# How to get rid of a song that's stuck in your head! **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [July 18, 2006, 5:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-to-get-rid-of-a-song-thats-stuck-in-your-head/364976 "2006-07-18T05:05:37Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Ghanima](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/9e8a1a/32.png) [@Ghanima](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ghanima)\ **Post date:** [July 18, 2006, 9:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-to-get-rid-of-a-song-thats-stuck-in-your-head/364976/21 "2006-07-18T21:26:41Z")
I’ve found “The Girl From Ipanema” to be a pretty effective eraser. However, in my office it is fruitless, as there are three of us. Usually I’ll start, but by mid-day I’ll have gotten over it. However, then one of my office-mates will start singing it. At which point I am reinfected. Rinse. Repeat. Just yesterday my fiance had that They Might Be Giants song about “make a little birdhouse in your soul.” He came into my office and begged me to kill him, or at least sing “Girl From Ipanema” again (I had cured him the night before of the same song). But I was embarrased to sing it in front of office-mates, so he just had to suffer. ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [July 18, 2006, 9:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-to-get-rid-of-a-song-thats-stuck-in-your-head/364976/22 "2006-07-18T21:45:34Z")
Here’s the secret of getting a song out of your head - you need a sense of closure. You don’t really get a song repeated itself over and over again in your brain; you just get a few familiar lines and then when your brain gets to the end of the familiar part and the song isn’t “over” it just goes back to the beginning and trys again. So what you need is a song you know in its entirety (I use “Rudolf the Red Nosed Reindeer”). And when you get some other song stuck in your head, mentally sing your song (from beginning to end) over the top of it. This will drown out the stuck song and when you get to the end of your song your brain will not feel the need to start over because you finished it. ---
**Author:** ![Nature\_s\_Call](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/nature_s_call/32/19006_2.png) [@Nature\_s\_Call](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nature_s_Call)\ **Post date:** [July 18, 2006, 9:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-to-get-rid-of-a-song-thats-stuck-in-your-head/364976/23 "2006-07-18T21:56:44Z")
[QUOTE=Little Nemo] …“Rudolf the Red Nosed Reindeer”)… [/QUOTE] Had a very shiny nose \-ny nose \-ny nose \ -ny nose… It’s not working! ---
**Author:** ![Least\_Original\_User\_Name\_Ever](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/e480ec/32.png) [@Least\_Original\_User\_Name\_Ever](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Least_Original_User_Name_Ever)\ **Post date:** [July 18, 2006, 11:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-to-get-rid-of-a-song-thats-stuck-in-your-head/364976/24 "2006-07-18T23:02:46Z")
IIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII’m saiiiiiling awayyyyyyyy …setting a course…for the viiiiirgin seeeeeeeas… Everyone, you are mighty welcome. ---
**Author:** ![pbbth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/f9ae1b/32.png) [@pbbth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pbbth)\ **Post date:** [July 19, 2006, 2:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-to-get-rid-of-a-song-thats-stuck-in-your-head/364976/25 "2006-07-19T02:00:25Z")
Generally I find that thinking of the noise a helecopter makes is a pretty effective song eraser. However, if you want to stick a really annoying song in someone’s head, I recommend bananaphone by raffi. [http://www.allmedia.com.au/bananana/](http://www.allmedia.com.au/bananana/) This is a version of the song played over the badgerbadgerbadger animation, but it gets the point across. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![What\_Exit](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/what_exit/32/10652_2.png) [@What\_Exit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/What_Exit)\ **Post date:** [July 19, 2006, 2:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-to-get-rid-of-a-song-thats-stuck-in-your-head/364976/26 "2006-07-19T02:26:51Z")
[QUOTE=iamthewalrus(:3=] Mahna mahna (do doo, de doo doo) Mahna mahna (do doo, de do) [/QUOTE] ![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/vmeOE8nN_vo/maxresdefault.jpg)https://www.youtube.com/embed/vmeOE8nN_vo?feature=oembed&wmode=opaque I like this one. I really do. But I find Kashmir works wonders for killing evil songs like the Spiderman theme. Jim ---
**Author:** ![Guinastasia](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guinastasia/32/5751_2.png) [@Guinastasia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Guinastasia)\ **Post date:** [July 19, 2006, 2:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-to-get-rid-of-a-song-thats-stuck-in-your-head/364976/27 "2006-07-19T02:47:23Z")
See, I just try to think of a song I really LIKE, and try to get that stuck in my head instead. ---
**Author:** ![KGS](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/90ced4/32.png) [@KGS](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KGS)\ **Post date:** [July 19, 2006, 3:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-to-get-rid-of-a-song-thats-stuck-in-your-head/364976/28 "2006-07-19T03:03:56Z")
[QUOTE=Little Nemo] Here’s the secret of getting a song out of your head - you need a sense of closure. You don’t really get a song repeated itself over and over again in your brain; you just get a few familiar lines and then when your brain gets to the end of the familiar part and the song isn’t “over” it just goes back to the beginning and trys again. [/QUOTE] That’s all well and good…for a song that actually _has an ending_. But what do you do, if you get [something like this](http://www.albinoblacksheep.com/flash/banana.php) stuck in your head?? ---
**Author:** ![fisha](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/da6949/32.png) [@fisha](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/fisha)\ **Post date:** [July 19, 2006, 3:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-to-get-rid-of-a-song-thats-stuck-in-your-head/364976/29 "2006-07-19T03:24:10Z")
Thanks Quick Exit, one of my favorite songs… ---
**Author:** ![Dottygumdrop](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ce73a5/32.png) [@Dottygumdrop](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dottygumdrop)\ **Post date:** [July 19, 2006, 2:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-to-get-rid-of-a-song-thats-stuck-in-your-head/364976/30 "2006-07-19T14:49:19Z")
I usually end up with the “last song on the radio before I got out of the car” stuck in my head. This will not be helpful (tends to get stuck in my head), but I used to find that singing snippets of Apeman or Lola (both by the Kinks) would usually overwrite anything anyone else was stuck on! Loooola L-O-L-A Lola L-O-L-A Lola 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Sunrazor](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/2acd7d/32.png) [@Sunrazor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sunrazor)\ **Post date:** [July 19, 2006, 3:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-to-get-rid-of-a-song-thats-stuck-in-your-head/364976/31 "2006-07-19T15:00:25Z")
Not really a problem for me. I work in a radio station – the song stuck in my head changes every four minutes. ---
**Author:** ![The\_Chao\_Goes\_Mu](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/the_chao_goes_mu/32/3191_2.png) [@The\_Chao\_Goes\_Mu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Chao_Goes_Mu)\ **Post date:** [July 19, 2006, 5:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-to-get-rid-of-a-song-thats-stuck-in-your-head/364976/32 "2006-07-19T17:09:08Z")
The Girl From Ipanema works great. With one slight problem, I then get _it_ stuck in my head. God_damm_it!!! ---
**Author:** ![Yeeter](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/96bed5/32.png) [@Yeeter](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Yeeter)\ **Post date:** [July 19, 2006, 9:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-to-get-rid-of-a-song-thats-stuck-in-your-head/364976/33 "2006-07-19T21:56:00Z")
I had a co-worker who insisted that “Tom’s Diner” by Suzanne Vega would erase the songs in my head, but it just replaced them. I agree with **Draelin** it’s better if you can pass it on to someone else. If that doesn’t help, at least you’re not the only looney humming at work. ---
**Author:** ![dangermom](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e274bd/32.png) [@dangermom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dangermom)\ **Post date:** [July 19, 2006, 11:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-to-get-rid-of-a-song-thats-stuck-in-your-head/364976/34 "2006-07-19T23:09:25Z")
“Ob la di, ob la da” is my favorite song eraser. Sure, it gets stuck there too, but at least it’s a pretty good song. ---
**Author:** ![Crazy\_Canuck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/crazy_canuck/32/5282_2.png) [@Crazy\_Canuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Crazy_Canuck)\ **Post date:** [July 19, 2006, 11:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-to-get-rid-of-a-song-thats-stuck-in-your-head/364976/35 "2006-07-19T23:44:43Z")
[QUOTE=Little Nemo] Here’s the secret of getting a song out of your head - you need a sense of closure. You don’t really get a song repeated itself over and over again in your brain; you just get a few familiar lines and then when your brain gets to the end of the familiar part and the song isn’t “over” it just goes back to the beginning and trys again. [/QUOTE] That’s what works for me. If I can’t distract myself, and that song won’t get out of my head, I look up the lyrics for it, and learn it from start to end. Gets rid of it every time. ---
**Author:** ![Hostile\_Dialect](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/e495f1/32.png) [@Hostile\_Dialect](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hostile_Dialect)\ **Post date:** [July 20, 2006, 9:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-to-get-rid-of-a-song-thats-stuck-in-your-head/364976/36 "2006-07-20T09:14:57Z")
I find an axe works really well. ---
**Author:** ![mrklutz](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/ebca7d/32.png) [@mrklutz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mrklutz)\ **Post date:** [July 20, 2006, 2:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-to-get-rid-of-a-song-thats-stuck-in-your-head/364976/37 "2006-07-20T14:55:35Z")
Well, either I don’t know the Spiderman theme well enough for this to be effective, or else my brain’s wiring is impaired (I suspect the latter). It doesn’t work for me. Too bad – no coffee for you. ---
**Author:** ![mnemosyne](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/c4cdca/32.png) [@mnemosyne](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mnemosyne)\ **Post date:** [July 20, 2006, 6:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-to-get-rid-of-a-song-thats-stuck-in-your-head/364976/38 "2006-07-20T18:43:11Z")
Urrgh… all night long I had the theme song from “The Family Guy” stuck in my head. I’d try and sing other songs, but it just always comes back, or I’d find my brain singing the other lyrics to the damn Family Guy music. Of course, I have constant noise in my head - my best description of it is sort of like being able to hear the buzzing from a crowded room, with the odd snipet of conversation, and, of course, that room has a radio in it. I’ve found that Nirvana’s “Lithium” works well to get rid of an annoying song, but after a few hours of THAT, I get sick of it too. One night, a few years ago, I had the misfortune of having “Do you believe in magic?” stuck in my head, complete with visuals of Ronald McDonald and the rest of the gang. The only song my exhausted brain (I hadn’t slept in a few nights by then) could come up with was… Eraser. Nine Inch Nails. So… Ronald McDonald visuals, “Do you believe in magic? Need you dream you find you taste you always have a friend wearing big red shoes fuck you use you scar you break you do you believe in magic Kill me kill me kill me kill me” I finally got out of bed and read. I just couldn’t handle those superimposed images and songs! It still scares me. ---
**Author:** ![Wnabtokio](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/b487fb/32.png) [@Wnabtokio](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wnabtokio)\ **Post date:** [July 20, 2006, 8:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-to-get-rid-of-a-song-thats-stuck-in-your-head/364976/39 "2006-07-20T20:18:56Z")
I never realized how many people had “erasers”. I use anything by They Might Be Giants. Seems to work well. They’ll need a crane, they’ll need a crane, to take the house he built for her apart… ---
**Author:** ![XaMcQ](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/x/f9ae1b/32.png) [@XaMcQ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/XaMcQ)\ **Post date:** [July 20, 2006, 8:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-to-get-rid-of-a-song-thats-stuck-in-your-head/364976/40 "2006-07-20T20:42:56Z")
Nobody uses ‘Gilligan’s Island’? “A three hour tour! A three hour tour!” is sufficient to blast out any song. ‘Batman’ works too. “Na na na na na na na na - Batman!” [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-to-get-rid-of-a-song-thats-stuck-in-your-head/364976.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-to-get-rid-of-a-song-thats-stuck-in-your-head/364976.md?page=3)