rock Me Amadeus", which was a tribute to Mozart, with a catchy beat

[@GippyHappy]

is the title "Men with hats" on purpose?

[@SimonJSlou]

I think it's a reference to how they care about style over function, they're Quebecers and in the winter it is cold so you'd want to wear a hat

[@BenTaylor1]

Todd is amazing but he somehow missed one of the video's biggest accomplishments: hordes of growing boys who had their sexual awakening and/or got off on Peasant Girl. There are many, apparently. Heard that Peasant Girl became a big magazine exec later and hated being asked about the "Safety Dance" video. "It was just one afternoon of my life!" (Needless to say, that isn't really her returning to the "I Like' video, just a double/stand-in).

[@AskDrannik]

I looked up "Sideways", the Men Without Hats album that didn't come out in the states and "sounds like Superchunk". Fun fact about that album: Away from Voivod played drums on it. If you know anything about Voivod, then you'd know that the only thing they and Men Without Hats have in common is that they're both from Montreal and that's it.

[@riffgroove]

I live in Vancouver. Right before the pandemic hit I was trying out for a pretty heavy "grind core influenced" band. They were pretty casual about things which was fine by me. After a few rehearsal with them, they tell me that their drummer usually disappears for a month or so during the summer to go tour with Men Without Hats. I was frankly dumbfounded as I couldn't believe they were still active. I was like "Really?!?! The Safety Dance guys?!?!"

[@jhutt8002]

When I heard that guitar intro in the video, I knew I would like that album. And yes I looked it up, and it sounds absolutely awesome. How someone wouldn't like it is beyond me. I'd say it's huge step forward what they were doing... Exactly type of alternative rock that I like. REM - Monster is one of my favorite albums ever. ( ...and I really don't like New Wave in general for that matter.😅)

[@EntNatal]

The thought of Def Leppard making gangsta rap is too hilarious for words

[@HSMiyamoto]

"Der Kommissar"' is all about young people using drugs, probably cocaine ("snow") in Germany. "Alles Klar, Herr Kommissar?" is the German version of "Is everything all right, Officer?"

[@MrRPGsus]

10:52 Can't believe I just realized (I knew it felt fimiliar) but Puddle of Mudd's riff from She Hates Me is exactly the same as that! Weird to think they got it from Men Without Hats!

[@DestinyKiller]

Thank you! I kept it hearing it here and thinking it sounded so familiar

[@Bolognacakesaretasty]

I saw them open for the B-52's a year ago. He wore a hat. They played a bunch of their worst songs, ended with safety dance as the sun went down and introduced the Human League who between songs talked about how their own music was just silly noises. B-52's never looked better though.

[@robinchesterfield42]

I know this is an old-ass comment, but a concert that had Men Without Hats, Human League AND B-52s? I would've absolutely gone to that. :D

[@Aster_Risk]

​@@robinchesterfield42 I was just thinking this!

[@troymendiola3676]

Thank you for totally loving music

[@tegantalks9612]

I’m Canadian and I hear pop goes the world on the oldies station we play at work more than I hear safety dance lol PS I feel like pop goes the world and I melt with you would make a killer mashup.

[@AnonEyeMouse]

Always thought they were German. There was a famous case in the 80s of police raiding and shutting down cellar bars in Berlin because of moshing. They considered it rioting and shut down a number of clubs... but when the fans, bands and club owners tried getting the truth out... that the injuries incurred were due to the raids by police, not the dancing, they were accused of being a part of the rising neo - fascist far right movement. Moshing was almost banned (obviously was to all intent and purposes, effectively banned) until there was a change in government. (Or the wall came down, can't remember which). Anyway, I was told that's what the song referred to. So I thought they were German.

[@michealpersicko9531]

I mean Canada is part of the Commonwealth and they get more EU news than the USA does so its not really shocking that they knew enough about this even though they are from canada to release a song based on it.

[@Demiglitch]

Considering his Ukrainian/French/Canadian/French-Canadian amalgamation of an accent, I'd buy that he was German.

[@Guzuma]

their song Sideways (10:53) sounds suspiciously like I Saw Your Mommy by Suicidal Tendencies. Smells Like Teen Spirit sounds like the intro to Sideways. She Hates Me by Puddle of Mudd sounds like all 3 songs collectively. if musical inbreeding was a thing, She Hates Me would def be a product of it lmfao. (won’t stop me from having nostalgia bias for it tho)

[@AnodyneJS]

When he played that clip, I was expecting Ivan to shout "Trust!" at the beginning, so, yeah, definitely there on the "She Hates Me" similarity.

[@Gerilyn2003]

Love how when you're introducing the lead singer, he's pictured wearing a hat (while the captions beneath him says "Men Without Hats").

[@elizabethpemberton8445]

Also, I remember Casey Kasem explaining on AT40 at the time that the safety part was that the beat was slower so that moshers would be slower and less dangerous.

[@gxtmfa]

You can see how much better Todd got over the years since this was made.

[@Filmation77]

5:59 actually "Der Kommisar "is actually about avoiding Dirty Cops

[@Svetz17]

You’re a godsend for this reupload

[@claiternaiter446]

Wasn't "Pop Goes the World" on a Target Commercial? It sounds familiar.

[@santiagobauza4257]

The melody is also a staple in South American football chants

[@southilgurl2003]

Always liked Pop Goes The World better than the Safety Dance. Unfortunately, Belinda Carlyle's hit that year started in a similar way, always disappointing me.

[@Swishy_Blue]

8 years? Whoa. Still holds up. Good job!

[@bigguys45s29]

“I Like” is actually a good song in my opinion. It was actually a minor U.S. hit, peaking at No. 84 on the Billboard Hot 100.

[@caeserromero3013]

I like I like :-)

[@thorinbane]

Great song. 2013 live tour was great

[@Taalsman]

This band often pops up in the background on the official ToddChannel so i am glad i found this and saw it. Cheers man!

[@sunnyquinn3888]

I always figured it was about doing "the horizontal tango" safety (that is, with a love glove on).

[@rev68]

Favorite Band ever? No. Favorite Music Video ever? Yes! Of course, this was also the first music video I ever saw.

[@KrisRN23935]

What you said about Pop goes the world reminds me of I'll melt with you by Modern English. You should do them!

[@MCSMeister]

This aged well!

[@robinchesterfield42]

Fortunately, later he did! :)

[@davidweihe6052]

Nothing about the Ultimate Accolade? Weird Al Yankovic used it for his parody "The Brady Bunch", which is where I first heard the tune.

[@GOLVEL]

O.M.G!!! "Men without work!" Probably one of the best puns I've ever heard! I do believe Todd was the first one to come up with it X-D

[@Chaoitcme]

Didn't the Simpsons tell that joke in an episode?

[@GOLVEL]

@@Chaoitcme well... they have a tendency to do it all first... can be 😁 Yes, they did! Just checked. @Make room for Lisa.

[@troymendiola3676]

Dude you are all over it, I grew up in the 80s and I never understood why people would get crazy to this, but then slow dance to Boston after it ..

[@stephenemmett9753]

I know "The Safety Dance" because of the very first NOW That's What I Call Music album in the UK from 1983. Side 2, Track 2 - or CD 1, Track 10.

[@julieporter7805]

The video reminds me of Johann and Peewit, the comic and animated series by Peyo where The Smurfs got their start. I was very little when "The Safety Dance" came out so I am actually more familiar with them through "Pop Goes The World" and only later learned that they also did "The Safety Dance."

[@witchflowers6942]

1:00 OINGO BOINGO TOO!! also- There was Martha And The Muffins from Canada as well, predating MWOH… hey, those kids are probably worthy of an episode of their own…

[@robinchesterfield42]

Martha and the Muffins! I'm not Canadian, but I know about them because of those various-artist New Wave CDs I used to collect. I've heard several of their songs and like pretty much all of them. They're good stuff!

[@thorinbane]

Sideways is a good album. Has a slight screaming trees vibe on sideways and harry crews

[@ccbsnyc]

Cute song with a catchy tune and a great video. I come back to it every now and then, remember when I first saw Boy George on MTV, reminds me of my youth. Boy George is a train wreck now, so is my youth.

[@Tim_the_Enchanter]

The EP of Safety Dance I bought had Antarctica on the B-side. It's a song I like much better than Safety Dance. The jacket actually had those Fred Murray paint-by-number dance steps on it, as if the Safety Dance was an actual dance ... which it wasn't.

[@mirandawhittaker8481]

Do not fear Bonhomme du Neige. He can be merciful. Sometimes.

[@EmpressKaga]

Wow. I spent my whole life thinking the lyric was "save the dance" like this was some kind of Footloose thing. And I spent three quarters of the video wondering when "safety" would become relevant to the song. And it wasn't until my third or fourth time in the video that the titular lyrics came up that I made the connection.

[@SonofMrPeanut]

9:08 "And he is awful and I hate him."

[@YoItsEvanAdams]

Ivan's love of prog can be seen on that 90s Men Without Hats album as the cover art text uses the same look as Genesis' logo during the early 70s and one of the tracks is named "The Van der Graaf Generation Blues"

[@colin0630]

I think the music video is brillant, especially in the early days of MTV-where the new medium was still not yet “figured out” and though typically rough in appearance, music videos could be a bit subversive; indeed, beyond the obvious surface silliness of the video and the tune itself, I find a Rabelaisian character to this video/song, ie a proverbial middle finger to conventional morality, as embodied in the “dance” during a carnival or a festival. Traditionally, carnival is a time when the folk could be indecent and act “like we come from out of this world,” and invariably carnival publicly and ceremonially makes fun of the powers-that-be. I doubt any of this was intended in the video. I mean I don’t think the band members where reading Rabelais, _Gargantua and Pantagruel_ but in unconscious effect, the video is quite interesting. But I digress :)

[@Nerdsammich]

If you listen carefully, what he's saying in the chorus is actually "it's safe to dance". He's telling the audience that their show is a place where they can feel safe to cut loose.

[@sovietonion72]

Long before the floss you had the safety dance 🕺 🤣

[@PhoenixHealing]

Ohhhh "Pop Goes the World," was in "Date with an Angel!" 🥰🥰🥰🥰

[@TORLBC]

The other Euro hit is also a famous melody for football (aka soccer) chants. As a watcher of the world's game, you hear it ALL. THE. TIME.

[@MMCLLC7]

When I listen, it almost sounds like he's saying "I wanna save the dance." Which is to say that the whole point is hes going to "save thd dances" from being restricted.

[@robinchesterfield42]

Like the plot of "Footloose"! That would kinda work, actually. :)

[@Dfturcott]

It’s essentially the mummers dance of the 1980s

[@robinchesterfield42]

...oh my god it IS. Down to the midsommar maypole dancing and everything. :O

[@BiscuitsInSeptember]

"That's racist Men Without Hats." 😂

[@mgabrysSF]

Lots of US New Wave - Missing Persons, Oingo Boingo, Pere Ubu, Talking Heads and on and on. I mean how could Todd forget something as over-the-top 80s New Wave like : kzbin.info/www/bejne/f5LWdI2CZZxlnLM I also like the fact that the primary brothers behind MWH were born ... in Champagne IL.

[@robinchesterfield42]

Heck yes! There's a bunch of New Wave bands from America, and not all from New York or L.A. (where nobody walks, of course ;)) as you might expect--for pete's sake, the B-52s are from Georgia. (By the way, in case anybody is wondering, that link is to "Words" by Missing Persons--it's not a rickroll, which wouldn't make sense in this case anyway as we're talking about NON-British acts. :P) Edit: New Wave bands from America? How about BLONDIE, whom Todd even references in the video? XD

[@thetimelapsesketchbook.9088]

I Like and Where Do the Boys go are fantastic tracks. The Saftey Dance video was shot in a village called West kington in Wiltshire. Still there never changed you can see it on Google street view.

[@newwavepop]

one of my top 10 maybe top 5 bands. i will solidly stand by their debut EP and first 3 albums.

[@thorinbane]

I Like is a great song. It has a decent message. Pop goes the World is still plyaed on the regular up here in canada

[@therightrabbit]

Pop goes the world became a football ("soccer") anthem, if I'm not mistaken. Great vid amigo

[@jessicazeller8060]

Maybe they called themselves Men Without Hats because they have been compared so often to DEVO, who are known for their hats.

[@leegeddyfan]

could be...

[@Alex-cw3rz]

Well that would only work if they named themselves after they had written and released music and then years after synth was not popular anymore, Devo only had hats in 1 song as well.

[@rateeightx]

So, Fun Fact, I Didn't Know There Was A One-Hit Wonderland Video On "The Safety Dance" (Which Considering The Only Place I Could Find It Is Here, Is Understandable.), But Came Across It In The Strangest Place: I Was Looking At The IMDB Page For Depeche Mode, To See What Things They'd Provided Soundtrack For, And Found That 1: Someone Put One-Hit Wonderland On IMDB, And 2: This Episode Exists. -And Also 3: Almost Every Time Depeche Mode Have Contributed A Song To The Soundtrack Of Something I've Actually Seen, It's One Of Theirs I've Never Heard Of.-

[@DaneFalco]

Any mention that the Little Guy is actually from Time Bandits?

[@harrisonrobert8830]

LOVE THIS SONG!

[@steve.santiago]

All this time I could’ve swore Devo sang this song

[@hysterikole1]

when i was a kid, for a brief time between the ages of 12 and 13, MWH were my favourite band...this album specifically...before I found punk rock in 1985. Pop Goes The World is still pretty good, too, tho. Go figure, they were punk adjacent. My other favourite was The Gogos who i later found out also emerged from the punk scene. I guess I was destined for punk, it just took a while to find it.

[@Tommy_Wimmer]

Pop Goes the World is a popular chant at soccer/football games.

[@NPGLAMB]

I get Men at work confused with them.

[@mrhaag]

I. Love. This. Song.

[@Ryan6586]

Why can't I find this episode on Todd's channel? Thanks for uploading it.

[@jhutt8002]

When I heard that Sideways intro guitars I was hooked. Don't really care that New Wave electronic stuff, but I looked up few songs from Sideways, and it sounds absolutely great album. I didn't want to spoil that too much, as I have to get that one on CD. I don't really get Todds reaction though? It's not really album you could compare to their previous stuff anyways... So what's the funny thing? With quick listening it reminds me of REM's Monster, and that is one of my all time favorite albums.

[@kennywest5338]

at 10:55 isn't that "she fucking hates me riff"?

[@kylehegedus5498]

Its also the riff from a song called “I Saw Your Mommy” by a band called Suicidal Tendencies.

[@quinnn.5424]

Todd, what you lack in production values, you make up for in research, wit, and snark. Like!

[@caeserromero3013]

I loved this song. Ironically, for a one hit wonder group, I also like their other song called...I like :-)

[@caeserromero3013]

This track would have been great for a GOT end of season video :-)

[@raymcmillin3474]

The lead singer looks like both main members of Ween in one person

[@frogmafiaofficial]

Oh, wait, "I Melt With You", Modern English's biggest 80's hit, used the lyrics, "Pop goes the world and I melt with you" in the chorus. So, no. Derp.

[@BonJoviBeatlesLedZep]

And now he's covered it! :)

[@brettcadman5324]

I'll stop the world and melt with you.... It's a little different

[@Morphstock]

6:12 - That is definitely not what they call pogoing or slam dancing!

[@Gatorade69]

I dunno, it's like a weak watered down version.

[@Morphstock]

@@Gatorade69 I think the clip is just normal dancing! It looks like a mainstream audience dancing to a mainstream band in the 80s.

[@mrfalloutfan100]

awesome hits.

[@theenglishman]

4:47 Todd invents the white woman jumpscare

[@jackenza8285]

As a kid I absolutely adored the song "Pop Goes the World"! I listened to it so many times on my first ipod. I was actually surprised years later when I heard they were considered a one hit wonder for a different song

[@ideitbawxproductions1880]

12:42 that brief image of a jet fighter... is that the Avro Arrow or am I crazy?

[@elizabethpemberton8445]

Pop Goes the World is a great album. That is all.

[@jaysunbrady]

The 'everybody look at your hands' and mention of being in a trance makes me think they dropped acid.

[@zachracow5361]

Ca-naa-da

[@MizMite2002]

safety dance is the act of wearing a condom.

[@RainMan68]

Alaska Airlines brought me here (is what I would've said, if I wasn't 52 and remember dancing to this song back in '83).

[@rockaway0beach]

You go watching a cool little video about a one hit wonder and then just arrive to 9:26 y DALE DALE BOOO DALE BOO DALE BOO DALE DALE BOOOOOOO

[@lewisclark1122]

Or as they are now known - 'men without jobs'.

[@esaudonline9113]

I really like the song Antarctica. Another song, I dont know which album, called Mother's Opinion is good as well.

[@daveethridge7342]

I always wondered what the song was about. And why they weren't wearing appropriate sa

[@ericcunha7938]

sincerely thanks for mentioning Superchunk out of nowhere.

[@lightbright4996]

Antartica was also a big deal in Montreal clubs for sure!

[@catbrownlee7413]

London Boys were a UK act from the 80s they had 2 hits and then both died in a car crash in the Alps in 1996 would be a fascinating video.

[@joannecoakley6428]

Well, I feel stupid. I'm from Montreal and I had no idea they were too.

[@apelletier1886]

TIL where the comedy group Les Bleu Poudre found all those Bonhomme Carnaval costumes to smash with frying pans in the nineties.