Clue: DolourQ: Name a classic song with a two-word title. Drop the first letter. Add an R after the new first letter. The result will be the names of two countries one after the other. What song is this?
Sunday, May 31, 2026
NPR Sunday Puzzle (May 31, 2026): Song Title: Two Words, Two Countries
NPR Sunday Puzzle (May 31, 2026): Song Title: Two Words, Two Countries
26 comments:
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The first line of the song is a lie. Rearrange the letters of the song to get two foods, one good, the other maybe not quite so.
ReplyDeleteI was standing on my porch one day when a couple of young people walked by and asked me to settle the argument they were having about the first line of this song. When I checked the answer I gave them, I found out I was wrong. I still find it problematic.
DeleteI'm looking forward to Thursday to find out what y'all mean.
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DeletePaul, that experience has real properties for a novel.
DeleteRearrange the letters of the countries. You get a word related to another country.
ReplyDeleteJust a personal note: The artist and I share a birth year.
ReplyDeleteSpeaking of personal notes, it’s 1999 redux. The last NBA Finals game I attended (with the wife and kids) was Game 1 in 1999 in San Antonio, when the Knicks played the Spurs. I hope the outcome of this series is different. Go, Knicks!
I also grew up a Knicks fan.
DeleteIt's been a long time since the Knicks have appeared in a finals, but a really long time since they've won one!
When I was in college, I met the daughter of the owner of the Knicks, who was a classmate and graciously offered tickets to two of the 1970 Conference Finals against the Bucks (when Jabbar was still Alcindor) and two of the Finals against the Lakers. Great memories!
DeleteOh wow. That was Alcindor/Jabbar's rookie year. Willis Reed had to curtail him, and then Wilt!
DeleteI was not yet in college and definitely did see the games live, but I remember vividly when the injured Reed returned for game seven...
Great memories and, by the way, great seats, center court two or three rows behind the press table. I had never been to the Garden before and was a stranger in a strange land. An usher approached me and my group when I first arrived, wide-eyed and mouth agape, and asked--not "May I help you?" but--"Are you sure you're in the right section?" I silently handed him our tickets, still wide-eyed and mouth agape, and he said, "This way, sir." Those playoffs will forever remain, to me, unforgettable.
DeleteAs a Lakers fan, that last game featuring Reed's heroic appearance still rankles a little. That was back when we were the perpetually disappointed fan base and it looked as if Jerry and Elgin would never get a ring. The only consolation (but only cold comfort) was that it wasn't the Celtics torturing us that time.
DeleteMeanwhile this puzzle reminds me of a Thelonious Monk number.
I don't get any of the clues so far (except for Jan's in the previous thread), but I'm quite sure I have the intended answer. Here is my clue:
ReplyDelete𐌠 𐌡 𐌢 𐌣
Drop the last letter of the singer to get what sounds like part of another classic song title.
ReplyDeleteOk, here’s a hint: Remove the first letter of the second country’s name, rearrange a bit, and get the name of an Academy Award-winning film.
ReplyDeleteRemove the first letter of the second country's name and replace a letter in the first country's name with that letter to get a non-academy award-winning movie.
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DeleteI had a hard time with Dr. K's hint until I realized that the first country is also involved in the rearrangement.
DeleteMy apologies, Lancek (and anyone else having trouble). I should have specified that you need to rearrange both countries’ names minus that one letter.
DeleteCongrats to Mike Reiss for another entertaining puzzle! I doubt the successful entries will approach 2,000 again this week, but 1,000 is a possibility.
ReplyDeleteBy the way, I'm glad the on-air player was a Chicagoan. For me (and I know for a lot of Blainesvillains), the words do not start with the same syllable!
ReplyDeleteThe singer is mentioned in the Epstein files, but only in reference to a concert. It's unlikely that he had his feet massaged aboard the Lolita express, like Mike Reiss's boss.
ReplyDeleteThe second verse of the song has a somewhat unique property. By the way, I initially thought of a different two word song title that shares the same second word but that one didn’t work out :)
ReplyDeletePlease don't try to solve this puzzle while driving. Go Knicks! I saw them win Game 3 in Cleveland.
ReplyDeleteTimely!
ReplyDeleteIt was a little jarring to hear that over 2,000 folks got the correct answer to last week’s puzzle. It was pretty easy, but not _that_ easy.
ReplyDelete