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Coffee Break

9:30 Coffee Break: Incomprehensible Lyrics

by Jill Riley and Sean McPherson

April 29, 2015

Coffee Break_Old
What songs do you want to hear for today's coffee break?
MPR Graphic / Tracy Kompelien

There was some sad news in the music world late yesterday when it was announced Jack Ely, the lead singer of the Kingsmen, passed away at home in Redmond, Ore., at the age of 71. The Kingsmen were best known for their 1960s hit, "Louie, Louie," which we featured on Random Vinyl earlier this morning.

Intertwined in the lore of "Louie, Louie" are its difficult-to-understand lyrics. Jack Ely's singing led to an FBI investigation into the track on the grounds its words may be obscene. The FBI's lengthy report ultimately concluded the song was "unintelligible at any speed."

But let's be fair to "Louie, Louie" — there are a lot of songs out there that have lyrics that are hard to understand. We're not talking about misheard lyrics — we're talking about words that are simply difficult to decipher.

So let's dedicate today's 9:30 Coffee Break to Jack Ely and "Louie, Louie." What songs with incomprehensible lyrics do you want to hear? Send us your requests.

Songs Played


Pearl Jam "Evenflow"
Alt-J "Breezeblocks"
Sigur Rós "Gobbledigook"
Radiohead "Lotus Flower"
Cocteau Twins "Heaven or Las Vegas"