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Quiz about Numerical References in Classic Rock

Numerical References in Classic Rock Quiz

Quite a few classic rock hits make references to numbers, in one way or another. Let's see how many of them you know.

A multiple-choice quiz by enfranklopedia. Estimated time: 5 mins.

Author
enfranklopedia

Time
5 mins

Type
Multiple Choice

Quiz #
218,547

Updated
Dec 03 21

# Qns
15

Difficulty
Average

Avg Score
10 / 15

Plays
878

One at a Time - Single Page - Timed Game

Question 1 of 15

1. In The Police's "Every Little Thing She Does Is Magic", lead singer Sting notes that he "resolved to call up" the woman being sung about a certain number of times a day. How many times? Hint

100

1,000

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Question 2 of 15

2. In "Handyman," James Taylor boasts that he specializes in fixing broken hearts. True or False: he claims to ply this trade a full 24 hours a day.

True

False

3. The band Chicago (formerly known as Chicago Transit Authority) enjoyed a major hit in 1970 with a song that included the following lyrics:

"Feeling like I ought to sleep/Spinning room is sinking deep"

According to the chorus (and title) of the song, what time is it? Hint

Midnight

11:07 PM

Noon

3:35 AM

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Question 4 of 15

4. Blues Image also had a 1970 hit with "Ride Captain Ride". According to the first line of the song, how many men sailed out on the San Francisco Bay? Hint

173

148

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Question 5 of 15

5. Fill in the missing number from Simon and Garfunkel's "The Sounds of Silence": "And in the naked light I saw _______ people, maybe more." Hint

one thousand

one million

ten thousand

ten million

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Question 6 of 15

6. In "Ramblin' Man", the lead singer of the Allman Brothers claims to have been born in the back seat of a Greyhound bus. Down which highway was said bus "rolling" at the time of his birth? Hint

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Question 7 of 15

7. One of Steely Dan's biggest hits contains a number in its title: "Hey ____________ ".

Answer: (One Word or Number .. between 10 and 25)

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Question 8 of 15

8. Another of my favorite bands, The Doors, scored a huge hit with a song that has not one, but two numbers in its title. Which is it? Hint

Four Plus Two

One in Five

Five to One

Two By Four

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Question 9 of 15

9. Fill in the missing number in this Beatles lyric: "I ain't got nothin' but love, babe / _______ days a week"

Answer: (One Word or Number)

NEXT>

Question 10 of 15

10. According to the lyrics of a major single by the Rolling Stones, which nervous breakdown is on its way? Hint

1st

19th

14th

7th

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Question 11 of 15

11. According to a particular song by Bruce Springsteen, cable TV is a wasteland. How many channels does Springsteen criticize in a 1992 hit single, claiming that there's "nothing on"? Hint

112

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Question 12 of 15

12. A late 1970s Billy Joel album was named for a street or avenue in New York City. Which one? Hint

5th Avenue

52nd Street

42nd Street

8th Avenue

NEXT>

Question 13 of 15

13. A certain temperature is mentioned in the lyrics of "Burning Down the House," by Talking Heads. How hot are we talking here? Hint

451 degrees

823 degrees

911 degrees

365 degrees

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Question 14 of 15

14. In 1985, DeBarge cheesed us all out with the ballad "Who's Holding Donna Now?", a song about a guy who's obsessed with the activities of his former girlfriend. How many times did said guy "fret", according to the lyrics of the song? Hint

500,000

5,000,000

1,000,000

100,000

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Question 15 of 15

15. According to the lyrics (and title) of a major hit from Sting's first solo album, "The Dream of the Blue Turtles," love is a particular wave. Which wave is it? Hint

7th

9th

1st

3rd

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Quiz Answer Key and Fun Facts

1. In The Police's "Every Little Thing She Does Is Magic", lead singer Sting notes that he "resolved to call up" the woman being sung about a certain number of times a day. How many times?

Answer: 1,000

"I resolved to call her up a thousand times a day/And ask her if she'll marry me, in some old-fashioned way." Since there are 86,400 seconds in a day, each of Sting's calls would last 86.4 seconds, assuming he did nothing else with his day...like, you know, dialing. =)

2. In "Handyman," James Taylor boasts that he specializes in fixing broken hearts. True or False: he claims to ply this trade a full 24 hours a day.

Answer: True

"Here is the main thing I want to say/I'm busy 24 hours a day/I fix broken hearts, I know that I truly can." Apparently, James doesn't need to sleep or anything. Must be nice.

3. The band Chicago (formerly known as Chicago Transit Authority) enjoyed a major hit in 1970 with a song that included the following lyrics: "Feeling like I ought to sleep/Spinning room is sinking deep" According to the chorus (and title) of the song, what time is it?

Answer: 3:35 AM

The title of the song is "25 or 6 to 4." Since the lyrics apparently describe an insomniac looking for something to do, one can assume that it's the middle of the night ... meaning that "25 or 6 to 4" means "25 or 26 minutes before 4:00 AM." That's about 3:35 AM.

4. Blues Image also had a 1970 hit with "Ride Captain Ride". According to the first line of the song, how many men sailed out on the San Francisco Bay?

Answer: 73

"Seventy-three men sailed out on the San Francisco Bay..."

5. Fill in the missing number from Simon and Garfunkel's "The Sounds of Silence": "And in the naked light I saw _______ people, maybe more."

Answer: ten thousand

I'm not sure what the significance of that particular estimate is, but it sure is a powerful song, in any case.

6. In "Ramblin' Man", the lead singer of the Allman Brothers claims to have been born in the back seat of a Greyhound bus. Down which highway was said bus "rolling" at the time of his birth?

Answer: 41

"And I was born in the back seat of a Greyhound bus/Rollin' down Highway 41."

7. One of Steely Dan's biggest hits contains a number in its title: "Hey ____________ ".

Answer: 19

The title seems to be a reference to the age of the women the singer has been meeting in the social scene...and, since he is older than they, the outlook is not good.

8. Another of my favorite bands, The Doors, scored a huge hit with a song that has not one, but two numbers in its title. Which is it?

Answer: Five to One

Jim Morrison and company actually made a mathematical error when they composed the lyrics to this one. If the odds against are five to one, as the title states, then that is equivalent to one-in-six odds. Unfortunately, Jim sings "Five to one, baby/One in five." That's just wrong. One-in-five odds would mean four-to-one against, not five-to-one. (Guess Jim should have finished college, eh?)

9. Fill in the missing number in this Beatles lyric: "I ain't got nothin' but love, babe / _______ days a week"

Answer: 8

"Eight Days a Week" was a cut from the album known as "Beatles '65" in the U.S. In the U.K., the song can be found on the 1964 release "Beatles For Sale."

10. According to the lyrics of a major single by the Rolling Stones, which nervous breakdown is on its way?

Answer: 19th

The lyrics to "19th Nervous Breakdown" were used rather annoyingly by Val Kilmer's character in the mediocre movie "Red Planet."

11. According to a particular song by Bruce Springsteen, cable TV is a wasteland. How many channels does Springsteen criticize in a 1992 hit single, claiming that there's "nothing on"?

Answer: 57

The name of the song is "57 Channels (And Nothin' On)". There are quite a few more channels than that as of October 2005, and sometimes there still seems to be nothing on, in my opinion.

12. A late 1970s Billy Joel album was named for a street or avenue in New York City. Which one?

Answer: 52nd Street

The album, which features a few embarrassingly dated disco tracks, also contains an impressive titular track that features Mr. Joel doing his bluesy piano thing.

13. A certain temperature is mentioned in the lyrics of "Burning Down the House," by Talking Heads. How hot are we talking here?

Answer: 365 degrees

"All wet/Hey you might need a raincoat/Shakedown/Dreams walking in broad daylight/Three hundred sixty five degrees/Burning down the house!"

I'm not sure what's so special about 365 degrees, but I do know, as do most high school graduates, that 451 degrees Fahrenheit is the temperature at which paper burns. (Thank you, Ray Bradbury!) If that's the case, though, then surely the materials used to make a house, being more sturdy than mere paper, would need to reach a higher temperature than 451 F before burning, right? So what's with the 365 reference? Hmmm...

Answer: 500,000

El DeBarge sings, "I fretted half a million times." Guitarists across the nation were immediately confused. (Get it?)

15. According to the lyrics (and title) of a major hit from Sting's first solo album, "The Dream of the Blue Turtles," love is a particular wave. Which wave is it?

Answer: 7th

"Love Is the Seventh Wave" is a playful reggae number that actually references some pretty heady ideas. Check it out, if you haven't already.

Source: Author enfranklopedia

This quiz was reviewed by FunTrivia editor gtho4 before going online.
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