This is Vowel Movement: a place that will contain all my song parodies. Most of these songs are biting political songs from a very left-wing perspective, but I have some that are – dare I say it – educational...and less serious.
I cover songs from all genres and eras.
Until now, you had to monitor my Twitter page to catch all my new work, but no longer! I will be backfilling all my old work here, as well as posting my new creations.
Current songs: 44 (but longer than 44 minutes)
This list is so long that it's getting unwieldy, so I'm going to try organizing songs by topic. As a bonus, I'm also going to include hints about some of the songs I'm still working on.
Animals:
Jessie's Squirrel: Parody of Rick Springfield's "Jessie's Girl" (1981). A song about a rodent enthusiast (know what I mean, wink wink, nudge nudge, say no more).
Manatees: [Contains profanity] Parody of The Beatles' "Let It Be" (1970). A song about the struggles of the noble and peaceful Manatee. You just might learn something!
WIP (1989)
WIP (1982)
Anti-capitalism:
My Stocks Will Go Up: [Contains profanity] Parody of Celine Dion's "My Heart Will Go On" (1997). Makes fun of the stock market, the idea of perpetual growth, and the fact that governments, banks, and the rich care more about stock prices than human lives.
Sayin' My Lies: Parody of The Bee Gees' "Stayin' Alive" (1977). About a super-rich con-businessman who relies on the exploitation of both people and Earth's natural resources to amass his ridiculously large fortune. Can you guess who inspired the song?
Without Jobs: Parody of Cher's "Believe" (1998). A song about how jobs are destroying everyone's lives – and the planet.
COVID:
Cold And Unfeeling: Parody of Boston's "More Than A Feeling" (1976). A song that describes the people who are making the public health decisions that have led to the deaths of millions of people worldwide during the COVID pandemic.
Get It: Parody of Michael Jackson's "Beat It" (1982). A humorous song about government inaction/incompetence surrounding COVID.
Get Vaxxed: Parody of Frankie Goes To Hollywood's "Relax" (1983). This is the first song I've written that is less vulgar/suggestive than the original! A humorous PSA created to encourage people to get their vaccinations.
NeverEnding COVID: Parody of the theme from the 1984 movie The NeverEnding Story. Makes fun of leaders' inability to end the COVID pandemic.
Environmentalism:
The Climate Breakdown: Parody of Europe's "The Final Countdown" (1986). A powerful rock anthem about our imminent climate collapse.
Drought: Parody of Tears For Fears' "Shout" (1984). If inaction over climate change makes you want to scream, this is the anthem for you.
Everybody Will Destroy The World: Parody of Tears For Fears' "Everybody Wants To Rule The World" (1985). The heartwarming story of someone whose reaction to our impending societal collapse is to isolate themselves far away from everyone else and become a farmer.
L.N.G.: [Contains profanity] Parody of AC/DC's "T.N.T." (1975). An energetic and powerful song about the need to reduce methane gas emissions.
Lots Of Dust: Parody of "One Of Us" by Joan Osborne (1995). This song asks what life would be like in Langford, BC if the mayor and city council decided to prioritize residents instead of developers and businesses.
Make Change: Parody of "Give Blood" by Pete Townshend (1985). A hopeful song about flooding and wildfires.
Pickup Trucks: [Contains profanity] Parody of AC/DC's "Thunderstruck" (1990). A song about large, noisy, and polluting murder vehicles.
Struggle For The Trees: Parody of Rush's "The Trees" (1978). I took a funny song about warring factions of trees in a forest and turned it into a song about protecting old growth forests.
The Sound of Sirens: [Contains profanity] Parody of Simon & Garfunkel's "The Sound of Silence" (1964). While silence can be alienating, so too can a cacophony, and we ignore it at our peril.
Threw It Away: [Contains profanity] Parody of U2's "Beautiful Day" (2000). The original is about remaining positive in the face of adversity; mine is about how humans have squandered an enviable position to the point of our own extinction.
What A Pitiful World: Parody of Louis Armstrong's "What A Wonderful World" (1967). While some people look at the world and see the beauty, this somewhat depressing song is for those who have a hard time looking past everything that's broken.
Where City Councillors Listen Well: Parody of "Where Everybody Knows Your Name" (Cheers Theme Song) by Gary Portnoy and Judy Hart Angelo (1982). A humorous song about why Langford, BC needs a new mayor and city council.
We Harvest Plankton: Parody of "We Are The Champions" by Queen (1977). A song set in the not-too-distant future where humans have killed off every edible animal and plant – except plankton. Humans have to grow and harvest plankton in order to survive.
WIP (1964)
Healthcare:
Healthcare Meltdown: Parody of the theme song from the children's cartoon The Care Bears (1985-1988). A one-minute song about BC's Healthcare collapse.
Here In BC: Parody of "Under The Sea" from The Little Mermaid (1989). A longer (and more detailed) song about BC's healthcare collapse.
Monkeypox: Parody of Ronald & Ruby's "Lollipop" (1958). About the virus that is rapidly spreading across the globe. No, not THAT virus – the other one!
Housing:
Another Ludicrous Housing Price: Parody of Phil Collins' "Another Day In Paradise" (1989). The original song was about our response (or lack of response) to homelessness; this parody is about looking for affordable housing in BC.
Starlight: Parody of Lite Brite TV commercial jingles of the 80s and 90s. Two short songs about Starlight Investments – a Real Estate Investment Trust – and its nefarious effects on the housing crisis.
Policing:
Please Stop Breathin': [Contains profanity] Parody of Journey's "Don't Stop Believin'" (1981). About trucker convoys, police brutality, and the police connection to the far-right.
R.C.M.P.: [Contains profanity] Parody of The Village People's "Y.M.C.A." (1978). A crowd-pleasing favourite about defunding the Royal Canadian Mounted Police.
Journalism:
Those Boots Were Made For Lickin': Parody of Nancy Sinatra's "These Boots Are Made For Walkin'" (1966). About the kind of access journalism that has infected most journalists who cover BC politicians.
Politicians:
America: Parody of Toto's "Africa" (1982). About the gun violence issues in the USA, and the inanity and fecklessness of the Republican and Democratic responses, respectively.
Bad Rubbish: Parody of Green Day's "Good Riddance" (1997). A song to appropriately commemorate John's Horgan's retirement from BC politics.
BC NDP Song (G-Rated): Parody of Eric Idle's "FCC Song" (2004). A cowardly, profanity-free version of my R-Rated parody.
BC NDP Song (R-Rated): [Contains lots of profanity] Parody of Eric Idle's "FCC Song" (2004). True to the spirit of the original song, this song contains a lot of profanity, including 15 instances of a certain four-letter word. Outlines a few of the many failures of the BC NDP.
Breakfast in Victoria: Parody of Roger Hodgson's (of Supertramp) "Breakfast in America" (1979). A disparaging song lamenting the incompetence of BC's government.
Drew Weaver: Parody of Gary Wright's "Dream Weaver" (1975). With this song that pokes fun at Andrew Weaver, I've now mocked at least one person from each of the three major BC political parties!
It's Our (BC NDP) Party: Parody of "It's My Party" by Lesley Gore (1963). About the sorry state of the BC party that recently rigged its leadership contest, the BC NDP.
Mr. Falcon: [Contains profanity] Parody of The Chordettes' "Mr. Sandman" (1954). Contains factual biographical information about BC Liberal leader Kevin Falcon.
Our MLAs: Parody of Styx's "Come Sail Away" (1977). Decries the job performance of BC's elected representatives.
The Politician Song: Parody of "The Lumberjack Song" from Monty Python (1969). A cynical look into the everyday tasks of a BC politician.
Sucky Man/Dull Woman: Parody of Emerson, Lake & Palmer's "Lucky Man"(1970). About BC's two most useless public figures during the COVID pandemic: Premier John Horgan and Provincial Health Officer Bonnie Henry.
Vladimir Putin: Parody of Boney M.'s "Rasputin" (1978). Contains factual biographical details about Vladimir Putin.
You're a Liar, Mr. Dix: Parody of "You're A Mean One, Mr. Grinch" from the 1966 movie How The Grinch Stole Christmas. Contains factual biographical details of BC politician Adrian Dix.
WIP (1968)
Metaphysics:
Choice is Scary: Parody of 'Til Tuesday's "Voices Carry" (1984). A song about someone who has difficulty making decisions.
WIP (1993)
Silly Songs:
Into My End: Parody of Yes' "Into the Lens" (1980). A song about someone who really likes enemas. Though silly, you still might learn something!
WIP (1976)
Voting:
WIP (1990)
Charts! Numbers! Data!
I don't just play with words – I like data too 😀
The 1980s are objectively the greatest decade – and the last decade before the music industry died – but I need to try to parody more recent songs.
The oldest song on the list is "Mr. Sandman" – 69 years old 👍
The youngest song on the list is "Hazy" – 17 years old 😅
The US is a cultural powerhouse, but so far I've managed to limit songs by US singers to about 50%. Only one singer from a non-English speaking country so far; that makes sense, because I mostly speak English.…
I need to parody more songs sung by women!
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