# Spoken hits that aren't Rap. **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [January 31, 2015, 4:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/spoken-hits-that-arent-rap/711403 "2015-01-31T04:33:08Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![dropzone](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dropzone/32/7515_2.png) [@dropzone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dropzone)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2015, 4:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/spoken-hits-that-arent-rap/711403/1 "2015-01-31T04:33:08Z")
The past sixty years there have been isolated instances of mostly-spoken poetry with musical accompaniment on the radio. In the early years there was crap like [Jimmie Dean’s sausagefest, “Big Bad John”](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RN3exiuyQJc&spfreload=10). Others existed because the artists had singing ranges of roughly one note, like [Walter Brennan’s “Old Rivers”](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S0JsYKHTJlg) and [Rex Harrison’s “Why Can’t The English?”](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EAYUuspQ6BY) Please note that I am using a flexible definition of “hit” because the 60s and 70s gave us [Gil Scott Heron’s “The Revolution Will Not Be Televised”](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QnJFhuOWgXg&spfreload=10) and [Mick Jagger’s “Memo from Turner,”](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tAPgDs30eq8&spfreload=10) which got airplay but only on “underground” stations. On AM radio you could hear [“The Americans: A Canadian’s Opinion” by Gordon Sinclair,](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oJ_okAgAUGE&spfreload=10) but that doesn’t count because it has no poetic pretensions. I am not excluding Rap out of spite, but because an entire genre that fits the definition will swamp everything else. However, I am including [Beck’s “Loser”](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YgSPaXgAdzE&spfreload=10) because Scientologists by definition cannot rap. Any more suggestions, either or both entertaining and horrifying? ---
**Author:** ![johnpost](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/f17d59/32.png) [@johnpost](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/johnpost)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2015, 4:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/spoken-hits-that-arent-rap/711403/2 "2015-01-31T04:42:10Z")
Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds by William Shatner was both entertaining and horrifying. ---
**Author:** ![DooWahDiddy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e9bcb4/32.png) [@DooWahDiddy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DooWahDiddy)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2015, 4:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/spoken-hits-that-arent-rap/711403/3 "2015-01-31T04:48:26Z")
The two that come to mind are [Little Becky’s Christmas Wish](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Mamr3K6G_Ew), 1968, and [Everybody’s Free to Wear Sunscreen](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sTJ7AzBIJoI), 1997 (and performed by none other than Baz Luhrmann). I’ll let you decide which is entertaining and which is horrifying. 🙂 ---
**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:** [January 31, 2015, 4:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/spoken-hits-that-arent-rap/711403/4 "2015-01-31T04:54:08Z")
> [@johnpost](#): > > Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds by William Shatner > > was both entertaining and horrifying. _ **Mr. Tambourine Man!** _ ---
**Author:** ![Enlightening\_Meditation](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/ecc23a/32.png) [@Enlightening\_Meditation](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Enlightening_Meditation)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2015, 4:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/spoken-hits-that-arent-rap/711403/5 "2015-01-31T04:56:06Z")
“Valley Girl” by Frank Zappa featuring Moon Zappa might count. Moon’s lead vocal is spoken word, and the song peaked at #32 on the Billboard Hot 100. [QUOTE=dropzone] However, I am including Beck’s “Loser” because Scientologists by definition cannot rap. [/QUOTE] ??? What about Beck’s “Where It’s At”? Is that also not rap. > [@johnpost](#): > > Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds by William Shatner > > was both entertaining and horrifying. Ah, true…but would that count as a hit ‘song’ by any standard? ---
**Author:** ![JohnGalt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johngalt/32/184_2.png) [@JohnGalt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JohnGalt)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2015, 4:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/spoken-hits-that-arent-rap/711403/6 "2015-01-31T04:59:32Z")
Does Kraftwerk’s _Autobahn_ count? The lyrics, such as they are, are in tune, so are they really spoken, or are they sung? ---
**Author:** ![dropzone](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dropzone/32/7515_2.png) [@dropzone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dropzone)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2015, 5:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/spoken-hits-that-arent-rap/711403/7 "2015-01-31T05:05:53Z")
> [@DooWahDiddy](#): > > The two that come to mind are [Little Becky’s Christmas Wish](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Mamr3K6G_Ew), 1968, and [Everybody’s Free to Wear Sunscreen](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sTJ7AzBIJoI), 1997 (and performed by none other than Baz Luhrmann). Neither is poetic, at least as far as I could bear to listen. Prose doesn’t count, even horrifying prose. “Sunscreen,” like “The Americans,” was a reading of a newspaper column. > [@Enlightening\_Meditation](#): > > Ah, true…but would that count as a hit ‘song’ by any standard? By the standards of this thread, yes. Kinda iffy, as the Shat is reading the lyrics of a real song, but popular enough to be a hit. ---
**Author:** ![burpo\_the\_wonder\_mutt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/burpo_the_wonder_mutt/32/365_2.png) [@burpo\_the\_wonder\_mutt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/burpo_the_wonder_mutt)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2015, 5:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/spoken-hits-that-arent-rap/711403/8 "2015-01-31T05:09:07Z")
The Ballad of Irving (The 142nd Fastest Gun in the West) ---
**Author:** ![dropzone](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dropzone/32/7515_2.png) [@dropzone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dropzone)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2015, 5:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/spoken-hits-that-arent-rap/711403/9 "2015-01-31T05:15:18Z")
> [@JohnGalt](#): > > Does Kraftwerk’s _Autobahn_ count? The lyrics, such as they are, are in tune, so are they really spoken, or are they sung? The repeated chorus of “Wir fahren fahren fahren auf der Autobahn,” is more spoken than sung and is treated like an atonal part of the musical landscape. The verse is entirely spoken, not sung. Altogether it is pretentious enough to count. ---
**Author:** ![Aspidistra](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aspidistra/32/3894_2.png) [@Aspidistra](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Aspidistra)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2015, 5:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/spoken-hits-that-arent-rap/711403/10 "2015-01-31T05:42:34Z")
Trio - Da Da Da Solitaire - I like Love (mostly) Two very different songs, but I like ém both ---
**Author:** ![TriPolar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tripolar/32/3008_2.png) [@TriPolar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TriPolar)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2015, 5:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/spoken-hits-that-arent-rap/711403/11 "2015-01-31T05:49:37Z")
Does Alice’s Restaurant count? ---
**Author:** ![MsKaren](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/a183cd/32.png) [@MsKaren](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MsKaren)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2015, 6:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/spoken-hits-that-arent-rap/711403/12 "2015-01-31T06:20:39Z")
Does The Werewolves of London count? ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_Q](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/898d66/32.png) [@Johnny\_Q](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_Q)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2015, 6:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/spoken-hits-that-arent-rap/711403/13 "2015-01-31T06:34:26Z")
A Boy Named Sue-- Johnny Cash ---
**Author:** ![MsKaren](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/a183cd/32.png) [@MsKaren](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MsKaren)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2015, 6:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/spoken-hits-that-arent-rap/711403/14 "2015-01-31T06:40:11Z")
Interesting Slate blog on this [http://www.slate.com/articles/arts/music\_box/2009/04/flukes\_of\_the\_universe.2.html](http://www.slate.com/articles/arts/music_box/2009/04/flukes_of_the_universe.2.html) ---
**Author:** ![Art\_Rock](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/art_rock/32/525_2.png) [@Art\_Rock](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Art_Rock)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2015, 7:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/spoken-hits-that-arent-rap/711403/15 "2015-01-31T07:15:55Z")
[Telly “Kojak” Savalas - If](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J94-_w9ARX0). ---
**Author:** ![Kobal2](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kobal2/32/20_2.png) [@Kobal2](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kobal2)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2015, 7:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/spoken-hits-that-arent-rap/711403/16 "2015-01-31T07:29:02Z")
Eminem’s \*Kim \*is not rap per se - it’s just a long crazy monologue, with a few choruses thrown in. Doesn’t follow a beat, doesn’t rhyme. Very emotional - I’m not sure “moving” or “touching” would be the right words, but it kicks in the feels. Our side of the pond has Léo Ferré who considered himself a poet first, a singer second. He did a lot a “poetry or free verse on a background melody”, [like so](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pN6EX_sGeDk). ---
**Author:** ![thelurkinghorror](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/7c8e57/32.png) [@thelurkinghorror](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/thelurkinghorror)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2015, 7:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/spoken-hits-that-arent-rap/711403/17 "2015-01-31T07:43:29Z")
Some of these might have singing in the chorus but spoken verses: Butthole Surfers - Pepper The Nails - 88 Lines About 44 Women King Missile - Detachable Penis (lots of their songs, but the rest aren’t really hits) Nada Surf - Popular The Doors/Jim Morrison did a lot [Sprechgesang](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sprechgesang). E.g. Fred Schneider of the B-52’s. ---
**Author:** ![Oly](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/oly/32/8255_2.png) [@Oly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Oly)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2015, 9:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/spoken-hits-that-arent-rap/711403/18 "2015-01-31T09:29:24Z")
Since you’re using “hit” loosely, [this](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0Pk7FBT4U3g). ---
**Author:** ![kaylasdad99](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kaylasdad99/32/3398_2.png) [@kaylasdad99](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kaylasdad99)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2015, 9:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/spoken-hits-that-arent-rap/711403/19 "2015-01-31T09:30:24Z")
Lorne Greene – The Ballad of Ringo. Red Sovine – Teddy Bear ---
**Author:** ![Jragon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/e19b73/32.png) [@Jragon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jragon)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2015, 9:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/spoken-hits-that-arent-rap/711403/20 "2015-01-31T09:31:06Z")
[Oh we got trouble…](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qam1fbQmA_s) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/spoken-hits-that-arent-rap/711403.md?page=2)