Nobody likes to sit drinking in silence. Instead, people like to go to bars, a friend’s house, or other social settings and enjoy music–preferably drinking songs!
Here is a list of some of the best drinking songs across several genres of popular music.
Mr. Siegal
By Tom Waits
In this jazzy number from 1980’s “Heart Attack And Vine,” Waits tinkles along on the piano and sings as only he can, sounding like he gargles each morning with tequila and carpet tacks. It’s perfect for that moment when you jam your earbuds into your ears and stagger outside to get a cab.
Brass Monkey
By Beastie Boys
This 1986 party song is about a cocktail of dark rum, vodka and orange juice. The three New York rappers extoll the virtues of their drink of choice, saying, “We’re offered Moet, we don’t mind Chivas, but wherever we go, we bring the Monkey with us.”
Whiskey In The Jar
By Thin Lizzy
Although it is a traditional Irish drinking song dating back over 300 years, and although it has been covered by many artists, the Thin Lizzy version perfectly captures the melancholy of drinking to forget the treachery of a lost lover.
One Mint Julep
By The Clovers
One of the first drinking songs ever to chart, this 1952 R&B number has style, humor, and an amazing sax solo. The singer asks you to heed his cautionary tale of “drinking whisky” and then “gettin’ frisky.” If it had existed then, he’d probably also advise you to try Sobur Hangover Cure.
Bank Holiday
By Blur
You don’t need any specific holiday to get trashed. You just need to have the day off work. England has bank holiday six days a year, but you can blast this party song and open a six pack pretty much whenever.
En Cielo No Hay Cerveza
By Flaco Jimenez
This song has been recorded in several languages. The English title is, “In Heaven, There Is No Beer.” When Flaco tells you to drink up now while you still can, he sounds like he really means it.
Born Slippy
By Underworld
The beauty of this 90’s rave anthem is how its structure follows that of a night out on the town. It begins mellow enough, but anticipation soon builds to shouts for lager, and the whole thing eventually topples over into a beautiful, boozy heap.
Beer For Breakfast
By The Replacements
The world needs a danceable, singalong-friendly song about the necessary evil of cracking a beer to counteract all the ones you had last night. Luckily, The Replacements saw this need and met it. Don’t try making sense of the lyrics, or you’ll need a beer for that, too.
I Gotta Get Drunk
By Willie Nelson
This one is short but sweet, and it raises a valid point: “There’s more old drunks than there are old doctors, so I guess we better have another round.”
Between The Bars
By Elliott Smith
Need a song to remind you why you’re drinking? This gorgeous, spare track is it. Smith sings about “people you’ve been before that you don’t want around anymore” and “the potential you’ll be that you’ll never see.” Drunk songs don’t come better than this.
Friends In Low Places
By Garth Brooks
Sometimes you drink to remember. Sometimes you drink to forget. Sometimes you’re not sure why you’re drinking, but it has to do with your ex, so you crash a party and make a fool of yourself. Garth knows all about it.
Too Drunk To Fuck
By Nouvelle Vague
This jazzed-up version of the Dead Kennedys classic is just plain fun. If you can still stand, you’ll likely find yourself dancing before it ends.
Gin And Juice
By Snoop Doggy Dogg
Is your mind on your money? Is your money on your mind? Do you enjoy marijuana and causal misogyny with your alcohol? If so, this one is for you.
Gin House Blues
By Nina Simone
There are over a dozen versions of this song, but Simone’s is the best. She sings, “If this joint is raided, somebody get me my gin.” It doesn’t take an amazing voice to get your priorities straight, but it helps.
Southern Heart
By The Walkmen
This mournful tune is for the sad drunks out there. It’s for all the people who cry instead of laugh or start swinging when somebody gets sloppy, climbs onto the bar, starts dancing, and knocks over everybody’s drinks. You know who you are.
Sober
By Erin and Her Cello
Don’t let the title fool you. This highly-danceable song is about unconditional love, and also booze. Lots and lots of booze.
Ohm
By Yo La Tengo
“Sometimes the bad guys come out on top,” mourns Yo La Tengo. “It hurts the head to drink,” but that doesn’t mean you won’t order another as you sway to the beat on your barstool.
Dixie Cups And Jars
By Waxahatchee
Forget champagne flutes and fancy beer glasses. A few seconds of the seething guitar on this track will make you understand what the lyrics (and song title) are telling you.
Closing Time
By Semisonic
Spend a couple hours drinking and try not to sing along to the chorus. Just try. You will fail. Bonus: now you have an excuse to stay until closing time.
Drink!
By They Might Be Giants
Cigarettes, pinatas, parades, and pool cues–this song has it all. It bears the distinction of being a rare party song that is also a waltz.
Stop Me If You Think You’ve Heard This One Before
By The Smiths
This 80’s classic deserves an award for clever lyrics, containing both gems like, “The pain was enough to make a shy, bald buddhist reflect and plan a mass-murder” and plain-faced truths such as, “I drank one, or was it four, and when I fell on the floor, I drank more.”
No matter what you listen to while you drink, remember to designate a driver or call a cab! Don’t forget your Sobur hangover cure pills in the morning to banish that dreaded hangover and crush the next day.
Update: We compiled all of these songs into a playlist on the Sobur Youtube channel, so you can listen uninterrupted while getting drunk! You’re welcome.
Drinking Songs Playlist
Have You Heard About The “Miracle Hangover Cure” that Wired magazine, New Scientist and the NY Post are all talking about?
It’s called Dihydromyricetin and it will change the way you consume alcohol for ever! Sobur, our hangover cure supplement, uses dihydromyricetin (read more about Dihydromyricetin here) as our key ingredient, along with several other essential ingredients that replenish & restore key vitamins and minerals the body looses when you drink alcohol.