For example:

The Da Da Da song.- Trio
Gary Glitter - Rock and Roll Part 2
Parliament - Tear the Roof Off the Sucker
Ringo Starr - Oh My My
Oh Yeah -(Ferris Bueller Soundtrack)
I've got my mind set on you
I wanna Rock and Roll- KISS
Don't you forget- Simple Minds

I'm interested in songs that either use sounds as lyrics, or repeat the same refrain over and over with no real lyrics.  Not just repetitive lyrics, but songs where 1 phrase or sound IS the song.

Thanks

(First post in this section - cool topic, though! :) )

Some of these may have a couple very short verses, but overall it's a repeat of the same words. A couple off the top of my head:

Trouble - Lindsey Buckingham
Who Dunnit - Genesis
Why Don't We Do It in the Road - Beatles
Rocker - AC/DC

For example:


I've got my mind set on you
I wanna Rock and Roll- KISS
Don't you forget- Simple Minds

I'm interested in songs that either use sounds as lyrics, or repeat the same refrain over and over with no real lyrics.  Not just repetitive lyrics, but songs where 1 phrase or sound IS the song.

Thanks



Those 3 seem more repetitive than unreal to me. A few I'll add that have lyrics that are highly indiscernable and cannot be sung along to:

The Movie-Aerosmith
Wet Stuff-Folk Implosion (KIDS soundstack)
All Alone-Mad Season- This has lyrics, 4 repeats of "Yeah...We're all alone", though it is more of an instrumental

Those 3 even though lacking "real" lyrics are still great songs.

Edit: Naked Eyes by Luscious Jackson may qualify here. :-\\

Come And Fly Now, the theme to the original Rocky comes to mind... although i haven't heard it in decades...

Around The World by Daft Punk

Would "One Step Beyond" by Madness qualify? There are no "sung" words. There's a spoken intro at the beginning (before the music starts), and the only thing uttered during the music is the title ("One...step..beyond!!") several times, every 10 or 20 seconds.

I guess you could add "Frankenstein" by Edgar Winter Group; Hocus Pocus by Focus; and maybe "Boogie With Stu" by Led Zeppelin. Amongst hundreds of others we'll probably think of later.

Tequila, the hustle,  and wipeout all have just the title as their lyrics

I don't think Rock and Roll All Nite and (Don't You) Forget About Me really count.


Rock and Roll All Nite:

You show us everything you’ve got
You keep on dancin’ and the room gets hot
You drive us wild, we’ll drive you crazy
You say you wanna go for a spin
The party’s just begun, we’ll let you in
You drive us wild, we’ll drive you crazy
You keep on shoutin’, you keep on shoutin’
I wanna rock and roll all nite and party every day
I wanna rock and roll all nite and party every day
I wanna rock and roll all nite and party every day
I wanna rock and roll all nite and party every day

You keep on saying you’ll be mine for a while
You’re lookin’ fancy and I like your style
You drive us wild, we’ll drive you crazy
You show us everything you’ve got
Baby, baby that’s quite a lot
And you drive us wild, we’ll drive you crazy
You keep on shoutin’, you keep on shoutin’

(Don't You) Forget About Me:

Won't you come see about me
I'll be alone, dancing --- you know it will be me
Tell me your troubles and doubts
Giving me everything inside and out
Love's strange --- so real in the dark
Think of the tender things
That we were working on
Slow change may pull us apart
When the light gets into your heart, Baby

Don't you forget about me
Don't, don't, don't, don't
Don't you forget about me
Will you stand above me
Look my way, never love me
Rain keeps falling
Rain keeps falling
Down, down, down
Will you recognize me
Call my name
Gonna walk on fire
Rain keeps falling
Rain keeps falling
Down, down, down

Don't you try and pretend
It's my beginning
We'll win in the end
I won't harm you
Or touch your defences
Vanity, insecurity

Don't you forget about me
I'll be alone, dancing --- you know it, Baby
Going to take you apart
I'll build us back together a heart, Baby
Don't you forget about me
Don't, don't, don't, don't
Don't you forget about me

As you walk on by
Will you call my name
As you walk on by
Will you call my name
When you walk away

Oh, will you walk away
Will walk away
Oh, call my name
Will you call my name

http://www.songmeanings.net/artist.php?aid=137438960137

What the f*** is a Chingy?

Tequila, the hustle,  and wipeout all have just the title as their lyrics

So do the tv theme songs for "The Simpsons" and "Batman"

Edit: Naked Eyes by Luscious Jackson may qualify here. :-\\

I don't think so. I've heard that song before. The chorus goes:
"With my naked eye, I saw the falling rain comin' down on me.
With my naked eye, I saw if I said it all, I could see."
And one of the other ladies sings "it feels all right" in the background. That phrase occurs in the foreground later in the song as well.

And there are a few verses, which are rapped.

I don't think so. I've heard that song before. The chorus goes:
"With my naked eye, I saw the falling rain comin' down on me.
With my naked eye, I saw if I said it all, I could see."
And one of the other ladies sings "it feels all right" in the background. That phrase occurs in the foreground later in the song as well.

And there are a few verses, which are rapped.


Correct Blue Ant. I only remembered the chorus. This song wouldn't qualify.

There was a song I heard last night on the movie "The Secret to My Success" which has no "real" lyrics.

They go (Very loosely) something like this:

Oh yeah...Beautiful...so beautiful..do bomp bomp...chicka-chick-ha
and so on in slight variations.

The song is "Oh Yea" I think, but I can't find the artist.

Oh Yeah is by Yello (That's the song on the Ferris Bueller's Day off soundtrack as mentioned in the first post)

Some I could think of and the year I believe they came out

Kemkraft 400 -- Zombie Nation (2000)
Bang Bang -- David Sanborn (1992)
Blue (Da Ba Dee) -- Eiffel 65 (2000)

And maybe
Song 2 -- Blur (1997)

Would "One Step Beyond" by Madness qualify? There are no "sung" words. There's a spoken intro at the beginning (before the music starts), and the only thing uttered during the music is the title ("One...step..beyond!!") several times, every 10 or 20 seconds.


And if you listen carefully, there is the chant of "keep it up! keep it up!" throughout.

For example:


I've got my mind set on you


This does't count either...there's actually 2 verses.

And maybe
Song 2 -- Blur (1997)


No.

(First post in this section - cool topic, though! :) )

Some of these may have a couple very short verses, but overall it's a repeat of the same words. A couple off the top of my head:

Trouble - Lindsey Buckingham


No.

My first choice: "Hocus Pocus", by Focus...that heavy metalish/Jethro Tull-ish flute/Yodelling & whistling extravaganza from the mid-70s.

And if you listen carefully, there is the chant of "keep it up! keep it up!" throughout.

Thanks, I'll listen for it next time I hear it. ;)

For example
I'm interested in songs that either use sounds as lyrics, or repeat the same refrain over and over with no real lyrics.  Not just repetitive lyrics, but songs where 1 phrase or sound IS the song.


Samples, we got samples!

Electronic Dream Factory (EDF), "Don't f*bloop*k with me!" -- 95 seconds, featuring nothing but four samples from Robocop, creativly looped/edited together.

Excessive Force - well, just about anything on the two albums they recorded.  They're a KMFDM spinoff, and while tracks on both albums have lyrics, the other half of the tracks on both albums are essentially early-90s house beats with totalitarian/militaristic samples and/or lyrics.  (e.g. by writing "Bomb the livin' bejeebers outa those forces", "Support the Administration!", "Conquer your House!", "Conquer the world!", and "Ride the bomb!", I've transcribed about half of the first album. 

Basically, if you can imagine what Yello's "Oh Yeah" would have sounded like if it had been written for "Escape from New York" instead of used in "Ferris Bueler's Day Off", you've basically understood all there is to understand about Excessive Force. Same basic synth-type background, _totally_ different mood.  Fun stuff :)

One maybe-on-the-list:

KMFDM, "What Do You Know, Deutschland" -- there are basically no lyrics other than the title.  The rest of the song is a re-edited (in such a way as to turn the meaning of the speech around 180 degrees from what was originally said) from a speech given by JFK at the Berlin Wall.  It's a "maybe" because although there are no _lyrics_, there's a lot of  sampling involved, and relatively minimal repetition, even though most of the samples came from the same speech.

From memory Trans-Europe Express by Kraftwerk only repeats the title throughout and Autobahn has only a few lyrics.

For example:

The Da Da Da song.- Trio
Gary Glitter - Rock and Roll Part 2
Parliament - Tear the Roof Off the Sucker
Ringo Starr - Oh My My
Oh Yeah -(Ferris Bueller Soundtrack)
I've got my mind set on you
I wanna Rock and Roll- KISS
Don't you forget- Simple Minds

I'm interested in songs that either use sounds as lyrics, or repeat the same refrain over and over with no real lyrics.  Not just repetitive lyrics, but songs where 1 phrase or sound IS the song.

Thanks



There IS a page for "Repetitive Lyrics" on the site.

thanks to all who responded with songs.  and thanks to those who took the time to disqualify my original songs.

i do realize that there is a listing of repetative lyrics on this site, however, I'm not looking for just repetative songs.  That IS the google search that got me here.

i'm working on a mix tape... i'll call it something lame like "10 words or less".  i want it to be full of songs that have no substantive lyrics.  not just repetative.

I'm adding "Jungle Boogie" by Kool and the Gang.

Woo Hoo - The 5.6.7.8's
Honey- Moby

Bring Me Edelweiss - Edelweiss

Oh yeah... Edelweiss definitely qualifies as nonsensical on the lyrics front!

If you enjoyed "Edelweiss" and it fits with the mix, you'll also dig Bomb the Bass's "Beat Dis".  (available in Gangster Boogie, Bonus Beats, Extended Dis, and Radio Edit flavors).  No real lyrics to speak of, but loads of samples.  Closest thing to a lyric it's got is a repetition of a sampled "Keep this frequency clear".  Filled a lotta dance floors back then.

Bomb the Bass also did "Megablast" (at least two mixes - "Original Rap" and "Hip Hop on Precinct 13").  Very similar to "Beat Dis", a few less samples, but still good stuff.

If you enjoyed all of the above, you might want to try some "New Beat".  New Beat was a Belgian dance music thing that lasted from 1988-1991 or so. Lots of bass, keyboard, and repetition, typically in the 90-100BPM range.  Probably nothing over 120.

A few tracks that come to mind (and that should be available on CD compilations rather than having to search for vinyl) are:
Brotherhood of Sleep - "New Beat, a Musical Phenomenon", (and now you know the lyrics),
Beat Professor's "Beat Professor", (mostly instrumental with a few samples of the "professor"),
Explorers of the Nile, "We are all Egyptians" (and once again, you know the lyrics :)

Finally, and having nothing to do with the dance stuff listed above, how could I forget Frankie Smith, "Double Dutch Bus", when I was the one who spawned the thrizzead...

http://www.inthe00s.com/index.php?topic=8828.0

25 years, and we *still* haven't figured out everything Frankie was saying!

How about Paranomia by the Art of Noise?  Apart from the word "Paranomia" sung by some woman, the only real words in the song are the ones spoken by Max Headroom

I'm interested in songs that either use sounds as lyrics...


Two words: Cocteau Twins.

xoxox
Spaff

Tequila, the hustle,  and wipeout all have just the title as their lyrics

I'm not so sure about the hustle...

Look here's a dance
So old it's new
'Cause trash disco is seventies cool
Like country line dance, to some it's fine
Sadly though, you gotta lose your mind
Get organized, discipline is fun
I want to encourage everyone
To coordinate your steps and clap
Avoid the individuality trap
Take a walk on the wild side
And the African-American women sing
Do the Hustle!
Do the Hustle!
Do the Hustle!


Do the Hustle!


Express yourself
Is a wonderful thought
But right here, right now, please do not!
Specific moves fit the grooves
You got nothing more to prove
Coordinate your steps and clap
Avoid the individuality trap
Take a walk on the wild side
And the African-American women sing
Do the Hustle!
Do the Hustle!
Do the Hustle!


Hey!

Do it!

Everybody!

Everybody!

Hey!


Do the Hustle!


All the boys and all the girls

Doin' the Hustle

Do the Hustle

Everybody

Get up!

It's fun!

It's free!

Bring Me Edelweiss - Edelweiss

I think they ripped off Abba's "SOS" for that one.


Everybody's Free (to Wear Sunscreen) - Baz Luhrmann

All the "lyrics" are spoken.

I think they ripped off Abba's "SOS" for that one.


They did.  It was a re-worked version of S.O.S. :)

They did.  It was a re-worked version of S.O.S. :)

I thought so. I first heard it on the radio about five years ago or so...and I thought to myself, "Isn't this the same tune as 'S.O.S' by Abba?" It just had some different words, other than the 'edelveiss' replacement for 'sos.'

'Rama Lama Ding Dong' comes to mind, but might have lyrics :-X

I just thought of one: "What is Love" by Haddaway.

I just thought of one: "What is Love" by Haddaway.


Baby, don't hurt me, baby don't hurt me...c'mon....

Okay: Louie,Louie- The Kingsmen

Rubber Biscuit- early version or Blues Brothers 8) 8) 8)

Okay: Louie,Louie- The Kingsmen

Rubber Biscuit- early version or Blues Brothers 8) 8) 8)


Both of these songs have words.

You might not be able to work out what they are singing in Louie Louie but you can in Rubber Biscuit.  It doesn't make a lot of sense but you work it out!

Both of these songs have words.

You might not be able to work out what they are singing in Louie Louie but you can in Rubber Biscuit.  It doesn't make a lot of sense but you work it out!

Yep...everytime I hear that one I try to figure out what exactly they are saying. It must be one of the most difficult pop songs to understand the words to!

Bip Bop by Paul McCartney has few lyrics.......

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RcfGbgMW0os

One that springs to mind is Bad Manner's 'Ne Ne Na Na Na Nu Nu'. The only thing that is sung through the instrumental is blurted out in the above line.

http://youtube.com/watch?v=3nyFphqTce0

Modified to add;

Bobby McFerrin's 'Thinking about your body' only has two sentences in the song ('Thinking about your body, thinking about your face'), the majority of it are noises - lovely stuff.  :)

'We just' by Moses is a little known 80s hit that used to feature on fashion shows in the UK. It follows a similar structure to 'Oh yeah' in which 'We just' are the only words that are sung.

Higher and higher~ Moody Blues
Has spoken poetry at the beginning
But the lyrics are
Higher and higher
Now we've learned to play with fire
we go highe rand higher and higher

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S7YqBQ6GtPE