Happy Guy

Song Name: Happy Guy

Artist: DEVO

Appears On:

Total Devo (and reissues)

Recombo DNA (demo)

Now It Can Be Told: DEVO at the Palace (live)

Run Time: 3:26 BPM: 130

Year Released: 1988 (album version)

Years Performed: 1988-1990

Writing Credits: Mark Mothersbaugh / Gerald V. Casale

Sung By: Mark Mothersbaugh (lead), Gerald V. Casale (backing)

Trivia / Info:[]

“Happy Guy” is the 5th track on Total Devo, sequenced after “Plain Truth”, and before the songs “Don't Be Cruel” (included in most album formats), and “The Shadow”.
The music was written in 1979 during the development of "Whip It".^[1]
The intro to Happy Guy was originally from "Nu-Tra Speaks",
released on the b-side to the Beautiful World picture disc single.

Onstage Behavior

The song was performed from 1988 until 1990 and was never played afterwards.
As Bob 1 plays the opening guitar lines, Mark circles his fists around each other (and passes the forearm rolling test).
During the “time keeps ticking away” lyrics Mark first taps his left wrist with his right hand and later,
after Bob 1’s guitar solo, Mark made a “T”-shaped time-out gesture and tapped his palm on his extended fingers.

Lyrics:[]

Video:[]

Short Film / Music Video – None

Amateur live video was filmed, including 1988, November 3 and 1989, October 3.
A “Happy Guy” fan video was uploaded by Wizard Media to Facebook in 2019.

Additional Info:[]

The lyrics are included with the album release.
An AI bot suggests that “...the repeated lines about how ‘time keeps ticking away,’ [creates] a sense of urgency in appreciating life's fleeting moments.”[1]

References[]

↑
Alan di Perna. “Oh, no it’s DEVO – again” : Digital Cartooning, Music & Sound Output (1988, June)

Photography by Ann Summa
The music for another tune, “Happy Guy,” was written way back in 1979.

“It’s been kicking around that whole time,” Mothersbaugh explains. “It just got new lyrics in the last three or four months.

It actually, at one point, was almost on the soundtrack for Dune. But nothing happened there. The thing with [Dune director] David Lynch turned into a miscommunication...

Links:[]

Happy Guy [demo] (3:32) - https://www.discogs.com/master/1225621-Devo-Recombo-DNA

Happy Guy [album track] (3:26) - https://www.discogs.com/master/52824-Devo-Total-Devo

Happy Guy [live '88] (3:22) – https://www.discogs.com/master/52841-Devo-Now-It-Can-Be-Told-Devo-At-The-Palace-12988

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DEVO
Mark Mothersbaugh \| Gerry Casale \| Bob Mothersbaugh Bob Lewis \| Bob Casale \| Jim Mothersbaugh \| Alan Myers David Kendrick \| Josh Freese Jeff Friedl \| Josh Hager
Record Labels / Publishers
Booji Boy Records \| Warner Brothers \| Enigma \| Devo, Inc. Stiff \| Virgin \| Rykodisk \| Infinite Zero \| Restless \| Discovery \| Rhino MVD Audio \| The Orchard \| Superior Viaduct \| Futurismo
Production
Brian Eno \| Ken Scott \| Robert Margouleff \| Roy Thomas Baker \| DEVO The Teddybears \| Greg Kurstin \| Santi White \| John King \| John Hill \| Mark Nishita
Official Studio Albums
Q: Are We Not Men? A: We Are Devo! (1978) \| Duty Now For The Future (1979) \| Freedom of Choice (1980) \| New Traditionalists (1981) \| oh, no! it's Devo (1982) \| Shout (1984) \| Total Devo (1988) \| SmoothNoodleMaps (1990) \| Something for Everybody (2010)
Other Albums
B Stiff EP (1978) \| E-Z Listening Disc (1987) \| Now It Can Be Told: DEVO at the Palace (1989) \| Hardcore DEVO Vol. 1 74-77 (1990) \| Hardcore DEVO Vol. 2 1974-1977 (1991) \| DEVO Live: The Mongoloid Years (1992) \| DEV-O Live (1999) \| Recombo DNA (2000) \| Live In Central Park (2004) \| DEVO Live 1980 (2005) \| New Traditionalists: Live 1981 Seattle (2012) \| Something ELSE for Everybody (2013) \| Miracle Witness Hour (2014) \| Live at Max's Kansas City - November 15, 1977 (2014) \| Butch Devo and the Sundance Gig (2014) \| Hardcore DEVO Live! (2015) \| Art Devo 1973-1977 (2023)
Filmography
In The Beginning Was The End: The Truth About De-Evolution (1976) \| The Men Who Make The Music (1981) \| Human Highway (1982) \| We're All DEVO (1984) \| The Complete Truth About De-Evolution (1993) \| DEVO Live (2004) \| DEVO Live In The Land Of The Rising Sun (2004) \| DEVO Live 1980 (2005) \| Butch Devo and the Sundance Gig (2014) \| Hardcore DEVO Live! (2015)
Related Articles
History \| Bootlegs \| Booji Boy \| Devolution \| Influence \| The Wipeouters \| Jihad Jerry & The Evildoers \| Devo 2.0 \| Akron, Ohio \| Kent, Ohio \| Music Videos \| Cover Versions \| Outfits DEVO: The Brand / DEVO: Unmasked U S E Y O U R F R E E D O M O F C H O I C E

[1] 
Alan di Perna. “Oh, no it’s DEVO – again” : Digital Cartooning, Music & Sound Output (1988, June)

Photography by Ann Summa
The music for another tune, “Happy Guy,” was written way back in 1979.

“It’s been kicking around that whole time,” Mothersbaugh explains. “It just got new lyrics in the last three or four months.

It actually, at one point, was almost on the soundtrack for Dune. But nothing happened there. The thing with [Dune director] David Lynch turned into a miscommunication...

[1]