The Something Song

Everything About Fiction You Never Wanted to Know.

A music trope, where a band or singer names one of their songs "The (Something) Song". Normally used light-heartedly, usually because the word that the song title references comes up in the lyrics a lot. Also used occasionally in musical theatre. The Japanese equivalent is "(something) no uta".

The trope makes it so that songs immediately make the fact that they are songs clear when brought up in discussions. Most pieces of music have cryptic names; if the audience is unfamiliar with the song in question, it's impossible to determine that it is a song without reading the surrounding context or looking it up. However, when the title itself is screaming "song" at you, it's difficult to miss the fact that it is a song.

Can sometimes be a form of Heavy Meta.

Examples of The Something Song include:
  • The Beatles - "Only a Northern Song"
  • The Dresden Dolls - "The Jeep Song", "The Sheep Song".
  • Ocean Colour Scene - "The Riverboat Song"
  • Red Hot Chili Peppers - "The Zephyr Song".
    • Also "The Greeting Song" from Blood Sugar Sex Magik
    • And 'Song That Made Us What We Are Today' from Mother's Milk
  • The Flaming Lips - "The Spiderbite Song", "The Yeah Yeah Yeah Song".
  • Regina Spektor - "Sailor Song" (which isn't called "Marianne's A Bitch"), "Hotel Song." Neither of them appear on her second album, "Songs."
  • Supertramp - "The Logical Song".
  • The Wannadies - "You And Me Song".
  • Lampshaded on SpongeBob SquarePants once, with "The Campfire Song Song"
  • Probably the best example ever: Betty Everett, "The Shoop Shoop Song". You may know it as "It's In His Kiss".
  • Led Zeppelin - "Immigrant Song", "The Lemon Song", "The Rain Song", "The Wanton Song".
  • Sisqo's "Thong Song"
  • Kyuss also has a song named "Thong Song", though unlike Sisqo they were referring to the footwear.
  • "The Lumberjack Song" from Monty Python's Flying Circus.
  • Radiohead's "Pyramid Song", which has nothing to do with pyramids.
  • Britpop rivals Oasis and Blur each have songs entitled "Swamp Song" and "Sad Song". Blur also has "Mellow Song", "French Song", "Alex's Song", "Good Song", "Sweet Song", "The Wassailing Song", "Song 2", Woodpidgeon Song" and "A Song", all of which are stunning.
    • Blur also has "Sing" which, while it very tenuously fits here, if at all, is nonetheless very moving.
  • Finger Eleven: "Window Song"
  • Ensiferum - "Battle Song" and "Victory Song"
  • R.E.M.: "Radio Song" (although it includes the lyrics 'Radio Song' in it)
  • Scouting for Girls: "The Airplane Song" (which mentions airplanes whilst actually being about - those of you who haven't heard of the London indie band look away now - a girl)
  • Jane's Addiction: "Mountain Song [dead link]".
  • Lisa Loeb has "Train Songs." (It's just one song; I don't know why the title's plural.)
  • Pink Floyd's "The Nile Song" and "Crying Song", both from their early album More.
  • Just about every song written by Australian comic singer/songwriter Martin Pearson.
  • "Weird Al" Yankovic examples:
  • Wizard Rock examples:
  • Michael Jackson - "Earth Song"
  • Bjork - "The Anchor Song"
  • Tori Amos - "Doughnut Song", "Song for Eric", "Dolphin Song"
  • Kate Bush - "The Saxophone Song", "The Song of Solomon"
  • Liz Phair - "Divorce Song"
  • Rufus Wainwright - "Greek Song"
  • Disney examples:
  • Hello! Project examples:
    • Seishun SONG (Youth SONG)
    • Haru no Uta (Spring Song)
    • Ringo no Uta (Apple Song)
  • "Undone (The Sweater Song)" by Weezer
    • their b-sides also include "Teenage Victory Song" and "The Christmas Song" (not the one that begins "Chestnuts roasting on an open fire.")
  • Comedian Sean Morey (Not one of the other Bob and Tom guests, which should be a trope in its own right), has "The Man Song", and its sequal "The Woman Song".
  • The Veggie Tales video Rack, Shack, and Benny had "The Bunny Song."
    • Also: "The Water Buffalo Song"
  • Marianne Faithfull - "The Pleasure Song"
  • Allan Sherman: "The Laarge Daark Aardvark Song". No, those are not typos. That's the way it's really spelled.
  • The Pixies - "Holiday Song."
  • Tom Green - "The Bum Bum Song"
  • In LazyTown, Stingy has a song referred to by fans as "The Mine Song". (It is also known simply as "Mine".)
  • "The Weeping Song" ("This is the weeping song / A song in which to weep") and "The Ship Song" ("Come sail your ship to me"), both by Nick Cave & the Bad Seeds.
    • Additionally, "The Hammer Song" and "The Witness Song".
  • System of a Down - "Prison Song"
    • Also by System of a Down - "Highway Song"
    • And "This Cocaine Makes Me Feel Like I'm On This Song"
  • Gawkman and Murph - "The Dumb Song" (commonly mislabelled as a Psychostick song.)
  • The band in the book This Lullaby has "The Potato Song."
  • The Haunted - "Hate Song"
  • Marilyn Manson's album Holy Wood has three: "The Love Song", "The Fight Song" and "The Death Song".
  • Emery has "The Movie Song" and "The Party Song"
  • The Cure does this frequently: Three Imaginary Boys has "Subway Song", Head on the Door has "Kyoto Song", Disintegration has "Plainsong" and "Lovesong", and most recently 4:13 Dream has "Sirensong"
  • Redemption Song by Bob Marley.
  • At the end of that part of Sesame Street known as Elmo's World, Elmo says: "Elmo loves (insert subject here)! So does Dorothy! That's why Dorothy wants us to sing 'The (insert subject here) Song'!" And then he'd play "Jingle Bells" and sing it over and over and over again to its tune.
    • Years before, there was an episode in which Elmo kept making up songs in the same vein, but with more mundane subjects, like a doorknob. It seemed to annoy the characters almost as much as Elmo's World—and indeed, Elmo himself—does to a certain segment of the Periphery Demographic.
  • Simon and Garfunkel - "The 59th Street Bridge Song" (AKA "Feelin' Groovy")
  • Vienna Teng - "Grandmother Song"
  • Catch 22 - The Decembrists' Song
  • The Avett Brothers - The Traveling Song
  • Seven million Mountain Goats songs.
  • Do Make Say Think - The Apartment Song
  • Jimmy Eat World - The Authority Song
  • The Decemberists have "A Cautionary Song," "The Rake's Song," "The Mariner's Revenge Song," "Raincoat Song," "Apology Song," and "Baby Song."
  • Streetlight Manifesto - "The Saddest Song"
  • Psapp - The Monster Song
  • Sum 41 - "The Hell Song"
  • Ben Folds Five - Song For The Dumped
  • Bad Religion - Punk Rock Song (though the refrain does start with "this is just a punk rock song")
  • Jarvis Cocker - "Fuckingsong".
  • Nick Drake - Cello Song (not named after anything in the lyrics, just after a prominent cello part in the arrangement of the song itself).
  • Violent Femmes - "Country Death Song".
  • Cat Empire - "The Lost Song," "The Wine Song," "Song for the Day," "Song for Elias," "Luck Song," "Radio Song," "The Car Song"
  • Meat Puppets - "The Whistling Song"
  • "The Christmas Song" (AKA "Chestnuts Roasting on an Open Fire").
    • Dave Matthews also had "Christmas Song
  • Carbon Leaf - "Desperation Song"
  • Shellac - "Squirrel song", "Song against itself", "Shoe song", "Watch song", "The rambler song", "Billiardspielerlied", "Song of the minerals".
  • Harry Nilsson did this a lot: "Daddy's Song", "Mr. Richland's Favorite Song", "The Puppy Song", "The Moonbeam Song", "The Lottery Song", "The Flying Saucer Song".
  • Van Morrison - "Autumn Song" (though it's part of the lyrics too)
  • Alan Jackson - "Sissy's Song". Before that, he had "Three Minute Positive Not-Too-Country Up-Tempo Love Song", a combination of The Something Song, Long Title, and Exactly What It Says on the Tin.
  • Lemon Demon - "The Too Much Song"
  • Neutral Milk Hotel - "Song Against Sex"
  • Running Wild - "Pirate Song"
  • Afghan Whigs - "The Slide Song"
  • Bad Brains - "Joshua's Song
  • Ben Folds - "The Frown Song
  • Ben Folds Five - "Song For The Dumped"
  • Big Star - "India Song"
  • Catatonia - "Blues Song"
  • Cracker - "Another Song About The Rain"
  • The Damned - "Love Song" (yes, it's a different song than The Cure one)
  • DC Youth Brigade - "No Song" and "No Song II"
  • Deltron 3030 - "Battlesong"
  • Dent May And His Magnificent Ukulele - "Love Song 2009"
  • DJ Shadow - "The Number Song"
  • Dr. Hook - "Stayin' Song"
  • Drunken Boat - "Balloon Song"
  • Fleet Foxes - "Tiger Mountain Peasant Song"
  • Gin Blossoms - "Cajun Song"
  • Gorky's Zygotic Mynci - "The Humming Song"
  • The La's - "Freedom Song"
  • Modest Mouse - "The Whale Song"
  • The Monkees - "Porpoise Song"
  • Passion Pit - "Seaweed Song"
  • Pavement - "The Sutcliffe Catering Song"
  • Queen - "The Prophet's Song"
  • Self - "Uno Song"
  • Space - "Goodbye Song"
  • St. Vincent - "The Apocalypse Song"
  • Thin Lizzy - "Cowboy Song"
  • Todd Rundgren - "Torch Song", "Song Of The Viking"
  • Tom Petty - "The Apartment Song"
  • YACHT - "Summer Song"
  • Operator Please - "Song About Ping Pong"
  • Stone Temple Pilots - "Interstate Love Song"
  • Bowling for Soup - "The Bitch Song"
    • Also from their newest album "A Really Cool Dance Song"
  • "The Monkey Song" by Hoagy Carmichael.
  • Arlo Guthrie - "The Motorcycle Song"
  • Thunderstone - "Suffering Song"
  • Elton John - "Border Song," "Your Song", "Elton's Song", "The Last Song"
  • The Birthday Party's "A Dead Song"
  • Vito Petroccito, Jr. - "The Assumption Song"
  • Pete Seeger (among others) - "Clean Song"

This song may be dull, but it's certainly clean.

  • Sara Evans - "Bible Song" (a Non-Indicative Name, the song's about feeling stifled in a small town and draws its title from the memory of a choir singing at a funeral)
  • Examples in musical theatre:
  • Taylor Swift (surprisingly no one put her up)- "Our Song", "Monologue Song" and "Mary's Song"
  • Flyleaf - "Christmas Song"
  • Carrie Underwood- "Mama's Song"
  • Nirvana - "Token Eastern Song"
  • Hard 'N Phirm - "The Camping Song"
  • "The Last Song I Will Ever Write About A Girl" by The Ataris.
  • "Comet Song" by Dethklok
    • "Fansong"
  • The Mountain Goats have a fair amount of songs like this in their vast discography including "The Island Garden Song" and "The Monkey Song"
  • Todd Rundgren - "Song of the Viking"
  • Voltaire - "The Happy Song"
    • "Ringo no uta"
    • "Death Death (devil, devil, devil, devil, evil, evil, evil, evil song)" from his self-released concept album/musical "To the Bottom of the Sea"
  • Dillard & Clark - "The Radio Song"
  • The Aquabats - "Theme Song" and "Fight Song"
  • Barclay James Harvest - "Song for Dying"
  • AFI - "The Leaving Song"
    • and "The Leaving Song, Part II"
  • Ayria - "The Gun Song"
  • Neil Diamond - "Song Sung Blue"
  • Dave Seville and the Chipmunks - "The Chipmunk Song" was the debut of the Chipmunks.
  • Vitaly Komar, Alex Melamid and David Soldier "The Most Unwanted Song"
  • Harry Bellafonte - Banana Boat Song, and its memetic Parody, "Bin Laden Bomb Song".
  • Otis Redding had both "Fa-Fa-Fa-Fa-Fa (Sad Song)" and it's sort-of sequel "The Happy Song (Dum-Dum)".
  • Everything But the Girl's "Clubland Lullaby".
  • Ween: "The HIV Song"
  • The Angels Of Light have a number of these: "Song For My Father" on New Mother, "Song For Nico" and "Untitled Love Song" on How I Loved You, "Lena's Song" on ...Sing: "Other People", and "Black River Song" and "Joseph's Song" on We Are Him.
  • Placebo - "Song to Say Goodbye"
  • Mint Royale - "Blue Song"
  • Continental Drifters version and The Bangles version - "The Rain Song"
  • Stompin' Tom Connors is the patron saint - "The Hockey Song.", "The Ketchup Song", "The Sasquatch Song", "The Snowmobile Song", "The Bug Song", "The Coal Boat song"...
  • Holly Hanson - The Snow Globe Song
  • Two Christmas examples - "The Huron Carol" and "The Coventry Carol."
  • Mogwai's Christmas Song
  • The Incredible String Band: The Minotaur's Song, The Mad Hatter's Song, The Hedgehog's Song, The Water Song, A Very Cellular Song
  • Burton Earny's "The Llama Song."
  • Marian Call's "The Volvo Song."
  • Blind Guardian's "The Bard's Song" and "Mordred's Song".
  • Death Cab for Cutie: "Stable Song"
  • Ally Kerr's "The Sore Feet Song", the opening to Mushishi
  • Kate Nash's "Shit Song," "Skeleton Song," and "Mansion Song"
  • Billy Joel's "Weekend Song."
  • David Bowie's "The Wedding Song," written, fittingly, for his own wedding.
  • Ringo Starr's "No-No Song," an upbeat little number about turning down a drug dealer.
  • 'Lisa's Song' by Allison Crowe.
  • 'Irish Drinking Song' by Buck-O-Nine.
  • 'Victory Song', from the album 'Victory Songs', by Ensiferum.
  • 'Master Song' and 'The Stranger Song' by Leonard Cohen
  • 'Scarecrow Song', 'Winter Song' and 'January Song' by Lindisfarne
  • 'A Song for Departure and 'Autumn Song' by The Manic Street Preachers
  • 'Swamp Song' by Tool.
  • 'New Song' by Sublime
  • Dream Theater's original demos, released under the name Majesty, included a section consisting of several tiny jam-tracks, each under a minute long, called "Anti-Procrastination Song," "Solar System Race Song," "I'm About to Faint Song," "Mosquitos in Harmony Song," "John Thinks He's Randy Song," "Mike Thinks He's Dee Dee Ramone Introducing a Song Song," "John Thinks He's Yngwie Song," and finally "Gnos Sdrawkcab." Each of these songs has its name yelled dissonantly at the beginning. There's also "The School Song," which is full length, and so a more conventional example of the trope.
  • 'Adam's Song' and 'The Party Song' by Blink-182.
  • Florence + the Machine, "Bird Song" and "Drumming Song."
  • Jonathan Coulton's "Podsafe Christmas Song"
  • ALL CAPS's "WORKOUT SONG"
  • Günther's "Ding Dong Song"
  • E-Type's "Ding Ding Song"
  • Gummibär's "I am a Gummy Bear (The Gummy Bear Song)"
  • DJ Manian's "Lovesong"
  • Three Dog Night and Paul Williams had "An Old Fashioned Love Song"; also a subversion, as the song is about "an old fashioned love song / playin' on the radio," and isn't just a song with a self-descriptive title.
    • Paul Williams also wrote/recorded "Sad Song", another subversion. The song's opening line is "That's a Sad Song/That used to be our song..."
  • Canadian sketchcom group Radio Free Vestibule came up with "Grunge Song," to describe the parts of a grunge song.
  • Ani Di Franco's "The Waiting Song," "Lost Woman Song" and "Old Old Song."
  • Queens of the Stone Age's "Another Love Song," "Lightning Song," and "Mosquito Song"
    • And the title tracks of Songs For The Deaf, "A Song For The Deaf" and "A Song For The Dead"
  • Alice in Chains "Nothing Song"
    • And "Love Song"
  • Savage Garden - "The Animal Song"
  • Bright Eyes - "A Song to Pass the Time"
    • Also by Bright Eyes, "Old Soul Song (For the New World Order)", "Another Travelin' Song", "Cleanse Song" and "Coat Check Dream Song"
  • HIM - "Dying Song"
  • German band Lacrimas profundere's "Gallowsong"
  • Leaves' Eyes - "Norwegian Lovesong"
  • English artist Patrick Wolf has "Wolf Song", "Pigeon Song", and "Ghost Song"
  • Tegan and Sara sung "The Tegan Song" live once.
  • OTEP - "Autopsy Song"
  • My Chemical Romance's "Desert Song"
  • Green Day's "Panic Song"
  • Jason Webley's "Last Song" and "Drinking Song"
  • Jojo -The Happy Song
  • Joe Jackson - "The Obvious Song"
  • Crash Test Dummies - "Superman's Song"
  • Tom Lehrer - "The Elements Song"
  • Bruno Mars - "The Lazy Song"
  • Faith No More - "Anne's Song" and "The Cowboy Song"
  • Guster - "Airport Song". The song is about becoming a cult member; airports are only mentioned in the final line.
  • The Dead Milkmen: Guitar Song, The Blues Song, Beach Song, Conspiracy Song, The Badger Song, etc.
  • Miley Cyrus- "Simple Song"
    • The Shins also have a "Simple Song"
  • Hank Green - "The Anglerfish Song", for short. The full official title is "The Anglerfish Song Regarding the Human Mentality in Respect to How to Interpret Perpetually Felt Emotions While Educating You on the Subject of Anglerfish"
  • Leaether Strip - "The Scalpel Song"
  • TV On the Radio - "Second Song", which is actually the first song on Nine Types of Light.
  • Most episodes of "Elmo's World" (which often occurs near the end of the more recent episodes of Sesame Street) often end with Elmo singing "The (insert topic here) Song", which is sung to the tune of "Jingle Bells", and composes of Elmo simply singing the topic name over and over again. In the Christmas Episode, Elmo actually sings the actual "Jingle Bells" song instead!
    • The "Elmo's World" theme itself is "Elmo's Song", but with different lyrics.
  • Nits - "The Long Song", which at 4:15 is not in fact particularly long.
  • The Cars, "Sad Song".
  • The Gin Blossoms - "Cajun Song" (presumably named after it's zydeco-style accordion breaks)
  • Devo - "The Rope Song."
  • Madness - "The Roadette Song."
  • Toy-Box - "The Sailor Song" -- not a cover of any other song listed here.
  • Mel Blanc's "The E.I.O. Song".
  • Steve Martin's "Grandmother's Song".
  • Ray Stevens, "The Pirate Song".
  • Flanders and Swann, "The Gnu Song".
  • Samurai Penguin Studios' "The Curbstomp Song".
  • Moosebutter, "The Valentine's Day Song".
  • Blue Kid's The Dismemberment Song
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