3 Songs You Swear You Can’t Remember—Until the Chorus Kicks In

Have you ever been driving in the car with someone and a song comes, and they instantly know what it is while you’re waiting for something to click? “Come on, you know this song,” they say. “No, I really don’t,” you reply. Only to feel pretty silly when the chorus breaks and you’re singing along with no trouble at all. A hook is memorable for a reason. It’s supposed to be the one thing that your brain has no problem hanging on to, and it often works like a charm. The songs below are most known for their famous choruses. Of course, there will be listeners who know these songs by heart and won’t resonate with this list. However, these songs have earworm hooks, effectively keeping casual listeners in the dark until the chorus breaks.

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“B*tch” – Meredith Brooks

Meredith Brooks’ “B*tch” is late ’90s gold. It has just the right amount of anger and emotional understanding. In this name-making song, Brooks sings about the duality of a woman. I’m a b**ch, I’m a lover / I’m a child, I’m a mother / I’m a sinner, I’m a saint / I do not feel ashamed, she sings in the chorus, explaining her multi-faceted personality. Those that weren’t around in 1997 to take in this song in its heyday may not have the verses memorized, but they can surely sing along to the explicative in this iconic hook.

“Band On The Run” – Wings

Next up on our list of songs that you might not know until the chorus breaks is this Wings hit. It takes a while for “Band On The Run” to get to the point. It follows the familiar Beatles formula of mashing multiple songs into one. The listeners have to trek through a notably softer intro before getting to the actual chorus of this song. If you aren’t a Paul McCartney superfan, you might think this is an obscure song from his catalog until the title line is sung.

“I’ve Been Everywhere” (Johnny Cash)

Now we’re not sure how many Johnny Cash fans out there can sing along to any of these lyrics, and the “chorus” is hard to define here, but most casual country listeners can recognize “I’ve Been Everywhere” once Cash starts rattling off town names. Before that, though, many might be forgiven for not knowing where this song is headed. Cash sets the scene with a less instantly recognizable story: I was totin’ my pack along the dusty Winnemucca road / When along came a semi with a high an’ canvas covered load / “If you’re goin’ to Winnemucca, Mack, with me you can ride” / And so I climbed into the cab and then I settled down inside.

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