Background
"Little Boxes" is a song written and composed by Malvina Reynolds in 1962 and first appeared on her 1967 Columbia Records album Malvina Reynolds Sings the Truth.
The song is a political satire about the development of suburbia, and associated conformist middle-class attitudes. It mocks suburban tract housing as "little boxes" of different colors "all made out of ticky-tacky", and which "all look just the same." "Ticky-tacky" is a reference to the shoddy material used in the construction of the houses.
The song was used as the opening theme song for the Showtime television series Weeds. The first season used Reynolds's version as the theme song. The second, third, and eighth seasons used versions by nearly thirty different musicians, as well as the occasional Reynolds version.
Linkin Park recorded a version of "Little Boxes" for episode 14 of the 3rd season, "Protection", which aired on November 12, 2007. This version is 51 seconds long and lacks the second half of the song.
Since the introduction sequence to Weeds is always the same length, the show producers often have to trim the song down in order to fit. The official Weeds website typically uploaded the full version of the theme song for streaming shortly after the episode aired. However, when Linkin Park's version was uploaded it was exactly the same as the version heard during the episode.
Other artists who have covered the song include Pete Seeger, Devendra Banhart, Elvis Costello, Death Cab for Cutie, The Decemberists, Tim DeLaughter of The Polyphonic Spree, Donovan, Anjan Dutt, Ben Folds, Skott Freedman, Engelbert Humperdinck, The Individuals, Jenny and Johnny, Angélique Kidjo, Rilo Kiley, Kinky, Man Man, The Mountain Goats, Randy Newman, Nina & Frederik, Ozomatli, Phosphorescent, The Real Tuesday Weld, The Shins, Regina Spektor, The Submarines, Billy Bob Thornton, Walk off the Earth, The Womenfolk, Rise Against, Adolfo Celdrán, Víctor Jara, Graeme Allwright, Kate and Anna McGarrigle, and Weepers Circus.
Versions
Note: Only the date of the very first release of each version is listed.
| Title | Album | Length | Recorded | Released | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Little Boxes | 0:51 | 2007 |
|
Personnel
Lyrics
Little boxes on the hillside
Little boxes made of ticky tacky
Little boxes on the hillside
Little boxes all the same
There's a green one and a pink one
And a blue one and a yellow one
And they're all made out of ticky tacky
And they all look just the same
And the people in the houses
All went to the university
Where they were put in boxes
And they came out all the same
And there's doctors and lawyers
And business executives
And they're all made out of ticky tacky
And they all look just the same