Songs with melodies consisting mostly of one repeated note

I have always loved this in vocal melodies. Two examples that I can think of right now are I would die 4 u you by Prince, and side effects by Mariah Carey. In the side effects chorus, there are 49 syllables on the same note, 34 of them consecutive, and only two other notes in the whole chorus. Makes for an amazing hypnotizing effect. What others?

U2's Numb

I recall the pre-chorus to Here Comes My Girl by Tom Petty featuring rather a lot of one note

(to good effect)

An obvious one (note samba)?

https://youtu.be/JDzWWmscbt8

"The way Astrud is singing is very good but it is boring... It is just my humble opinion...."

https://youtu.be/cSAp9sBzPbc

^ not only a legitimised rickroll but I believe a warranted Cardiacs post.

https://youtu.be/kNkQgF11wHA

That song is a masterpiece of tension and release, I was saying to tt recently. The first half is all in one key, pretty much repeating the same note, and then in the second half - boom!

PiL - Careering

Actually, isn't Lyndon known as "one-note Johnny"?

"I Shatter" by Magnetic Fields

Britney’s “Piece of Me,” mostly.

Underworld “Born Slippy .NUXX”

Ca Plane Pour Moi.

Also, Subterranean Homesick Blues.

'Getting Better'

Just to get those Beatles out of the way.

Where's the one-note melody in Getting Better?

That barking chord I guess. Which I absolutely love.

Plastics - Copy

The Beatles example is the Sgt Peppers title track

(most of) 'X-French T Shirt' by Shudder To Think

The magic of “Ça Plane Pour Moi”

vocal melodies, you guys....

Oh damn, I'm sorry!

verse of "I''m Afraid of Americans"?

“Get Off the Phone” (verse melody)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H8v9h8gIgBA

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cJBAmeowNeU

Urinals - Last Days of Man on Earth

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TzC2YWNgnFA

Stooges - 1970 (probably others, as well...)

bo diddley - 'who do you love' verse

Red Crayola - The Jewels of the Madonna

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DqVkY-H3aQY

X’s “We’re Desperate” makes really effective use of repeated single-note phrases.

The Who Gettin' in Tune intro?

Parquet Courts - Disney PT

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_FyIhnfKGkw&feature=youtu.be

(I’m gonna stop listing “punk” songs now...)

Plastics - Copy

idk there's a lot of off key screeching in this

i feel like the killers' "mr brightside" qualifies. iirc the entire verse melody is one-note (wit some speak-singing embellishments) and some fo the pre-chorus and chorus have a flat melody.

also hi surm!!

https://youtu.be/hKdCqGWRUpo

Jonny White feat My Favorite Robot “Desensitize”

I read somewhere the Beatles had a thing for one note tunes, probably got it from Little Richard. Their trick was to change the background chord.

i know this doesn't exactly fit the thread theme, and also i'm going to get murdered for this, but...i don't like sleater-kinney because so much of the singing seems to revolve around one note, with occasional minor fluctuations up and down the scale. *ducks*

i feel like the killers' "mr brightside" qualifies. iirc the entire verse melody is one-note (wit some speak-singing embellishments) and some fo the pre-chorus and chorus have a flat melody.

otm

sometimes i narrate my trips to the kitchen and back in mr brightside cadence

standing up from my chair
and i'm stretching my legs
gotta gotta stand up
gotta walk down the hall

i wanna open the fridge
and fill my glass cup up
i wanna open the fridge
i wanna open the fridge

hahahahahaha. I totally do this, too. Works just as well with morning ablutions.

I think certain stretches of RHCP’s “Give It Away” do this.

idk if it's a one-note melody or if kiedis is straight-up rapping.

Hi mb!!! 🤍💚💙🦋💚🤍

1 millionXps Oh my God I didn’t even think of piece of me

Astronomy Domine?

Jefferson Airplane “White Rabbit”

Yes!

"I Am the Fly" by Wire goes on with the same note about 15-20 syllables in a row, although the melody also moves around in other parts.

Seems there has to be something by The Fall that does this. I just can't bring myself to ponder through recollections of Fall songs.

Long stretches of the vocal melody in The Shooting Star by Gojira is bouncing along on one note, also Home by The God Machine.

"It's the End of the World as We Know It" by R.E.M.

I'm beginning to think this might not be a sign of a good song.

Seems there has to be something by The Fall that does this.

“Iceland” comes to mind as a possibility (if you can call that a “vocal melody”).

I'm beginning to think this might not be a sign of a good song.

On the contrary! I’m beginning to think there are only good songs in this category.

I think literally every song on Turn on the Bright Lights

"Roland" for sure, that is a one note vocal melody throughout the entire thing

Verses of "Too Much Monkey Business" by Chuck Berry

i love a dance track that does this.

and just realised that this collab between terranova and stereo mcs is totally in this genre :

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lqHMdV7LPLg

Nirvana “Breed”

Prince's "Pop Life" gets a lot of its power from the monotone vocal sections

Yes!

Grace Too - The Tragically Hip, most of the vocal melody hangs off one note.

Tomorrow Never Knows for its bassline

that is not The Melody

Sooo many Prince songs have a one-note melody in the verse. And the other ones have the same melody for verse and chorus, with different lyrics.

As a challenge I wrote a track today using one note period

"Don't Start Now" basically does this in the chorus

The first part of the bridge of S&G's "So Long, Frank Lloyd Wright" (architects may come and architects may go...)

Nirvana "Something in the Way"

verse of Lady Gaga's "Judas"
chorus of Metallica's "Damage,Inc"
Rebecca Black "Friday"

Syd Barrett "Word Song" - and no doubt other Syd songs

i cant believe i forgot about this

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JDzWWmscbt8

Too obvious?

An obvious one (note samba)?

https://youtu.be/JDzWWmscbt8

― Ummon, you slags (Noel Emits), Sunday, April 19, 2020 3:31 PM (one week ago) bookmarkflaglink

"Mary" by Big Thief, sort of.

^Yeah, in the "bridge" section... very nice use of this technique.

xp lol

"Get Out of Denver" by Bob Seger

"Jungle Love"