Image credit: Danny Lechanteur, CC BY 3.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0>, via Wikimedia Commons🇺🇲 No matter what side of the aisle you’re on, we can all agree that this 90s post-punk group had some really memorable hits!
About The Presidents of the United States of America:
The Presidents of the United States of America, occasionally known as PUSA, was an American rock band formed in Seattle in 1993. The original lineup consisted of vocalist/bassist Chris Ballew, drummer Jason Finn, and guitarist Dave Dederer. They gained popularity in the mid-1990s with hits like “Lump” and “Peaches,” leading their debut album to go triple Platinum in 1995.
The band experienced a breakup in 1997 but reunited in 2002, with guitarist Andrew McKeag joining in 2004. Despite lineup changes and a brief breakup in 2000, they continued to release albums like “Love Everybody” (2004) and “These Are the Good Times People” (2008).
The group privately disbanded in 2015, and the breakup was made public in 2016. Post-2016, each member pursued solo projects, with Ballew notably becoming children’s artist Caspar Babypants. In 2020, they used Kickstarter to reissue their debut album on its 25th anniversary.
Their musical style is often described as alternative rock, pop-punk, and post-grunge. The band was known for unique instrument stringing configurations, such as Ballew’s basitar and Dederer’s guitbass.
About “Lump”:
“Lump” is a song by the alternative rock band the Presidents of the United States of America, released in August 1995 as part of their debut album. The song, which reached number one on the US Billboard Modern Rock Tracks chart, features lyrics inspired by the songwriter Chris Ballew’s personal experience with a benign tumor and a vision of a woman in a swamp. Ballew chose the word “lump” because he liked it. Musically, the song is described as grunge, pop-punk, alternative rock, post-grunge, and pop rock.
The critical reception praised the song for its coolness and tongue-in-cheek vocals, with comparisons to Nirvana-influenced riffs and Weezer-ish harmony vocals. The song’s music video, directed by Roman Coppola, is set in a boggy marsh and depicts the band singing in a swamp and on a barge in Elliott Bay. A second, darker version of the video, known as “Lump 2,” was considered too disturbing for MTV and features the band performing on a dark stage while others lip sync the chorus.
And they must have known they really made it as a band when Weird Al covered their tune and centered it on Forrest Gump. Definitely worth a watch!:
1. “Lump” Intermediate Piano Solo
Key features of the intermediate piano version:
- Full version appropriate for intermediates
- In the key of D major
- 4 total pages
- Run time is approximately 2:30
 - Intermediate/images/Cover--lump-INT-MN.png)
🧐 Sheet music sneak peek:
2. “Lump” Easy Piano Solo
Key features of the easy piano version:
- Full version appropriate for late beginners/early intermediates
- In the key of D major
- 4 total pages
- Run time is approximately 2:30
 - Easy/images/Cover--lump-EZ-MN.png)
🧐 Sheet music sneak peek:
 - Intermediate/images/Cover--apologies-INT-MN.png)
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 - Intermediate/images/Cover--comearound--INT-MN.png)
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