4 Parody Songs That We Might Like Better Than the Original

It takes a quick wit to be able to parody a song. You have to come up with just the right angle to poke fun at whatever melody you’ve chosen. Whether it’s a play on a genre or just plain absurd, find our four favorite parody songs (that we might like better than the original), below.

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“Lobster Diner” (Saturday Night Live)

Saturday Night Live has been effectively pulling off parodies for decades now. In 2018, they caricatured Les Miserables‘ “One Day More”. Instead of the French Revolution, the SNL cast members find themselves in a diner, wherein one patron orders a lobster–the only man to ever order a lobster at a diner…the crustacean in question comes out to sing about his peril in Les Mis fashion. It’s endlessly catchy and one of the most memorable SNL sketches in recent memory to boot.

And why would someone on a whim
Choose from all to order him
Who’s this guy?

“Once in a Lifetime” (Kermit the Frog)

When thinking of rock experimentalists, you’re mind wouldn’t immediately make the jump to The Muppets. However, Kermit the Frog once flexed his knowledge of avant-garde rock by covering The Talking Heads’ “Once in a Lifetime”. Though he keeps true to the original, the mere idea of a puppet singing this track is funny enough to be considered a parody.

Letting the days go by, let the water hold me down
Letting the days go by, water flowing underground
Into the blue again, after the money’s gone
Once in a lifetime, water flowing underground

“Eat It” (“Weird Al” Yankovic)

“Weird Al” Yankovic is the king of the parody. No artist has been able to measure up to his turn of phrase. There are many of his songs to choose from for this list, but we’ve gone for “Eat It”. Michael Jackson’s “Beat It” makes use of one of the catchiest melodies of all time. Because of this Yankovic had oodles of help making this track memorable, but his sharp wit helped it stand on its own.

How come you’re always such a fussy young man?
Don’t want no Captain Crunch, don’t want no Raisin Bran
Well, don’t you know that other kids are starving in Japan?
So, eat it, just eat it

“Big Bottom” (Spinal Tap)

Spinal Tap parodies rock as a whole. Though it’s meant to be a put down of the genre, they made a parody so good that it could be considered a hit in its own right. “Big Bottom” is the quintessential rock anthem. It’s driving. It’s catchy. It’s seductive. This is one of those parody songs that teeters on the edge of real hit material.

Big bottom
Big bottom
Talk about bum cakes
My gal’s got ’em.
Big bottom
Drive me out of my mind.
How can I leave this behind?

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