Using an interactive game, researchers gathered details on what cements songs in the mind of the listener long-term, tallying stats from over 12,000 folks. The game played clips of tracks randomly selected from the best-selling tunes spanning the 1940s to today. Based on the amount of time it took to identify the song, researchers compiled the list of the 20 catchiest of all time, with the aforementioned selection taking an average of 2.29 to recognize. Number 2? Why that's Lou Bega's "Mambo No. 5," and the most recent song is Lady Gaga's "Just Dance," coming in fourth.
- Spice Girls: Wannabe
- Lou Bega: Mambo No 5
- Survivor: Eye of the Tiger
- Lady Gaga: Just Dance
- ABBA: SOS
- Roy Orbison: Pretty Woman
- Michael Jackson: Beat It
- Whitney Houston: I Will Always Love You
- The Human League: Don't You Want Me
- Aerosmith: I Don't Want to Miss a Thing
- Lady Gaga: Poker Face
- Hanson: MMMbop
- Elvis Presley: It's Now Or Never
- Bachman-Turner Overdrive: You Ain't Seen Nothin' Yet
- Michael Jackson: Billie Jean
- Culture Club: Karma Chameleon
- Britney Spears: Baby One More Time
- Elvis Presley: Devil in Disguise
- Boney M: Rivers of Babylon
- Elton John: Candle in the Wind