# The cheesiest song ever and yet it was a hit twice. What does it mean? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [February 29, 2008, 6:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-cheesiest-song-ever-and-yet-it-was-a-hit-twice-what-does-it-mean/439664 "2008-02-29T18:55:35Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![jayjay](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jayjay/32/6765_2.png) [@jayjay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jayjay)\ **Post date:** [February 29, 2008, 9:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-cheesiest-song-ever-and-yet-it-was-a-hit-twice-what-does-it-mean/439664/21 "2008-02-29T21:09:36Z")
[QUOTE=JThunder] Do you know what would make that song a lot better? Dinosaurs! [/QUOTE] _MacRassic Park_? ---
**Author:** ![jayjay](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jayjay/32/6765_2.png) [@jayjay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jayjay)\ **Post date:** [February 29, 2008, 9:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-cheesiest-song-ever-and-yet-it-was-a-hit-twice-what-does-it-mean/439664/22 "2008-02-29T21:11:18Z")
[QUOTE=Liberal] Those are correct. And they are followed closely by Sammy Davis, Jr’s “Candy Man”. [/QUOTE] I always thought that was the creepiest thing ever. This gnarled little one-eyed man with a permanent smirk singing the most sugary-smarm lyrics to a bunch of little tykes. Every time I hear it I imagine it coming from the loudspeaker on the top of a black van. ---
**Author:** ![ArizonaTeach](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/45deac/32.png) [@ArizonaTeach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ArizonaTeach)\ **Post date:** [February 29, 2008, 9:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-cheesiest-song-ever-and-yet-it-was-a-hit-twice-what-does-it-mean/439664/23 "2008-02-29T21:27:47Z")
[QUOTE=jayjay] _MacRassic Park_? [/QUOTE] I think he’s referring to… > [@Weird Al](#): > > Jurassic Park is frightening in the dark > All the dinosaurs are running wild > Somone shut the fence off in the rain > I admit its kinda eerie > But this proves my chaos theory > And I dont think I’ll be coming back again > Oh no. ---
**Author:** ![ShibbOleth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/848f3c/32.png) [@ShibbOleth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ShibbOleth)\ **Post date:** [February 29, 2008, 9:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-cheesiest-song-ever-and-yet-it-was-a-hit-twice-what-does-it-mean/439664/24 "2008-02-29T21:29:32Z")
[QUOTE=Liberal] Those are correct. And they are followed closely by Sammy Davis, Jr’s “Candy Man”. [/QUOTE] Where do “Afternoon Delight” and “Muskrat Love” fall in this pecking order? ---
**Author:** ![ArizonaTeach](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/45deac/32.png) [@ArizonaTeach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ArizonaTeach)\ **Post date:** [February 29, 2008, 9:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-cheesiest-song-ever-and-yet-it-was-a-hit-twice-what-does-it-mean/439664/25 "2008-02-29T21:32:01Z")
[QUOTE=ShibbOleth] Where do “Afternoon Delight” and “Muskrat Love” fall in this pecking order? [/QUOTE] “Afternoon Delight” was a punchline on _Arrested Development_, so it gets a pass. ---
**Author:** ![Liberal](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/848f3c/32.png) [@Liberal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Liberal)\ **Post date:** [February 29, 2008, 9:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-cheesiest-song-ever-and-yet-it-was-a-hit-twice-what-does-it-mean/439664/26 "2008-02-29T21:39:03Z")
[QUOTE=ShibbOleth] Where do “Afternoon Delight” and “Muskrat Love” fall in this pecking order? [/QUOTE] God, it’s like a confluence of musical horror, isn’t it. Maybe together, all these cheesy songs form a musical black hole. I can sort of feel the pull from it as I hear echoing chants of “Ooga chaka, ooga ooga” swirling around the event horizon. ---
**Author:** ![jayjay](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jayjay/32/6765_2.png) [@jayjay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jayjay)\ **Post date:** [February 29, 2008, 9:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-cheesiest-song-ever-and-yet-it-was-a-hit-twice-what-does-it-mean/439664/27 "2008-02-29T21:45:07Z")
[QUOTE=Liberal] God, it’s like a confluence of musical horror, isn’t it. Maybe together, all these cheesy songs form a musical black hole. I can sort of feel the pull from it as I hear echoing chants of “Ooga chaka, ooga ooga” swirling around the event horizon. [/QUOTE] I seriously think the years 1967-1979 were some kind of musical Bermuda Triangle where all the really cheesily horrible songs from all through time washed up on our radio shores…just go back through this thread and count up how many of the mentioned songs were in that era. ---
**Author:** ![Biggirl](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/biggirl/32/3294_2.png) [@Biggirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Biggirl)\ **Post date:** [February 29, 2008, 11:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-cheesiest-song-ever-and-yet-it-was-a-hit-twice-what-does-it-mean/439664/28 "2008-02-29T23:22:04Z")
[QUOTE=ShibbOleth] _Patches, I’m dependin’ on you, son…_ [/QUOTE] I HATE this song sooooooo much! ---
**Author:** ![descamisado](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e480ec/32.png) [@descamisado](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/descamisado)\ **Post date:** [February 29, 2008, 11:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-cheesiest-song-ever-and-yet-it-was-a-hit-twice-what-does-it-mean/439664/29 "2008-02-29T23:37:32Z")
[QUOTE=Biggirl] I HATE this song sooooooo much! [/QUOTE] IIIIII dddooonnn’ttt think that I can take it . . . . ---
**Author:** ![pravnik](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/8edcca/32.png) [@pravnik](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pravnik)\ **Post date:** [February 29, 2008, 11:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-cheesiest-song-ever-and-yet-it-was-a-hit-twice-what-does-it-mean/439664/30 "2008-02-29T23:43:52Z")
“I’ve been undressed by kings, and I’ve seen some things that a woman ain’t supposed to see…” What, like, a men’s room? A urinal? :dubious: ---
**Author:** ![lobotomyboy63](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lobotomyboy63/32/2900_2.png) [@lobotomyboy63](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lobotomyboy63)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2008, 12:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-cheesiest-song-ever-and-yet-it-was-a-hit-twice-what-does-it-mean/439664/31 "2008-03-01T00:59:47Z")
Ya killin’ me! I’m reading down, wondering who’s going to cite “Torn between Two Lovers,” and it just ain’t in there. But many moldy cheese nuggets along the way. No sooner do I go to hit reply and “Blind Man in the Bleachers” grabs a knife and stabs me directly in the brain. It’s medication time… ---
**Author:** ![Jackmannii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jackmannii/32/311_2.png) [@Jackmannii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jackmannii)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2008, 1:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-cheesiest-song-ever-and-yet-it-was-a-hit-twice-what-does-it-mean/439664/32 "2008-03-01T01:08:48Z")
[QUOTE=Wee Bairn] And “Watching Scotty Grow” is the cheesiest song ever, followed closely by “Playground in my Mind” (my name is Michael, I have a nickle…). [/QUOTE] Not to mention the entire discography of the group Bread. “McArthur Park” gets too much heat for its lyrics, when there are so many rotten lyrics out there that do not receive the attention they deserve. For instance, the Dutch band Golden Earring authored these classics: _"Lonely is the night without you Just like a shepherd without sheep_ - “She Flies On Strange Wings” **and** _From the moment you opened my fly It’s been alright…_ - “Leather” Blarrgh. ---
**Author:** ![Lightray](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lightray/32/391_2.png) [@Lightray](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lightray)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2008, 1:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-cheesiest-song-ever-and-yet-it-was-a-hit-twice-what-does-it-mean/439664/33 "2008-03-01T01:10:30Z")
So, I read this thread just before leaving work tonite. Laughed, thought “wow, glad they don’t air those cheesy, lame songs anymore” and went on my merry way. Then, while sitting stopped in traffic waiting for the announced traffic report _about the traffic I was stuck in_, they played… Cheesburger in Paradise. :mad: I blame you all. ---
**Author:** ![lobotomyboy63](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lobotomyboy63/32/2900_2.png) [@lobotomyboy63](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lobotomyboy63)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2008, 1:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-cheesiest-song-ever-and-yet-it-was-a-hit-twice-what-does-it-mean/439664/34 "2008-03-01T01:12:41Z")
Billy, Don’t Be a Hero Disco Duck Convoy :smack: :smack: :smack: OK, stopping now. ---
**Author:** ![Charger](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/df788c/32.png) [@Charger](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Charger)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2008, 1:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-cheesiest-song-ever-and-yet-it-was-a-hit-twice-what-does-it-mean/439664/35 "2008-03-01T01:23:06Z")
[QUOTE=CalMeacham] We were having a barbecue at my sister’s house, and it began to rain. My mother, worried about the food out there, said “I left the cake out in the rain!” My wife and I started saying, together, as if rehearsed: “I don’t think that I can take it, 'cause it took so long to bake it, and I’ll never have that recipe again!” [/QUOTE] Oh, noooooo! I sometimes jokingly cite that song as the origin of written recipes. I’m sure, for a while after the song came out, people facing the harsh reality of ruined cakes found themselves saying, “I don’t think that I can take it, 'cause it took so long…oh, nevermind. I got it written down. I’ll just make another.” ---
**Author:** ![Yllaria](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/yllaria/32/3452_2.png) [@Yllaria](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Yllaria)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2008, 1:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-cheesiest-song-ever-and-yet-it-was-a-hit-twice-what-does-it-mean/439664/36 "2008-03-01T01:28:44Z")
[QUOTE=lobotomyboy63] Billy, Don’t Be a Hero Disco Duck Convoy :smack: :smack: :smack: OK, stopping now. [/QUOTE] Hey, I LIKE Disco Duck. It’s not cheesy, it’s silly. I’ll give another vote for I’ve Never Been to Me as the cheesiest. And Convoy was a trend rider. I’m not sure that counts as cheese, but I won’t argue. I’ll give you Billy, Don’t Be a Hero, flat out. I can see all of these songs being made into a compilation CD to give to people you want to drive mad. Could it be used to threaten roudy children in the back seat? “Don’t make me put on the Cheese CD!” ---
**Author:** ![Kent\_Clark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kent_clark/32/105_2.png) [@Kent\_Clark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kent_Clark)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2008, 2:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-cheesiest-song-ever-and-yet-it-was-a-hit-twice-what-does-it-mean/439664/37 "2008-03-01T02:25:22Z")
\*I heard my mama cry… I heard her pray the night Chicago died That’s the night the lights went out in Georgia That’s the night they hung an innocent man And yooooooooou light up my liiiiiiife You give me hooooooope To carry onnnnnnnnnnnn\* ---
**Author:** ![Boyo\_Jim](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/87869e/32.png) [@Boyo\_Jim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Boyo_Jim)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2008, 2:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-cheesiest-song-ever-and-yet-it-was-a-hit-twice-what-does-it-mean/439664/38 "2008-03-01T02:36:03Z")
I can’t believe that with all these bright people here, it took 34 posts to get it right. _Billy, don’t be a hero_. Please don’t! If you do, then someone’s gonna write an unbelievably cheesy song about it and make the whole human race suffer for decades to come. ---
**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:** [March 1, 2008, 3:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-cheesiest-song-ever-and-yet-it-was-a-hit-twice-what-does-it-mean/439664/39 "2008-03-01T03:20:37Z")
OK. I refrained, but the bad lyrics haven’t met their king. Here are some actual lyrics from Rosecrans Boulevard (by Jim Webb): “Then there was the time you drove the little car down Sunset Boulevard at 90 miles an hour in a thirty mile zone and blamed me when you got that ticket.” ---
**Author:** ![iftheresaway](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/ecae2f/32.png) [@iftheresaway](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/iftheresaway)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2008, 3:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-cheesiest-song-ever-and-yet-it-was-a-hit-twice-what-does-it-mean/439664/40 "2008-03-01T03:27:09Z")
[QUOTE=Liberal] God, it’s like a confluence of musical horror, isn’t it. Maybe together, all these cheesy songs form a musical black hole. I can sort of feel the pull from it as I hear echoing chants of “Ooga chaka, ooga ooga” swirling around the event horizon. [/QUOTE] The scary thing is, \*all three \* of those songs are in heavy rotation in the muzak at work. What the hell is Muskrat Love about? I never really notice it (even though I’m unconsciously singing along) until the words “Muskrat Love” come out of my mouth, and then I’m generally confused and frightened. Also, “MacArthur Park” is one of the few songs which is weirder than its Weird Al counterpart. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-cheesiest-song-ever-and-yet-it-was-a-hit-twice-what-does-it-mean/439664.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-cheesiest-song-ever-and-yet-it-was-a-hit-twice-what-does-it-mean/439664.md?page=3)