# 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:** 8\ **Page:** 5
**Author:** ![Sitnam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/6a8cbe/32.png) [@Sitnam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sitnam)\ **Post date:** [February 5, 2015, 3:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/spoken-hits-that-arent-rap/711403/81 "2015-02-05T15:57:29Z")
[Tom Waits- Christmas Card from a Hooker in Minneapolis, Neko Case cover](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qgTPo4zRI2Q) ---
**Author:** ![GrandWino](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/grandwino/32/67_2.png) [@GrandWino](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GrandWino)\ **Post date:** [February 5, 2015, 3:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/spoken-hits-that-arent-rap/711403/82 "2015-02-05T15:59:29Z")
> [@Honey](#): > > Maybe **Blondie** - **Rapture**? Nope. The [title is officially “_Rap_ture”](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rapture_%28Blondie_song%29#History)(w/ the italics) to highlight the rapping that is in the song. > [@](#): > > The song title “_Rap_ture” served to indicate this element. While it was not the first single featuring rapping to be commercially successful, it was the first to top the charts. Its lyrics were especially notable for namechecking hip-hop pioneers Fab Five Freddy and Grandmaster Flash. ---
**Author:** ![control-z](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/eada6e/32.png) [@control-z](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/control-z)\ **Post date:** [February 5, 2015, 4:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/spoken-hits-that-arent-rap/711403/83 "2015-02-05T16:42:47Z")
Don’t know if it was ever a “hit”, but this one is pretty famous amongst the nerd circuit: [William Shatner - Rocket Man](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lul-Y8vSr0I) ---
**Author:** ![Sauron](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ce7236/32.png) [@Sauron](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sauron)\ **Post date:** [February 5, 2015, 7:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/spoken-hits-that-arent-rap/711403/84 "2015-02-05T19:05:15Z")
I might’ve missed their mentions earlier in the thread, but Charlie Daniels had several hits that fit the bill, including: [Devil Went Down to Georgia](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tnepPZChA5U) [The Legend of Wooley Swamp](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qMz4MA2X-98) [Uneasy Rider](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=952h-AJ3Bcg) … aaaand now I see that **X.L. Lent** beat me to Uneasy Rider. ---
**Author:** ![Ponch8](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ponch8/32/9883_2.png) [@Ponch8](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ponch8)\ **Post date:** [February 6, 2015, 3:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/spoken-hits-that-arent-rap/711403/85 "2015-02-06T03:25:20Z")
Here’s a REAL doozy: [Think - “Once You Understand”](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=haCqD9Ps0co) It was SORT OF a hit, and it was SORT OF a song. Be sure to stick around through the part that begins at 3:15 in the linked video. ---
**Author:** ![BrainGlutton](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/82dd89/32.png) [@BrainGlutton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrainGlutton)\ **Post date:** [February 6, 2015, 5:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/spoken-hits-that-arent-rap/711403/86 "2015-02-06T05:29:07Z")
[Lord Buckley.](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U0x5x8lyON8) “The Nazz [Christ] had them pretty eyes, he wanted everybody to see through his eyes so they could see how pretty it was . . .” ---
**Author:** ![Sahirrnee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sahirrnee/32/13937_2.png) [@Sahirrnee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sahirrnee)\ **Post date:** [February 6, 2015, 1:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/spoken-hits-that-arent-rap/711403/87 "2015-02-06T13:31:51Z")
_Atlantis_ by Donovan The beginning is spoken [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=leI7sfmipuI](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=leI7sfmipuI) ---
**Author:** ![cjepson](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/a9adbd/32.png) [@cjepson](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cjepson)\ **Post date:** [February 6, 2015, 4:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/spoken-hits-that-arent-rap/711403/88 "2015-02-06T16:10:54Z")
> [@BrainGlutton](#): > > [Lord Buckley.](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U0x5x8lyON8) “The Nazz [Christ] had them pretty eyes, he wanted everybody to see through his eyes so they could see how pretty it was . . .” If we’re going in that direction, then mention should probably be made of [Ken Nordine.](http://www.bing.com/videos/search?q=ken+nordine+youtube&qpvt=ken+nordine+youtube&FORM=VQFRML#view=detail&mid=7A8D537958EF107123287A8D537958EF10712328) (Who, by the way, was born in 1920 and is still hosting a weekly radio show.) [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/spoken-hits-that-arent-rap/711403.md?page=4)