# Songs with only one verse **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Tags:** music\ **Created:** [July 27, 2021, 5:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-with-only-one-verse/947387 "2021-07-27T05:57:23Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![ParallelLines](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/parallellines/32/3575_2.png) [@ParallelLines](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ParallelLines)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2021, 2:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-with-only-one-verse/947387/21 "2021-07-28T14:44:38Z")
The op brought this song to mind (which of course, also includes the song it’s parodying) [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/do5vXn_Rap4/maxresdefault.jpg "[This Song's Just] Six Words Long") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=do5vXn_Rap4) “[This Song’s] Just Six Words Long” by Weird Al. ---
**Author:** ![Skywatcher](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/skywatcher/32/254_2.png) [@Skywatcher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skywatcher)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2021, 2:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-with-only-one-verse/947387/22 "2021-07-28T14:51:03Z")
> [@Mark\_Finn](#): > > Re: “Tequila” - the word is repeated several times. Yes, one word – said three times. ---
**Author:** ![CalMeacham](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/calmeacham/32/35_2.png) [@CalMeacham](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CalMeacham)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2021, 2:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-with-only-one-verse/947387/23 "2021-07-28T14:57:36Z")
> [@needscoffee](#): > > **I’m Henry the Eighth, I Am** - “second verse, same as the first!” As I’ve remarked about this in another recent thread, that’s not really true. The song, which dates back to 1910 (!) actually has four verses. When Herman’s Hermits recorded it in 1965, they ignored all the verses and only sang the chorus. Then they sang the chorus again, saying “Second verse, same as the first!” But calling a chorus a verse doesn’t make it one, any more than calling a tail a leg makes it a leg. The thing I thought was odd about the song was that, after I learned that Herman’s Hermits basically took an old British Music Hall song and polished it up for modern play, I figured the main change was to speed up the tempo. But it turns out that the original performer, Harry Champion (whose signature song this was) sang it at breakneck speed “his face bathed in sweat and his arms and legs flying in all directions.”. Herman’s Hermits probably sang it slower than old Harry. > **[I'm Henery the Eighth, I Am](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/I%27m_Henery_the_Eighth,_I_Am)** > > "I'm Henery the Eighth, I Am" (also "I'm Henery the VIII, I Am" or "I'm Henry VIII, I Am"; spelled "Henery" but pronounced "'Enery" in the Cockney style normally used to sing it) is a 1910 British music hall song by Fred Murray and R. P. Weston. It was a signature song of the music hall star Harry Champion. > Joe Brown included the song on his first album A Picture of You in 1962. But in 1965, it became the fastest-selling song in history to that point when it was revived by Herman's Hermits, bec... The real lyrics to the verses – [https://en.wikisource.org/wiki/I'm\_Henery\_the\_Eighth,\_I\_Am](https://en.wikisource.org/wiki/I%27m_Henery_the_Eighth,_I_Am) ---
**Author:** ![Elmer\_J.Fudd](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/elmer_j.fudd/32/1211_2.png) [@Elmer\_J.Fudd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elmer_J.Fudd)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2021, 2:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-with-only-one-verse/947387/24 "2021-07-28T14:57:55Z")
I don’t think instrumentals punctuated by a one word shout from the band really qualify as one verse songs. If they did, I could post a list of about fifty surf instrumentals from the Sixties and countless numbers from the Big Band era. ---
**Author:** ![needscoffee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/needscoffee/32/1076_2.png) [@needscoffee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/needscoffee)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2021, 3:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-with-only-one-verse/947387/25 "2021-07-28T15:22:11Z")
> [@CalMeacham](#): > > As I’ve remarked about this in another recent thread, that’s not really true. The song, which dates back to 1910 (!) actually has four verses. When Herman’s Hermits recorded it in 1965, they ignored all the verses and only sang the chorus. Then they sang the chorus again, saying “Second verse, same as the first!” But calling a chorus a verse doesn’t make it one, any more than calling a tail a leg makes it a leg. I’m really surprised that I needed to say, “The song _as recorded by Herman’s Hermit’s_ has only one verse.” No, actually, I take that back, I’m not surprised. ---
**Author:** ![Thudlow\_Boink](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thudlow_boink/32/320_2.png) [@Thudlow\_Boink](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thudlow_Boink)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2021, 3:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-with-only-one-verse/947387/26 "2021-07-28T15:23:22Z")
Agreed. [The example in the OP](https://www.songfacts.com/lyrics/fastball/out-of-my-head) goes like this: Verse (sung _once_) Chorus Repeat chorus Repeat chorus The end. So, there’s only one verse, and it’s only sung once. And, yeah, I’m having a hard time thinking of other songs that fit that particular pattern. ---
**Author:** ![mixdenny](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mixdenny/32/2962_2.png) [@mixdenny](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mixdenny)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2021, 3:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-with-only-one-verse/947387/27 "2021-07-28T15:23:45Z")
Woo hoo, woo hoo hoo. Woo hoo, woo hoo hoo. Woo hoo - woo hoo, woo hoo, woo hoo hoo. ---
**Author:** ![veryfrank](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/87869e/32.png) [@veryfrank](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/veryfrank)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2021, 3:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-with-only-one-verse/947387/28 "2021-07-28T15:42:24Z")
“Eight Line Poem” by David Bowie is, if memory serves, just one verse, no chorus. ---
**Author:** ![CalMeacham](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/calmeacham/32/35_2.png) [@CalMeacham](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CalMeacham)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2021, 3:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-with-only-one-verse/947387/29 "2021-07-28T15:59:02Z")
> [@needscoffee](#): > > I’m really surprised that I needed to say, “The song _as recorded by Herman’s Hermit’s_ has only one verse.” No, actually, I take that back, I’m not surprised. You shouldn’t be. Most of our posters are probably a lot younger than that recording. And you can never tell who knows what. I didn’t realize when I first heard it that it was a much older song that had been dredged out of zombification ---
**Author:** ![FastDan1](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fastdan1/32/427_2.png) [@FastDan1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FastDan1)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2021, 5:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-with-only-one-verse/947387/30 "2021-07-28T17:01:21Z")
Does _Tommy’s Holiday Camp_ by The Who meet the standard? ---
**Author:** ![Elmer\_J.Fudd](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/elmer_j.fudd/32/1211_2.png) [@Elmer\_J.Fudd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elmer_J.Fudd)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2021, 5:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-with-only-one-verse/947387/31 "2021-07-28T17:11:14Z")
I thought the Turtles’ “Happy Together” was one verse, but it’s still weird: Verse 1 Verse 2 Chorus Verse 3 Chorus Verse 3 Chorus (Ba ba ba rather than words) Verse 3 Outro ---
**Author:** ![Lucas\_Jackson](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lucas_jackson/32/303_2.png) [@Lucas\_Jackson](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lucas_Jackson)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2021, 7:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-with-only-one-verse/947387/32 "2021-07-28T19:30:19Z")
I’m getting how that’s one verse. Nor do I understand some of the other submissions like Pink Floyd, “Wish You Were Here” are one verse. Help a brotha out. ---
**Author:** ![KCB615](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/ea666f/32.png) [@KCB615](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KCB615)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2021, 7:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-with-only-one-verse/947387/33 "2021-07-28T19:42:17Z")
I Want You by the Beatles. Only 17 words long but 7:47. ---
**Author:** ![RealityChuck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/realitychuck/32/195_2.png) [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2021, 8:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-with-only-one-verse/947387/34 "2021-07-28T20:14:22Z")
“Moon in June” by Soft Machine consists of one freeform verse and no chorus. Other than the title, none of its lines rhyme. [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/IJFSIX_uVPM/maxresdefault.jpg "Soft Machine - Moon in June") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IJFSIX_uVPM) This was a trademark of their drummer, Robert Wyatt, who wrote long pieces without any poetic structure and rarely rhymed anything. I also just stumbled on “Titles” by Barclay James Harvest that was nothing but Beatles lyrics with no chorus. [![](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/HFQ9CMds9PU/hqdefault.jpg "Barclay James Harvest - Titles (1975)") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HFQ9CMds9PU) ---
**Author:** ![Skywatcher](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/skywatcher/32/254_2.png) [@Skywatcher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skywatcher)\ **Post date:** [September 9, 2021, 4:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-with-only-one-verse/947387/35 "2021-09-09T16:26:38Z")
Depending on the version, “Sea of Love” seems to be either two choruses with one verse in between or one verse and one chorus, both of which get repeated. ---
**Author:** ![JUlrey](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ee59a6/32.png) [@JUlrey](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JUlrey)\ **Post date:** [September 10, 2021, 2:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-with-only-one-verse/947387/36 "2021-09-10T02:38:49Z")
Speaking of the Big Band era, it was pretty common early on for the song to be mostly instrumental with the vocalist coming in at the end to belt out a single token verse, so that genre would have plenty of legit examples. IIRC it was Bing Crosby and Sinatra in the late 30’s/early 40’s that were responsible for transitioning into vocal-dominated ensembles (kind of like how hip hop started out all about the DJ, with the MC mostly just ad libbing and hyping the crowd) ---
**Author:** ![Gatopescado](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gatopescado/32/5711_2.png) [@Gatopescado](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gatopescado)\ **Post date:** [September 10, 2021, 8:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-with-only-one-verse/947387/37 "2021-09-10T08:40:28Z")
> [@Lucas\_Jackson](#): > > I’ve been on a Fastball (of The Way fame) jag lately. Slight Hijack: I shared my homebrew with the band long ago at a free concert. They gave me a CD, all signed it, and Tony wrote _“Homebrew!”_ on it. Was a fan before, and have been since. They were in Reno on Monday, but it was too hot to go see them (record heat, outdoors, all the smoke from the wildfires), and I didn’t think they would remember me anyway. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![Gatopescado](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gatopescado/32/5711_2.png) [@Gatopescado](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gatopescado)\ **Post date:** [September 10, 2021, 8:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-with-only-one-verse/947387/38 "2021-09-10T08:47:46Z")
> [@Skywatcher](#): > > Yes, one word – said three times. In my experience, three shots of Tequila are quite enough. ---
**Author:** ![Lucas\_Jackson](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lucas_jackson/32/303_2.png) [@Lucas\_Jackson](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lucas_Jackson)\ **Post date:** [September 10, 2021, 12:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-with-only-one-verse/947387/39 "2021-09-10T12:24:41Z")
@Gatopescado - Wow, cool story. Thanks for sharing. What are some of your favorite songs of theirs? I keep discovering more and more songs I like. They are great songwriters. ---
**Author:** ![Gatopescado](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gatopescado/32/5711_2.png) [@Gatopescado](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gatopescado)\ **Post date:** [September 10, 2021, 4:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-with-only-one-verse/947387/40 "2021-09-10T16:48:23Z")
> [@Lucas\_Jackson](#): > > What are some of your favorite songs of theirs? I’ve got 2 albums, and like pretty much all of them. When I saw them in the park, they did this one song (off the new album) that I didn’t recognize. It had a long outro with Tony and Miles trading off blistering guitar licks in a ‘call and response’ type of thing. When I was chattin’ and drinkin’ with them, I asked them about it. Miles tells me, _“On the album, the second guitar part is played with an Alto Sax”._ I said, gathering all the tact that drinking 4 liters of Homebrew would allow me, _“You gotta be fuckin’ kiddin’!”_ I was thinking to myself, that must be a Train Wreck. That song was **'Til I Get It Right** , and it works. Great tune. Love it! [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-with-only-one-verse/947387.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-with-only-one-verse/947387.md?page=3)