Nonsense Lyrics Playlist
1) Tutti Frutti — Little Richard: My research resources and grant money is a little limited here at the Institute of Rock and Roll advanced studies. So I can’t really be sure where the notion of nonsense lyrics comes from. And by nonsense lyrics I mean the use of meaningless “words” and vocal sound effects in songs.
My suspicion is that they are a creative way to express an emotion like joy without having to use that word over and over again. My second theory is that a nonsense expression was substituted for a word or words that cannot be said in polite society. In particular, fuck and fucking. My guess is that is the two most disguised words in some of the songs I am talking about.
I would also add in skat singing from Jazz as an influence here and a great expression Keith Richards once used. Keith says that when the Stones reached a certain point in working up a musical idea, Mick will start to vocalize.
No real lyrics are expressed, just words and vocal effects (growls and such). This process helped the band find the transition points in the song they were working on. He called it Mick’s Vowel Movements.
You can hear this process in a song called I’m Going Down from the album Metamorphosis. It is a rocking number with everything thrown into the mix but actual intelligible lyrics.
And speaking of rocking numbers how about this masterpiece by Little Richard? This is just happy, happy, joy, joy repeated over and over again with over the top enthusiasm. And who doesn’t feel like that when you are having a good time with someone you like/love? The expressions Little Richards uses here are the musical equivalent of the old Batman TV punches…Wham Bam or in this case Womp Bomp. But the impact is no stunt punch. It stings like the real thing.
2) Cha Dooky Do — Art Neville: Here I would say the title is a term of endearment, like “honey” or “sweetie” but I would defer that opinion to someone who knows more about Creole culture. In any case, this is a sweet one with a classic New Orleans Rock and Roll vibe. And, yes, that is Art Neville of The Meters delivering the vocals. What can you say, talent just runs in that family.
3) Be-Bop-A-Lula — Gene Vincent: Here we have one of the defining tracks of the Rock cannon. And talk about an under appreciated talent. Working with legendary guitar cifer Cliff Gallup, Gene came up with several essential tracks.
Unfortunately, he had chronic pain issues from a motorcycle crash and added at least alcoholism to his personal baggage. So his muse drained away quick. But he left behind this sexy enigma.
That is, the title being not just the nickname for his sweetheart but an insight into her mysterious personality. Why else would he be at such a loss for words? Sad bonus fact, Gene survived the same car crash that killed Eddie Cochran.
4) Bo Bo Ska Diddle Daddle — Wayne Walker: There is equality among the sexes, in nonsense names at any rate. Bo Bo I gather is quite the dancer and quite the ladies man. And the girls call his name through out the song. A fun arrangement.
5) Ooby Dooby — Roy Orbison: Here we have the other man in black. The one that wore the cool Ray Ban shades and had the soaring tenor voice.
But more to our point, Roy delivers on another nonsense Rock tradition, a largely imaginary dance craze. If this dance ever really existed, it is long gone but this track lives one and rightly so. Everything here is top notch especially the lead guitar break.
6) Come Go With Me — Dell Vikings: Even the name of this sub-genre is a bit of nonsense word play: Doo Wop. But what other name would be more perfect or descriptive for this musical style?
The idea here is to dial back the instrumentation and let the human voice come center stage. To fill the gaps between lyrical lines, Doo Wop groups like the Dell Vikings would just repeat a vocal tone or nonsense phrase over and over again. The levels of imagination here are nothing short of profound. This is the human spirit unbounded in the cause of joy.
7) Drip Drop — The Drifters: An offshoot of nonsense lyrics is the vocal sound effect: using a word or a sound to imitate or conjure an image of something familiar. For example, Warren Zevon’s howls in Werewolves of London.
Here were have the masters of this technique. As the lead vocals wander in and out of the song, the rest of The Drifters repeat over and over Drip, Drip, Drippidy Drop. Thus, rendering an apt imitation of an incessant — and, perhaps to some, the annoyance of a dripping faucet. For me there is nothing annoying about this song. It is fun stuff and The Drifters would achieve a similar result with Steamboat. Take a guess at what they are vocally imitating there…
8) Rama Lama Ding Dong — The Edsels: So we have already seen the use of nonsense words as a substitute for a nick name. But here we level up. The girl’s name is Rama Lama Ding Dong. First class foolishness and vocals.
9) Don’t You Just Know It — Huey Piano Smith: This one is intended as a sing-a-long and the sing-a-long part is the nonsense lyrics.
Not to worry, relax, have a few drinks and you will quickly realize you know the words by heart. This is a party song and ought to be played at every drunken gathering. Mr. Smith is still with us as of this writing and deserves a special shout out for writing a bunch of classic party songs. Here’s hoping the party is eternal Huey!
10) Ooh-Poo-Pah-Doo — Jessie Hill: There is no shortage of versions of this classic New Orleans party song. I believe this is the original and I am also guessing the title is a boastful self reference. Or it could be a female nickname. It gets a bit confusing in all the excitement. Listen and see!
11) Wang Dang Doodle — Koko Taylor: No need to get down into the gutter here. This one ain’t about sex. It is about a party. No party you may want to attend unarmed at any rate. Check out the names of the invitees. That is the joke here and it is an imaginative one.
12) Dood It — Bobby Martin: Now this one is about sex. Well maybe not. This was written and recorded in the 1950's so the thing Bobby wants to “Dood” is fall in love but how many times could you or would you say that to that special someone. Me thinks this might be a metaphor…
13) Diddy Wah Diddy — Bo Diddley: Will someone please tell Bo what Diddy Wah Diddy means? I believe the answer is sex or a bedroom because it ain’t no town and it ain’t no city. So what could it be?
14) Ting-A-Ling — Buddy Holly: Something is making Buddy’s heart go ting-a-ling. It sounds like it is the ladies but then are we sure about the heart part? Kidding! Is is the awesome guitar break here. One of his best.
15) Wang Dang Do — Ferlin Husky: Sex, sex, sex…Ferlin is barely trying here. That said, there might be the mention of a dance step toward the end but too little too late.
16) Da-Doo-Ron-Ron — The Crystals: I once saw a great back and white clip of Phil Spector explaining to some square how Da-Doo-Ron-Ron was teen Rock poetry as opposed to just a bunch of nonsense words.
He was practically jumping out of his chair and tapping out the beat on his leg. Of course the man had to go and tarnish his legacy by murdering someone. Still, as with so many human endeavors, it is the artistic accomplishments and scientific or political breakthroughs that matter and not the human frailties of the persons behind them. I grant that it is not easy but should something this joyful be forgotten?
17) Surfing Bird — The Trashmen: This one goes beyond nonsense and into the realm of the absurd. In fact, when Stanley Kubrick needed some songs to express the lethal absurdity of the Vietnam War, he chose this one, Paint It, Black and the Mickey Mouse Club theme!!! The Ramones and The Cramps famously covered it but the Punks couldn’t outdo the original. It is perfect in all it’s nonsense glory.
18) Louie, Louie — The Kingsmen: This is the famous version of this song but it is actually a cover of a number by Richard Berry. It’s other claim to fame is how many times it was banned for being…who knows? The vocals are unintentionally slurred (Kingsmen vocalist Jack Ely was wearing braces and forced to tilt his head up to sing by the limited studio set up) and buried in the mix so it is hard to say if Jack was going off script. That said, the actual published lyrics are tame, think Brandy (Your A Fine Girl). It is almost the exact same song lyrically. Jack never admitted to messing with the lyrics so there you go…clean as a whistle. Except that the drummer clearly yells out “fuck” at about 54 seconds in. Not “let’s fuck” just “fuck” because he dropped his drumstick. So, once again, no musical porn here. But the song does invoke a drunken party and who knows what can happen from there. Bonus note: the original intention of Mr. Berry was to have a Calypso arrangement, meaning there is actually a bit of World Music in this famous Rock number.
19) Do Wah Diddy Diddy — Manfred Mann: So how do you describe walking down the street when you are happy? This is the musical answer. Similar to Da Doo Ron Ron, a good mood song, so keep it on speed dial.
20) Shubada Du Ma Ma — Steve Miller: Mr. Miller is the epitome of the 70's West Coast Pop Rock vibe. Which is a bit odd given that he was born and partly grew up in the Midwest. His run of mega success was almost a decade long and he has one of the all time best selling greatest hits packages as a result. Give a listen here to see why. This is one of his more obscure numbers but it perfectly captures his style: top flight overall musicianship, great guitar riffing, a swinging arrangement and some almost Smooth Jazz like vocals. And a silly song-a-long chorus of course…
21) De Doo Da Da — Blue Dogs: This is a warm, sweet, funny number. The nonsense lyrics from the title are the words babbled by a nine month old. No doubt written by a proud papa. Great stuff!
22) Low Yo Stuff — Captain Beefheart: Ahh the good Captain was a multi talented fellow and so under appreciated. His vocals and vocal abilities were so strong that he would often just do an unaccompanied stream of consciousness rap or skat but delivered so fast you would be hard pressed to make anything out. Not so here. The accompaniment is top notch, especially the drums and guitar. And then there is the Captain growling about that low yo stuff. Meaning?
23) Goo Goo Muck — The Cramps: An often overlooked Punk pioneer band, vocalist Lux Interior and lead guitarist Poison Ivy were husband and wife. They added some Rockabilly to the Punk mix and helped create Psychobilly. Here an obscure garage band tune from the early Sixties (Ronnie Cook) is covered literally and figuratively. The muck is meant to be leering and Lux leers with all his vocal might. It is a wonder he did not fall over.
24) De Do Do Do, De Da Da Da — The Police: This is not the ode to joy the title might suggest. What is being expressed is the inability to express yourself to your significant other. Would you expect anything lighter then that from Sting? The tone is not hostile, or at least you would gather that from the bouncy arrangement. Which by the way is that patented mix of New Wave with a touch of Reggae.
25) Cantaloop — Us3: If the tradition of nonsense lyrics is rooted in Skat singing from Jazz, then this number should be no real surprise. A fun mix of Hip-Hop and Jazz with a great vocal rap. And by the way, clean as a whistle. Which is another way of saying, your kids will love this one and if they don’t try Surfin Bird. Enjoy!
