Mah Na Mah Na
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"Mah Na Mah Na" was written by composer Piero Umiliani for an Italian "mondo" film (exploitative pseudo-documentaries) about life (mostly sex-related) in Sweden, titled Svezia, Inferno e Paradiso (Sweden, Heaven and Hell). It is a nonsense song that achieved widespread fame as a classic Muppet...
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Written by Piero Umiliani Date 1968 Source Svezia, Inferno e Paradiso

(Sweden, Heaven and Hell) Publisher Edward B. Marks Music Company

"Mah Na Mah Na" was written by composer Piero Umiliani for an Italian "mondo" film (exploitative pseudo-documentaries) about life (mostly sex-related) in Sweden, titled Svezia, Inferno e Paradiso (Sweden, Heaven and Hell). It is a nonsense song that achieved widespread fame as a classic Muppet sketch.

Although it was first performed in a Henson production on Sesame Street by the character who would become Bip Bippadotta and two Anything Muppet girls, the most famous Muppet rendition of the song debuted on The Ed Sullivan Show in 1969, where it was performed by Mahna Mahna and his back-up singers, the Snowths. This version of the skit was restaged many times on a number of variety shows before being featured as the opening number in the premiere episode of The Muppet Show.

Regardless of who is singing, the basics of the performance remain the same: a central character starts out conforming to the structure of the song, but falls into improvisational scat passages whenever possible. Although the back-up singers attempt to bring order back to the number, their effort is ultimately futile.

The number became popular enough that it was spoofed by the Muppets themselves in a sketch on Muppets Tonight, in which Kermit the Frog complained to his psychiatrist that the Snowths would appear every time he said the word "phenomena."

The Muppets ends with a montage of celebrities performing the classic number with the Snowths. The Muppet Show recording can be heard playing in a car in the official movie trailer.

Performances[]

Releases[]

Audio[]

The Muppet Show version

The Muppet Show (1977)

Mahna Mahna/Mr. Bassman (single, 1977)

Mahna Mahna/Sax and Violence (single, 1977)

Favorite Songs From Jim Henson's Muppets (1986)

Muppet Hits (1993)

Music, Mayhem and More! (2002)

Best of the Muppets (2005)

The Muppets: Original Soundtrack (2011)

Sesame Street version

Jim Henson: A Sesame Street Celebration (1991)

Platinum Too (1997)

Songs from the Street (2003)

All-Time Favorites 1 (2018)

Sing Silly Songs! (2019)

Cover versions

Songs from Sesame Street

Animal House Sings and Plays Hits from The Muppet Movie and Sesame Street

One Potato, Two Potato (Songs from Sesame Street & The Muppets)

The Best of the Muppets: 15 Sound-Alike Favourites

Favorite Tunes of the Muppets Show

For the Kids

The Muppets vs. Sesame Street

The Arthur Fiedler Legacy - Superstars and Songbooks

The Green Album

Muppet Street: Favorite Songs from The Muppets and Sesame Street

The Favorite Songs from Muppets, Fraggle Rock, Sesame Street and Others

Video[]

The Ed Sullivan Show version

Muppets Magic from the Ed Sullivan Show (2003)

The Muppet Show version

The Muppet Revue (1985)

It's the Muppets: Meet the Muppets! (1993)

The Muppet Show: Season One (2005)

Sesame Street version

Shalom Sesame: Show 7: Sing Around the Seasons (1990, brief portion of the song only)

Specials & Compilations[]

Sesame Street version

Sesame Street Unpaved

A&E Biography: Sesame Street

The Street We Live On (introduction edited)

The Muppet Show version

The Muppets: A Celebration of 30 Years

The Muppets Celebrate Jim Henson

The Muppet Revue

Publications[]

The Muppet Show version

The Muppet Show Book (1978)

Favorite Songs from Jim Henson's Muppets (1986)

The Muppets sheet music book (2011)

References[]

While, the song's origins pre-date any Muppet performances, its popularity is in some part due to its Henson association. Its usage in material outside of Muppet/Henson productions do not necessarily equate a reference to the Muppets, unless one of the Muppet versions is directly sampled or referenced in the source material.

A line in "Weird Al" Yankovic's 2003 song "Couch Potato" mentions "The Muppet Show where they go 'Mahna Mahna!'"

The song was sung in the style of the Muppets by Gareth, David, and Ben in the first episode of the second series of BBC's The Office. After they finish singing the tune, David sighs "ah, Muppets".

A 2005 television advertisement for Diet Cherry Vanilla Dr Pepper featured the recording of "Mahna Mahna" by Jim Henson and Frank Oz.

A clip of the song and video was used in an episode of The Daily Show with Jon Stewart.

Issue #2 of The Treasure of Peg-Leg Wilson features Mahna Mahna and the Snowths at Machu Picchu, singing the name of the Incan ruin to the tune of "Mahna Mahna."

A Sesamstrasse film featuring girls on a rock climbing wall is underscored by Cake's cover on the For the Kids album.

Cee Lo Green's 2012 Christmas song with The Muppets "All I Need is Love" features samples of the song.

In a 2022 video published to the Lincoln Center's social media, Kermit the Frog is seen at his dressing room mirror doing vocal exercises, repeating "mee-may-mah-moe-moo-Mahna-Mahna." He then turns to the viewer and says "Mahna Mahna... ten points if you know what comes next."

The song serves as Lips' ringtone in The Muppets Mayhem episode "True Colors." Lips appropriately answers his calls with "Mahna Mahna."

Notes[]

According to his wife Debbie, Caroll Spinney was responsible for introducing Jim Henson to the song.[1]

Sources[]