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Ramalama (Bang Bang) vs Rama Lama Ding Dong
Short version: two different songs, more than 40 years apart, sharing the same kind of fun nonsense syllables.
If you saw it on TikTok, you want “Ramalama (Bang Bang)” by Róisín Murphy. If you heard it on oldies radio or in a 1950s-style scene, you probably want “Rama Lama Ding Dong” by The Edsels.
| Ramalama (Bang Bang) | Rama Lama Ding Dong | |
|---|---|---|
| Artist | Róisín Murphy | The Edsels |
| Written by | Róisín Murphy, Matthew Herbert | George “Wydell” Jones Jr. |
| Released | Album: 13 June 2005 | 1958 (hit in 1961) |
| From | Album Ruby Blue | Single (Dub, then Twin Records) |
| Style | Album described as avant-pop and electronica | Doo-wop |
| Chart | Not a single | No. 21, Billboard Hot 100 |
| Famous for | TikTok costume-walk trend | Oldies, Muppets, football goal song |
Is one based on the other?
We found no source saying so. Both use the same sort of nonsense hook (a vocable), and the Edsels’ phrase became shorthand for doo-wop silliness, but that is not the same as Murphy’s song borrowing from it. Treat any claim otherwise as unsourced.
The third “Lama Ding Dong”: Animal House
If you remember a toga-party scene, that is “Shama Lama Ding Dong”, written by Mark Davis for the 1978 film National Lampoon’s Animal House and performed on screen by the fictional band Otis Day and the Knights. It is its own song, not the Edsels’ record.
Questions
Is Ramalama (Bang Bang) a cover of Rama Lama Ding Dong?
No source we checked says so. “Ramalama (Bang Bang)” is credited to Róisín Murphy and Matthew Herbert; “Rama Lama Ding Dong” was written by George Jones Jr. of The Edsels.
Which song is in the TikTok trend?
“Ramalama (Bang Bang)” by Róisín Murphy.
Is Shama Lama Ding Dong the same as Rama Lama Ding Dong?
No. “Shama Lama Ding Dong” was written by Mark Davis for the 1978 film Animal House and is a different song from the Edsels’ record.