I Just Learned Something Wild About South Park’s Theme Song, And How Primus Recorded It

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For a longer time than “South Park” has been airing as a television series, I’ve been a dedicated Primus fan. With Season 27 of this iconic animated comedy now underway on the 2025 TV lineup (and its debut episode causing quite a stir due to its controversial content), I’ve noticed an increase in clips from my social media feeds. One such clip features Les Claypool, Primus’ fearless leader, discussing the recording of the theme song. Interestingly enough, the version that plays at the end of each episode was initially intended to be the opening theme. Here’s the story behind it.

The Original Idea Was The Slower Version

More recently, music producer Claypool had an interview with YouTube personality Rick Beato. Although the complete conversation isn’t out on Beato’s channel yet, he shared a snippet of it as a short video on YouTube. In this clip, Beato inquires about the origins of the project, and Claypool reveals the details to him.

Here’s an interesting twist: At the conclusion of the South Park episode, the sound you hear is exactly what was provided to them.

It turns out that the slower, methodical rendition of the song you heard during the closing credits is the only one Primus ever recorded. Interestingly enough, they were asked to speed it up because Comedy Central considered the theme song too slow initially. Instead of re-recording the song, which Primus didn’t have time for, Les Claypool suggested they simply increase its tempo.

Indeed, the song’s sound wasn’t reminiscent of the Chipmunks, necessitating a re-recording of the vocals by Claypool. Subsequently, Parker and Stone attended a live Primus concert where Claypool recorded the vocals impromptu, as he himself elaborates.

I re-recorded it into a little tape recorder, and they took it back and they took over the world.

Initially, Claypool and the rest of Primus weren’t entirely convinced about the success of the show, which is why they were hesitant to dedicate a lot of their time to it. However, speeding up the process turned out to be an excellent decision, as the fast-paced twang fits perfectly with the subversive humor.

Primus Was The Only Music Trey Parker And Matt Stone Could Agree On

It was primarily because the offbeat trio, Primus, was the only band that both Parker and Stone enjoyed, that they were invited to create the theme song, as Claypool shared with Beato.

It seems that during the creation of the initial South Park episode, they had varying musical preferences: Trey preferred one style while Matt preferred another. However, according to information I’ve gathered, there was one band they both agreed upon – Primus.

In a world where finding a band that suits the eccentricity of South Park as perfectly as Primus does, with their distinctive, oddball sound, seems nearly impossible. Even the theme song has gained popularity among Primus enthusiasts, an occurrence not commonly seen in artists who create theme songs. Much like the show itself, the band is one-of-a-kind, and their collaboration feels like a serendipitous union, even if it hails from South Park’s own version of hell. Following a brief hiatus, South Park returns with fresh episodes from its current season.

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2025-08-12 00:08