Benjamin-Constant-The Entry of Mahomet II into Constantinople-1876

"Istanbul (Not Constantinople)" is a 1953

novelty song A novelty song is a type of song built upon some form of novel concept, such as a gimmick, a piece of humor, or a sample of popular culture. Novelty songs partially overlap with comedy songs, which are more explicitly based on humor, and wi ...

, with lyrics by Jimmy Kennedy and music by Nat Simon. It was written on the 500th anniversary of the

fall of Constantinople The Fall of Constantinople, also known as the Conquest of Constantinople, was the capture of the capital of the Byzantine Empire by the Ottoman Empire. The city fell on 29 May 1453 as part of the culmination of a 53-day siege which had beg ...

to the Ottomans. The lyrics humorously refer to the official renaming of the city of

Constantinople la, Constantinopolis ota, قسطنطينيه , alternate_name = Byzantion (earlier Greek name), Nova Roma ("New Rome"), Miklagard/Miklagarth ( Old Norse), Tsargrad ( Slavic), Qustantiniya (Arabic), Basileuousa ("Queen of Cities"), Megalopolis ( ...

Istanbul Istanbul ( , ; tr, İstanbul ), formerly known as Constantinople ( grc-gre, Κωνσταντινούπολις; la, Constantinopolis), is the List of largest cities and towns in Turkey, largest city in Turkey, serving as the country's economic, ...

. The song's original release, performed by The Four Lads, was certified as a gold record. Numerous cover versions have been recorded over the years, most famously a 1990 rock version by

They Might Be Giants They Might Be Giants (often abbreviated as TMBG) is an American alternative rock band formed in 1982 by John Flansburgh and John Linnell. During TMBG's early years, Flansburgh and Linnell frequently performed as a duo, often accompanied by a dr ...

Musical influences

The song is said to be a response to "C-O-N-S-T-A-N-T-I-N-O-P-L-E" recorded in 1928 by Paul Whiteman and His Orchestra.

The Four Lads original version

"Istanbul (Not Constantinople)" was originally recorded by the

Canadian Canadians (french: Canadiens) are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of ...

vocal quartet The Four Lads on August 12, 1953. This recording was released by

Columbia Records Columbia Records is an American record label owned by Sony Music, Sony Music Entertainment, a subsidiary of Sony Corporation of America, the North American division of Japanese Conglomerate (company), conglomerate Sony. It was founded on Janua ...

as catalog number 40082. It first reached the ''Billboard'' magazine charts on October 24, 1953, and it peaked at #10. It was the group's first gold record.

Cover versions

Bing Crosby & Ella Fitzgerald

This recording may have been from a radio broadcast performance and not originally released on record.

Frankie Vaughan

Frankie Vaughan's 1954 version for HMV reached the UK charts that year with a peak position of No. 11.

Col Joye's Joy Boys

Col Joye's backing band recorded an instrumental version on the Festival Records label, which peaked No. 16 in November 1960 according to the former brand of the

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, ending up as No. 95 for the 1961 year-end ranking.

The Big Muffin Serious Band

This group from New Zealand released a cover on their LP "Jabberwocky Goes To Town" in 1987.

They Might Be Giants

One of the best-known versions of "Istanbul (Not Constantinople)" is the cover by the

alternative rock Alternative rock (also known as alternative music, alt-rock or simply alternative) is a category of rock music that evolved from the independent music underground of the 1970s. Alternative rock acts achieved mainstream success in the 1990s w ...

band

(TMBG), who released it on their album ''

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'' in 1990. It was released as the second single from that album in the same year. TMBG's version is at a faster tempo than the original. The music video was featured in the first season of MTV's '' Liquid Television''. TMBG's version of the song is prominently featured in the ''

Tiny Toon Adventures ''Tiny Toon Adventures'' is an American animated comedy television series that was broadcast from September 14, 1990, to December 6, 1992. It was the first collaborative effort of Steven Spielberg's Amblin Television and Warner Bros. Animation ...

'' episode "Tiny Toon Music Television", as the soundtrack to a segment featuring

Plucky Duck The ''Tiny Toon Adventures'' animated television series features an extensive cast of characters. The show's central characters are mostly various forms of anthropomorphic animals, based on Looney Tunes characters from earlier films and show ...

as a private detective hired to find a missing statue. It was also used as the theme in the thriller ''Black Magic'' (1992 film) starring Judge Reinhold. In recent years, it appears in the first season of the Netflix series '' The Umbrella Academy'', as well as an ending to an episode of ''

The Simpsons ''The Simpsons'' is an American animated sitcom created by Matt Groening for the Fox Broadcasting Company. The series is a satirical depiction of American life, epitomized by the Simpson family, which consists of Homer Simpson, Homer, Marge ...

'', " Mobile Homer". The single reached number 61 on the

UK Singles Chart The UK Singles Chart (currently titled Official Singles Chart, with the upper section more commonly known as the Official UK Top 40) is compiled by the Official Charts Company (OCC), on behalf of the British record industry, listing the top-s ...

in 1990. TMBG later recorded an electronic version of the song for their 2011 compilation album, '' Album Raises New and Troubling Questions''.

The Sacados

A Spanish language version called "Estambul" was recorded by Argentine synth-pop trio The Sacados in 1990. The song was included on their debut album "Te pido + respeto" (1990).

Bart & Baker

Electro Swing Electro swing, or swing house, is an electronic dance music genre that combines the influence of vintage or modern swing and jazz mixed with house and hip hop. Successful examples of the genre create a modern and dance-floor focused sound tha ...

duo Bart & Baker covered the song for their album "The Jet Lag EP" (2012). Another version called "Istanbul 2016" was included on their curation album "Best Of Electro Swing By Bart & Baker" (2016).

Live performance cover versions

The Duke's Men of Yale, an all-male a cappella group at

Yale University Yale University is a Private university, private research university in New Haven, Connecticut. Established in 1701 as the Collegiate School, it is the List of Colonial Colleges, third-oldest institution of higher education in the United Sta ...

, perform the song at the end of most of their concerts. The song has been in the repertoire of the Duke's Men since 1953. During the 2000s, the song was performed live by Australian Klezmer/Gypsy Jazz band Monsieur Camembert, appearing on the album ''Live on Stage''. *

References

{{authority control 1953 songs 1990 EPs 1990 singles Elektra Records singles Warner Music Group singles Swing music Songs about cities Songs about Turkey Songs with lyrics by Jimmy Kennedy Songs with music by Nat Simon The Four Lads songs They Might Be Giants EPs They Might Be Giants songs Song recordings produced by Clive Langer Song recordings produced by Alan Winstanley Novelty songs