Quiz Answer Key and Fun Facts
1. Road rage: it affects so many of us:
"The stupid car in front of me
Is driving way too slow
And I'm gonna be too late for work today
Maybe I should have stayed at home
And I simply do not understand it
It must be twenty-five years old
And I can see no signals
'Cause there are no signals
Get that heap of junk off of the ro-o-o-o-oad
(Tell me why) I don't like Volvos
(Tell me why) I don't like Volvos..."
Which band had one of their biggest hits parodied in this way?
2. Many writers of parody songs shy away from the limelight, but one who did not was Al Yankovic. He had a US Top 20 hit with a parody that began thus:
"How come you're always such a fussy young man
Don't want no Captain Crunch, don't want no Raisin Bran
Well, don't you know that other kids are starving in Japan
So eat it, just eat it..."
Who wrote the song on which it was based?
3. One artist who did not take umbrage at having a song parodied was the American folkie Tom Paxton. These are the lyrics of a parody of one of his most famous songs. Which one?
"Well I met this young girl at a folk club,
Like you do, like you do.
So I bought her a drink and we chatted,
Wouldn't you, wouldn't you.
And then after the show she invited me home,
And she said we were two of a kind...."
4. Bob Dylan was an obvious target for the parody writers:
"There must be some way to win here, said the loser to the fool,
Too many cameras, I need to keep my cool.
Counting cards is dangerous. Guards are everywhere.
Let's try to avoid blackjack so that no one will care."
Which of his songs was parodied here?
5. Some songs are easy targets for the parody writers: Take these parody lyrics:
"Imagine there's no brand names
It's easy if you try,
No Gucci or Armani
And no jeans from Levi
Imagine all the people
Living life in grey
Imagine there's no adverts
Examining your psyche
All you'd wear is trainers
Not Reebok or Nike
Imagine all the people
With unbranded shoes"
The original song was written by a former Beatle. Which one?
6. It is not just pop songs that have been parodies, take these lyrics:
"I'm cursed, oh well
The gypsy did say
'Your sign is that Cancer
So you'll have to pay'
Yes, I'll have to pay more than just money
On a full moonlit night I'll act funny
Oh well, Oh well, Oh well, Oh well
Born is a werewolf, I've gone to hell."
Which Christian carol was getting the parody treatment?
7. Many parody songs are written to be funny. These lyrics are actually a pretty accurate retelling of the Biblical story of The Good Samaritan:
"He was on his way to Jericho
When he was beaten half past dead
An old priest walked by him
He walked by and shook his head
'Hey mister can you help me?'
The beaten man tried to pray
He prayed to God that another man
Would come and stop and say
Take a load off brother
Take a load for free
Take a load off brother
And You put the load right on me."
Which song by The Band was the inspiration?
8. In the 1990s a British band seemed to conquer the world. One of their songs earned this parody:
"Yo, I'll tell you what I drive, what I really really drive,
So tell me what you drive, what you really really drive,
I'll tell you what I drive, what I really really drive,
So tell me what you drive, what you really really drive,
I wanna, I wanna, I wanna, I wanna, I wanna really
really really wanna drive a hummer..."
Which British girl band sang the original?
9. The imagination of parody sing writers knows few limits, it seems:
"I can't get no black ice traction
I can't get no black ice traction
I just slide and I slide and I slide and I slide
I can't get no, I can't get no..."
This was a parody version of one of the best-known songs by a British band. Which one?
10. Millions of children have grown up watching "Sesame Street" and a tribute was paid to it in this song:
"Counting to five down on Sesame Street
Ernie and Bert are still fast asleep
Well another cookie gone, thanks to the Cookie Monster
It's time to learn your ABCs
And did you hear that Big Bird's nine feet tall?
And Bert and Ernie might not be straight guys at all
And it's taken you so long to recite your numbers
Well, this is what this show is for
You used to think that it was so easy,
You used to say that it was so easy...."
The original version featured a magnificent sax solo. Which Scottish rocker wrote it?
11. Many country songs already sound like parodies, but who was the man who wrote a song that was parodied like this?
"I'm lazy, - lazy for feelin' so hungry.
I'm lazy, - lazy to make me' some food
I knew - I had to get up and make it myself,
And then someday....
I discovered take away that delivered
Worry, -I'm getting fat and I do worry?
Wond'rin' - exercise just wouldn't doo
I'm Lazy -for thinkin' my body looks good.
And I'm lazy I ain't tryin' - lazy for whining
And I'm lazy for needing the loo... "
12. Sometimes even a parody song gets parodied!
"I got fed up with changing hoses each night,
When bits fell off it was a terrible sight,
Well now I've spent some money and I'm sure you'll agree,
This excavator is the best you will see
Chorus:
Well I've got a brand new excavator and I'll give you the key,
Come along now let's dig together in perfect harmony
I've got a Case Poclain and you've got a JCB
Now I've got a brand new excavator and I'll give you the key."
This was a parody of a song by a British west country band. Which one?
13. If any singer set himself up for a parody, it was surely Barry Manilow. Consider these parody lyrics:
"I've been ablaze forever, and I toke my ceramic bongs
I bring the herbs and pottery together
It's amusing so I wrote this song
I light the bongs that make the T-H-C
I light the bongs of bud and incense springs
I light the bongs that make the munchies cry
I light the bongs, I light the bongs."
Which Manilow hit was being parodied here?
14. Time was every Hollywood 'A list' star drove around in a Hummer. That prompted parodies like this:
"Some people call it the smoke belcher, yeah
Some call it the worst of GM
Some people call it a menace
Cause it reeks of the pumpingas of smog
People walk around it, baby
Say I'm doin' Earth wrong, doin' it wrong
I'm in a hurry baby
I hurry cause I can't steer, big rear, hit deer
Cause it's a Hummer
It's a guzzler
And it's a bummer
And it's a puzzler
I drive this loser when it runs
It's a junker
It's a clunker
It's a smog test flunker
I call the tow trucks-it's no fun..."
Which Steve Miller hit was the song based on?
15. Sometimes artists can appear so pompous that the parody writers just itch to get after them:
"It's a little bit funny, these parodies I write
I can even do one 'bout someone who died
I don't have mucho dinero, but damn, if I did
I'd buy a guitar, and record a hit
If I was a sculptor, I would then quit, oh
I want a job where I'll make the best amount of dough
I know this ain't much, but it's the best I can do
I ruin your songs, and this one's by you."
Which bespectacled piano player was being parodied here?
Source: Author
darksplash
This quiz was reviewed by FunTrivia editor
agony before going online.
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