Songs with hand claps

December 15, 2005 12:02 PM

What are some songs that prominently feature hand claps?

Preferably either good songs or recognizable songs.

posted by billysumday to Media & Arts (140 answers total)

Blister in the Sun by Violent Femmes
posted by ferociouskitty at 12:04 PM on December 15, 2005

"Magic" by Pilot

"No Matter Where You Are" by Badfinger
posted by sourwookie at 12:07 PM on December 15, 2005

Cathedral's Midnight Mountain uses them to great effect. (It's in the "good" category).
posted by Wolfdog at 12:07 PM on December 15, 2005

"You're So Damn Hot" by OK Go
posted by ThePinkSuperhero at 12:08 PM on December 15, 2005 [1 favorite]

"Saturday Night," Bay City Rollers
posted by sourwookie at 12:08 PM on December 15, 2005

Cecilia by Simon and Garfunkel
posted by Pollomacho at 12:08 PM on December 15, 2005

Ok, not for the whole song.. but at least for the beginning and refrain.
posted by ThePinkSuperhero at 12:08 PM on December 15, 2005 [1 favorite]

"Somewhere in the Night" by Smog
posted by smich at 12:08 PM on December 15, 2005

The Clapping Song, Shirley Ellis. Think Tom Waits did a version, too?
posted by Leon at 12:09 PM on December 15, 2005

"Rock The Casbah" The Clash
posted by sourwookie at 12:09 PM on December 15, 2005

"Jack and Diane," John Cougar Mellencamp.
posted by occhiblu at 12:09 PM on December 15, 2005

"We Will Rock You" Queen
posted by sourwookie at 12:09 PM on December 15, 2005

"Let's Go!" by the CARS
posted by Peter H at 12:10 PM on December 15, 2005

"Head over Heels" by the Go-Go's.
posted by Todd Lokken at 12:10 PM on December 15, 2005

Take the Money and Run by Steve Miller
posted by Pollomacho at 12:10 PM on December 15, 2005

"What I Like About You" The Romantics
posted by sourwookie at 12:10 PM on December 15, 2005

Beck's "Clap Hands", which is good but only found on the Japanese version of Guero.
posted by smackfu at 12:11 PM on December 15, 2005

"Where It's At" Beck
posted by sourwookie at 12:11 PM on December 15, 2005

"Hey Mickey," Toni Basil.
posted by occhiblu at 12:11 PM on December 15, 2005

Most anything by J. Geils
posted by sourwookie at 12:12 PM on December 15, 2005

The title track from Pat Metheny's First Circle.
posted by horsewithnoname at 12:12 PM on December 15, 2005

"Centerfield" by John Fogerty

God, why do I know these?
posted by Pollomacho at 12:12 PM on December 15, 2005

No Fun by the Stooges.
posted by Divine_Wino at 12:12 PM on December 15, 2005

Um. "Axel F" by Harold Faltermeyer. And that Nerd-Rap-Anthem thing from "Revenge Of The Nerds."

Oh, and "Centerfield" by John Fogarty. Or was that Creedence?
posted by TeamBilly at 12:13 PM on December 15, 2005

The Magnetic Fields' The Death of Ferdinand de Saussure has handclaps at the end of a verse that never cease to crack me up.
posted by ktrey at 12:13 PM on December 15, 2005

And my brother adds: "That stupid 'Friends' song."
posted by occhiblu at 12:13 PM on December 15, 2005

"Lets Get it On" by Marvin Gaye has some claps toward the end.
posted by Inkoate at 12:13 PM on December 15, 2005

Clap for the Wolfman by Guess Who
Deep in the Heart of Texas
posted by forrest at 12:14 PM on December 15, 2005

"Freeze Frame" by the J. Geils Band.
posted by Clay201 at 12:14 PM on December 15, 2005

"Let X = X" by Laurie Anderson.
posted by cortex at 12:15 PM on December 15, 2005

"Bingo" and "If you're happy and you know, clap your hands," of course.
posted by occhiblu at 12:16 PM on December 15, 2005

Also, do 808 handclaps count? Or do you mean actual hands actually clapping?
posted by cortex at 12:16 PM on December 15, 2005

And that children's standby, "Bingo".
posted by cardboard at 12:16 PM on December 15, 2005

"No Letting Go" Wayne Wonder?
posted by lampoil at 12:17 PM on December 15, 2005

Andre and Big Boi from Outkast love the handclaps. Their song "Rosa Parks" is recognizable, as is "Hey Yeah."
posted by viewofdelft at 12:17 PM on December 15, 2005

Baby I Got Your Money, Old Dirty Bastard

Best hand clapping song ever.
posted by dpx.mfx at 12:17 PM on December 15, 2005

If you're happy and you know it...
posted by Pollomacho at 12:18 PM on December 15, 2005

"Soulful tune" by Taj Mahal.
posted by prettyboyfloyd at 12:18 PM on December 15, 2005

Oh, Tom Waits has one called "Clap Hands."

I'm noticing, though, as I search my memory, there are an awful lot of songs that have a clap-like rythm or sound but which may not actually contain any clapping.
posted by Clay201 at 12:18 PM on December 15, 2005

Lang Lang - Live at Carnegie Hall, Track 1: "Applause"

I am aware I just burned all my AxMe karma, thanks.
posted by kcm at 12:18 PM on December 15, 2005

Spoon has a lot of songs with handclaps.
posted by hooray at 12:19 PM on December 15, 2005

"We Suck Young Blood" Radiohead
posted by Mach5 at 12:20 PM on December 15, 2005

"Get By" by Talib Kweli
posted by samh23 at 12:20 PM on December 15, 2005

"Stars and Sons", Broken Social Scene

Lots of Beatles songs
posted by The Jesse Helms at 12:21 PM on December 15, 2005

Top Eight Uses of Handclaps in Pop Music
posted by The Jesse Helms at 12:21 PM on December 15, 2005

"Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood," Santa Esmerelda. (The full length version is 16 minutes long and features much more hand clapping than the 7 minute Kill Bill version.)
posted by disillusioned at 12:22 PM on December 15, 2005

"I Talk With My Hands" - The Rainmakers
posted by The Carolingian at 12:23 PM on December 15, 2005

"Rain Rain Rain" by the Rheostatics.
posted by ltdan at 12:23 PM on December 15, 2005

(I heart kcm.)
posted by occhiblu at 12:26 PM on December 15, 2005

"Close to Me," by The Cure
posted by frogan at 12:27 PM on December 15, 2005

There's a Ben Folds Five song that's on the tip of my tongue that has a lot of hand-claps. Anyone know any of their songs with it?
posted by itchie at 12:27 PM on December 15, 2005

"Shake Appeal" by Iggy and the Stooges from Raw Power.

"Margaritas" by Love as Laughter.
posted by dmo at 12:28 PM on December 15, 2005

"Look Out (Here Comes Tomorrow)" by the Monkees.
posted by mimi at 12:30 PM on December 15, 2005

And "The Romance of the Telescope" by Orchestral Manoevres in the Dark. Great question by the way!
posted by dmo at 12:31 PM on December 15, 2005

"Women's Realm" by Belle and Sebastian (=good)
posted by feathermeat at 12:32 PM on December 15, 2005

"Iko Iko" by the Dixie Cups!
posted by dmo at 12:33 PM on December 15, 2005

Most Ratatat songs use synth hand claps as part of the percussion throughout.

Also, I've always assumed that every song by Clap Your Hands Say Yeah features lots of clapping and people saying "Yeah" but that might not actually be true.
posted by Espy Gillespie at 12:33 PM on December 15, 2005

Bauhaus' version of "Telegram Sam"
posted by googly at 12:33 PM on December 15, 2005

"The Frug" - Rilo Kiley
Also, see this list from Tiny Mix Tapes.
posted by bibliowench at 12:35 PM on December 15, 2005

Exile on Main Street has some good clapping
posted by Peter H at 12:36 PM on December 15, 2005

The Cheat is not Dead, by Strong Bad.
posted by brownpau at 12:37 PM on December 15, 2005

"Ob-La-Di Ob-La-Da" by the Beatles.
posted by pmbuko at 12:44 PM on December 15, 2005

Response by poster: Great songs. This is why askmetafilter is so great. Thanks everyone.
posted by billysumday at 12:49 PM on December 15, 2005

"Too little too late" by the Barenaked Ladies.
posted by easternblot at 12:51 PM on December 15, 2005

Decepticon (Le Tigre)
Boys on the Docks [Pub Version] (Dropkick Murphys)
Bella Ciao (Chumbawamba)
Sheena is a Punk Rocker (The Ramones) (Maybe not so prominent, but it's in there...)
posted by milquetoast at 12:52 PM on December 15, 2005

There's a Ben Folds Five song that's on the tip of my tongue that has a lot of hand-claps. Anyone know any of their songs with it?

Are you thinking of "Annie Waits"?
posted by cj at 12:52 PM on December 15, 2005

"Carwash" -- Rose Royce.
posted by MrMoonPie at 12:53 PM on December 15, 2005

Give Peace a Chance.
posted by Pollomacho at 12:54 PM on December 15, 2005

"Everybody to the Limit" -- Strong Bad.
posted by MrMoonPie at 12:56 PM on December 15, 2005

"Close To Me" - The Cure
posted by pinky at 1:00 PM on December 15, 2005

"Memorize The City" by The Organ
posted by culberjo at 1:00 PM on December 15, 2005

"Make it Clap" by Mr. Busta Rhymes...Can't believe no one mentioned this yet!
posted by Wiggo at 1:02 PM on December 15, 2005

They're fake, but...
Private Eyes by Hall and Oates

and a classic:
Eight Days a Week, by The Beatles
posted by O9scar at 1:02 PM on December 15, 2005

"Clap Your Hands," by They Might Be Giants. From kids disc "No!"
posted by AgentRocket at 1:16 PM on December 15, 2005

"More Than a Feeling" -Boston

The hand claps are even mentioned in the liner notes on the back of the album (vinyl).
posted by doctor_negative at 1:22 PM on December 15, 2005

"Shake your rump to the funk" by the Bar-Kays. There's a very cool double clap in the verse...
posted by ob at 1:24 PM on December 15, 2005

“Clapping Music”—Steve Reich
posted by hilker at 1:25 PM on December 15, 2005

Headfirst for Halos by My Chemical Romance.
posted by sara is disenchanted at 1:26 PM on December 15, 2005

Flamenco is by far the first thing that comes to mind. I know you were probably looking for a specific song, though.
posted by rolypolyman at 1:27 PM on December 15, 2005

Ra-Ra-Rasputin, by Boney M. I think.
posted by greatgefilte at 1:38 PM on December 15, 2005

itchie and cj-- I don't think "Annie Waits" is it, however the next song on Ben Folds' solo album, "Zak and Sara", does feature prominent hand claps.
posted by sarahnade at 1:38 PM on December 15, 2005

"Annie Waits" does in fact have hand claps. Well, they're obviously from a drum machine, but they're there.
posted by kindall at 1:49 PM on December 15, 2005

greased lightening?
posted by neilkod at 2:04 PM on December 15, 2005

"Too Long" by Daft Punk.
posted by armage at 2:04 PM on December 15, 2005

"Welcome to the Working Week" Elvis Costello
posted by sourwookie at 2:13 PM on December 15, 2005

"Car Wash" - Rose Royce

Total classic
posted by Rothko at 2:16 PM on December 15, 2005

"Men In Black" by Will Smith (and whatever song it is that the sample is from -- "Forget-Me-Not", I think).

It is left as an exercise for the reader to locate the song on the goodness/recognizability axes.
posted by Rock Steady at 2:20 PM on December 15, 2005

"kissing the lipless" - the shins
posted by peppermint22 at 2:21 PM on December 15, 2005

"The Weeping Song", by Nick Cave (or Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds).
posted by -harlequin- at 2:22 PM on December 15, 2005

I forget the name, but..."This is the way we clap our hands, clap our hands, clap our hands. This is the way we clap our hands so early in the morning."
posted by acoutu at 2:27 PM on December 15, 2005

"Connection" - Elastica
posted by furiousthought at 2:28 PM on December 15, 2005

ferociouskitty - Blister in the SUn doesn't have any handclaps, maybe the brushed snare hits are throwing you off.
posted by davey_darling at 2:37 PM on December 15, 2005

Check out Chick Corea's "Armando's Rhumba."
posted by Saucy Intruder at 2:39 PM on December 15, 2005

The start of "Kissing The Lipless", by The Shins. Also "Clap Yo' Hands" by DJ ScissorKicks has some sampled handclaps, not entirely surprisingly.
posted by Jon Mitchell at 2:43 PM on December 15, 2005

Hurry Up Let's Go by the Shout Out Louds
posted by awesomebrad at 2:43 PM on December 15, 2005

"Sing to the Singer" by Danielson Famile. There are only two possible responses upon first hearing this band: "What the hell is this shit?", or "What the hell is this shit and why does it fill me with such glee?".
posted by squidlarkin at 2:45 PM on December 15, 2005

Elvis's "Rubberneckin'."
posted by raysmj at 2:50 PM on December 15, 2005

Gorillaz - Dirty Harry
posted by Leon at 2:58 PM on December 15, 2005

Lots here: songs with cool handclaps
posted by The Jesse Helms at 2:59 PM on December 15, 2005

handclapping song - the meters
posted by the cuban at 3:02 PM on December 15, 2005

Bamboleo by the Gipsy Kings (See Track #13 in the Greatest Hits album) There are some great clappin' goin' on in this song.
posted by apark at 3:02 PM on December 15, 2005

"Red Dragon Tattoo" by Fountains of Wayne.
posted by SashaPT at 3:05 PM on December 15, 2005

Catch my Disease by Ben Lee
posted by dgeiser13 at 3:07 PM on December 15, 2005

"You Took the Words Right Outta My Mouth (It Must Have Been While You Were Kissing Me)" by Meat Loaf
posted by hermitosis at 3:13 PM on December 15, 2005

oh fine - french kicks
the power is on - the go! team
both good songs.
posted by carsonb at 3:13 PM on December 15, 2005

808 handclaps are the best of all: see every single house song ever.
posted by dydecker at 3:20 PM on December 15, 2005

Four Leaf Clover by Badly Drawn Boy
posted by elquien at 3:20 PM on December 15, 2005

receptacle for the respectable - super furry animals
posted by carsonb at 3:25 PM on December 15, 2005

Elastica's Connection seems to borrow its handclaps from Wire's I Am The Fly. The rest is Three Girl Rhumba.
posted by ktrey at 3:33 PM on December 15, 2005

The excellent band Clap!Clap! is all about the handclaps.
posted by maniactown at 3:36 PM on December 15, 2005

Honky's Ladder by Afghan Whigs
posted by Kwantsar at 3:45 PM on December 15, 2005

Stuck In The Middle With You. Catchy, recognizable, lots of clapping.
posted by teleskiving at 3:56 PM on December 15, 2005

Take the Money and Run by Steve Miller

The worst fake drum machine handclaps ever. . .
posted by Danf at 4:03 PM on December 15, 2005

Sucker's trial, by the Spinanes
Washington, DC by the Magnetic Fields
posted by pullayup at 4:17 PM on December 15, 2005

Harvest For The World by The Isley Brothers
posted by kc8nod at 4:19 PM on December 15, 2005

"Come Out 2 Nite" Kenickie
posted by cillit bang at 4:23 PM on December 15, 2005

As soon as I read the question I thought

Steely Dan - Bodhisattva,

but really it's just a very minor part.
posted by GooseOnTheLoose at 4:40 PM on December 15, 2005

"woodland national anthem," arcade fire
posted by armchairsocialist at 5:03 PM on December 15, 2005

Miles Davis, "On the Corner", from On the Corner! I can't believe I'm the first one post that.
posted by rkent at 5:08 PM on December 15, 2005

"Opera Singer" by Cake.
posted by oaf at 5:25 PM on December 15, 2005

proposition 61 by the most serene republic.
posted by kooop at 5:39 PM on December 15, 2005

Sussudio by Gnemesis.
posted by hifimofo at 5:45 PM on December 15, 2005

Clapping Music by Steve Reich isn't very recognizable, but I like it.

Also, Mack Wilberg's choral arrangement of the folk tune Cindy has particularly rocking interlude with clapping in it. Again, not super popular, very good.
posted by weston at 5:48 PM on December 15, 2005

Jack and Diane, John Cougar (Mellencamp)
posted by Miko at 6:50 PM on December 15, 2005

I started making a list once..I took out the ones I've seen listed already.

Q and not U - a line in the sand
Mirah etc - oh! september
Self - Pattycake
Sleater-Kinney - Turn it on
The Blow - some chocolates
The Blow - Hey boy
The Postal Service - Clark Gable
Hockey Night - Grim Break
posted by jetskiaccidents at 6:54 PM on December 15, 2005

"Forever Lost" by the Magic Numbers
posted by milkrate at 6:55 PM on December 15, 2005

maniactown beat me to it, but Clap!Clap! is a band that bases their entire repertoire around hand-clapping.
posted by deafweatherman at 7:09 PM on December 15, 2005

"Like A Feather" by Nikka Costa
posted by JDC8 at 8:05 PM on December 15, 2005

Unsquare Dance - Dave Brubeck
posted by prettypretty at 9:47 PM on December 15, 2005

bjork - "it's in our hands" (and i think some of the 'vespertine' track)

and there is this fantastic song i've been really into lately called "it's getting old" by a group called goldspot. check it out.
posted by edlundart at 9:57 PM on December 15, 2005

Chemical Brothers - Star Guitar
posted by tumult at 10:25 PM on December 15, 2005

Particle Man! also by They Might Be Giants.
posted by artifarce at 10:42 PM on December 15, 2005 [1 favorite]

"The Other Way" by Weezer
posted by scallion at 12:36 AM on December 16, 2005

Bette Davis Eyes by Kim Carnes
Or are those face slaps...
posted by OneOliveShort at 12:45 AM on December 16, 2005

Also, I've always assumed that every song by Clap Your Hands Say Yeah features lots of clapping and people saying "Yeah" but that might not actually be true.

Most of the album is dreamy indie pop with Ounsworth's Yorke/Byrne voice. The opener, though, is "Clap Your Hands", and does indeed feature clapping. It's very nearly a cappella.
posted by dhartung at 2:23 AM on December 16, 2005

Eels - Hey Man (Now You're Really Living)
posted by funambulist at 5:29 AM on December 16, 2005

(you can see the hand clapping in the video live from Jools Holland 2005, last clip at bottom of page)

...and I just remembered another one, slightly more famous:

David Bowie - Space Oddity
posted by funambulist at 5:56 AM on December 16, 2005

Sinner Man - Nina Simone
posted by blue_beetle at 6:36 AM on December 16, 2005

i remember seeing this little bit about claps in music (on arte tracks, a laughable hipster tv mag)
posted by suni at 7:17 AM on December 16, 2005

Broken Up A Ding Dong by The Beta Band
posted by docpops at 1:39 PM on December 16, 2005