References to Chumbawamba's 1997 hit single Tubthumping in The Simpsons - a masterpost

[originally posted January 5th 2023 on cohost. I later turned this post into a short YouTube video]

I'm sure every morning you wake up and think "thanks to modern technology we have access to all of human knowledge at our fingertips. But I sure wish someone compiled every appearance or mention of the most beloved anarcho dance pop single of the late 90s, Tubthumping by Chumbawamba, in the widely beloved animated sitcom The Simpsons, into a handly little list for quick access". And you are not alone! While the ever ongoing series presents us to this day with new, constant quality entertainment and back to back instant classic episodes every week, the ever increasing scale of the show makes it harder and harder to keep track of it's various Tubthumping-references, a problem that thousands of people surely face every single day. Lucky for you, I am up to the task of solving this problem once and for all, with this masterpost.

Season 13 Episode 20 - Little Girl in the Big Ten

We're only scratching the surface here, this is the one most people will be familiar with! This is likely the one that sparked your year long fascination with the study of Simpsowambology (the cross-section of Simpsons- and Chumbawamba-studies) that has lead you to the all-encompassing question "Well, that was great! But how much deeper does it go?" The answer is of course: "Much deeper!". But we have to start somewhere, and there is no better place to start than here!

In this episode, Lisa finds herself in the situation in which she tries to pass herself off as a college student. When her new college friends drop her off back at home, they hear her father, Homer, loudly singing along to the song, with changed lyrics: "I take a whiskey drink! I take a chocolate drink! And when I have to pee, I use the kitchen sink! I sing the song that reminds me I'm a urinating guy". Avid Chumba-heads (fans of the band Chumbawamba) will know that this differs from the original verse of the song, which of course has the iconic lines "He drinks a whiskey drink, He drinks a vodka drink, He drinks a lager drink, He drinks a cider drink, He sings the songs that remind him of the good times, He sings the songs that remind of the better times". Much different than the version that our Homer sings, but not nearly as hilarious!

Season 26 Episode 13 - Walking Big & Tall

do not watch this episode

Anyways, in this episode, Homer finds a new identity by taking pride in his weight, and, encouraged by his body-positive support group, tries to fight the stigma against fat people. During his next visit in his beloved tavern Moe's Tavern, he tells his friends Lenny, Carl, Barney and Moe (the owner of Moe's) about many of the daily struggles fat people face, and enourages them to stop using fatphobic language. He gives a list of examples of such problematic terms, which, among other humorous examples like "chubby", "chunky", "fat bastard", "papa grande", "dumptruck" and "blubberino", also lists "Chumbawamba" as one of the offending words. A fun easter egg for all us Simpsowambologists watching!

I can not stress enough how much I hate this episode

And if you thought this was obscure, just wait until you see the next entry!

Season 29 Episode 7 - Singin' in the Lane

The aforementioned friend group of Homer, Lenny, Carl, Barney and Moe decide to reform the old bowling team, the Pin Pals! The Pin Pals originally made their debut in the classic season 7 episode Team Homer, and this new story is a beloved homage to this great moment in cartoon history. Anyways this has nothing to do with Chumbawamba. Drunk Barney falls off of Moe's jukebox and Tubthumping starts playing.

That's it