DESCRIPTION:
Available on cduniverse:
http://www.cduniverse.com/search/xx/music/pid/1145015/a/Life+On+The+Bottom.htm

From '' Life On The Bottom ''
Label: Upstart Records -- UPSTART 033
Format: CD, Album
Country: US
Released: 1996

Tracklist
01. Hammerhead
02. Caldera
03. Stinky
04. Life On The Bottom
Written-By -- Bob Beland, Peter Curry
05. Ta-Hu-Wa-Hu-Wai
Written-By -- Johnny Noble, Prince Leleiohoku, Ralph Freed
06. Noodles
07. Hombre De Palabra
Written-By -- Bob Beland, Peter Curry
08. Madcap
09. Hula Scuba
10. Suicide Bay
Written-By -- Bob Beland, Peter Curry
11. Night Crawler
12. Duck Dive
13. Fire One!
14. Istanbul
Written-By -- Jimmy Kennedy, Nat Simon
15. Summertime
Written-By -- DuBose Heyward, George Gershwin

Performer -- Bruce Paddy, Joe Lyou, Peter Curry, Randy Haskins, Rick Johnson
Bass [Guest Halibut] -- Mike Palm (tracks: 3)
Piano [Guest Halibut] -- Bob Beland (tracks: 4)
Horns [Guest Halibut] -- Leigh Finlayson (tracks: 2), Paul Schwartz (tracks: 2)
Trumpet [Guest Halibut] -- Chuck Kemling (tracks: 9, 15)
Gong [Guest Halibut] -- Dennis Moody (tracks: 14)

Engineer -- Andre Champagne, Peter Curry, Richard D'Andrea, Rick Johnson
Written-By -- Peter Curry (tracks: 1 to 3, 6, 8, 9, 11 to 13)
Artwork By, Design [Cover] -- Mary Roth Beland
Mastered By -- Doug Doyle
Mixed By -- Dennis Moody
Other [Cover Concept] -- Bob Beland

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"Istanbul (Not Constantinople)" is a swing-style song, with lyrics by Jimmy Kennedy and music by Nat Simon.
According to They Might Be Giants, the tune was based on the music for "Puttin' on the Ritz," written by Irving Berlin in 1929.

The lyrics refer to the change of the name of the city of Constantinople to the Turkish name Istanbul.
It also mentions the fact that New York City was originally named New Amsterdam, and that the change to New York was kept because "people just liked it better that way".
In addition, the lyrics opine that the name change from Constantinople to Istanbul is "nobody's business but the Turks'."

The Four Lads original version

"Istanbul (Not Constantinople)" was originally recorded by the Canadian group The Four Lads on August 12, 1953.
This recording was released by Columbia Records as catalog number 40082.
It first reached the Billboard magazine charts on October 24, 1953, and it peaked at #10. It was the group's first gold record.

Live performance cover versions

The Duke's Men of Yale, an all-male a cappella group at Yale University, perform the song at the end of most of their concerts. The song has been in the repertoire of the Duke's Men since 1953.

During the 2000s, the song was performed live by Australian Klezmer/Gypsy Jazz band Monsieur Camembert.

PJ Harvey used a sample of this song on the title track to her 2011 album "Let England Shake."

Recorded cover versions

Edmundo Ros (1953)
Bing Crosby with Ella Fitzgerald (1953)
Frankie Vaughan (1954)
Caterina Valente (1954)
Renato Carosone
Darío Moreno (1954, in French)
Jacques Hélian et son Orchestre (1950s, in French as "Istamboul")
Lou Busch (as "Joe Fingers Carr & his Ragtime Band")
Santo & Johnny (1962)
Bruno & the Gladiators, instrumental surf rock band, though titled "Istambul" (1963)
Bette Midler for the live album "Live At Last" (1977)
They Might Be Giants (1990)
Ska Cubano (2006)
Lee Press-on and the Nails (2007).

They Might Be Giants cover

One of the better-known versions of "Istanbul (Not Constantinople)" is the cover by the alternative rock band They Might Be Giants, who released it on their album Flood in 1990. It was released as the second single from that album in the same year. TMBG's version is at a faster tempo than the original and contains a distinct klezmer influence, including a violin introduction and some accordion parts.

In popular culture

The lyrics were used in the March 21, 1954 episode of The Jack Benny Program during a sketch about a man trying to buy a train ticket to Constantinople. Jack Benny and Frank Nelson proceed to use the lyrics to dispute where the man can go.

In Civilization III, when a player runs out of city names in the official list, the city name list restarts with "New" prefixed to the original name (e.g. "New London" for the English). However, when the Ottomans build the first city after exhausting the original list, the city is named "Not Constantinople" as opposed to the expected "New Istanbul."