Music / Muppet Beach Party

Muppet Beach Party is a 1993 Concept Album by The Muppets. It's Exactly What It Says on the Tin, a collection of song covers (dating from The '60s to The '80s) about having fun on the beach, all of which are performed by the Muppet characters. The "Kokomo" and "Wipe Out" covers warranted music videos, with the former having been made for a 1993 "Muppet Sing-Alongs" VHS (an abbreviated version also appeared on several early 90's Disney and Muppet VHS tapes and during commercials on Nickelodeon), and the latter also being released as a single in the UK.

Track listing

1. "Surfin' USA" (Kermit and Clifford)
2. "Wooly Bully" (The Great Gonzo, Rizzo the Rat, and Fozzie Bear)
3. "Under the Boardwalk" (Clifford with the Surf Rats)
4. "Sugar Shack" (The Great Gonzo and Rizzo the Rat)
5. "Itsy Bitsy Teenie Weenie Yellow Polka-Dot Bikini" (Kermit and Miss Piggy)
6. "Limbo Rock" (Fozzie Bear and the Muppets)
7. "Papa Oom Mow Mow" (Clifford, Kermit, and the Giant Clams)
8. "Kokomo" (Kermit with Miss Piggy)
9. "Surfin' " (The Surf Rats, featuring Buzz the Wharf Rat)
10. "Walkin' on Sunshine" (Clifford with the Great Gonzo and Rizzo the Rat)
11. "Fun, Fun, Fun" (Robin and the Frog Scouts)
12. "Wipe Out" (Animal)

Muppet Beach Tropes

• Artistic License – Physics: On the cover it seems that Kermit is sitting on the beach chair, but on closer inspection he is just superimposed on it in a not very convincing way.
• Beach Episode: Serves as one for The Muppet Show some 12 years after the last episode of that show aired.
• Call-Back: In a 1980 episode of "The Muppet Show" Kermit already covered "Surfin' USA", but with other frogs. The version on this album is different.
• Concept Album: All songs on this album have one common theme: the beach. We hear the Muppets literally arrive at the beach during the first track and decide to have a party there.
• Cover Album: All tracks are covers. "Surfin' USA", "Kokomo", "Surfin'" and "Fun, Fun, Fun" are The Beach Boys covers, "Wooly Bully" was originally by Sam the Sham & The Pharaohs, "Under the Boardwalk" by The Drifters, "Sugar Shack" by Jimmy Gilmer and the Fireballs, "Itsy Bitsy Teenie Weenie Yellow Polka Dot Bikini" by Brian Hyland, "Limbo Rock" by Chubby Checker, "Papa-Oom-Mow-Mow" by The Rivingtons, "Walking On Sunshine" by Katrina and the Waves and "Wipe Out" by The Surfari's.
• Face on the Cover: Naturally Kermit appears on the cover. We also see Animal, Clifford, Gonzo, some penguins and Fozzie.
• Limited Lyrics Song: "Wipeout" consists of Animal repeating the song title several times over while drumming. This is actually more often than in the original song.
• Pop: All songs are easy listening pop songs.
• Self-Titled Album: The Muppets are mentioned in the album title.
• Spoken Word in Music: Several songs are intercut with funny dialogues between the Muppets.
• Stock Sound Effects: We hear an elephant trumpet during "Wooly Bully".
• Surf Rock: The majority of the songs are covers of early 1960s surf rock singles or novelty songs.
• Surreal Music Video: Their rendition of "Kokomo" was made into a music video. Seeing the Muppets perform this traditional is bound to be surreal.
• Talking Animal: The Muppets themselves naturally, but during "Papa Oom Mow Wow" a group of clams also start singing.

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