Leslie | My favorite songs about POPCORN!!!

My favorite songs about POPCORN!!!
Anthony Leslie

Over the summer, I decided to have a popcorn-themed party at my apartment. There were yellow and white balloons, popcorn necklaces and tiaras, various popcorn-related snacks, guests dressed in yellow and white... But the best part was that I got to spin my favorite songs about POPCORN! all night long.

Here, in no particular order, are some of my favorites:

1) Hot Butter “Popcorn”
The classic of 1970s electronic music with joyous synthesizers mimicking the sound of kernels popping.

2) Eldridge Holmes “Pop Popcorn Children”
Funky popcorn dancing with very exciting drums and horns.

3) James Brown “Mother Popcorn”
Delicious popcorn from the Hardest Working Man in Show Business.

4) Laurel Aitken “Mr. Popcorn” and "Reggae Popcorn”
Two funky reggae popcorn treats.
“Some like it hot / I like it warm / So they call me / Mr. Popcorn!”

5) Ike & Tina Turner “Popcorn”
I love this one! Tina screams out—over a truly goobery synth—what she likes to put on her popcorn: butter, salt, bread, mustard, cheddar cheese, tomatoes, and ice cream (??)

6) Alvin Cash “Poppin’ Popcorn”
More highly physical popcorn funk, with invigorating vocals.

7) The Supremes “Buttered Popcorn”
One of the dirtier songs ever released on Motown, from a very young Supremes before Diana took the lead. Florence sings about how her boyfriend likes it “greasy and sticky and gooey and salty”...

8) Gino Washington “Doing the Popcorn”
Do the popcorn dance to this wild little popcorn freakout.

9) The Soul Generals “Gramma’s Funky Popcorn"
“Yeah Granny... you want me to go buy you some alcohol, see, so when I come back you gonna get down on the floor and do Gramma’s Funky Popcorn!”

10) Brainstorm “Popcorn”
Totally blazing disco-funk. The instructions are to pass the butter and “shake it till to you make it POP!”

11) Charlie Rich “Popcorn Polly”
Polly likes to eat 20 sacks of popcorn on the bus. This recording features some ridiculous sped-up vocals.

12) New Edition “Popcorn Love”
Ohhh this preteen soul-pop classic is ADORABLE! Popcorn love—morning, noon and night!

13) Kim Melvin “Doin’ the Popcorn”
Some hyperactive funk from Memphis with very tight popcorn drumming.

14) K.M.D. “Popcorn”
While popcorn is mentioned in several hip hop tracks, this is the only rap song I've heard with a prolonged popcorn theme. Popcorn, mama.

15) Andre Williams “Do the Popcorn”
“Eat it, baby”

16) Hank Ballard “Butter Your Popcorn”
I like it when Hank suggests you butter your popcorn in an alley or behind a tree. Naughty nonsense.

17) Jerry O “Popcorn Boo-Ga-Loo”
Another joyful, soulful funk track.

18) Doc Oliver “Soul Popcorn Pt. 1 & 2”
“Heat up the pot, and season it right... Salt and butter, eat what you got....” The band gets a pretty serious groove going on this one.

19) The Upsetters “Popcorn”
A funky instrumental, with popping bass and drums. Not to be confused with Lee “Scratch” Perry’s Upsetters.

20) The Castaways “Lavender Popcorn”
Popcorn makes it into the imagery of 60s psychedelia.

21) Jimbo Johnson & The Violators “Popcorn”
More highly energetic funk, made for doing the popcorn dance.

22) JC Davis “Buttered Popcorn”
This funk track simulates popcorn popping with randomly placed handclaps.

23) The Highlighters Band “Poppin’ Popcorn”
This instrumental gets the popcorn idea across convincingly with a spastic organ solo.

24) Freddie & The Kinfolk “Mashed Potato Popcorn”
It’s likely that the children screaming “mashed potato popcorn!!” on this track are referring to funky dance moves and not literal food items, but just try putting some popcorn in your mashed potatoes, with gravy on top—it is a delicious combination!

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