Song Lyric Sunday – Can’t Get You Out Of My Head

This week’s Song Lyric Sunday prompts are Head, Hat, Hair and Scarf suggested by our friend Paula of Light Motifs II, The first song I thought of was “Can’t Get You Out Of My Head” by Kylie Minogue. It does tend to stay with you, so be warned! I’ve been singing it all day!

The Song

True to the title, this is a song you can’t get out of your head. It’s sometimes known as “The La La Song” because the chorus is Kylie singing “La, la, la, la, la, la, la, la” over and over, which combined with the irresistible groove makes it an effective earworm. The song even starts with that chorus.

The verses are an afterthought on this one, there to support the music. The lyric finds Minogue crazy in love, hoping she can spend a lifetime with this lucky guy.

This was written by Cathy Dennis and former Mud guitarist Rob Davis. Dennis had a few hits as a solo artist in the early ’90s, including “Just Another Dream” and “Too Many Walls.” Regarding “Can’t Get You Out Of My Head,” she told Songwriting magazine: “It was organic, we didn’t try and do anything contrived, so when something did spark we were both able to embrace it and jump on it and go with it. I thought the song is very ‘left of center’ for pop.”

Cathy Dennis and Rob Davis originally wrote this for S Club 7 after their manager, Simon Fuller, asked the duo to come up with a song for the British pop group. After Fuller heard the demo, he felt it wasn’t right for S Club 7 and rejected it. It was then offered to Sophie Ellis-Bextor, but she turned it down. Davis then met with Minogue’s A&R executive Jamie Nelson who, after hearing the demo cassette of the song, booked it for Minogue to record.

For most Americans, this was the first they heard from Minogue since 1988, when her cover of “The Loco-Motion” hit #3. She became an international sensation that year, but in the ’90s her support was concentrated in the UK and in her home country of Australia. “Can’t Get You Out Of My Head” put her back on the charts in many more territories.

This song fits into the disco revival timeline, bringing the boogie back in the ’00s after Madonna, Daft Punk and Jamiroquai flew the flag in the late ’90s. Minogue stuck to the sound and had a number of Dance hits in America as disco crested again in the ’10s. Her 2020 was even titled Disco.

The year before this was released, Minogue played the Green Fairy in the movie Moulin Rouge. In Australia, she’s a huge celebrity thanks to her role on the soap opera Neighbours and her high-profile romance with INXS lead singer Michael Hutchence.

In the UK, this song was huge, staying in the Top 40 for five months. This song’s first week on the UK chart was Kylie’s personal 262nd week on chart, making her the most successful chart act not from the US or UK. “Can’t Get You Out Of My Head” is her biggest seller in the UK, selling 1,037,235 copies. It was the biggest single and the most played song of 2001 there (it was aired 45,577 times on UK radio).

At the 2002 Brit Awards, Kylie performed a version of this to the beat of “Blue Monday” by New Order. This remix was released as the B-side of her 2002 hit “Love At First Sight.”
The song was accompanied by a state-of-the-art video directed by Dawn Shadforth, who had Kylie dressed in various futuristic fashions on a virtual set. The look evoked the ’60s sci-fi renditions of Utopia.

This was the most-played tune of the 2000s in the UK, according to PRS for Music, which collects royalties on behalf of songwriters and composers. The track received the most airplay and live covers in the first decade of the 21st century whilst Britney Spears’ single “Toxic” was the second most played song. The same songwriter, Cathy Dennis, penned both tunes.

The Lyrics

La, la, la, la, la, la, la, la
La, la, la, la, la, la, la, la
La, la, la, la, la, la, la, la
La, la, la, la, la, la, la, la

I just can't get you out of my head
Boy, your lovin' is all I think about
I just can't get you out of my head
Boy, its more than I dare to think about

La, la, la, la, la, la, la, la
La, la, la, la, la, la, la, la

I just can't get you out of my head
Boy, your lovin' is all I think about
I just can't get you out of my head
Boy, its more than I dare to think about

Every night
Every day
Just to be there in your arms
Won't you stay
Won't you stay
Stay forever and ever and ever ah ah

La, la, la, la, la, la, la, la
La, la, la, la, la, la, la, la
La, la, la, la, la, la, la, la
La, la, la, la, la, la, la, la

I just can't get you out of my head
Boy, your lovin' is all I think about
I just can't get you out of my head
Boy, its more than I dare to think about

There's a dark secret in me
Don't leave me lost in your arms
Set me free
Feel the need in me
Set me free
Stay forever and ever and ever ah ah

La, la, la, la, la, la, la, la
La, la, la, la, la, la, la, la
La, la, la, la, la, la, la, la
La, la, la, la, la, la, la, la

I just can't get you out of my head (La,la,la La,la,la,la,la)

Songwriters: Cathy Dennis / Robert Berkeley Davis
Can't Get You Out of My Head lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC,
Universal Music Publishing Group

Courtesy of Songfacts