h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

Everyone knows that breathing helium makes your voice go funny and high pitched. Some people even know why. I don't care why. I just want to know this:

If you've got a room full of people who've just got a lungful of helium, what are the best songs for a singalong.

My own personal favourite two are Yellow Submarine by the Beatles, and Good Vibrations (with harmonies) by the Beach Boys.

Suggestions, please!

H.

"I Like Chinese"

It's the first song i heard sung on Helium - by my friend Jo, and it will always be a helium song to me.

...they only come up to your knees...

Good one!

Any more?

H.

Disclaimer -

Printed on the Helium bottle before me (the Admiral does party balloons and balloons in a box) is the following warning -

"Do not deliberately inhale this gas.

Although not poisonous this gas could result in DEATH by asphyxiation or damage to your lungs.

This warning is endorsed by the British Compressed Gases Association."

Right - now we've got that out of the way, I'd recommend anything at all by the Beach Boys (it's all those harmonies), but Barbra Ann is particularly good. Abba are great for this too - Super Trooper is a good one.

Trucking by the Grateful Dead works well, as does Miracles by Jefferson Starship, but it's hard to find a room full of people who know either of them.

Bee Gees stuff obviously works well, but it can be difficult to distinguish helium fuelled singing from the original.

I had to get rid of some helium balloons at the end of a conference a few months ago and asked for some help from the rest of the crew. Silly me. Instead of just popping them and chucking away the waste the boys made small holes in them and inhaled the contents. Many silly giggles later they began singing the Smurf Song, Orville's "I Wish I could Fly" and then Staying Alive.

A few of the guys had to sit down for a while to recover because they felt exhausted. I guess it must be a reaction to the helium - lack of oxygen to the brain?

Singing songs which are already in silly high voices (Smurfs, Orville, Beegees...) seems a waste. I see more comedy value in the unexpected - songs which have a degree of gravitas which is completely punctured by the sheer silliness of the voice.

"Jerusalem" suggests itself...

Plus, if anyone can manage a reasonable karaoke rendition of "Nessun Dorma", that's gotta be worth try.

Come on, more, more! I may be in the presence of helium this time next week and I want a repertoire in place!

(of course, one of the advantages of singing with helium is that nobody can tell your normal singing voice is as flat as Kansas)

H.

'Land of my Fathers' might be a good one...

'Bat Out of Hell'?

'Goldfinger' perhaps....

'God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen' for a festive number...

'The Red Flag' - a shame that the conference season is over....

'Land of Hope and Glory' for a another patriotic pitch...

hmmm, as a victim of helium asphyxiation I can tell you first hand. Dont inhale to much.
When I was back at school we went on a trip to Alton Towers, it was Walkers of Golden Wonders 50th birthday, so there were helium balloons everywhere. Being young lads on a school trip, we spent half the day inhaling them. At one point I felt dizzy and had to sit down. I have no memory of the next 30 seconds, it all went dark. I was fine after this, but I've never inhaled as much since. Which is very tempting at work, because being a lab we have helium on tap to all fume cupboards. Which leads to the other classic of filling a latex glove with helium!!!

A817445

How about 'Ole Man River'

I knew I was right to whinge on about a warning.

I heard it through the grapevine - Marvin Gaye

REM's Everybody Hurts is cheered up an awful lot by helium treatment, as is the House of the Rising Sun

I think Fry and Laurie did a sketch with Fry playing the piano and Laurie singing "Hey Jude" while inhaling helium. Massively funny.

There is a song I sing a lot at the moment. I hold Hoovooloo personally responsible for this, as it all started from a link on his userpage: U114627 . The song is known as 'Elephants Yeah" - you can hear it here: http://www.rathergood.com/elephants/

It makes my baby daughter laugh and laugh, so I am reduced to singing it in the doctors waiting room , in the queue at Tescos and so on.

Surely helium could only add to the amusement value?

The reason that you don't feel that you are short of oxygen when you inhale helium is similar to the reason that you don't feel that you are short of oxygen when you inhale carbon monoxide. Actually it may be the same reason. What makes you feel like you have to breathe in fresh air is the build-up of carbon dioxide. CO2 does not build up in the same way if you are breathing in helium, so you don't feel short of air, you just keel over.

That said - '99 Red Baloons' seems appropriate, and 'Jumping Jack Flash, (it's a gas, gas, gas)'.



Freebird?

Deutschland Deutschland Uber Alles?

The God-save's gotta be a winner, surely.

The house of the rising sun, has to be great.

Down down deeper and down by the Quo too.

Do you have any Beechboys CDs Hoo? Not everyone does, and if you are in the presence of helium, it might be wise to take some reference material with you.

B

Oh, oh, oh.

Just about anything by The Doors!



B

Anything by the Bee Gees' and the verse: I'm feeling japanese, oh yes I'm feeling Japanese,I really think so......I am a blank,what is that song? (At the moment it is one of those weird tunes, out of the blue, in my head,where do they come from?)

I think you probably mean "Turning Japanese" by the Vapors.

Yep! That's it!Thank-you. I am so "feel--y" at the moment that makes some sort perfect sense ! ha ha .zzzzzzzzz. As you would see on my home page,I always get the words to songs wrong!(This info Still did not make the tune leave my head)

A817445 - is the Recc'd Entry on the topic, in case anyone does care about the whys

I was born under a Wandrin Star would be good.