Have a line of music stuck in your head but can’t find the artist? Lyric Detective is dedicated to tracking down the songs behind those elusive hooks and half-remembered verses. We go beyond simple search results to identify the tracks you’re looking for, correcting common misconceptions and helping you reconnect with the music that’s been playing on repeat in your mind.
Album: Yakety Yak (Atco) Song: Charlie Brown (1959) Artist: The Coasters Writers: Jerry Leiber, Mike Stoller Charlie Brown, Charlie Brown He’s a clown, that Charlie Brown He’s gonna get caught Just you wait and see (Why’s everybody always pickin’ on me) The Coasters, often called ‘the clown princes of 1950’s rock,’ had a no. 2 … Read more
Song: You Don’t Have to Be a Star (1976) Artist: Marilyn McCoo and Billy Davis Jr. Album: I Hope WE Get to Love in Time (ABC) Writers: James Dean, John Glover You Don’t Have to Be a Star (To Be in My Show) was a number one hit for Marilyn McCoo and Billy Davis Jr. … Read more
Song: Kung Fu Fighting Artist: Carl Douglas (1974) Album: Single w/ B-side, Gamblin Man (Pye / 20th Century Fox) Martial Arts mania was at its height in the 1970s and, due to Bruce Lee, kung fu was the biggest of all. I mean, everybody was kung fu fighting, and so goes the song. But did … Read more
If you’ve had the line ‘Want some whiskey in your water? Sugar in your tea?’ playing on a loop in your head but couldn’t quite place the artist, you aren’t alone. That’s exactly why we’re here at the Lyric Detective desk. While those famous opening words launched a #1 hit for Three Dog Night in 1970, the song’s true … Read more
Song: Happy Together (1967) Artist: The Turtles Album: Happy Together (Sundazed Records) The lyrics “I Can’t See Me Lovin’ Nobody But You” are featured in the song Happy Together as prominently, if not more so, than the lyrics of the title, so many people mistake this for the name of the song. Today, we might consider this … Read more
Song: Bus Stop (1966) Artist: Hollies Album: Bus Stop (Imperial) Written by Graham Gouldman, the opening lyrics of Bus Stop, are “Bus stop, wet day, she’s there, I say please share my umbrella.” The Hollies, however, were co-founded by another famous Graham, Graham Nash, of Crosby, Stills and Nash, along with his friend Alan Clarke, who … Read more
Song: Behind Blue Eyes (1971) Artist: The Who Album: Who’s Next (Decca) The lyric “No one knows what it’s like to be the bad man” comes from the song Behind Blue Eyes, released on The Who’s album Who’s Next in 1971. A tortured and dark acoustic ballad, the song was originally part of a collection of songs … Read more