Are a Drag

Are a Drag
Studio albumby Me First and the Gimme Gimmes
Released	May 18, 1999
Genre	Punk rock
Length	25:58
Label	Fat Wreck Chords
Producer	Ryan Greene,Me First and the Gimme Gimmes
Me First and the Gimme Gimmeschronology
Have a Ball (1997) Are a Drag (1999) Turn Japanese (2001)

Professional ratings

Review scores
Source	Rating
Allmusic
Las Vegas Sun	(favorable)
The Maneater	(favorable)
Maximum Rocknroll	(mixed)

Are a Dragis the second album byMe First and the Gimme Gimmes,released in 1999 on theFat Wreck Chordsindependent record label.

The album is made up mainly ofshow tunes.The album's title alludes to the fact that most of the songs on the album feature vocalistSpike Slawsonsinging songs that were originally performed by female characters in their original stage shows/movies (with the exception of the Phantom's part in "Phantom of the Opera", "Science Fiction/Double Feature" which was sung by a female traditionally, but more popularly by Richard O'Brien inThe Rocky Horror Picture Show,and "Rainbow Connection" ).

The album's cover features the members of the band dressed up, in drag, as five characters from the musicals represented in song: a member ofA Chorus Line( "What I Did For Love" ), Annie Mudge fromAnnie( "Tomorrow" ),Dorothy GalefromThe Wizard of Oz( "Over the Rainbow" ), Sandy Dumbrowski fromGrease( "It's Raining on Prom Night" ), and Dr. Frank-N-Furter fromThe Rocky Horror Show( "Science Fiction/Double Feature" ).

Like many other Gimme Gimmes albums,Are a Dragcontains many elements ofmash-up- more specifically, musical allusions to punk or power-pop songs in their covers. The intro to the song "My Favorite Things" quotes "Generator", byBad Religion,and at the end of "Tomorrow", Fat Mike can be heard singing "Mommy's alright, daddy's alright, they just seem a little weird" - a lyric from "Surrender"byCheap Trick.

Geoff Carter, writing in theLas Vegas Sun,described the album as "infectious" and "oh-so-satisfying", though warned that it may become less enjoyable with repeat listening.

Track listing

No.	Title	Lyrics	Music	Musical	Length
1.	"Over the Rainbow"	E. Y. Harburg	Harold Arlen	The Wizard of Oz	1:32
2.	"Don't Cry for Me Argentina"	Tim Rice	Andrew Lloyd Webber	Evita	2:29
3.	"Science Fiction/Double Feature"	Richard O'Brien	O'Brien	The Rocky Horror Show	2:34
4.	"Summertime"	DuBose Heyward,Dorothy Heyward,Ira Gershwin	George Gershwin	Porgy and Bess	2:10
5.	"My Favorite Things"(contains an interpolation of" Generator "byBad Religion,written byBrett Gurewitz)	Oscar Hammerstein II	Richard Rodgers	The Sound of Music	1:52
6.	"Rainbow Connection"	Paul Williams,Kenneth Ascher	Williams, Ascher	The Muppet Movie	2:18
7.	"Phantom of the Opera"	Charles Hart,Richard Stilgoe,Mike Batt	Andrew Lloyd Webber	The Phantom of the Opera	1:45
8.	"I Sing the Body Electric"	Dean Pitchford	Michael Gore	Fame	1:44
9.	"It's Raining on Prom Night"	Jim Jacobs,Warren Casey	Jacobs, Casey	Grease	2:57
10.	"Tomorrow"(contains an interpolation of"Surrender"byCheap Trick,written byRick Nielsen)	Martin Charnin	Charles Strouse	Annie	1:31
11.	"What I Did for Love"	Edward Kleban	Marvin Hamlisch	A Chorus Line	1:46
12.	"Cabaret"	Fred Ebb	John Kander	Cabaret	3:24

Personnel

• Spike Slawson- vocals
• Chris Shiflett(a.k.a.Jake Jackson) - lead guitar
• Joey Cape- rhythm guitar
• Fat Mike- bass
• Dave Raun- drums

Additional musicians

• Karina Denike - backing vocals
• Sara K. Fisher - backing vocals