Okay gang, it’s Friday afternoon and my day has consisted solely of coffee and the bitter bitter tears shed over a pair of all-but-destroyed Pradas. I’m in need of a little levity. I’m ALSO in need of getting this song out of my head and decapitation seems to be the only option.
Francesca and Plumcake want to know:
How do YOU get an earwormed song out of your head?
Have a great weekend everybahdy!
Sing a different but equally catchy one?
Comment by Miss Laura Mars — May 2, 2008 @ 4:37 pm
Sing it out loud, with feeling! (It does help sometimes.)
Of course, if you’re hopelessly earwormed, you can always take a karmic risk and spread the misery by earworming somebody else. Certain commercial jingles are particularly lethal.
Comment by Bridey — May 2, 2008 @ 4:48 pm
Sing the first few lines of the theme to the Brady Bunch. It’ll kill anything.
Comment by MO — May 2, 2008 @ 4:49 pm
It’s easy. Put on a song you REALLY LOVE. I couldn’t access your problem song (my CrackBerry has its limitations) but any song that ha s you singing along should do the trick. Repeat if the song has dug through your brain pretty deeply. It will be ALL RIGHT.
Comment by dcsurfergirl — May 2, 2008 @ 5:42 pm
If I can get hold of a copy of whatever it is, I play it. For some reason, once I actually hear the song OUTSIDE my head, my brain is happy and it goes away.
To be replaced by something else.
Comment by Geogrrl — May 2, 2008 @ 6:12 pm
“my brain is happy and it goes away”
Um, the SONG that is, not my brain.
Although, that is debatable.
Comment by Geogrrl — May 2, 2008 @ 6:14 pm
Geogrrl and I share strategies! If I have something absolutely stuck in my head, I MUST hear it (thank goodness for near-constant internet connection, YouTube, and my iPod). After that, I’m usually good to go.
Comment by Danielle — May 2, 2008 @ 6:20 pm
Make Bob Dylan sing it in your head, especially if you exaggerate his usual delivery style.
Comment by Lysana — May 2, 2008 @ 6:20 pm
Firstly, my dearest Plumcake, I hold a moment of silence for the wounded Pradas…
It is with horror that we see beauty struck down in it’s prime. One can only hope that the miracle shoe angel that has been spoken of on this blog can mend that which is broken. If not, please let us know when the service is so we too can mourn. Now on to the song… Find the polar opposite in music and play it loudly (neighbors should complain, it is necessary) The confusion of the music should cancel the other out… If not, at least it’s a different song…
Comment by Jennie — May 2, 2008 @ 7:59 pm
And if all fails, three or four very, very dry vodka martinis should eradicate the problem with the song but will increase the bitter sadness until blessed Orpheus takes control…
Comment by Jennie — May 2, 2008 @ 8:18 pm
Lysana, I’ll have to try that. Sounds like fun :)
Usually, I just sing it out loud until I’m sick of it.
Comment by Jen — May 2, 2008 @ 9:33 pm
Easy! Just play a song you really LOVE and sing along. Repeat if the earworm is still digging around your head. I am one of the cast members on an internet radio station and sometimes the earworms fly!
Comment by dcsurfergirl — May 2, 2008 @ 9:59 pm
Definitely play the song, absolutely completely from start to finish. Works every time!
Comment by VerseFameBeauty — May 2, 2008 @ 11:59 pm
Play it all the way through, or better, *sing* it all the way through. And pay attention to it.
I believe that earworms are just lonely. Give them a little focused attention and they wander off, happy.
Comment by rabrab — May 3, 2008 @ 1:24 am
I sing it all the way through out loud or I try to replace it with another equally earwormy song, which is “Baby Got Back” in my case.
Sometimes, I just have to wait it out, like a bad cold. Earworms rarely visit for more than 3 days, so sometimes I just succumb until it decides to leave on its own.
Comment by Ripley — May 3, 2008 @ 9:59 am
I have a specific song that I force myself to think/”sing” in my head to drive out earworms. It’s catchy, has a longish instrumental bit (so no pesky lyrics) and happens to be one of my all-time favorites (so if it gets stuck instead, at least it’s an earworm I like). I fear that if I divulge what song it is, it might cease to work – but I also think the right song would be different for each person.
Comment by B.S.A.G. — May 3, 2008 @ 3:38 pm
“He’s Got The Whole World In His Hands” has been going around in my head in orchestral, gospel and elementary choir practice. Ooy!!! There must be a message. Maybe if it’s played backwards…
Comment by Peaches — May 3, 2008 @ 4:48 pm
I think you have to submit to obsessions. I play it over and over, sometimes for weeks, 24/7. I find alternate versions and compare those too. I send You Tube links to all my friends so they can share my, uhm, enthusiasm. I play it for my students in class, and download it onto my Ipod so I can listen to it between classes. This recently happened to me with the Leonard Cohen song, “Everybody Knows.” And as a matter of fact, I’m playing the Rufus Wainwright version right now…
Comment by Constance Kent — May 4, 2008 @ 2:08 pm
This question reminds me of a South Park episode from several years ago where Cartman has “Come Sail Away” in his head, and the only way he can get it out is to sing the entire thing through out loud. Seems that many people have the same solution.
Comment by jen209 — May 5, 2008 @ 1:35 pm
Want the hippy way on it? LoL According to the Secret(do read it, it’s amazing really!) Songs get stuck because they’re what you attracted at the moment. So search for the reason the song got stuck in your head. Once you figure that out it seems to disappear :-)
Comment by Erin — May 6, 2008 @ 9:42 am
I’m in the sing it all the way through camp. I don’t have to do it out loud, singing it in my head is fine, but I have to actually concentrate on it, and then usually it’ll go away. If not, I have the pina colada song ready. Then, of course, I have a different problem.
Comment by Charlotte — May 6, 2008 @ 1:04 pm
I also have a backup song to sing that will get any earworm out of my head. It really does work if you find the right one for you.
Comment by Anne (in Reno) — May 7, 2008 @ 11:31 am
Disclaimer: The cure may be worse than the disease….
Try “Tom’s Diner” or “Get Down Tonight.”
Please don’t kill me!
Comment by Jenna — May 8, 2008 @ 1:51 am