Hello 90s kids. This one is for you, our top picks for songs from the 90s that have 20-second choruses you can sing as you wash your hands.
Why? To contain the Corona Outbreak the official policy is to wash your hands for at least 20 seconds. This is what the World Health Organisation is recommending to every person but they were concerned not everyone had the ability to count out 20 seconds, so they suggest singing the Happy Birthday song twice over as a means of a timer and that would estimate about 20 seconds for you.
We appreciate all the hard work the WHO team is doing to look out for all of our health and well-being. If you are anything like us though, singing the Happy Birthday song seems a bit uninspired, so we've been on the hunt for more choruses that do the job. We've been doing it by decade, so it's easier for our readers to find the songs they are likely to know off by heart.
Here is our selection from the 90s, and we're not gonna lie it's a bit bleak. Good songs, but bleak. Which if you are a 90s kid, you already know this information. We tried so hard to find happy, upbeat, maybe even family-friendly (lol) songs with 20-second choruses, but that's just not what the 90s were like. It was more like not very subtle innuendo and depressing lyrics about being a loser or a creep or in the need of entertainment.
If you've been asked to self-isolate and you have not left your house in lots of days, maybe for your own well-being, pick another decade to get lyrics to count out the 20 seconds required for washing your hands. Might we suggest the 70s as a more of a happy-angst option? Only trying to look out for your well-being as well as, y'know, the health of the human race.
Let's Dive In
Oasis – Wonderwall
And all the roads we have to walk are winding
And all the lights that lead us there are blinding
There are many things that I would like to say to you
But I don't know how
Because maybe you're gonna be the one that saves me
And after all you're my wonderwall
Christina Aguilera – Genie in a Bottle
If you wanna be with me, baby, there's a price to pay
I'm a genie in a bottle (In a bottle, baby)
You gotta rub me the right way
If you wanna be with me, I can make your wish come true
You gotta make a big impression (Oh yeah), I gotta like what you do
Common People – Pulp
I wanna live like common people
I wanna do whatever common people do
Wanna sleep with common people
I wanna sleep with common people
Like you
What else could I do
I said "I'll see what I can do"
Natalie Imbruglia – Torn
Nothing's fine, I'm torn
I'm all out of faith
This is how I feel
I'm cold and I am shamed
Lying naked on the floor
Illusion never changed
Into something real
I'm wide awake and I can see
The perfect sky is torn
You're a little late
I'm already torn
Smells Like Teen Spirit – Nirvana
With the lights out, it's less dangerous
Here we are now, entertain us
I feel stupid and contagious
Here we are now, entertain us
A mulatto, an albino, a mosquito, my libido
Yeah, hey
Robbie Williams – Angels
And through it all, she offers me protection
A lot of love and affection, whether I'm right or wrong
And down the waterfall, wherever it may take me
I know that life won't break me
When I come to call, she won't forsake me
I'm loving angels instead
Barbie Girl – Aqua
I'm a Barbie girl, in the Barbie world
Life in plastic, it's fantastic
You can brush my hair, undress me everywhere
Imagination, life is your creation
Come on Barbie, let's go party
Ah, ah, ah, yeah
Come on Barbie, let's go party
Ooh, ooh
Who knew that that line from Beck's Loser does not say "soooo, walking out the door" but is apparently 'I'm a Loser' in Spanish? Who can blame him though for making the message of this joyful piece resonate with an international audience. It was the 90s after all.
Soy un perdedor
I'm a loser, baby, so why don't you kill me?
(Double barrel buckshot)
Soy un perdedor
I'm a loser, baby, so why don't you kill me?
You knew it was coming. The most iconic if perhaps the least cheery chorus of the 90s, specifically requested by the joyful 90s kids on our team, so it must be included.
Radiohead – Creep
You float like a feather
In a beautiful world
I wish I was special
You're so fuckin' special
But I'm a creep, I'm a weirdo
What the hell am I doing here?
I don't belong here
Why stop at Creep? Here's one more depressing song you can hum to yourself, as you're washing your hands, in solitude. Not thinking about you know, how much space was on that door, or you know, the fate of the human race.
My Heart Will Go On – Celine Dion (Titanic Soundtrack)
Near, far, wherever you are
I believe that the heart does go on
Once more you open the door
And you're here in my heart
And my heart will go on and on
And finally, what's more depressing than a 16-year-old asking to be hit, just the one more time. A perfect way to conclude the 90s. Hopefully, the 00s will bring us back to that perky fun we had in the 80s.
Britney Spears - Baby One More Time
My loneliness is killing me (And I)
I must confess I still believe (Still believe)
When I'm not with you, I lose my mind
Give me a sign
Hit me baby one more time
