1. Time Warp from "Rocky Horror Picture Show" - I thought I'd start off with a simple nerdy one. If you know just one song from "Rocky Horror," it's the Time Warp, if for no other reason than it's played on the radio all Halloween night every year. I know plenty of other songs from this perverted little movie, my favorite probably being "Dammit Janet" or "Sweet Transvestite." But "Time Warp" wins a spot on this list because it's the one I knew first word for word. And every time I hear it, it reminds me of Halloween, my favorite holiday, so it also qualifies as a feel-good song.
My favorite lyric: Let's do the time warp agaaaiiinnn!
2. It's Raining Men by The Weather Girls - here's another feel-good song with such a wonderful and positive message. This is one of those songs you just have to know so you can have fun clapping along, kind of like Hall & Oates' Private Eyes (they're watching you, clap clap!)
My favorite lyric: God bless mother nature/she's a single woman too...she taught every angel to rearrange the sky/so that each and every woman could find the perfect guy
3. In For the Kill by La Roux - this is a band that is wildly more popular on the other side of the pond while only mildly popular here. I was in the UK when this song was at the height of its popularity and heard it way way way too many times. It happens to walk the border between catchy-pleasant and catchy-annoying. When I overheard some girls doing this song at karaoke, I realized it's pretty darn annoying.
My favorite lyric: Ooooooooooooooooo (hey, that's half the song right there!)
4. Shadow Dancing by Andy Gibb - I downloaded Love Will Keep us Together because of "Will & Grace." Well, I downloaded Shadow Dancing because of "Gilmore Girls." There's only a brief moment where Lorelai listens to it in her car, but I liked it, got it, and still enjoy it. Tvgirl's confession? I like disco. Would it be cooler if I said I like it ironically? Plenty of people proudly admit they like country music. Live and let live.
My favorite lyric: I can't really decide on just one...the lyrics are pretty generic, but I still love the song.
5. I'll Make a Man Out of You from "Mulan" - Remember the day when your childhood worldview was shattered by reality? Remember when you found out that Santa Claus didn't exist? Remember when you found out that the dashing Captain Li Shang was voiced by Donny Osmond when he was singing?
My favorite lyric: We must be swift as the coursing river/with all the force of a great typhoon/with all the strength of a raging fire/mysterious as the dark side of the moon (who doesn't want a man who is mysterious, like the dark side of the moon? That certainly sounds fancier than tall, dark, and handsome.)
6. Somebody's Watching Me by Rockwell - This is another happy Halloween assocation for me. I'm sure plenty of other people know the words, reluctantly, just because of the ubiquitous Halloween radio play. But I bet no one else sings along with it with as much zeal as I do!My favorite lyric: And I don't feel safe anymore/oh what a mess/I wonder who's watching me now/(WHO?)/The IRS?!
7. Escape (The Pina Colada Song) by Rupert Holmes - this is one of those songs that should win an award in cheese. Also, an award for most quotable lyrics. I think I love this song for its nonsensical-ness and for the fact that it makes two people cheating on each other into a humorous situation where you half expect them both to throw up their arms and shrug as a sitcom laugh track breaks in.
My favorite lyric: I didn't think about my lady/I know that sounds kind of mean (you think?)
8. Disco Inferno by The Trammps - Yeah, I'm not lying when I say I love disco. This is one of those songs that gets really disturbing if you take it literally. I think they should play it at all building demolitions. And cremations. (This song gets bonus points for getting a mention from an episode of "Doctor Who.")
My favorite lyric: Burn baby burn!
9. Schadenfreude from "Avenue Q" - I know every song from "Avenue Q" by heart, but I feel like knowing Schadenfreude is the most impressive. The song is oh so educational, fun, and brutally honest. It's hard to pick just a few lyrics from this song because I think the entire thing is hilarious, like pretty much every other song in "Avenue Q."
My favorite lyric: Being on an elevator when somebody shouts "hold the door!"/NO!/Schadenfreude/Fuck you lady, that's what stairs are for...Watching actors never reach/the ending of their Oscar speech!
10. The entire "Scrubs" musical, specifically The Rant Song and Everything Comes Down to Poo - Once again, I know every song in this production by heart. It's less impressive considering it adds up to about 15 minutes of music, but I think it's still random and slightly embarrassing to admit. Guy Love gets all the attention, and it's great, but Everything Comes Down to Poo is funnier in my opinion and The Rant Song is more impressive linguistically.
My favorite lyric: All across the nation/we trust in defecation...our number one test is your number two! (Everything Comes Down to Poo)...It's your hair, your nose, your chinless face, you always need a hug/not to mention all the manly Appletinis that you chug/that you think I am your mentor just continues to perplex/and oh my god stop telling me when you have nerdy sex! (The Rant Song)
11. El Dorado from "The Road to El Dorado" - I've certainly seen this movie enough times to have the music memorized by now. Like all great kids movies, it has a famous singer doing the soundtrack. In this case, Elton John. The wonders of the new world and the difficulties of being a god seem much more impressive when Elton John is there to tell us in song. Okay, he didn't sing that second one, but he does do the fantastic traveling tune The Trail We Blaze. (What trail? The trail that we blaze!....THAT trail that we blaze!) If I ever go on a road trip, The Trail We Blaze should be the first song I listen to. But on the topic of El Dorado, any rabid fan needs to know this one so you can sing along with the opening cartoon narration.
My favorite lyric: And made El Dorado/the mag-ni-fi-cent!
12. Always Look on the Bright Side of Life from "Monty Python's Life of Brian" and "Spamalot" - I think anyone who is alive should be required to know this song by heart. Like Billy Joel's Piano Man, everyone should know this just so they can belt it out when the situation calls for it. Bonus points to you if you can actually whistle along too.
12. Always Look on the Bright Side of Life from "Monty Python's Life of Brian" and "Spamalot" - I think anyone who is alive should be required to know this song by heart. Like Billy Joel's Piano Man, everyone should know this just so they can belt it out when the situation calls for it. Bonus points to you if you can actually whistle along too.My favorite lyric: Always look on the bright side of death/just before you draw your terminal breath/life's a piece of shit/when you look at it/life's a laugh and death's a joke it's true
13. "Bill Nye the Science Guy" theme song - And back to my 90s past with this one. Back in my day we didn't learn science from stuffy old teachers, we learned science from none other than Bill Nye, a science guy. These days, you kids with your rock music and hip hopping have nothing to compare to that. You don't have anywhere to get your real science education from! You know, except "Mythbusters." (I'll admit, this isn't quite a song, and doesn't have much in the way of lyrics, but just the fact that I know how it goes still is the crazy part).
My favorite lyric: Inertia is a property of matter (Who knows if I would have graduated high school without knowing that vital fact!)
14. Be a Star from "Life-size" - Ah, what a simpler time. Lindsay Lohan was still an adorable child actor and Tyra Banks was just breaking into television. This movie had a peppy little theme song that is still stuck in the recesses of my brain.
My favorite lyric: The lyrics are too insipid and repetetive to select favorites. It was a Disney jingle after all.
15. "Tiny Toons" theme song - I don't remember the plot of any episodes, and I don't remember why I liked this show since I never liked the original Looney Tunes that much, outside of "Space Jam." But I remember the theme song. There are plenty of random Disney and cartoon songs I remember because they were ingrained in my psyche as a child, but I think "Tiny Toons" is the most random of them all. Okay, maybe the intro to Disney's Sing Along Songs videos with the owl and birds in the classroom is more random, but I don't know if anyone else besides me really remembers that at all.
My favorite lyric: We're comic dispensers/we crack up all the censors
16. "Powerpuff Girls" theme song - ah, the mystery of Chemical X. This is one of those cartoons where you wonder what the creators were smoking when they came up with the concept. Just look at the villains! Mojo Jojo? Gangrene Gang? Him?! After the Red Guy from "Cow & Chicken," Him is the most terrifying, ambiguous, bizarre, crimson villain in cartoon history. And it just dawned on me - why was Professor Utonium trying to create the "perfect little girl"? I need to stop thinking about this before my nostalgia turns sour.
16. "Powerpuff Girls" theme song - ah, the mystery of Chemical X. This is one of those cartoons where you wonder what the creators were smoking when they came up with the concept. Just look at the villains! Mojo Jojo? Gangrene Gang? Him?! After the Red Guy from "Cow & Chicken," Him is the most terrifying, ambiguous, bizarre, crimson villain in cartoon history. And it just dawned on me - why was Professor Utonium trying to create the "perfect little girl"? I need to stop thinking about this before my nostalgia turns sour. My favorite lyric: Also, on second thought, this isn't really a theme song with words either since the only words are during the narration before the music...wait, the theme has words in the ending credits! I know those!
17. "Doug" musical moments (from the Beets to Bangin' on a Trash Can) - Okay, I'll make up for playing fast and loose with my own rules and include some songs that are actual songs. Like I Need More Allowance and Killer Tofu by "Doug" universe band The Beets. I love that "Doug" actually bothered to write and record actual snippets of songs for their fictional band. I think it's one of the reasons I give "Spongebob Squarepants" so much credit - it's similar to many great cartoons of my day that included musical numbers.
My favorite lyric: I need more allowance/yodelayeehoo/why? Because I do!
18. "Arthur" theme song - this is going even further back in my childhood, but "Arthur" is a classic. I even remember everything leading up to the theme song, including PBS thanking Viewers Like You who make the channel possible and the Juicy Juice ad about 100% juice for 100% kids. 100% kids? How's that for phoning in your ad campaign? Apparently the theme's official name is Believe In Yourself, naturally. And it's reggae. I also remember the Jekyll and Hyde number Brain sang in the "Arthur" musical/literary episode which also included an inspiring ditty about getting a library card.
18. "Arthur" theme song - this is going even further back in my childhood, but "Arthur" is a classic. I even remember everything leading up to the theme song, including PBS thanking Viewers Like You who make the channel possible and the Juicy Juice ad about 100% juice for 100% kids. 100% kids? How's that for phoning in your ad campaign? Apparently the theme's official name is Believe In Yourself, naturally. And it's reggae. I also remember the Jekyll and Hyde number Brain sang in the "Arthur" musical/literary episode which also included an inspiring ditty about getting a library card.My favorite lyric: And I say hey (hey!)/what a wonderful kind of day
19. I Wish Every Day Could Be Christmas from "The Fairly Oddparents" - I still like listening to this song in the winter. I like to find the episode itself when I can, just so I can hear Timmy's dad go nuts over eggnog again and again. Crazy, obsessive dads in cartoons are fun. That's why "The Muffin King" will always be the greatest episode of "Dexter's Laboratory." I think this song perfectly captures the feeling of a kid on Christmas and how you wish it would never end.
My favorite lyric: New Year's Eve's for mom and dad/the Easter Bunny eggs smell really bad!/Valentine's Day always makes me sad/(Cause Timmy just can't get a girlfriend!) 
20. Every song from "Moulin Rouge" - At first glance, this might not seem so odd. Most music in this film was a cover of some other famous song. But for some reason, since I was younger at the time I saw it, I didn't really know all those songs too well yet and I now associate them with the movie instead of the original artist. The song Roxanne doesn't make me think of The Police, it makes me think of El Tango de Roxanne, and so on. I am a little ashamed to admit that when I hear Like a Virgin, the first thing it makes me think of is definitely not Madonna.My favorite lyric: Rather than mention lyrics, I have to say the Elephant Love Medley is my favorite example of combining popular music into one epic love song.
21. Way too many Backstreet Boys songs - Being a child of the 90s, one of the biggest questions of my childhood wasn't "Team Edward or Team Jacob" (thank god!) but Backstreet Boys or N*Sync. I was a Backstreet Boys girl all the way and didn't come around to N*Sync until, say, about a year ago. It was a little disturbing when I was uploading all my old CDs onto my computer a few years ago and, when coming across the album "Millennium," I realized I remembered the entire song list, in order, word-for-word. That was more like nostalgia resurfacing and hitting me in the face. But I don't care what anyone says, I Want It That Way is one of the greatest songs of all time.
My favorite lyric: All the "tell me why"s. I've said it before and I'll say it again, the key to making a hit song is making it really easy to sing along to.
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