# What is an easy song to learn to sing? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [February 8, 2015, 5:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-an-easy-song-to-learn-to-sing/712132 "2015-02-08T17:18:47Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 12\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Mean\_Mr.Mustard](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mean_mr.mustard/32/3865_2.png) [@Mean\_Mr.Mustard](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mean_Mr.Mustard)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2015, 11:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-an-easy-song-to-learn-to-sing/712132/21 "2015-02-09T23:21:56Z")
> [@stillownedbysetters](#): > > Another hint - sing as though your voice were coming from the back of your head. It prevents nasality. It may sound silly, but it’s relatively easy to do with a little concentration and greatly improves your tone. I have no clue how one would do this. Can anyone elaborate? mmm ---
**Author:** ![stillownedbysetters](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/41988e/32.png) [@stillownedbysetters](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/stillownedbysetters)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2015, 3:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-an-easy-song-to-learn-to-sing/712132/22 "2015-02-10T03:03:00Z")
When most people sing, they push the sound from their throat directly out the front of their mouth. Sure, you’ll say, of course they do, where else can it go? But expending your breath this way flattens your vocal tone and you run out of breath quickly as your breath has no support. But if you sit or stand up straight, take a breath and support your lungs fully with your diaphragm and allow your breath to rise to the roof of your mouth to the point where it almost enters your nasal passages, you will get a better tone. You will also have more control over how much air you expend, which gives you much better control over your singing voice. Probably still clear as mud, I suppose, but it’s one of the first things you learn when you are taught how to sing. ---
**Author:** ![Mean\_Mr.Mustard](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mean_mr.mustard/32/3865_2.png) [@Mean\_Mr.Mustard](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mean_Mr.Mustard)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2015, 11:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-an-easy-song-to-learn-to-sing/712132/23 "2015-02-10T11:45:48Z")
> [@stillownedbysetters](#): > > When most people sing, they push the sound from their throat directly out the front of their mouth. Sure, you’ll say, of course they do, where else can it go? But expending your breath this way flattens your vocal tone and you run out of breath quickly as your breath has no support. But if you sit or stand up straight, take a breath and support your lungs fully with your diaphragm and allow your breath to rise to the roof of your mouth to the point where it almost enters your nasal passages, you will get a better tone. You will also have more control over how much air you expend, which gives you much better control over your singing voice. > > Probably still clear as mud, I suppose, but it’s one of the first things you learn when you are taught how to sing. I appreciate the response. I will try this. How will I know if I am doing it right? mmm ---
**Author:** ![Grotonian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/c2a13f/32.png) [@Grotonian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Grotonian)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2015, 4:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-an-easy-song-to-learn-to-sing/712132/24 "2015-02-10T16:00:28Z")
What for? If it’s karaoke, some easy crowd pleasers are: Billy Joel’s “We Didn’t Start the Fire,” Clarence Carter’s “Strokin,” and Skynard’s “Sweet Home Alabama.” If it’s for some other purpose, I have no idea. ---
**Author:** ![Mijin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mijin/32/9369_2.png) [@Mijin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mijin)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2015, 4:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-an-easy-song-to-learn-to-sing/712132/25 "2015-02-10T16:21:16Z")
I can’t sing for shit, but “Breakfast at Tiffany’s” by Deep Blue Something seems to fit nicely into the half-octave or whatever range of my voice. > [@Thudlow\_Boink](#): > > Probably _not_ “Take On Me” by a-ha. I always hurt myself whenever I try to sing along to that. Ha! I actually picked this song for karaoke recently. I’m in China, so when I finally saw a song I knew, I just thought about the first 3 or 4 notes of the chorus, figured “Hey, that sounds quite low, I got this…” :smack: ---
**Author:** ![Dendarii\_Dame](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/bbce88/32.png) [@Dendarii\_Dame](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dendarii_Dame)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2015, 7:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-an-easy-song-to-learn-to-sing/712132/26 "2015-02-10T19:13:01Z")
“Send in the Clowns”. Limited range, no need to hold notes for a long time, etc. “If They Could See Me Now”. Ditto. “Hey, Look Me Over”. Ditto. ---
**Author:** ![Poysyn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/f4b2a3/32.png) [@Poysyn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Poysyn)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2015, 7:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-an-easy-song-to-learn-to-sing/712132/27 "2015-02-10T19:26:06Z")
If it’s for Karaoke, suggest _Sweet Caroline_ by Neil Diamond. Whatever you sing, get really into it and make it fun for the people watching. That will trump a good singer that is nervous and not playing the part every time. ---
**Author:** ![Asimovian](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/asimovian/32/172_2.png) [@Asimovian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Asimovian)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2015, 7:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-an-easy-song-to-learn-to-sing/712132/28 "2015-02-10T19:45:24Z")
> [@Dendarii\_Dame](#): > > “Hey, Look Me Over”. Ditto. Lordy. I had to learn this song for a singing class I took a few years back. And now it will be stuck the rest of the day, so thanks for that. But I agree with the recommendation. ---
**Author:** ![ftg](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ftg/32/2801_2.png) [@ftg](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ftg)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2015, 9:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-an-easy-song-to-learn-to-sing/712132/29 "2015-02-10T21:50:29Z")
Several classic David Bowie songs don’t require much singing ability. They are sometimes basically “talking in tune”. If you can more or less stay in beat and hit the approximate range, you’re find. E.g., [Blue Jean](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LTYvjrM6djo). But note that it requires raising ones voice a few times. ---
**Author:** ![LynnM](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/b2d939/32.png) [@LynnM](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LynnM)\ **Post date:** [February 11, 2015, 12:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-an-easy-song-to-learn-to-sing/712132/30 "2015-02-11T12:07:10Z")
Try **As Tears Go By** by Jagger/Richards Or **I Feel Good** by James Brown. You can sing the melody and accompanyment [“_nuh_-nuh-_nuh_-nuh-_nuh_-nuh-_nuh_…”] Or try a different James Brown: **It’s A New Day So Let A Man Come In And Do The Popcorn** ---
**Author:** ![Richard\_Pearse](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/richard_pearse/32/13144_2.png) [@Richard\_Pearse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Richard_Pearse)\ **Post date:** [February 11, 2015, 12:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-an-easy-song-to-learn-to-sing/712132/31 "2015-02-11T12:37:00Z")
> [@TreacherousCretin](#): > > With A Little Help From My Friends. This, and I’ll expand it to anything sung by Ringo Starr, he has limited ability so all of his songs are quite simple. ---
**Author:** ![don\_t\_ask](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e68b1a/32.png) [@don\_t\_ask](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/don_t_ask)\ **Post date:** [February 11, 2015, 1:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-an-easy-song-to-learn-to-sing/712132/32 "2015-02-11T13:17:07Z")
> [@Rodgers01](#): > > To each his own, but I disagree: Astaire had an absolutely wonderful way with a song. He brought out the best in composers, with Cole Porter, Irving Berlin, and the Gershwin brothers writing some of their very best stuff specifically for him. I don’t have a cite but I believe I’ve read that he was many songwriters’ favorite vocalist. Oscar Levant considered Astaire to be 'the best singer of songs the movie world has ever known." Irving Berlin said that Astaire was one of his favorite vocalists. Discussing musicals of the period prominent composer [Alec Wilder](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alec_Wilder) wrote, “Every writer, in my opinion, was vitalized by Astaire and wrote in a manner they had never quite written in before: he brought out in them something a little better than their best…” [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-an-easy-song-to-learn-to-sing/712132.md?page=1)