Huh, "My Humps" and "London Bridge" do mean something, and "Milkshake" does too - just not the kind of meaning you'd want at party for 13 year-olds, I'd say (or hope, anyway).
A classic: The Police's "De do do do de da da da". posted by neblina_matinal at 12:05 PM on September 3, 2008
13-year-old sleepover definitely needs mmbop, a song i would defend even without your theme... posted by noloveforned at 12:07 PM on September 3, 2008 [1 favorite]
yeah, you might want to check the lyrics on some of your stated songs...
find anything by bunnygrunt. posted by nadawi at 12:09 PM on September 3, 2008
Oh, and if you like silly with an associated dance, who can remember forget Lou Bega's "Mambo No. 5?" posted by infinitywaltz at 12:16 PM on September 3, 2008
I have a whole mix tape of silly songs - some of these lyrics are more nonsensical than others, but we have...
Trio's "Da Da Da".
Fats Waller's "Your Feets' Too Big."
"Istanbul (Not Constantinople)". Go for the They Might Be Giants version.
Nthing "De Doo Doo Doo/De Da Da Da".
"Happy Happy Joy Joy".
"Henry VIII I Am".
Barenaked Ladies "One Week" or REM's "It's The End Of The World As We Know It." (Maybe offer prizes if anyone can figure out exactly what the lyrics are and can accurately sing them.)
"Peaches" by The Presidents Of The United States Of America. Because it really IS just literally about fruit.
"Bang The Drum All Day" by Todd Rundgren.
"Fish Heads" - I have no idea who it's by, but you've heard it -- "Fish heads, fish heads, roly poly fish heads..."
"We Like The Moon", from Joel Veitch's Rathergood.com (you may have seen this in a Quizno's ad as "We like the subs").
It's for a friend who's turning 31 and having a 13-year-old THEME, including a pajama party/sleepover. posted by sondrialiac at 12:24 PM on September 3, 2008
Bootylicious and many others in the Destiny's Child oeuvre
vintage Madonna
Pussycat Dolls
Missy Elliott Peaches, if you want it ridiculous and raunchy (I think you're having a party with adults but the theme is sleepover music, right? this is probably not appropriate AT ALL for actual 13-year-olds) Let's Go to the Mall, from How I Met Your Mother posted by pised at 12:26 PM on September 3, 2008
Most of America's early work is pretty nonsensical, as is Yes. posted by tommasz at 12:27 PM on September 3, 2008
Sample lyric:
I’d help you walk through the window
I’d sing to you beneath your door
I’d change my name to Matthew
And be the welcome mat on your floor posted by wsquared at 12:51 PM on September 3, 2008
How has nobody suggested LFO's "Summer Girls" yet?? posted by inigo2 at 12:53 PM on September 3, 2008
Blue (Da Ba De) by Eiffel 65
Glamour Girl by Chicks on Speed
Flight of the Conchords?
Hamster dance? posted by mgogol at 1:01 PM on September 3, 2008
oh! for a 31 year old - well then that should have made her 13 in 1990 if my math is correct.
here are the #1 dance hits of 1990. some nostalgia would be fun for this, methinks. posted by nadawi at 1:03 PM on September 3, 2008 [1 favorite]
Some of the lyrics to "Hey Ya!" may be raunchy for 13-year-olds, but most people don't listen to them anyway. posted by kirkaracha at 1:04 PM on September 3, 2008
There are quite a few silly and fun songs by The Beatles from their later years, including Yellow Submarine, Octopus' Garden, I Am the Walrus, Maxwell's Silver Hammer. posted by CrunchyFrog at 1:06 PM on September 3, 2008
Don't Call Me Whitney, Bobby by The Islands is a really fun song. The 1st verse is my favorite(and it's repeated as the 3rd and last verses... bonus!). Come to think of it, maybe that's the chorus and they just open with it... at any rate:
Bones, bones
Brittle little bones
It's not the milk you seek
It's the sun you need
In the sleek, sleek skeleton I hold
Where are the hidden folds?
Where is the meat?
Did you eat? posted by owtytrof at 1:32 PM on September 3, 2008
Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds by The Beatles has got some pretty absurd lyrics. posted by cmchap at 1:32 PM on September 3, 2008
Stacy's Mom- Fountains of Wayne
I Kissed A Girl and I Liked it- Katy Perry
Anything by They Might Be Giants posted by thebrokenmuse at 1:34 PM on September 3, 2008
To help out EmpressCallipygos, Fish Heads is by a group called "Barnes and Barnes." Double geek points for remembering that one of the members is Lost in Space / Babylon 5 cast member Bill Mumy.
Look up one of the Dr. Demento collections, you'll find quite a few handily-collected songs of sillyness to add to your theme -- including Fish Heads. posted by Pufferish at 1:35 PM on September 3, 2008
And thanks, Pufferish. I knew the band name was blank & blank, with blank being a repeated name, but I couldn't quite recall the name. Also: I know all of the lyrics to One Week, and at one point could accurately "rap" them. Unfortunately, my mouth isn't as quick as it once was. posted by owtytrof at 1:40 PM on September 3, 2008
Whigfield - "Saturday Night" is great fun in a completely annoying way. It's played at every wedding round these parts.
There is also a dance to this but there are many varying versions on youtube so search away if you're interested! posted by unbearablylight at 1:45 PM on September 3, 2008
What about Ob-la-di Ob-la-da by The Beatles? Most of that isn't even real words. posted by number9dream at 1:47 PM on September 3, 2008
"Happy Fun Song" by Straight Outta Junior High. posted by phatkitten at 1:57 PM on September 3, 2008
I don't know of any way to emphasize this so far down in the thread, but
>>>>>>>>>>CHICKEN PAYBACK!!!!!!
"Animal twist" is the closest I'll come to describing dance moves witnessed during public airings of this song. posted by carsonb at 2:31 PM on September 3, 2008 [1 favorite]
"All about the houseplants" by One Ring Zero. Only, it's not just catchy--it's like a virus. Total earworm. You've been warned! posted by PhoBWanKenobi at 3:35 PM on September 3, 2008
Oh, another just came to mind, but it's a bit iffy. Could work out well as a sing-along if the birthday girl has a soft spot for shanties / Newfie music...
As at the end of the second link, it's easily personalized with short verses. So if you or any of the other guests are lyrically-minded, you could add in ones about the birthday girl.
Was you ever on MeFi, where the users they do vie
To be your music go-to guy, ridin' on a donkey?
Way hey and away we go, donkey ridin', donkey ridin',
Way hey and away we go, ridin' on a donkey. posted by CKmtl at 3:48 PM on September 3, 2008
A couple of tunes by They Might Be Giants have been mentioned already, and lots of their songs would probably fit the bill for your theme. I'll suggest one of my favorites: Till My Head Falls Off.
There were 87 Advil in the bottle
Now there's thirty left
I ate 47 so what happened to the other 10...
There's also AEIOU Sometimes Y by EBN-OZN. Strange, but catchy. posted by velvet winter at 4:46 PM on September 3, 2008
Air Force Ones
Who doesn't love a song about gym shoes? Give me two pairs
I need two pairs
So I can get to stompin in my Air Force Ones
Tootsee Roll* The butterfly, unh uh, that's old
Let me that tootsee roll
In the Ayer Oh, hot damn
This is my jam
Keep me partying to the a.m.
Y'all don't understand
Make me throw my hands in the ayer, a-ayer, ayer, a-ayer posted by nooneyouknow at 6:03 PM on September 3, 2008
Talking Heads songs are very catchy, and make you want dance/jump/move. They may not be ridiculous, pre se, but they are often lyrically obtuse and always tons of fun.
A few of my faves (all from the live recording Stop Making Sense)
Life During Wartime
Burning Down the House
Once in a Lifetime
Girlfriend is Better
Slippery People
What a Day That Was posted by Fuzzy Skinner at 6:31 PM on September 3, 2008
Islands in the Sun--Weezer posted by thebrokedown at 6:39 PM on September 3, 2008
Cosign on Cupid Shuffle! So catchy :) :) :)
the Electric Slide
Holy crap has no one mentioned "Numa Numa" yet? Come on! posted by PenDevil at 12:44 AM on September 4, 2008
They Might Be Giants are a great go-to for this, even the songs that make sense don;t necessarily make sense. 'Dinner Bell' is one I can't help but sing along with, and 'the Mesopotamians' off The Else, the latest album, is an awesome song.
Oh, I can't believe no one's mentioned Gunther yet. (Ooh, you touch my tra-la-la... mmm, my ding ding dong...) posted by Metroid Baby at 5:33 AM on September 4, 2008
They Might Be Giants is indeed a good source of this kind of music, but unless you're pulling off the kid's albums (there are several, including No! (lots of fantastic stuff here), Here Come the ABCs, and Here Come the 123s), there's a small, but not negligible chance that the song will feature something some parent might find offensive, like an isolated swear word in an otherwise inoffensive song (e.g. "you son of a bitch" in "I Palindrome I"). Interestingly, a lot of their seemingly nonsensical songs have surprisingly depth. For example, "Till My Head Falls Off", as suggested by velvet winter, always strikes me as kind of sad when I think about the lyrics (about a very not-okay-in-the-head person), though I love the song and it is very upbeat sounding, and the lyrics are not offensive in anyway I can think of. Though sometimes the meaning is still silly, even when it makes sense. "Birdhouse in Your Soul" (about a night-light) as suggested by kirkaracha, "Istanbul (not Constantinople)" as suggested by EmpressCallipygos, and "Dinner Bell" (vaguely relating to the Pavlovian dog experiment) as suggested by pupdog, are all great picks, and probably safe. "Particle Man" should also be safe, silly, fun, and guaranteed not to contain any deeper meaning put there by the writers. posted by ErWenn at 6:21 AM on September 4, 2008
All of these suggestions are great, THANKS!
It will be the most awesome of all sleepovers. posted by sondrialiac at 10:57 AM on September 4, 2008
Holy crap. I just realized that this wasn't a sleepover for actual 13-year-olds. My last comment now seems very stupid. Please disregard the stupid parts.
You'd think that "My Humps" would have tipped me off. posted by ErWenn at 4:48 PM on September 4, 2008
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