We've SUNG This Classic for YEARS...It's About What Now? | Professor of Rock

Overview

This episode is a “Professor of Rock” countdown of seven (mostly mainstream) rock-era songs that are funny without being parodies—mixing silly premises, accidental cultural impact, and a lot of deliberately deadpan performance.

The theme is laughter in a too-serious world: the host sets up a countdown where humor comes from weird lyrics, double entendres, or ironic sincerity.

Main Plot / Structure

• The host introduces the theme: laughter in a too-serious world, then counts down rock songs whose comedy comes from:
  • weird lyrics
  • double entendres
  • ironic sincerity
• Along the way, the host includes personal anecdotes—especially “I heard this as a kid and didn’t get it until later”—and explains how each song’s humor landed with audiences.

Highlights (Songs, Jokes, Key Reactions)

#7 — “She Don’t Use Jelly” (The Flaming Lips)

• Starts with a surreal “breakfast toast” premise: a woman uses Vaseline instead of jelly, plus other absurd images like:
  • magazines in her hair
  • tangerines while kissing
• The host stresses it was supposed to be a quick anomaly, almost filler—yet it became an unlikely hit.
• Comedy highlight: it’s “weird even by Flaming Lips standards,” including a story that the band briefly considered not including it.
• Cultural impact:
  • alternative radio/MTV helped spread it
  • an animated duo reaction (e.g., Beavis & Butt-Head) boosted attention
  • it also landed in a notable TV-performance moment; the host jokes it felt like “performance art” in a prime-time soap setting
• Heartwarming reaction segment: the host shares a listener story about a child who sings every word in the car, laughing.

#6 — “Rocking the Suburbs” (Ben Folds)

• Humor comes from ironic suburban “hardcore” posing—young white men treating middle-class life like oppression.
• The host frames it as smart mockery of early-2000s aggressive posturing, inspired by noticing “poser” rage in bands of that era.
• Comedy highlight: Ben performs the aggression on piano, amplifying the absurdity.
• Production/video detail: the video (directed by Weird Al) includes multiple character types—like screaming rockers and suburban dads.
• The joke later gets scaled into a kid-friendly remix in an animated movie.

#5 — “I Believe in a Thing Called Love” (The Darkness)

• It’s funny because it sounds like a serious 70s-style anthem—until you realize the band is overcommitted on purpose.
• Highlights:
  • Justin Hawkins’ exaggerated falsetto (“wink-at-you” energy)
  • ultra-theatrical glam visuals: spaceships, laser battles, moon poses, etc.
• Key reaction/joke theme: it’s not sneering satire; it’s celebration turned up to 11, so the earnestness loops back into humor.
• Charts and worldwide radio success are mentioned as proof that its “goofy” sound still landed huge.

#4 — “Flagpole Sitta” (Harvey Danger)

• Described as a snarky, self-aware manifesto for sarcastic outsiders—angst mixed with comedy.
• Why it’s funny:
  • the narrator’s intensity reads like a philosophy major having a panic attack
  • but it stays entertaining instead of grim
• Running joke: the clever/insulting lines reflect how modern life is absurd, and the song “screams” about it with wit.
• Fun fact reactions:
  • chart success
  • alt-radio staple status
  • even served as a Peep Show theme in the UK
• Ending reaction gag: the “voices in my head” line is framed as sounding like snoring, turning self-torment into something silly.

#3 — “Wet Dream” (Kip Addotta)

• The host tells a childhood story: hearing it early, not understanding it—then later realizing the punchline and laughing uncontrollably.
• Comedy mechanism: straight-faced aquatic puns with a deliberately risque title.
• Delivered like a noir detective story—except instead of crime, it’s seafood double entendres.
• Highlights:
  • names like Gil (“heart of herring”) and fish/Zodiac puns (including Aquarius)
  • a “battle with the hatock,” with escalating pun chaos
• The host notes it stayed effectively “PG-rated while suggestive,” praising how carefully it walks the line.

#2 — “Mellow Yellow” (Donovan)

• Core joke: listeners sing along thinking it’s druggy/psychedelic—then discover it rhymes with a nonsayable “female” term (the host dodges the explicit word and keeps it as a clue).
• Host explanation:
  • why radio DJs were wary in 1966
  • a rumored banana-pill psychedelic story—then a clarification that Donovan later said the “mellow yellow” phrase came from a magazine/newspaper ad name
• Myth-busting detail: the host corrects the rumor about Paul McCartney, saying the whispering was actually Donovan, not Paul.
• The irony: the song’s “counterculture rebellion” vibe was partly fueled by misunderstanding, even though the origin was mundane.

Honorable Mention (Before #1) — “Big Balls” (AC/DC)

• Mentioned as a childhood/right-of-passage giggle.
• The host points to the gender-bending lyric line (“he’s got big balls and she’s got big balls”), framing it as jokes boys learned to share and repeat.

#1 — “Big Bottom” (Spinal Tap)

• Named the funniest “non-parody” pick: it’s from the mockumentary world, but it still stands alone as comedy-rock.
• The big joke: a sex/excess fantasy delivered with total musical seriousness—the band treats absurd lust and “big bottom” imagery like legitimate hard rock.
• Musical gag highlight: it uses three bass guitars to create a ridiculous, heavy low-end effect; the host praises the “thick yet absurd” sound.
• Meta-comedy: the mock “behind the scenes” confidence makes it funnier—the deadpan musicianship sells the ridiculous premise.
• Crowd-pleaser moment: Spinal Tap performed it live for years and even brought extra audience bass players to recreate the triple-bass setup.

Tone and Recurring Comedic Style

• The humor is repeatedly framed as coming from deadpan sincerity + absurd subject matter, not from “obvious comedy bands.”
• The host often adds:
  • “You didn’t get it as a kid” reaction stories
  • explanations of irony and subtext
  • small myth-busting facts (e.g., the banana pills rumor; the Paul McCartney whispering claim)

Personalities Appearing (As Stated / Referenced)

• Professor of Rock (host)
• Wayne Coyne (The Flaming Lips)
• Ben Folds
• Justin Hawkins (The Darkness)
• Shawn Nelson (Harvey Danger)
• Kip Adotta
• Donovan
• Spinal Tap characters/cast: Christopher Guest, Harry Shearer, Michael McKean
• Weird Al Yankovic (referenced as director for the “Rocking the Suburbs” video)
• Beavis & Butt-Head (referenced via reaction content)