Boss of Me

When Flansburgh and Linnell were asked to write the theme song for Fox's new pilot about three boys, Flansburgh thought of the half-finished "Boss of Me" with its high energy level. The show's creator, Linwood Boomer, helped persuade his network colleagues to choose the song, and also contributed the lyric "Life is unfair".^[2]

"Boss of Me" was released commercially in the United Kingdom, Australia and mainland Europe. Mainland Europe was given a separate release from the British release, which had different cover artwork and a different track listing. The single was marketed as the single from the soundtrack album, Music from Malcolm in the Middle,^[3] but the B-sides to all releases were tracks from They Might Be Giants albums, as opposed to being other tracks from the soundtrack album. "Reprehensible" comes from the band's 1999 internet-only album, Long Tall Weekend. "Mr. Xcitement" went on to be included on their album Mink Car, released two months after the single. "Boss of Me" charted in three countries, reaching number 21 in the UK,^[4] number 89 in the Netherlands,^[5] and number 29 on the Australian Singles Chart.^[6] It also reached the Top 50 on two US radio airplay charts, Alternative (number 48)^[7] and Pop (number 50).^[8]

The "Boss of Me" music video was directed by Ted Crittenden. It is based on Malcolm in the Middle, and contains the characters and set from the show. It begins with Dewey going through a dumpster that says "TMBG Toys". He climbs out of the dumpster and rides his bike home while dragging the box full of toys. The band is performing inside the box. The box goes into Dewey's backyard where Malcolm is raking leaves, their father, Hal, is cooking on a barbecue grill, and Reese is using hedge clippers on a tree. Dewey opens the box, revealing toy versions of TMBG. But whenever there's a close-up in the box, it is the real band in miniature. A Hawaiian hula dancer toy joins TMBG as Dewey sways back and forth with her. Malcolm and Reese begin shooting the toys with paintball guns until one of them accidentally shoots Hal. Though not shown, it's presumed to have been Reese who shot him as he is later seen using a weed whacker. The John Flansburgh toy is lying in the grass with his arm detached. Reese spots him and, while using the weed whacker, launches him onto the grill where Hal accidentally eats him, much to Dewey's shock. Later, the John Linnell toy is placed in a model airplane that is launched across the street before curving back and landing on the driveway. As Hal drives up, he picks up the airplane to examine it. The plane explodes because it still had a lit fuse. Hal then angrily gathers the TMBG toys into the box and drives back to the dumpster where he promptly tosses it back in.

Credits adapted from MusicBrainz.

• John Flansburgh – lead vocals and electric guitar
• John Linnell – backing vocals and keyboard
• Danny Weinkauf – bass
• Dan Hickey – drums
• Dan Miller – electric guitar
• Dan Levine – trombone
• Jim O'Connor – trumpet
• Pat Dillett – producer
• They Might Be Giants – producer
• Bob Clearmountain – mixing

All songs written by They Might Be Giants, unless otherwise noted.

UK / Australian CD single

1. "Boss of Me" – 2:56
2. "Reprehensible" – 3:17
3. "Mr. Xcitement" (D. Levine, The Elegant Too, They Might Be Giants, M. Doughty) – 2:23

UK cassette single

1. "Boss of Me" – 2:56
2. "Reprehensible" – 3:17

European CD single

1. "Boss of Me" – 2:56
2. "Mr. Xcitement" (D. Levine, The Elegant Too, They Might Be Giants, M. Doughty) – 2:23
3. "Birdhouse in Your Soul" (live) – 3:11