It’s not uncommon for TV comedies to have song parodies or musical jokes, but once in a while I hear a genuinely catchy (and funny) tune on a TV show. Here’s a few of my favourites:
Boobs in California by Gordy! Gordi! Gordé! (from Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt)
Poor Titus: forced to sing about the things that revolt him the most, like Smashmouth, Mustangs, Daisy Dukes and the titular boobs. The result is very catchy, though.
Let’s Go to the Mall by Robin Sparkles (from How I Met Your Mother)
I’m not really a fan of How I Met Your Mother, but I grew up in the age of Benetton shirts, Gretzky hair, and Brian Mulroney so there’s a lot of nostalgia for me. Fun fact: Of course I knew that rhyming “coat” and “about” was a joke about how (some) Canadians talk, but it took me a long time to realise that rhyming “Tori” and “sorry” was also a Canadian accent joke.
My Lovely Horse by Fr. Ted Crilly and Fr. Dougal McGuire (from Father Ted)
Just thinking about that psychedelic horse’s head jumping out of nowhere in the video can make me laugh at the most inopportune times.
Honourable mention: I Hate the Bloody Queen by The Queen Haters (from SCTV)
Whenever I think of punk music, this song is the archetype I have in mind. I’m not sure it counts as an original song since it’s clearly “inspired” by the Sex Pistols’ “God Save the Queen”.
In season 5 of Archer, Cheryl started a career as a country singer, using the name Cherlene. While the absolute best song she did was a cover (duetting with Kenny Loggins on Danger Zone, which I think is better than the original), several original songs, all pretty solid, were used throughout the season - I’ll Burn It Down is probably the most memorable, and Gypsy Woman is IMO the best as a song in and of itself, when divorced from the show.
Given that 1-2 songs per episode are part of its premise, I guess Crazy Ex Girlfriend doesn’t really qualify but there are loads in that show. 2 that stand out to me are “Let’s Generalize about Men” and “We Tapped that Ass”
I’m partial to Little Black Curly Hair myself. Recently re-watched this episode and forgot about this song. I about choked I laughed so hard, totally unexpected. (Incidentally, the follow-up line about giving her money, while holding an email sign-up sheet, was also hilarious. On rewatching Friends, I’m appreciating Lisa Kudrow’s Phoebe much more than I did the first go-round.)
Phoebe was my favorite character on the show (and I had a longstanding crush on Lisa Kudrow ). Kudrow was on The Late Late Show with James Corden last night, but the other guest was Martin Short, who was predictably a bit manic, and he completely overshadowed Kudrow.
"You Need Me’ by the Honeybees on Gilligan’s Island
“To Be or Not to Be” and “Neither a Borrower Nor a Lender Be” from Gilligan’s Island
“Mr. Hanky the Christmas Poo” from South Park
“Montage” from*** South Park***
“Kyle’s Mom” from South Park
“Oscar Calypso” from*** The Odd Couple*** (“Once there was a man named Oscar. Oscar, Oscar, Oscar!”)
“Happy and Peppy and Bursting With Love” from The Odd Couple
