this week’s unaccountable ear worm

I work outdoors, mostly by myself. Recently, for nearly a whole shift I had the theme tune to Flipper in my head and couldn’t shake it off. I haven‘t watched the programme since I was a young girl, so no idea where that came from but it was driving me mad

My most recent one was Puff the Magic Dragon 😳
I had Googled it for youngest dgs to listen to, and he liked it enough to ask for it again many times over the following week or two. It's only just stopped running on repeat in my mind.

A worse one in the past was Nelly the Elephant. That was back when I had an allotment, and sometimes it would be in my head for hours on end while I was working there. I seem to recall that it plagued me for months. It is not as if I have ever liked that song. But maybe that is why that memory has stayed with me.
I know that I also get random 'normal' songs (pop songs from my youth) as earworms very regularly, but once those particular worms have left my ear, I quickly forget they were ever there.

Google Joyce Grenfell you’ll get the words.

It's Jim Davidson singing 'Maggie' lovely song but been about 2 weeks now and I have had enough of it.

Just checked with Google and stately as a galleon comes from Old Tyne Dancing song by Joyce Grenfell.

I've had Kung Fu Fighting by Carl Douglas since last week when we sang it at Tuneless choir, and also heard it on the radio the other day! Aaagh!

I love Joyce Grenfell; I have a CD which always cheers me up.

My most persistent ear worms arrive when I’m walking, usually Flower of Scotland or, for some bizarre reason, the Marseillaise even in the middle of Summer so no recent 6 nations rugby to watch. They’re quite useful though as they turn my amble into a march so I get places much faster!

I will often get them when I wake up in the early hours, then it is buzzing around my brain stopping me going back to sleep,😵 I try thinking about something else or visualise a scene, washing blowing on a line sometimes helps, not sure why , sometimes I wake back up and it is there again, but I often can't remember them in the morning.

Do You Know the Way to San Jose? - frequently!

My late DH was always singing, often only a few bars of any particular song - from "You can't roolerskeate in a buffalo herd" to "my way", always leaving me with an earworm...
Now he's gone, ridiculously, I miss these dreadful songs.
But me too, it's often the last hymn we had in church, especially if it's one I dont like!

I'm another who often has hymns as earworms. Usually it's one from the previous Sunday, but I play the organ at our church so it's not just hearing it at the service but the days of practice beforehand. Since I have a say in the choice of hymns I suppose that any earworm is my own fault!

‘Star Trekking across the universe’ often pops into my head at random times🤷‍♀️

@midgey "Stately as a galleon ..." was a phrase used to describe my headmistress, I have not heard it since!

Mine is from the Country Life advert - 🎶We are the lads from country life, you can't put a better bit of butter on you knife, if you haven't got it innnnn have a word with the wife, and spread it on your toast in the mornin 🎶😂

White Horse by Chris Stapleton. Always been a fave but I recently found the dvd to it even if you do not like the song the video is amazing really powerful

"I can be brown, I can be blue, I can be violet skies
I can be hurtful, I can be purple, I can be anything you like"

There's a video on FB and Instagram of Ryan Reynolds (I think!) and Will Ferrell singing this - its been stuck in my head for over a week 🙃
We're currently on holiday and doing quite a lot of walking - this tune fits perfectly with my pace!!! HELP!!

Mine at the moment is Barbara Streisand’s song from the Way We Were. No idea why.

Whenever I hear the word phenomena I think of the muppets "mahna mahna" and I can't get the tune out of my head

Mine is the Song of the advert for Pepto Bimoth. Heartburn. Indigestion, upset stomach. Diareeeeeahhh ! I can’t get it out of my head. It’s driving me mad.

This is how you apparently break them if they drive you nutsChew Gum: Chewing engages the jaw muscles, which are linked to the vocal motor cortex used for sub-vocalizing music, breaking the auditory cycle.
Listen to the Whole Song: Earworms are often just fragments. Listening to the entire track helps your brain reach a resolution.
Engage in Distraction: Focus on a task requiring concentration, such as puzzles, reading, or working, to occupy the "phonological loop" in your brain.
Listen to a "Cure" Song: Replace the earworm with a specifically non-catchy song, or a "cure tune" like "God Save the Queen".
Use Mental Puzzles: Try to do something cognitively demanding, like math problems (long division) or writing words backward.
Physical Movement: Walk at a different pace than the song's tempo to interrupt your internal rhythm.
Acknowledge It: Sometimes, simply accepting the song and letting it pass is the best approach.
BBC
BBC
+9
Why They Stick
Earworms, or "involuntary musical imagery," are often triggered by recent exposure, repetition, or stress. They frequently appear when the mind is bored and in a passive, wandering state.
BBC
BBC
+2
Ten readers' cures for earworms - BBC News
There are many ways to get rid of an earworm: * Sing * Sing "Simply The Best" by Tina Turner * Sing the song as if you are per...

BBC

How to get rid of an earworm | Dr Clare Jonas - That Thinking Feeling
Well, if you're not very engaged in a task it's easy for your attention to slide, which might happen because you're bored with it ...

That Thinking Feeling

Tortured by an earworm? How to get it out of your head | Wicked | The Guardian
Here are some things you can try to get rid of an earworm: * *Listen to a different song* * **Think of a familiar but not too en...

The Guardian

Earworm - Wikipedia
Listening to the tune in a different tempo or lower pitch, or a remixed version if it exists, can be an antidote. Listening to the...

Wikipedia
How to get rid of earworms - Counselling Directory
Strategies to bid farewell to earworms * Listen to the entire song: If you find yourself stuck on a particular part of a song, try...

Counselling Directory

3m
Stop the Music! How to Evict an Earworm | Kia-Rai Prewitt, PhD

YouTube·Cleveland Clinic
Earworms: Why do they stick and how can you shift them? - BBC
How do you dislodge an earworm? Researchers found that people had a variety of techniques for shifting earworms. A popular method ...

BBC

57s
Why we get earworms (and how to get rid of them) | The Project NZ

YouTube·Newshub
‘I just can’t get you out of my head’: how to eradicate earworms
2. Physical remedies. But should these earworm prevention tips have failed, how can we get rid of intrusive musical thoughts? A re...

The Conversation

Experts reveal how to get that annoying earworm out of your head
Do something, do anything - as long as it takes your mind off the song. Dr Jakubowski's study shows that earworms hit hardest when...

BBC

54s
How to get rid of earworms

YouTube·9NEWS

0:35
Key to beating earworms

YouTube·FOX59 News
This is for informational purposes only. For medical advice or a diagnosis, consult a professional. AI responses may include mistakes. Learn more
Chew Gum
Listen to the whole tune

Mine is frequently a song called Little Boxes from the 1960s sung by Pete Seeger:
Little boxes on the hillside
Little boxes made of ticky tacky
Little boxes all the same
There's a green one and a pink one
And a blue one and a yellow one
And they're all made out of ticky tacky
And they all look just the same.

Sad to say quite a lot of the new developments being built on all the fields around here tend to spark it off.

I often have hymns as ear worms too. If I can’t remember the words, I find them on YouTube and learn them so I can sing along to my ear worm when I’m walking the dog. This morning’s ear worm wasn’t a hymn, though, it was Any Dream Will Do.

Staying Alive, BeeGees, since dad mentioned it on phone 😱

Oh, sorry: that’s not unaccountable at all!

Mine is The Fields of Athenry after a rugby match when Ireland are playing.