Animaniacs ceased production in 1998, but several clips from the show have enjoyed remarkable second lives as YouTube videos. Case in point: Wakko’s musical rundown of states and capitals, set to the tune of “Turkey In The Straw.” Presumably, the Internet has allowed an entirely new generation to use this instructional ditty as a mnemonic device during geography tests. And now, a YouTuber who self-identifies as “foundring” has uploaded his own updated, supersized remake of the classic tune. Cycling through the original song takes foundring less than two minutes. The remaining nine are devoted to foreign capitals, served with a smattering of political commentary. (“Baghdad’s in Iraq / The U.S. lied to go invade ya / Now we’ve covered all the countries and the capitals in Asia.”)
Despite its epic length, the clip is a modest affair from a technical standpoint. In one unbroken take, which foundring says ”took about seven or eight hours of straight recording” to achieve, the bearded, bespectacled YouTuber simply plays a tinny-sounding upright piano and sings directly (sans microphone) to the camera. “I will probably record this again,” he says, “with better sound and a piano that’s in tune.” One unexpected bonus of the clip is that it allows viewers to hear the melody “Turkey In The Straw” over and over again, thus vaguely replicating the summertime thrill of following an ice cream truck around for a while.