Simple songs
I'm interested in a particular kind of pop song: mainstream-ish tracks that are so minimal in their melodic or lyrical content that they barely qualify as "songs," yet manage to still be musically compelling. My paradigmatic examples:
"That's The Way (I Like It)" by KC and the Sunshine Band
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q3svW8PM_jc
"Around The World" by Daft Punk
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yca6UsllwYs
"Turn Down For What" by DJ Snake and Lil Jon
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HMUDVMiITOU
"Combination Pizza Hut And Taco Bell" by Das Racist
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EQ8ViYIeH04
Calling these songs "simple" is not totally accurate, since the first three in my list feature lavish production. Still, the parts you can sing yourself are simple.
The term "simple song" naturally evokes "Simple Song" by Sly and the Family Stone, which is actually not all that simple--it's more like an homage to simple songs.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QVCQIYMvOLs
Simple songs fall into a few different subgenres. Most obviously, there are children's songs, like "Wheels On The Bus." The beauty of these songs is that it's easy to adapt them and make up new verses. I added a bunch of Peppa-Pig-themed verses ("The George on the bus says di-no-saur, di-no-saur, di-no-saur") that have now become canon for my kids and are no longer optional. It's possible to produce this kind of song as a good-sounding track--the version by Dora The Explorer is pretty rockin'--but recording isn't the point of kids songs, they're meant to be sung by and to kids. I do want to shout out "Brush Your Teeth" by Raffi, which I sang to my kids two to four times a day, every day, for a period of years. His recorded arrangement is straightforward and effective.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6Gwi8IJ055E
The next genre of simple song is the grownup quasi-children's song, otherwise known as the fake primitive/racist song. My main example here is "Coconut" by Harry Nilsson. I'm sorry, Harry Nilsson fans. I loved this song when I was a kid too. But it's racist. He's singing about fake Caribbean themes in a fake Caribbean dialect. It would have been better to just sing it normally.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tbgv8PkO9eo
There are a lot of mid-twentieth-century novelty songs that fit the "simple song" description, for example "Tequila."
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BodXwAYeTfM
There are also plenty of simple folk songs and hymns. "Amazing Grace" is as simple as songs get, but it can be a launchpad for extended complex improvisation and embellishment. The version that Aretha Franklin does on her album of the same name is eleven minutes long.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gy9Xnwyhcc0
Speaking of launchpads for improvisation, there's a whole subgenre of simple riff-based jazz tunes, for example "C Jam Blues" by Duke Ellington.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gOlpcJhNyDI
Two notes over twelve-bar blues, it doesn't get any simpler than that. Of course, the point is that this is just the setup for improvised solos which can be as complex and unpredictable as you want. There are many John Coltrane tunes that follow a similar premise: the various themes of A Love Supreme, as well as "India," "Impressions," and "Equinox." Further examples include "So What" and "Freddie Freeloader" by Miles Davis, "The Blues Walk" by Clifford Brown, and "Green Chimneys" by Thelonious Monk.
Then there's the more ambiguous category of songs with extremely simple choruses but more complex verses. I'm thinking here of "We Will Rock You" by Queen.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-tJYN-eG1zk
And of course the back half of "Hey Jude" by the Beatles.
https://youtu.be/A_MjCqQoLLA?t=4m5s
The "simple chorus, complex verses" description applies to many rap songs. Here's a classic, "Grindin'" by Clipse.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TjWAWcx4xdE
This format is even more common in current trap/mumble rap, for example "New Level" by A$AP Ferg ft. Future.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Srns7NiO278
On a more serious and political note, there's "Gimme Back My Shit" by Efe Bes - Thanks to Sounding Out Blog for alerting me to this one.
https://youtu.be/twkSF4h8IWo
Disco loves a good simple song. Beyond "That's The Way (I Like It)," there's also "I Feel Love" by Donna Summer.
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=B2qI6UDD2uQ
And my favorite disco tune, "Funkytown" by Lipps Inc.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GnodEEnMvC8
I love "Funkytown" for many reasons. One of them is how easy it is to remix it, mash it up, and otherwise blend it into other tunes. Babsy Singer and I combined it with "Hollaback Girl" by Gwen Stafani (itself a good simple song) and the Katamari Damacy soundtrack. Here I've combined it with many other songs:
https://soundcloud.com/ethanhein/nardistown
Daft Punk has many examples beyond "Around The World," for example "Robot Rock."
https://youtu.be/sFZjqVnWBhc
Two more noteworthy examples recommended to me by friends:
"Lady (Hear Me Tonight)" by Modjo
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mMfxI3r_LyA
"Alors On Danse" by Stromae
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VHoT4N43jK8
"Once in a Lifetime" by Talking Heads takes the format of a simple song and turns it into a strangely profound work of art.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TGofoH9RDEA
I like all of the above songs aesthetically, but they're also valuable for music education purposes. Beginners and little kids are usually stuck with corny repertoire like "Hot Cross Buns" or "Go Tell Aunt Rhody." It would be better to use music that's easy to learn and play but that isn't corny and lame.
I'm sure you have more suggestions for me. Leave them in the comments.