In yet another attempt to have content for this website (a new year’s resolution maybe?) I decided to do a themed mixtape every month. Why not? That’s at least twelve posts!
This month’s theme: The FaLaNa mix, a bunch of songs that feature Non-Lexical Vocables. You might know them as nonsense syllables. Words that are not words. You know, your Fa La La La Las, your Rah Rah Ah Ah Ah Roma Ro Ma Ma Ga Ga Oooh La Las, etc. It’s a mix to remind you that once upon a time a man calling himself Sting sang a song titled De Do Do Do, De Da Da Da. Perhaps there will be some 90’s classics that you had hoped to forget? By which I mean, yes, there will be, but there’s no reason to be Blue (Da Ba Dee?) about it, just sit back and enjoy!
A. Five or more of these words in a row at least once, anywhere in the song. (exceptions can be made if the nonsense is broken up by a real word in a chorus though!) We’re not going for one or two las here and there; we’re talking quantity and repetition! The gold standard example is, of course, Hey Jude, clocking in at around four minutes worth of “na”s!
B. I tried to think of these off the top of my head or through idly listening to other playlists/the radio and not look any up. (I always get curious and fail a bit at this one. How could I forget Land of 1000 Dances? I tried though!)
C. I capped it at 25 tracks, which is why there’s a lack of Doo-Wop!
Without further ado:
- Short Skirt / Long Jacket – Cake
- Na Na Hey Hey Kiss Him Goodbye – Steam
- Don’t You (Forget About Me) – Simple Minds
- Common People – Pulp
- Psycho Killer – Talking Heads
- Go! – Tones on Tails
- Beautiful Ones – Suede
- Bad Romance – Lady Gaga
- De Do Do Do, De Da Da Da – The Police
- Blue (Da Ba Dee) – Eiffel 65
- You Can Call Me Al – Paul Simon
- Sweat (A La La La La Long) – Inner Circle
- The Boxer – Simon & Garfunkle
- Fa Fa – Guster
- Piano Man – Billy Joel
- MMMBop – Hanson
- Let’s Live For Today – The Grass Roots
- My Cherie Amour – Stevie Wonder
- Hooked on a Feeling – Blue Swede
- Mmm Mmm Mmm Mmm – Crash Test Dummies
- Crocodile Rock – Elton John
- Jesus Built My Hotrod – Ministry
- Two Princes – Spin Doctors
- Land of 1000 Dances – WilsonPickett
- Hey Jude – The Beatles
