Song Lyrics with Unusual Words or Phrases Quiz

Answer: Paranoid Android

"Please could you stop the noise, I'm trying to get some rest, from all the unborn chicken voices in my head."

"Paranoid Android", from Radiohead's third studio album "OK Computer", made the Rolling Stone's list of the "500 Greatest Songs of All Time". It was recorded near the village of St. Catherine in Somerset, UK, in the 15th-century mansion of actress Jane Seymour.

The android is of course a reference to Marvin the Paranoid Android, a hilarious character from "The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy" series by Douglas Adams.

Answer: Brian Wilson

"Brian Wilson" made Billboard's "The Hot 100" list in 1997, peaking at number 68. The Canadian band did better on their home turf, and the song made number 18 on the "Canadian Singles Chart" in 1992.

The singer of this song likens himself to Brian Wilson, the troubled creative genius behind the group The Beach Boys. In the early 1970s Brian Wilson's physical and mental health deteriorated rapidly due to drug use. His wife Marilyn and his family hired therapist Dr. Eugene Landy in October 1975.

Landy did help Brian get off the drugs and lose weight. However, the extreme and unconventional counseling sessions and methods, combined with other ethical and license code violations (improper prescribing of drugs, improper personal and professional relationships with patients including Brian Wilson) prompted the State of California Board of Medical Quality to bring charges against Dr. Landy in the late 1980s. Landy voluntarily surrendered his license to practice in California and became Brian Wilson's tyrannical and greedy business partner. His exploitation of the vulnerable Wilson continued until 1992, when Landy was barred by court order from contacting Wilson ever again.

A pedagogue is a teacher, particularly a formal and dull one. The singer hopes that Dr. Landy can offer more help for his (and Brian's) troubles than the help available from a simple pedagogue.

Answer: Hotel California

Colitas is a Mexican slang word for cannabis buds. A strict translation from Spanish to English makes it "little tails". If the singer smelled colitas, then someone nearby is smoking marijuana.

Cannabis plants are dioecious (plants with separate sexes), and the most potent part of the plant is the flowering tops (buds) of the female plant, which contains the highest concentration of the active ingredient THC (Tetrahydrocannabinol).

THC binds to receptors in the human brain, and can reduce pain, aggression, and nausea, and stimulate the appetite. In some countries, lab-created THC is used to treat eating disorders, to reduce the side effects of chemotherapy, and to help alleviate the symptoms of AIDS (Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome). In other countries, the drug is still illegal, even for medical use.

"Hotel California", from the album of the same name, was released as a single in February 1977. It earned the top spot on Billboard's "The Top 100" list in May 1977. Written by Don Felder, Don Henley, and Glenn Frey, the song ends with an unforgettable guitar instrumental section by Don Felder and the immortal Joe Walsh.

Answer: Wrapped Around Your Finger

"Wrapped Around Your Finger" from the Police's 1983 album "Synchronicity", was written by Gordon Matthew Thomas Sumner (Sting). It was released as a single in the UK and the US. The UK version had "Someone to Talk To" as the B-side, and in the US the B-side was a live version of "Tea In The Sahara".

Sting qualified as a teacher in the UK, and perhaps it is this extended education that is responsible for the literary references in his lyrics. In Greek mythology, Scylla and Charybdis are two monsters, found at either end of the Strait of Messina (between Italy and Sicily). Scylla is a six-headed beast, and Charybdis a deadly whirlpool. The phrase "caught between Scylla and Charybdis" means being caught between two VERY bad situations.

Answer: Bohemian Rhapsody

The divine and greatly-missed Freddie Mercury wrote "Bohemian Rhapsody" for Queen's 1975 album "A Night at the Opera". In 1976 the song peaked at number nine on Billboard's "The Hot 100" list, but it did better on the same chart in 1992 - peaking at number two - the same year it was featured in the movie "Wayne's World".

The recording took three weeks, and in some sections featured 180 separate overdubs. It is one of the best-selling singles of all time, and frequently appears on top-ten lists for best rock song ever recorded.

"Scaramouche" is the black-masked, boastful, and cowardly clown character from Italian commedia dell'arte. The "fandango" is a Spanish dance for couples, the music usually provided by guitars and accompanied by castanets and clapping hands.

Answer: White Rabbit

"White Rabbit" was written by Grace Slick, and was a track on Jefferson Airplane's 1967 album "Surrealistic Pillow". It earned a place on the Rolling Stone's list of the "500 Greatest Songs of All Time".

The song includes references to many characters from the works of Lewis Carroll ("Alice's Adventures in Wonderland" and the sequel "Through the Looking-Glass"), including the "hookah-smoking caterpillar", Alice, the Red Queen, and the dormouse.

Answer: Songs From The Wood

The 1977 album is the first of three folk-rock albums by Jethro Tull: "Songs From The Wood", "Heavy Horses", and "Stormwatch". According to producer and band member Ian Anderson, "Songs From The Wood" was "a reaffirmation of our Britishness". It also marked a shift in style away from the harder rock sound of the band's 1976 album "Too Old to Rock 'n' Roll: Too Young to Die!" and towards folk-rock. The album earned the number eight spot on Billboard's album chart, and peaked at number thirteen on the "UK Albums Chart".

A galliard is a piece of Renaissance music played for a dance of the same name, and a lute is a plucked-stringed instrument. Many Renaissance lute tunes can be played on a guitar; simply tune the guitar's third string down a half tone and you're ready to go.

Answer: Mr Roboto

The opening Japanese lines of "Mr. Roberto" translate as "Thank you very much, Mr. Robot (Dōmo arigatō misutā Robotto), Until the day (we) meet again (mata au hi made), Thank you very much, Mr. Robot (Dōmo arigatō misutā Robotto), I want to know your secret (Himitsu wo shiri tai)."

The song was written by band member Dennis DeYoung, and in the US it peaked at number three on Billboard's "The Hot 100" list. It did even better in Canada where the band was more popular, reaching number one on RPM's national singles chart.

Answer: Sometimes When We Touch

The song, written by Dan Hill and Barry Mann, peaked at number three on Billboard's "The Hot 100" list. Mann wrote the music, so Dan Hill's lyrics and singing are responsible for landing the song on many top-100 lists of awful songs, including coming in at number 40 on AOL Radio's "100 Worst Songs Ever".

"Sometimes When We Touch", and the other three songs are tracks on the 1977 album "Longer Fuse" by Dan Hill.

Answer: Come Together

"Toe jam" refers to the gunk that builds up between the toes (if one does not wash very often). I found two similar interpretations of "football" in this context. If, when a person picks out this gunk, they proceed to flick it at another person, they are playing toe-jam football. Another interpretation states that the entire term refers to rugby, because the toe jam, when rolled into a ball, resembles a rugby ball. Ew.

John Lennon was sued by Big Seven Music Corporation over "Come Together". The publisher of Chuck Berry's "You Can't Catch Me" claimed that the two songs were lyrically and musically similar to each other (and Chuck's came first). The lawsuit was settled out of court, but the settlement generated further legal squabbles between John Lennon and Big Seven Music.