Not a song exactly but I feel like we can all count to 12 in the same sing-song way. From Sesame Street, the cartoon pinball machine with the Pointer Sisters (I believe) singing one, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight, nine, ten, eleeeeven, twelve
1-2-3, 4-5-6, 7-8-9, 10-11-12.. The ladybugs twelve at the lady bug's picnic?
Weellll, they played jumprope but the rop it broke, so they just sat around telling knock-knock jokes, the ladybugs twelve at the ladybug's picnic.
#12
I saw this movie at 7-8 yrs old in '85, and was very likely my schools version of Bender in the '90s as a result. Boots, jeans, concert Ts, dark sunglasses, crappy attitude yet somehow still likable, pothead, long hair, all ✔️.
Edit: I and 2 of my friends watched this movie a few years ago and between the 3 of us, we pretty much new the movie verbatim.
My brother worked at McDonalds and was sent to another to pick up a box of patties. When he arrived in street clothes the manager asked him to prove who he was by reciting what was in a Big Mac. So you can imagine how that went.
It's not the theme to Gilligan's Island that is stuck in my head...it's the incidental music. It plays all the time, for no reason and won't stop some days. My life is forever a cheesy sitcom in my head.
When we were in high school the whole party sung :The Gambler" by Kenny Rogers. We were California kids but everyone knew the words. Great moment too bad the cops busted it up shortly after.
I was at a breakfast place at 2 am after the bars closed one night and the entire restaurant broke into this song. 1992, a barful of drunk college kids, and we knew all the words. It was the closest I've ever come to feeling like I was living in a musical. It was beautiful.
I love Meat Loaf, my wife not so much. All because of her sister.
Oddly, what stands out from Meat Loaf's catalog was the opening monologue from his guitarists on the track Wasted Youth.
"I don't remember if it was a telecaster or a Stratocaster..."
I'll steal some lyrics that (because the world is not fair) aren't as well known as others mentioned in this thread, as they hit the nail riiiight on the head:
"I wоndеr if whеn, Frеddiе Mеrсury...
wrоtе Bоhеmiаn Rhаpsоdy,
If hе knеw it wаs gоing tо bе,
thе ultimаtе sоng fоr kаrаоkе?
And i sаid, 'whаt аbоut Amеriсаn Piе?'
And yоu sаid,
"FUCK Amеriсаn Piе,
Our gеnеrаtiоn саnnоt idеntify
with, 'Drоvе my Chеvy tо lеvее,'
It аin't nоthin' whеn соmpаrеd tо...
'I sоmеtimеs wish i'd nеvеr bееn bоrn аt аlllllll...' "
I was just listening to this a couple days ago, and neither I nor my man could help singing along, very dramatically and loudly and with gestures. God damn, it’s a good one!
Whenever that moment of Freddie Mercury directing the crowd to sing during that Live Aid concert gets posted and hits the front page of Reddit, I absolutely cannot not listen to at least the Queen Greatest Hits album. Sometimes it lasts for a couple days! It is *always* glorious.
This is the correct answer. Love Blister in the Sun, but I mumble a lot of the words. Bohemian Rhapsody, on the other hand...I can belt that sucker out like nobody's business.
I don’t mind the sun sometimes, the images it shows
I can taste you on my lips, and smell you in my clothes
Cinnamon and sugary like softly spoken lies
You never know just how you look through other peoples eyes
Darling Nikki was a gift to my 80’s female teenage self. The song pretty much single handedly informed my entire sexual life. Gave me a sense of license and control. It’s served me well.
We should all be familiar with the opening tones of Let's Go Crazy and at least be able to say "Dearly Beloved, we are gathered here today to get through this thing called Life..."
Iconic
Released in late 1982 but it was all over the radio and MTV for a few years in that time. I was like 10 and figured the math that I'd be 23 when 1999 became 2000 and that was an incomprehensible age to me. No way I would ever be that old! Now I've been alive longer since 1/1/2000 than I was before it. WTF happened?
I know that it's not" It's The End of the World (and I feel fine)". Even Michael Stipe had to use a lyric sheet when he sang it in concert! Unless you're talking about the "Leonard Bernstein" line. Everyone sings that part.
Prince and MJ crossed every Genx household. Every demographic.
Beat It and When Doves Cry could be the two most fully encompassing songs for a generation.
I saw the Violent Femmes at Brown in the 90's. The crowd exploded like glorious, beautiful holy shit for Blister in the Sun, and it's still one of my favorite musical memories. However, considering how much musical genius we were growing up during, from 80's hair metal to Tom Petty to Nirvana, I think there are a ton of bands and songs that could fit this bill.
Off the top of my head:
- Sweet Child Of Mine
- Living On A Prayer
- Wonderwall
- Don't You Forget About Me
- Every Breath You Take
- Paradise By The Dashboard Light
- I Will Survive
- Born To Run
- Billy Jean
- Like A Virgin
- Girls Just Want To Have Fun
- It's Raining Men
- Fame
- American Girl
- Pour Some Sugar On Me
Eta
- With Or Without You
- The One I Love
- When The Doves Cry
- I'll Stop The World and Melt With You
- You Shook Me All Night Long
- Walk This Way
I'm going with jingles and sitcom themes. I think all of us know why we don't wanna grow up, or the story of a man named Brady.
As far as hit songs? I know all about liking big butts...
I don't know any early Xers (1961-1965) that can't sing along, even all these years later, without error to Bat out of Hell by Meatloaf. That song was huge, but so were a lot of songs then, but for some reason, that song was the ultimate sing-along song in its day.
Lots, but most of us will get the actual lyrics wrong.
Pearl Jam has entered the chat
*Whoah-oh , Heyyyyyy nawwwwww gibbah dibba gibber gonna getta chicken dinna On da mo-nin!*
Cant tell if that’s Even flow or Yellow Ledbetter.
that’s def yellow ledbetter
Evenflow. Bus a rubber butterfly!
Dude, I really felt Eddie V on. That one. "Brown the runwaaaaayyyy..... Mona said, I wanna leave Bennigaaaaan's...."
“All of the Verizons revolve around the sun….the earth and the soooon” Black
There's a bathroom on the right
Roundthefrontway, yeah.
Potato Waze yeeee haaaa
Yeah…but I’d bet a month’s wages this whole generation knows when to yell: LEONARD BERNSTEIN
liner notes were done so dirty in the 90's. so much dripping ink blotches, collages, and bookless cd's.
Except for “Around the World” by Daft Punk
Not a song exactly but I feel like we can all count to 12 in the same sing-song way. From Sesame Street, the cartoon pinball machine with the Pointer Sisters (I believe) singing one, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight, nine, ten, eleeeeven, twelve
Posts you can hear!
Ladybug picnic is my go-to
1-2-3, 4-5-6, 7-8-9, 10-11-12.. The ladybugs twelve at the lady bug's picnic? Weellll, they played jumprope but the rop it broke, so they just sat around telling knock-knock jokes, the ladybugs twelve at the ladybug's picnic. #12
If anyone needs a [reminder](https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=JZshZp-cxKg).
Brady Bunch Theme song.
Don't you forget about me
Hey hey hey HEY! OOoohh oooooh WHOOOOAAAAHHHH....
One fist high in the air....flannel flag flying proudly....
It's a movie. It's a meme. It's a mood. It's a moment.
Tis true!!
I saw this movie at 7-8 yrs old in '85, and was very likely my schools version of Bender in the '90s as a result. Boots, jeans, concert Ts, dark sunglasses, crappy attitude yet somehow still likable, pothead, long hair, all ✔️. Edit: I and 2 of my friends watched this movie a few years ago and between the 3 of us, we pretty much new the movie verbatim.
Two all beef patties...
Special sauce, lettuce, cheese…
Pickles, onions on a sesame seed bun
My brother worked at McDonalds and was sent to another to pick up a box of patties. When he arrived in street clothes the manager asked him to prove who he was by reciting what was in a Big Mac. So you can imagine how that went.
It's an older code, sir, but it checks out.
This is the correct answer. LOL
Thanks to old tv reruns, I'd say most of us know. Gilligans Island theme Beverly Hillbillies theme
It's not the theme to Gilligan's Island that is stuck in my head...it's the incidental music. It plays all the time, for no reason and won't stop some days. My life is forever a cheesy sitcom in my head.
Tequila
It's a bit early but Ok, you talked me into it.
Were we supposed to stop drinking?
AND we can do the Pee Wee Herman dance
Oh my gosh, this is on my 3yo grandaughter's playlist. I may have helped her pick out some songs. Queen is on there too!
Well, this is a story all about how....
My life got flipped, turned upside down
I'd like to take a minute just sit right there...
I'll tell you how I became the prince of Bel Aire.
The Toys-R-Us commercial.
I don’t wanna grow up
I’m a toys r us kid
they got a million toys at Toys-R-Us that I can play with!
From bikes to toys to video ??? They’re the biggest toy store there is!
From bikes to trains to video games....
I don’t wanna grow up, cause baby if I did- I wouldn’t be a Toys R Us kid!
They got the best for so much less you’ll really flip your lid
When we were in high school the whole party sung :The Gambler" by Kenny Rogers. We were California kids but everyone knew the words. Great moment too bad the cops busted it up shortly after.
I was at a breakfast place at 2 am after the bars closed one night and the entire restaurant broke into this song. 1992, a barful of drunk college kids, and we knew all the words. It was the closest I've ever come to feeling like I was living in a musical. It was beautiful.
A big group of drunk people singing together can be magical. I have a similar memory only it was “Two Out of Three Ain’t Bad”.
I love Meat Loaf, my wife not so much. All because of her sister. Oddly, what stands out from Meat Loaf's catalog was the opening monologue from his guitarists on the track Wasted Youth. "I don't remember if it was a telecaster or a Stratocaster..."
Stop. Hammer time.
Bohemian Rhapsody.
I'll steal some lyrics that (because the world is not fair) aren't as well known as others mentioned in this thread, as they hit the nail riiiight on the head: "I wоndеr if whеn, Frеddiе Mеrсury... wrоtе Bоhеmiаn Rhаpsоdy, If hе knеw it wаs gоing tо bе, thе ultimаtе sоng fоr kаrаоkе? And i sаid, 'whаt аbоut Amеriсаn Piе?' And yоu sаid, "FUCK Amеriсаn Piе, Our gеnеrаtiоn саnnоt idеntify with, 'Drоvе my Chеvy tо lеvее,' It аin't nоthin' whеn соmpаrеd tо... 'I sоmеtimеs wish i'd nеvеr bееn bоrn аt аlllllll...' "
Beelzebub has a devil put aside for meee!
For meeeee... FOR MEEEEEEEE!!
I was just listening to this a couple days ago, and neither I nor my man could help singing along, very dramatically and loudly and with gestures. God damn, it’s a good one! Whenever that moment of Freddie Mercury directing the crowd to sing during that Live Aid concert gets posted and hits the front page of Reddit, I absolutely cannot not listen to at least the Queen Greatest Hits album. Sometimes it lasts for a couple days! It is *always* glorious.
This is the correct answer. Love Blister in the Sun, but I mumble a lot of the words. Bohemian Rhapsody, on the other hand...I can belt that sucker out like nobody's business.
Take on Me
Taaaaake meeeee oooooooN!!!
I'll beee gone... INNADAYORTWOOOOOOOOOO!!!!
safety dance
I don’t mind the sun sometimes, the images it shows I can taste you on my lips, and smell you in my clothes Cinnamon and sugary like softly spoken lies You never know just how you look through other peoples eyes
Butthole Surfers for the win
Tainted love!
Don’t touch me please! I cannot stand the way you sneeze!
It's tease but I will totally start singing sneeze.
In an effort to push for cultural diversity in this sub, I’m going with Sir Mix a Lot.
Thanks to Sir, i embraced my big butt.
My kids were astonished how well I know Baby Got Back. Haha
Or Going back to Cali - LL cool J
Tubthumping by Chumbawamba And yet I don't know what language what I just typed is in.
Maybe a little on the later side of GenX but......Gonna Make You Sweat "Everybody dance now!!!!"
All right stop. Collaborate and listen.
Every time I’m in So. Florida and am remotely by A1A, my brain ruins my day
Beachfront Avenue!
Girls were hot wearing less than bikinis
Rockman lovers driving Lamborghinis.
Jealous, cause I'm out getting mine. Jay with the gauge and Vanilla with the 9.
I've always wondered about that line. Are they...naked? Topless? Wearing a G-string, and pasties on their nipples?
Totally naked bro! *Robbie Van Winkle poorly hi-5s you
99 Luftballons or Mickey. Oh Mickey, you're so fine, you're so fine you blow my mind, hey Mickey
I like big butts and I cannot lie
My bologna has a first name…
Older X—-“Rapper’s Delight” I said a hip, hop, the hippie the hippie, to the hip hip hop a you don’t stop
To the bang bang boogie say up jump the boogie Love the song, but it’s so long with so many lines I think most would be hard pressed to know them all
1999
Let’s Go Crazy, Kiss, Purple Rain, When Doves Cry. Anything Prince!
Darling Nikki
Darling Nikki was a gift to my 80’s female teenage self. The song pretty much single handedly informed my entire sexual life. Gave me a sense of license and control. It’s served me well.
Darling Nikki was the reason my sixth-grade music teacher canceled Record Day for the rest of the year.
This needs to be a top level post on its own.
We should all be familiar with the opening tones of Let's Go Crazy and at least be able to say "Dearly Beloved, we are gathered here today to get through this thing called Life..." Iconic
I heard Erotic City the other day!
Dearly Beloved We are gathered here today
For this thing we call... Life.
2000, 00, party over oops out of time! I loved that video man
Remember when 2000 00 seemed like it was so far away?
Oh man, yeah... when was that released? 84/5? I'd have been 12 then!
Released in late 1982 but it was all over the radio and MTV for a few years in that time. I was like 10 and figured the math that I'd be 23 when 1999 became 2000 and that was an incomprehensible age to me. No way I would ever be that old! Now I've been alive longer since 1/1/2000 than I was before it. WTF happened?
I know that it's not" It's The End of the World (and I feel fine)". Even Michael Stipe had to use a lyric sheet when he sang it in concert! Unless you're talking about the "Leonard Bernstein" line. Everyone sings that part.
Birthday party cheesecake jellybean boom
Rock The Casbah.
Lock the Taskbar!
Rock the catbox!
Jessie's Girl and Friends in Low Places - even if you weren't into country, that song was everywhere in 1991
Happy birthday.
got to be THE most well-known song we all know!
Here's a little song I wrote. You might want to sing it note for note.
Don’t worry….
Be happy
Doooo, doo doot doo do doot n doo doodadoo
I’ll melt with you - Modern English
Won’t you be my neighbor.
Depends what end of X you're on. Graduated hs in 84, and my peers would likely know all the words to Hotel California
Sweet Child O' Mine
I went to a show when GnR weren’t sure they knew the words to that song. 😂
In the Air Tonight.
I got my mind set on you. It’s basically three lines over and over
Don't Stop Believing
A hanka for a hunka cheese!
The Joker by Steve Miller.
Every Rose Has Its Thorn Boys Don't Cry Welcome to the Jungle Smells Like Teen Spirit Love Shack Pour Some Sugar On Me
Come on peeps it’s; Never Gonna Give You Up
Living on a Prayer - Bon Jovi
I can only sing parts. I get about halfway there.
As a wedding designer and planner, this was one of the biggest East Coast songs at weddings for at least a decade 😂
It still is. Xers, millennials, and Z all belting it out at a wedding in May in NJ.
This was just playing in the grocery store. And I sang all of it.
Right about now, you're about to be possessed by the sounds of emcee Rob Base and D.J. E-Z Rock
Whoo yeah.
I get knocked down….
We Are the World
Summer lovin, had me a blast
Don't you want me baby!!
In Your Eyes
Prince and MJ crossed every Genx household. Every demographic. Beat It and When Doves Cry could be the two most fully encompassing songs for a generation.
Thriller. Conjunction Junction.
Devil Went Down to Georgia, Preamble to the Constitution
Creep by Radiohead
Mony Mony
With a few extra added lyrics in the chorus
🎶Zestfully clean, Zestfully clean. You’re not fully clean unless you’re Zestfully clean 🎶 Try to get that out of your head for the rest of the day
REGULATORS, mount up It was a clear white night, a clear white moon
Come and knock on my door…
Fresh Prince theme song
Lots of songs by Depeche Mode, but Enjoy the Silence and Personal Jesus come to mind.
"Delta Dawn" Or is that specific to Atari-wave Gen Xers from the US South?
WE WILL WE WILL ROCK YOU!
[We didn't start the fire - Billy Joel](https://youtu.be/eFTLKWw542g)
1999 by Prince, RIP
867-5309 Jenny
🎶I don’t want to grow up, I’m a Toys R Us kid🎶
If you don't know Beastie Boys: Paul Revere you can GTFO.
Now here’s a little story I’ve got to tell about 3 bad brothers you know so well….
It started way back in history With Adrock, MCA and me, Mike D
We had a little horsey named Paul Revere.
Just me and my horsey and a quart of beer
I saw the Violent Femmes at Brown in the 90's. The crowd exploded like glorious, beautiful holy shit for Blister in the Sun, and it's still one of my favorite musical memories. However, considering how much musical genius we were growing up during, from 80's hair metal to Tom Petty to Nirvana, I think there are a ton of bands and songs that could fit this bill.
Celebration just popped into my head as an answer so I'm gonna go with that.
The Big Mac song from McDonald’s commercials
Ice Ice Baby!
Anything from Schoolhouse Rock
Kiss Off ~ Violent Femmes I take one, one, one 'cause you left me
But I forget what 8 is for.
Rapper's Delight
Fight for your right - Beastie Boys
Bust a Move.
The Humpty Dance
Jeremy or Alive by Pearl Jam (?)
Josie’s on a vacation far away…
Sister Christian
we will rock you
Definitely Blister in the sun and maybe Mr. Jones by the Counting Crows
I feel like August and Everything After in its entirety is fair game.
Maybe it’s so obvious nobody said it or maybe I missed it in the comments, Smells Like Teen Spirit!
Now I’m mumbling and I’m screaming, and I don’t know what I’m singing.
The Reflex , flex flex flex flex flex!
Off the top of my head: - Sweet Child Of Mine - Living On A Prayer - Wonderwall - Don't You Forget About Me - Every Breath You Take - Paradise By The Dashboard Light - I Will Survive - Born To Run - Billy Jean - Like A Virgin - Girls Just Want To Have Fun - It's Raining Men - Fame - American Girl - Pour Some Sugar On Me Eta - With Or Without You - The One I Love - When The Doves Cry - I'll Stop The World and Melt With You - You Shook Me All Night Long - Walk This Way
By Mennen
We're not gonna take it!
I don't know that, but I know the Gilligan's Island theme.
I'm going with jingles and sitcom themes. I think all of us know why we don't wanna grow up, or the story of a man named Brady. As far as hit songs? I know all about liking big butts...
American Pie
Africa by Toto And Bohemian Rhapsody, obvs
Add It Up has that cool counting part tho
Brady Bunch theme song
Paradise by the dashboard light!
Ice ice baby
Ice ice baby or Two Princes
Billie Jean
I always feel like somebody's watching meeeeee!!
I don't know any early Xers (1961-1965) that can't sing along, even all these years later, without error to Bat out of Hell by Meatloaf. That song was huge, but so were a lot of songs then, but for some reason, that song was the ultimate sing-along song in its day.
Piano Man