Songs about outdated tech or fads

Tulsa Telephone Book - Tom T. Hall (a guy is trying to find the phone number of his one-night-stand by reading the white pages)

Hula hoops are also immortalized in “The Chipmunk Song.”

The Little Ford Rambled Right Along

“When the power gets sick just hit it with a brick and the little Ford will ramble right along!”

Another one with an interesting juxtaposition of technologies:

Daisy Bell

“Music Music Music (Put Another Nickel In)” by Teresa Brewer

‘Put another nickel in/ In the Nickelodeon”

I considered this, but looking at the lyrics, the only thing that dates it is the fact that Bally doesn’t make pinball machines anymore. Other companies still do, even ones with physical digit counters, buzzers, and bells.

Fountains of Wayne.

And the little red light’s not blinking
No, no the little red light’s not blinking
No, no the little red light’s not blinking
On my big black plastic Japanese cordless phone
Oh no

Similarly, The Letter by The Box Tops

If lyrics count, then SRV’s Texas Flood must be in the running:

:musical_score:Well there’s floodin’ down in Texas
All of the telephone lines are down :notes:

Brand New Key by Melanie. Keys are not outdated, nor are roller skates, but roller skate keys are. They were used to adjust the old-fashioned skates that you strapped to your street shoes.

Along the same lines as Jim Croce’s Operator is Elvis Presley’s (cover of?) Memphis Tennessee. In which he vaguely describes a woman and hopes the operator can find her.

Beep Beep (the Little Nash Rambler) by the Playmates

“Western Union” by the Four Americans

“In My Merry Oldsmobile” (one of the first “car songs” ever written):

In Jimmy Buffett’s Margaritaville the line “Stepped on a pop-top” is likely to confuse the younger generation. In the bad old days, to open a can of beer or soda, you had to pull off and discard a metal pull-tab (the pop-top). I can bear witness that stepping on one while barefoot on the beach hurts.

In the worse old days before pull-tabs, you needed a special tool to open beverage cans, known colloquially as a church key. The surf rock group The Revels put out a (mostly) instrumental song called Church Key in which the only words spoken are “Church Key”.

“Odie, don’t you understand the value of videotapes in the world today?”

“Everything’s Coming Up Videos”

Yes, it’s a Chuck Berry cover (which I posted above), and in the original the reveal at the end is that the singer’s not looking for a woman, but his six years old daughter. Are those lyrics changed in the Elvis version?

And since this thread isn’t only about outdated tech, but also fads, what about “Land Of 1000 Dances”? Does anybody still dance the Watusi or the Pony?

No, I guess I just never noticed that line.

Buckner & Garcia had an entire album full of video game songs.

Allan Sherman - Down the Drain

The Twist – Chubby Checker
The Peppermint Twist - Joey Dee and the Starlighters
The Charleston