“How many ska bands does it take to screw in a lightbulb?” (Joke)

Ska music has a tempo change, and fans often shout, “Pick it up! Pick it up!” This is the punchline of a popular ska joke.
     
“q: how many ska bands does it take to screw in a lightbulb? a: 3. 1 to drop it… and 2 to pick it up, pick it up…” was posted on the newsgroup alt.skate-board on November 1, 1997. “How many ska bands does it take to screw in a lightbulb? 2. one to drop it and the other to PICK IT UP, PICK IT UP, PICK IT UP!” was posted on Twitter by N8 Hockenberry on December 11, 2012.
   
“how many ska kids does it take to screw in a light bulb? 5.. cuase it the first one drops.. the 4 gotta go.. PICK IT UP PICK IT UP” was posted on the newsgroup alt.punk.straight-edge on May 25, 1999. “Q: how many ska kids does it take to screw in a light bulb? A: 6, one to drop it and 5 to pick it up! pick it up! pick it up!” was posted on the newsgroup sbipo on November 18, 2006.
   
“How many #ska musicians does it take to screw in a lightbulb? 5; 1 to try and screw it in and drop it; 4 to say ‘pick it up, pick it up!’” was posted on Twitter by Behringer on July 20, 2010. “How many ska musicians does it take to screw in a lightbulb. 1 to drop it and the other to yell PICKITUP!!!!” was printed in Paper magazine on June 13, 2019.     
     
           
Wikipedia: Ska
Ska (/skɑː/; Jamaican: [skjæ]) is a music genre that originated in Jamaica in the late 1950s and was the precursor to rocksteady and reggae. It combined elements of Caribbean mento and calypso with American jazz and rhythm and blues. Ska is characterized by a walking bass line accented with rhythms on the off beat.
   
Google Groups: alt.skate-board
::: how many ska bands… :::
BLuRR
Nov 1, 1997, 3:00:00 AM
q: how many ska bands does it take to screw in a lightbulb?
a: 3
1 to drop it… and 2 to pick it up, pick it up…
     
Google Groups: alt.punk.straight-edge
BETTER bad joke
XmuppettX
May 25, 1999, 3:00:00 AM
(...)
how many ska kids does it take to screw in a light bulb?
5.. cuase it the first one drops.. the 4 gotta go.. PICK IT UP PICK IT UP..
 
Google Groups: alt.music.ska
how many ska kids does it take to screw in a light bulb?
BugleBass1
Sep 16, 2000, 3:00:00 AM
does anyone know any good ska jokes?
     
Google Groups: sbipo
Definitive Collection of Lightbulb Jokes
.(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address)
Nov 18, 2006, 12:28:33 AM
(...)
Q: how many ska kids does it take to screw in a light bulb?
A: 6, one to drop it and 5 to pick it up! pick it up! pick it up!
   
Twitter
Behringer
@Behringer
How many #ska musicians does it take to screw in a lightbulb? 5; 1 to try and screw it in and drop it; 4 to say “pick it up, pick it up!”
8:20 PM · Jul 20, 2010·Hootsuite
   
Twitter
N8 Hockenberry
@hockenberries
How many ska bands does it take to screw in a lightbulb? 2. one to drop it and the other to PICK IT UP, PICK IT UP, PICK IT UP!
4:44 PM · Dec 11, 2012·Mobile Web (M2)
 
Reddit—Jokes
Posted by u/AleWatcher November 4, 2013
How many ska kids does it take to change a light bulb?
Three; one to drop the bulb and two to yell “pick it up pick it up!”
COMMENTS
AleWatcher
Ska is a style of music where, during a tempo change, it is common for people to yell “pick it up pick it up”
     
Reddit—Jokes
Posted by u/64bitdouche November 7, 2013
How many ska kids does it take to screw in a light bulb?
Four: One to drop it, Three to pick it up, pick it up, pick it up, pick it up.
 
Reddit—Ska
Posted by u/DocStrong March 23, 2014
How many Ska players does it take to screw in a light bulb?
Four. One to drop it, and three to pick it up pick it up pick it up.
   
Reddit—Ska
Posted by u/koolkows May 19, 2013
Ska jokes.
How many ska fans does it take to screw in a lightbulb. 2, one to drop it and one to pickituppickituppickitup.
 
Reddit—Jokes
Posted by u/desertguru May 26, 2014
How many ska kids does it take to screw in a light bulb?
One to drop it and six to pick it up pick it up pick it up
 
Reddit—Punk
Posted by u/Nicksaurus October 7, 2017
How many ska punk bands does it take to change a lightbulb?
Two. One to accidentally drop it and then another to PICKITUP PICKITUP PICKITUP
   
Paper         
You’ve Never Heard Anything Like 100 Gecs
Matt Moen 13 June 2019
(...)
Dylan: How many ska musicians does it take to screw in a lightbulb. 1 to drop it and the other to yell PICKITUP!!!!
 
Reddit—Jokes
Posted by u/St3amb0t August 19, 2019
How many Ska musicians does it take to screw in a lightbulb?
One to drop the lightbulb and nine to “PICK IT UP PICK IT UP PICK IT UP PICK IT UP!”
 
Reddit—Jokes
Posted by u/Jack_Mackerel January 7, 2020
How many ska fans does it take to change a lightbulb?
Four: one to drop the bulb, and three others to say, “pick it up, pick it up, pick it up!”
 
Reddit—Jokes
Posted by u/SpaceTechBabana April 29, 2020
How many ska kids does it take to screw in a light bulb?
Two. One to drop it and one to…PICK IT UP, PICK IT UP.
 
Reddit—Jokes
Posted by u/AntiHeroLBC June 29, 2022
How many ska musicians does it take to change a lightbulb?
Three. One to drop the bulb and two to yell “pick it up, pick it up, pick it up!!!”