Todd Rundgren – Bang The Drum All Day

It’s hard to be down and listen to this song. According to Rundgren, most of this song came to him in a dream, including the entire chorus. Fortunately, he was at home near his studio, so he was able to quickly roll out of bed, record what he could remember, and fill in the rest later.

He said that he never took the song seriously and was surprised when it was released as a sing.

The song peaked at #63 in the Billboard 100 in 1983.

Rundgren added that he believes the song became popular “solely because of the line about banging on the boss’s head,” and said, “It’s a party anthem, and at least once a year I get a request to use it in a commercial or a movie. I hate playing it live, though. I feel ape-like. My hands get tired, my ears get tired. But the audience loves it.”

From Songfacts

Rundgren is a distinguished songwriter, musician and composer, but this novelty romp is one of his most-played songs. How does he feel about the broad swath of the population that know him only for this song? In an interview with Bullz-Eye, he explained: “I like the idea that I’ve written a song that is well known to a broad segment of the population…and they have no idea why they know it! In the same sense that everybody knows ‘Happy Birthday,’ but they can’t remember the first time they heard it, and they have no idea who wrote it. But you’ve penetrated the cultural consciousness in a way that transcends the typical pop song, and what it means is that if I never have another hit record on the radio again, that song is still going to be around likely twenty-five years from now. People probably don’t remember Gary Glitter, but they know “Rock And Roll Part 2″! And in that sense, it has somewhat of a more protractile life span, I guess.”

In a Songfacts interview with Todd Rundgren, he cited this as one of the most important songs of his career, because “I made so much money off of it.” He added: “Everybody likes to hear that ‘Bang The Drum’ song, but everyone’s connection to that is that one line in the song where it talks about abusing your boss (‘I pound on that drum like it was the boss’s head’). I can identify with that, but I don’t really enjoy playing the song that much because it’s just a lot of screaming and flailing around.”

Some of the commercial uses of this song include a TV commercial for Carnival Cruise Lines and a scene in the TV show The Office. It is played at a variety of sporting events and frequently used in movie trailers. Radio stations often play it at quitting time (5 p.m.), as an anthem for working stiffs ready to escape the clutches of their employer. In 2012, Rundgren said that the song makes him “six figures every couple of months,” thanks mostly to Carnival.

After moving to Hawaii, Rundgren had some fun with this song, performing a ukulele version called “Bang On The Ukulele Daily” that he introduced as “an old Hawaiian war chant.” You can hear it on his 2000 album One Long Year.

To mark his 60th, 65th and 70th birthdays, Rundgren organized “Toddstock” celebrations for his core fans, which were intimate gatherings in the outdoors. At these events, drum circles often formed to play “Band The Drum All Day.”

Bang The Drum All Day

I don’t want to work
I want to bang on the drum all day
I don’t want to play
I just want to bang on the drum all day

Ever since I was a tiny boy
I don’t want no candy
I don’t need no toy
I took a stick and an old coffee can
I bang on that thing till I got
Blisters on my hand because

When I get older they think I’m a fool
The teacher told me I should stay after school
She caught me pounding on the desk with my hands
But my licks was so hot
I made the teacher want to dance
And that’s why

Listen to this
Every day when I get home from work
I feel so frustrated
The boss is a jerk
And I get my sticks and go out to the shed
And I pound on that drum like it was the boss’s head
Because

I can bang that drum
Hey, you want to take a bang at it?
I can do this all day

Author: Badfinger (Max)

Power Pop fan, Baseball, Beatles, old movies, and tv show fan. Also anything to do with pop culture in the 60s and 70s... I'm also a songwriter, bass and guitar player.

29 thoughts on “Todd Rundgren – Bang The Drum All Day”

  1. For me, this song was one of the highlights of Ringo’s All Starr Band concert. It’s definitely my fave song of Todd’s. I disagree with him that the one line about the boss is what makes it a hit. To me the song is a hit from the opening lines, and tempo.

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    1. I do remember it as a highlight of that show…it does bring everyone up. When I first heard it in the early 80s it did come out of left field. I’ve always liked it.

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  3. I had the distinct privilege of seeing Todd Rundgren play in a small Marin County club many years ago. He was always on the cutting edge, as I think we’re well aware. He had no band with him on-stage, just a mind-boggling array of what were then very costly Apple II computers and a Fairlight synthesizer. He put on an amazing show.

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    1. That would have been a really cool show to watch…much more personal. I saw him with the All Starrs with Ringo.

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  4. great fun song. There was a radio station in Toronto (and I bet many others elsewhere) that used it as a sort of “friday morning anthem” every week on the morning show.

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  7. This one was in my late 80s early 90s college set, right there with REM’s This is the End of the World as We Know it and Violent Femmes Blister in the Sun and The B52s Rock Lobster–among others…big fan of Todd Rundgren.

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  9. Have you ever heard Todd’s production on the debut album from The Pursuit of Happiness.
    That album is called Love Junk. It’s a fantastic rock record and well it’s Canadian! lol

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      2. Man that drum does snap…It’s so clear. Good stuff man. Good song…I know I’ve heard about them or heard them before.

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  10. I love the keyboard intro to the song, and the bass is strong. I can see where it would be an anthem to the working class. Anyone who works hard for a living dreams of a life where they can just play on the drums all day.

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    1. It’s a Friday song no doubt…I should have saved it but what the heck….we all need cheering on a Tuesday. I agree it’s an anthem.

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  12. I’ve always liked Todd Rundgren’s songs, especially the ones like “Real Man” and “One Victory”. I wish they’d play those more often on the radio. He had a really creative style, and he puts together the melodies and chords so well!

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