Hermit the Frog is a song by Marina Diamandis, released under her previous stage name 'Marina and the Diamonds'. Initially on her self-released EP, Mermaid vs. Sailor, as the 3rd track, it was then reproduced and released on her first studio album, The Family Jewels, as the 9th track on the standard edition.
The album version was written and co-produced by Marina, with Liam Howe credited as the main producer, whilst the EP version was solely produced by Diamandis.
Background[]
Using comments available on Marina's MySpace at the time, Rockabilly's timeline places an unknown version of Hermit the Frog on June 3, 2007, with a "new version" later posted around November 8 of the same year,[1] weeks prior to the release of Mermaid vs. Sailor. This version was encoded with iTunes v7.4.2,[2] which was available from September 17-27, 2007,[3] and fits the timeframe.
In a July 2010 interview with LAist, Marina stated:[4]
❝ You've said that you like to treat your voice as an instrument. Which is one moment on the album where you really pushed yourself and felt proud of how it turned out?
'I would probably say 'Hermit the Frog' because it's definitely the most experimental song. Though to be honest, when I say experimental, I wasn't aware of that fact when I was doing it. I just wanted to put a lot of character and humor into the song, and that's the only way I knew how to do it.
As a rule, I think the voice should really be explored and I think a lot of pop artists don't do that enough.' ❞
When asked which songs were first written for The Family Jewels, she listed:[4]
❝ The oldest is 'Hermit the Frog' followed by 'Seventeen,' 'Obsessions,' 'Are You Satisfied?' and 'Mowgli's Road.' Then 'I Am Not a Robot,' 'The Outsider' and the last ones were 'Oh No!' and 'Numb.' The album covers a pretty broad stretch of time. ❞
Reflections[]
In a June 2021 interview with People, Diamandis reflected back on the album's songs:[5]
❝ 'It feels like listening to another person,' she says about her old records, which she admits are often 'too uncomfortable' to revisit. 'Songs like 'Oh No!' or 'Hollywood' or 'I'm Not a Robot,' I still love those songs genuinely. It's other songs like 'Are You Satisfied?' and 'Hermit the Frog,' where I'm like 'What the f—?' They were so mad.'
'They were baby me,' she adds. ❞
Trivia[]
- In her track-by-track interview for The Family Jewels, Marina called it the first song she wrote in a "Marina and the Diamonds sense [..] it just all clicked, and I thought this is my direction."
- The song's title is a reference to The Muppets character, Kermit the Frog.
- In June 2021, the song was popularized on social media app TikTok.
Official Versions[]
| Version | Released on | Date | Length | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ▶ | Album [Inst.]
|
The Family Jewels | 15 Feb 2010 | 3:35 |
| EP | Mermaid vs. Sailor | 23 Nov 2007 | 3:38 | |
| [6] | Alt. Mix | MySpace | 08 Nov 2007 | 3:41 |
| Demos | ||||
| [1] | MySpace Demo (Unleaked) | MySpace | ~3 Jun 2007 | |
Lyrics[]
[Intro]
Mm, oh-oh-oh-oh-oh
Oh-oh, ooh
[Verse 1]
Yeah, I feel I'm watered down
Whenever he's around
I put on the crown of clowns
And melt slowly to the ground
Yeah, I feel it comin' on
When I've been static for too long
And an explosion comes in time
Before I go and cross the line
They say "you used to be so kind
I never knew you had such a dirty mind"
[Pre-Chorus 1]
Well, I went to the doctors believin'
The Devil had control over me and (Ha ha ha)
I was finding it hard to breathe and
Finding it hard to fight the feelin'
[Chorus]
When my heart just burst like a glass balloon
I let it fly too high, and it shattered too soon
I was the wrong damn girl in the wrong damn room
I broke my glass balloon, I let go of my glass balloon
[Post-Chorus]
Oh-oh-oh-oh-oh
[Verse 2]
They call him Hermit the Frog
He's looking for a dog
Did you find your bitch in me?
Oh, you're abominable socially
You're just a little bit too much like me
She says "she used to be so kind"
Well, baby, I give you your dirty mind
[Pre-Chorus 2]
Well, I, I wanna tell you a secret
You can take your double standard, love, and keep it
I can't help the Devil likes to make my heart a double bed
And I can't help he sometimes likes to come and rest his little head
[Chorus]
When my heart just burst like a glass balloon
I let it fly too high, and it shattered too soon
I was the wrong damn girl in the wrong damn room
I broke my glass balloon, I let go of my glass balloon
[Bridge]
Oh, oh, oh-oh-oh-oh-oh, oh, oh, oh-oh
Oh, oh, oh-oh-oh-oh-oh, oh, oh
Dam-da-da-dam dam-dam-dam-dam
Dam-da-da-dam dam-dam-dam-dam
Dam-da-da-da-da-da-dam dam-dam-dam-dam
Dam-da-da-dam da-da-da-dam
[Chorus]
Oh, my heart just burst like a glass balloon
We let them fly too high, and they shattered too soon
Are we the wrong damn people in the wrong damn room?
We broke our glass balloons, we let go of our glass balloons
[Outro]
We broke our glass balloon
Let go of my glass balloon
[Intro]
Mm
Oh-oh-oh-oh-oh
Oh-oh
Mm
[Verse 1]
Yeah, I feel I'm watered down
Whenever he's around
I put on the crown of clowns
And melt slowly to the ground
Yeah, I feel it comin' on
When I've been static for too long
And an explosion comes in time
Before I go and cross the line
Oh, yeah, I go and cross the li-i-ine
[Verse 2]
Think before you blurt (Ha ha ha)
Out the words you say to hurt
'Cause next week you'll be your
Oh, oh, ooh-ooh-ooh-ooh
Oh, ooh-ooh-ooh
They say "you used to be so kind
I never knew you had such a dirty mind"
[Pre-Chorus 1]
Well, I went to the doctors believin'
The Devil had control over me and
I was finding it hard to breathe and
Finding it hard to fight the feelin'
[Chorus]
That my heart just burst like a glass balloon
I let it fly too high, and it shattered too soon
I was the wrong damn girl in the wrong damn room
I broke my glass balloon, I let go of my glass balloon
[Post-Chorus]
Oh-oh-oh-oh-oh
[Verse 3]
They call him Hermit the Frog
He's looking for a dog
Did you find your bitch in me? (Tss)
Oh, you're abominable socially
You're just a little bit too much like me
[Verse 4]
Think before you blurt
Out the words you say to hurt
'Cause last week I was so
Oh, oh, ooh-ooh-ooh-ooh
But now it'll be you-u-u-u
[Pre-Chorus 2]
Said "she used to be so kind"
Well baby, I give you your dirty mind
Well, I, I wanna tell you a secret
You can take your double standard, love, and keep it
I can't help the Devil likes to make my heart a double bed
And I can't help he sometimes likes to come and rest his little head
[Chorus]
When my heart just burst like a glass balloon
We let them fly too high, and they shattered too soon
Oh, we're the wrong damn people in the wrong damn room
We broke our glass balloons
Ooh, let go of their glass balloons
[Outro]
We broke our glass balloons
Let go of my glass balloon
Credits[]
Personnel[]
- Piano, vocals - Marina Diamandis
- Philicorda, mellotron, mandolin, recorders - Liam Howe
- String arrangement, double bass - Lucy Shaw
- Piano - Stephen Large
- Violins - Anna Phoebe, Rebekah Allan
- Viola - Oli Langford
- Cello - Chris Worsey
- Drums - David Westlake
Technical[]
- Writer, additional production ideas - Marina Diamandis
- Producer - Liam Howe for This Much Talent
- Mixer - Liam Howe at The Ivory Tower
- Programmer - Liam Howe
- Engineer - Richard Wilkinson
- Assistant engineer - Dougal Lott
- Recorded at - The Ivory Tower, Konk, London
- Master - Guy Davie at Electric Mastering, London
- Publisher - Warner Chappell Music Publishing Ltd
Registration[]
Hermit the Frog was once registered on ASCAP/BMI,[7] and twice on GEMA.[8] The re-registration lists Marina's own publishing company, Primadonna Girl Limited. This was likely done in order to have legal ownership over her songs.
References[]
- ↑ https://web.archive.org/web/20091009214703/http://marinaandthediamonds.net/discog/songs.shtml
- ↑ This YouTube channel posted various 2008 demos, and it matches this file (not an OG file, but still contains some original metadata including encode data), run through https://exif.tools/
- ↑ https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_iTunes#iTunes_7
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 https://archive.is/0cfbV
- ↑ https://people.com/music/marina-drops-ancient-dreams-in-a-modern-land-talks-heartbreak-freedom
- ↑ https://youtu.be/YU9uRHA_264 When inverted with the CD rip you can tell there's additional/differently mixed background vocals
- ↑ https://www.ascap.com/repertory#
ISWC: T9021497450 Work ID: 382822437 - ↑ https://online.gema.de/werke/search.faces?lang=en
GEMA work no.: 10728215-001
GEMA work no.: 10728215-003
 | |
|---|---|
| Merch • Photography • MySpace | |
| Discography | |
| Releases | Mermaid vs. Sailor |
| Tracklist | Seventeen • Horror Pop • Hermit the Frog • Daddy Was a Sailor • Simplify • Plastic Rainbow |
| Non-Album | |
| Outtakes | The Common Cold |
| Speculated | Hot, Cross Bun • Hubba • Lonely Bones • Pancake Karma • Perfect-Oh • Silver Walls • Starlight • Where Diamonds Grow |
| Misc | China's Dolls • Philosopher My Arse • This Is L.A. • Troubled Mind |
| Other Eras | |
| Mermaid vs. Sailor • The Family Jewels • Electra Heart • FROOT • LOVE + FEAR • Ancient Dreams • Sixth Studio Album (Upcoming) | |
