They’re stuck in your mind, ready to be dredged up, word for word, at the drop of a phrase or a melody.
Just to hear “Now listen to my story ’bout a man named Jed, a poor mountaineer barely kept his family fed …” leads to choruses of “The Beverly Hillbillies” theme song during karaoke nights in many taverns.
There’s Mr. Rogers’ “It’s a beautiful day in the neighborhood …”
And there’s “Annie’s” “Just thinking about tomorrow …” As Ian Shoales wrote, “I had to hit myself over the head afterward with a small hammer to get that stupid ‘Tomorrow’ song out of my head.”
Of course, such musical assaults on our memory have been surpassed. “Frozen” gave us “Let It Go,” which starts with “The snow glows white on the mountain tonight …”
Then there’s “Hakuna matata, what a wonderful phrase …” from Disney’s “The Lion King,” which also inflicted “I Just Can’t Wait to Be King” on us. Memorable songs from film and TV become pervasive.
So, c’mon. Admit it. You hummed along with most of these.
Does anyone have a spare hammer?
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