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Whistle While You Work...

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We all like to walk around whistling our favourite tunes, but what about those songs that actually feature a bit of whistling in them? They're few and far between but when you take a closer look, it soon becomes apparent that a bit of whistling usually coincides with a major hit. Here are ten examples...

Don't Worry Be Happy

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Bobby McFerrin's 1988 ditty was the first a cappella song to reach number one on the Billboard charts. It also managed to win three grammys, too. Being a cappella, when it came to the solo whistling was the only option...

 

Wind of Change

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When German metal band Scorpions decided to go for a power ballad following a trip to Moscow in 1989, they decided to leave the guitar solos to one side for a change, opting for a bit of whistling instead. The song was a number one across Europe.

 

Sissyneck

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Throughout his career, Beck has been known for avant garde arrangements. Sissyneck is a track from 1996's Odelay album and its whistled intro is courtesy of legendary jazz pianist Dick Hyman.

 

Golden Years

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Not so much a whistling solo as a bit of background blowing from this 1975 David Bowie classic. But it helped make the song what it was so it still counts...

 

Two of Us

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A Lennon & McCartney effort from 1970, just as the Fab Four were heading towards decline. Originally thought to be Paul McCartney's ode to his bride to be, Linda, although Lennon later took credit for it. Who did the whistling goodness only knows...

 

Me and Julio Down by the Schoolyard

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A 1972 smash for folk uber lord, Paul Simon. Who Julio was and what he was doing hanging around with Paul in a playground has never been fully explained. But there is whistling in it, and in this case, that's all that matters.

 

Patience

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Axl Rose swaps the usual testosterone-fuelled cavorting for a nice little whistling the intro to this sensitive acoustic ballad from Guns 'N Roses. The song was written by the band's Izzy Stradlin and concerns the guitarist's main squeeze at the time.

 

(Sittin' on) the Dock of the Bay

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Arguably the greatest song ever committed to tape, and what better way for Otis Redding to conjure up an image of happily passing time and watching the world go by than with a spot of whistling. Recorded just before his death in 1967, the story goes that since there was no last verse written by the time of the first recording, Redding decided to whistle the outro that became part of his legacy.

 

Jealous Guy

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Another entry from Lennon that was later covered by Roxy music. Footage of Bryan Ferry performing the song live proves how hard pulling of an in-tune whistling solo can be. Take note!

 

Games Without Frontiers

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1980 hit for Peter Gabriel from his third self-titled album. The song also features Kate Bush on backing vocals, a singer he would later collaborate with on his 1987 smash, Don't Give Up. It is not thought she did the whistling though.

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